As my quest to try and improve my mixing chops continues I decided to pull another old track I wrote back in 2013 along with a couple of good buddies off the shelf for a bit of a revisit.
And again, listening back to my productions from the time period it’s still amazing, and equally embarrassing to hear how terribly shit I was.
I guess one positive is seeing a definite improvement over that 10 year period.
Completely re-programmed the drums as well as a few little guitar parts here and there.
Wouldn’t say I’m completely happy with the mix as it stands but i think it’s a fairly good start.
It’s quite a long-winded track, coming in at 6 minutes and 40 and feels like a bit of trimming, and fine-tuning to the arrangement could also be beneficial.
Most definitely open to suggestions, feedback and criticisms on both the mix and the arrangement.
Cheers.
Angel Cry - 2013 Snippet
So after more trimming and editing I’ve managed to cut 1:20 off the track from the original iteration, giving a final runtime of 5:00, down from an epic 6:40. Still a very long track, i know, but it’s a s concise as I can get it whilst still conveying everything that needs to be said.
I’ve also gone and laid down a new bass guitar track, the original just wasn’t working for me, and I think it’s a definite improvement.
I may possibly have this professionally mastered yet, but as far as the mix and production goes I don’t think there’s much more I can do.
I’m pretty happy with where I’ve ended up to be honest. That’s a wrap.
Very cool. Your voice is very good in this. Loved the soft fx on that axe. You sound so "foreigner"in a good way. I wish I could get that power from my guitars/amps etc.
There are many places to breathe in this “very long” track that is my fav of it all.
I have to be nosey and ask, do you feel , ten years later, you can still perform like that? ha ha
This should have been on the radio back then. congrats Terry
Hey thanks for the feedback Paul, much appreciated. Firstly that’s not me singing, I only wish I had a voice that good. That’s my good buddy and long-time collaborator Jones Nelson [see vid] from Muscle Shoals. I wrote the music, then threw the track his way and he wrote and laid down his vocal parts.
It IS a very long track you’re right, and I just can’t seem to find anywhere else to make cuts in order to bring the length down. I just wonder, does it seem to drag on too much and start feeling boring to the listener? It’s hard for me to tell in that regard.
I’m going to go out ob a limb and guess, when you say ‘still perform like that’ you’re referencing the vocal performance. And I know for a fact Jonzey is still writing and singing better than ever, so yeah, he’d have no problems performing this today.
Yeah it should have been haha, too bad it was let down by poor production at the time, which unfortunately left it sounding very amateur.
Thankyou Rene, I really appreciate that, and am glad to hear you say that in regard to the vocal, I focused a lot of attention trying to get the vocal clear and up-front.
Thanks brother.
I didn’t quite get a Foreigner vibe, but there are elements that call back to that era for sure. My ‘standard’ for a Foreigner vibe is “Juke Box Hero” which is great song. This song is longer than most of those Pop/Rock songs though. However, the vocal does kind of remind me of Foreigner (Lou Gramm) in some ways.
