LO3: Developing Track 3

Listen to the original demo HERE.
I planned to collaborate with two other people in Track 3: a vocalist and a guitarist. The track structure of the song is purely linear, moving on from one part to another with no part being the same as any other before it. This linear writing style is similar to the works of Makeup and Vanity Set and the structures of my other tracks. I wrote the vocals using an idea I’ve heard in Redbone’s ‘Come and Get Your Love‘. Similar to that song, I wanted to make use of the call and response technique, having the call and response parts played by different vocalists. James Jolly provided me with the call parts. I sung the backing responses. As preparation, I sent James the lyrics and some rough recordings of myself singing the song a week before the recording session so that he’d know what he was going to do once he was in the studio. I also made sure we prepared ourselves using some of the techniques I learned in Production Post 9 so that we’d give our best performances.

Like most power ballads, I wanted a guitar solo to take place within my song. And so, I got guitarist Joe Dickinson to help me out. I sat with him and together we wrote a few ideas for the solo part. I told him I wanted a build-up to the solo that was similar to that in Fleetwood Mac’s ‘The Chain‘. The actual solo was written through improvisation, however, I told Joe that I wanted the playing style similar to that of Van Halen. As a result, we created an interesting section with a dive-bomb and a quick scale climb.

I mixed the guitar with Van Halen’s ‘Panama‘ and Chicago’s ‘Love Me Tomorrow‘ as references. I panned the guitar slightly to the left and added delay to add depth and utilize the stereo space. I also automated the delay so that it became more prominent at the end of the solo.

Listen to the latest version of Track 3 HERE.

To finish the track, I’m going to need to improve the ending. Perhaps a sound effect or a fading-out synth would be a good way to end the song.

References

‘Love Me Tomorrow‘ by Chicago

‘Panama‘ by Van Halen

‘The Chain‘ by Fleetwood Mac

LO4: Vocal Preparation

I’m adamant to use my own vocals within my work. I’m not a singer but with some preparation, I’m confident I can pull off a good performance (or one that’s at least worthy of being mixed). With all my song lyrics written, and a studio and Rode NT1-A condenser microphone at hand, I had to prepare myself for some singing.

I found one site that gave a few tips on how to prepare for singing (Music Creations, 2015). Although they were mainly for live auditions, there was still some useful information. For example, it’s important to know what you’re going to sing in order to get a good smooth performance. With this, I made sure to practice singing my music for a coupe days before the recording session. I also found that it was important to be in good health. Of course, it would be difficult to sing with the flu, however, even little things like body low temperature and dehydration can affect a vocalist’s performance. Warmth will allow your vocal muscles to stretch more freely

On the subjecting of stretching vocal muscles, I learned that vocal exercises should be carried out before singing, similar to how you’d stretch your arms and legs before a workout. And so, I searched online for some vocal exercises (WikiHow, 2017). Some exercises include deep breathing, to help utilise your diaphragm; singing solfège, to help keep in tune with scales; and performing trills, to release any tension within your lips and tongue

References

Music Creations (2015) 20 tips for singing auditions. Available from: https://www.musical-creations.com/tips/auditioning/20-tips-prepare-singing-audition/

WikiHow (2017) How to Warm up Your Voice. Available from: https://www.wikihow.com/Warm-up-Your-Voice

LO3: Developing Track 4

I plan to make Track 4 an instrumental song. My main inspirations for this song include the works of Makeup and Vanity Set – mainly focussing on the song ‘Eidolon‘. I broke it down to see what elements I could use for my song.

Point 1 – It’s very progressive. Melodies loop throughout while other musical ideas/instruments are added or taken away.

Point 2 – Automation is also used to create a sense of progression throughout the song.

Point 3 – Drum selections are constantly changing. Throughout the song, cymbals and other percussive instruments are constantly being added, layered or taken away. I don’t think this was done for the purpose of mixing and level-balancing. Rather, it was more a musical/writing choice than a technical one.

My first demo for Track 4 (can be heard HERE) was just a simple loop and drum beat. Although I wanted to keep the melody, I realised that the drum beat would have to be completely rewritten if this song was to resemble anything by Makeup and Vanity Set.

I made a simple 1/4 drum pattern and looped the drums and melody a few times. I then started brainstorming ways I could make these loops progress into something. With point 3 in mind, I first began introducing cymbals to the drum loops. Next, I added some more synthesisers. One played chords in the background. The other added height, as researched in Production Post 7, by introducing a high-pitched volume-automated riff. It was an idea I picked up from Makeup and Vanity’s song ‘It’s Our Rules Now‘. It really contrasted with the other instruments in terms of frequency range. With the song reaching a musical peak, I decided it should switch to a minimalist section. I added a bridge that removed the high-pitched riff via a downwards automation in pitch, giving the impression that it was slowing down (like a vinyl record effect). Only the lead synth, drums and bass are present in this minimalist section However, I kept it interesting via changes in EQ automation on the bass line.

I ended the song by further progressing what had been developed in the peak of the introduction section; And so the chords and high pitched riff were all re-introduced. To progress the final section, I wrote a more complex bass line for the song to finish on.

I took another idea from ‘Eidolon‘ and made some final adjustments to the drums by subtlety layering cymbals above the kick drums. They can be heard whenever the background chords are playing. I also added some width, as researched in Production Post 2, by splitting the notes of the background chords into individual tracks and panning them to different speakers. One note was automated in pitch and pan to create a howl-like sound.

Listen to the development of Track 4 HERE.

References

‘Eidolon‘ and ‘It’s Our Rules Now‘ by Makeup and Vanity Set

LO1: Creating ‘Space’ Within My Mixes – Height

Having a variety of frequencies and dynamics in your mixes can create a lot of interest. Varying frequencies can also help make instruments distinguishable. For example, vocals might be difficult to hear if other instruments are playing within a similar frequency range to them. However, frequency can also be interpreted as height. As a result, using various frequencies within your mix could also create various ‘heights’ within your sonic space.

Some think that this could be because of the structure of most speakers, with woofers being placed below the tweeters (The Pro Audio Files, 2013). Psychoacoustics, the study of sound perception (The Power of Sound, no date), could also hold some possible answers as to why we perceive sonic frequency on a vertical scale, some being psychological and others physiological. Either way, by using a range of harmonics, I can make my mixes sound ‘tall’. To do this, I must carefully choose instruments and synthesisers that contrast with each other. If they don’t contrast enough then I can separate them via changes in EQ settings.

LO1: Creating Space Within My Mixes – Depth

Depth can be created within mixes by mirroring the ways in which depth is heard all around us. Since lower frequencies can travel further than higher frequencies, cutting off higher frequencies with an EQ plugin can help make a sound seem far. Volume can also be used to create depth as louder instruments can be perceived as being closer than quieter ones. Reverb can also be added to create echo-like effects. However, you must be very careful when using reverb as too much can cause many problems (EnvatoTuts+, 2014).

Using reverb on multiple tracks will layer the reverb effects and swamp the entire mix. It could also overwork your computers processor. Instead, it’s best to create a separate reverb track and then route your instruments into it.

References

EnvatoTuts+ (2014) How to Creatively Use Multiple Reverbs in One Mix. Available from: https://music.tutsplus.com/tutorials/how-to-creatively-use-multiple-reverbs-in-one-mix–cms-19841

The Power of Sound (no date) Psychoacoustics, defined. Available from: http://thepowerofsound.net/psychoacoustics-defined/

The Pro Audio Files (2013). How to Create Width, Height and Depth in a Mix. Available from: https://theproaudiofiles.com/width-height-depth-in-a-mix/