mark skinner

Increadable mix and vibe! This takes me back to when about the Only thing I listened to was killer jazz bands and solo jazz guitarists. Top notch production . Loved it .. mark

Great playing ! Loving the drum track. Got to go now , getting hungry.. Loved it .. mark

Very Nice immersive piano. I do think the bass needs some highs to get it in the same room. Loved the drums .. Enjoyed it .. mark

Make sure you have internet access. Open Cakewalk and click "help" at the top of the screen. Log into Bandlab and close. I moved my DAW pc to my house last night to reactivate. (no internet where my studio is) Opened Cakewalk and immediately got a splash screen to log into Bandlab. Looked around a little in Bandlab then closed it. Thats all it takes to reactivate CbB. ms (there are 3 other threads on This Page about activating CbB)

Sounding Good Gary. I am hearing some excessive highs , especially on the vocals. Seemed to be present also early in the mix with the "sticks". I hear what you think is a timing problem as well. I think it could be helped some with the highs reduced. It seems to be in a 'S' section. There is also a pop thats coming in near the end of the guitar solo. It would be nice if Bandlab had a readable timeline as the song played. It sure would be easier to pinpoint exact times in a song for reference. Enjoying the journey .. mark

Fantastic production ! There's so much feeling in this one , you had me swaying on the couch in about 3 seconds. Absolutely Loved it .. mark

Nio , I like the energy and the timing changes in this. Guitar playing was Nice as well. If you could widen the mix a little without causing problems , I think it would improve the mix a little. Enjoyed it .. mark

@jack c. , Thanks Jack. There were a lot of changes to get it to this point . @treesha , Thanks for the suggestions. I went in and rolled some highs off and did some automation on the cellos to smooth out some of the spots. It Really needed it. May address it again .Sometimes I'm a little too conservitive with EQ. @Bajan Blue , Appreciate the comment. I'll probably try that percussion again sometime using a different guitar. @garybrun , The 3d comment is probably the best I could recieve. ☺️ I've been striving for it for quite a while but never seemed to get there. When I started deleting tracks , it started opening up. Lesson learned.. @DeeringAmps , Thanks Tom , I always value your opinion and appreciate you weighing in. @bjornpdx , Thank You. I think the cello is an Extremely versitile and underused instrument. I once heard a metal band that used 2 of them with FX. Yeah the "whoo" is in the TTS brush kit. I've hit it by accident quite a few times. @Bridget Murphy , Thanks for the listen and suggestions. There's some drumwork in there , perhaps not enough. I'll listen closer and look at it when I go back in . Thanks for the listens and replys .. mark

Gary , This is going to be another Killer song from you and the band . It's real easy to see why you want it Hot. I actually like the hotter version better , but you know how loud can influence your perception. Thats a lot of tracks to balance and I know you will get there. The first time thru , my first impression was needing a little "air" in a few spots. I'm on the fence about the trailing end of the "6 feet down" phrase. I would probably play with that a little ?? The main spot that stuck out to me as needing attention was the "very ending" lead guitar. After the ending walk down and hitting hard on the main root note , it sounds resolved as it should be. I think the lead guitar should end at the same spot. It's pulling some power out of the ending. Might sound different if he was on a diffferent note ?? Fantastic song and especially the high vocal sections. Loved it .. mark

@KSband Thanks , I like tapping the guitar body while playing , but in this case a different guitar body sounded better than the one I was playing. I ended up seperating them. Worked ok but a little repetative. Thats when I added a few spots with the reversed reverb. Still learning the cello. The only time I play it is when I'm recording. @noynekker Bruce , appreciate it. I accidentally bumped the cone on a big open speaker cabinet one time and thought it would make a nice kick. Always wanted to try it but kept forgetting about it. I don't think it was cutting thru very well in the 1st mix , so I just adjusted the EQ and side chained it with the bass. A little better now. @bmarlowe Thanks for the listen and compliment. I like "weaving". I can't seem to get anything done on a solo guitar. I made some adjustments to the kick , bass , buss reverb and widened the mix a little. The link now reflects the changes. (mix 2) Open for suggestions .. get as picky as you want. Thanks .. mark

Hello , here's a new instrumental I'm finishing up. I rarely play mandolin or cello but enjoy playing both . Thought I'd do a no pressure instrumental in between vocal songs. Yairi acoustic , "A'"style mandolin and cello used. Kick was built from finger tapping a 15" speaker and percussion (some of it reversed) from tapping and slapping a guitar body. TTS brush kit and additional percussion used. I finally got to use the "whoo" in TTS in a couple of spots. All suggestions for improvement are welcomed . Thanks .. mark https://soundclick.com/share.cfm?id=14708495

Hauntingly beautiful. This is a Very Nice production ! As a cello player , and after hearing this , I just learned the impact of slightly "swelling" the notes and subduing some of the highs normally present in my tracks. I thought I got done mixing a new song using a cello this morning. Now I'm going back in .. Enjoyed it .. mark

Yes , this should have been done Before automation . I would delete the volume automation , get everything under control and in the ball park . You will then find you only need some minor automation. Route them to a bus or busses as @57Gregy suggested and you can easily adjust tracks or groups of tracks evenly. ms

Pretty cool . Strange not using headphones with microphone work . It was hard to detect any monitor bleed with all the effects even after laying your mic on the table ?? Good one . Enjoyed it .. mark

I believe with volume automation , you can still make volume changes using the individual track "gain" knobs. ms

Xoo , Great production ! There's a Lot of Cool stuff in this one. I Loved the bass line after the breakdown. If you do any further work on it , I think some "tabla drums" would fit in Perfect around the 3:35 mark , when the vox like chanting comes in . Playing under the Indian(ish) bass instrument they would reinforse the vibe of that section. Enjoyed it .. mark

Fantastic production Bruce ! I Really like the energy in it .The drum tracks were Real Nice keeping the drive up. The guitars were Well produced , but I think the "star" of this was your vocals . Perfect pitch and delivery from start to finish. What ever key you are in is perfect for an enerjetic song like this. Loved it .. mark

Not the way to do it .. That would cause All kinds of problems using your spacebar. If you don't like a take you just recorded, press and hold CNTRL and the Z key together. This will "undo" your last recording. There is also an "undo" and "redo" button in the toolbar section (on the top of your screen). If it's not visible on your screen you can right click a blank spot in this section and add a module that has those commands. Save the changes you make in the toolbars section in your workspace settings so it stays that way. ms

Mikael , first off welcome ! Great job on your first song post here. I'm really looking forward to hearing more from you . I Enjoyed the intimacy of the vocals and thought the lyrics were fantastic. Enjoyed it .. mark

Happy new year Gary ! I'm hoping you and your band will do Very well this new year. BTW , the lead break on "The Song" was Fantastic ! Pass it along to the player.. He covered all the bases on it. It was also nice to see the face behind the lead vocalist. He has a Very Nice distinct voice that crosses a few normal boundaries. Best of luck on your next one .. ms

@steve@baselines.com , Thanks for the listen and responding. I know you are a pro at doing covers of great songs. @Ross Smithe, Appreciate the comment , this one was pretty easy to own. My guitars were tuned down a full step and the "Ain't No Sunshine" parts fit in comfortably. @Lynn Wilson , No credence for blasphemy here. I like it better also. @Sal Sorice Thanks for the compliment. It actually "does" take a while to get good results mixing your own work. If I go back to some older mixes I've done , I don't really understand "what in the world" I was thinking .. This forum has been a Big help. Hang in there. @Makke I appreciate it. I Really liked your last production as well. @garybrun , You know I Always value your opinions , and have learned a Lot from you. Thanks for the past help you've given me. Still have a "Gary Brun Masters" folder on my desktop. Thanks for all the plays and input .. mark

Makke , Great instrumental. As Bajan said , your guitar tone is Very nice , and I Really liked the vibrato. The melody line was smooth and was the Best I've heard from you. I'll bet you had a hard time not grabbing your wammy bar ?? Loved it .. mark

Absolutely incredable Gary ! You must be Very proud of this (as you should be). Nice fade with the credits as well. Loved it .. mark

I enjoyed hearing this again Gary. Wonderful job. I laugh out loud every time I see your Snowmen picture. Brilliant ! mark

Songs from the heart are the ones you will always remember. Don't ever feel shy about posting "anything" you have feelings about. @jack c. is an example of someone who keeps his heart on his sleeve and shares his real experiences and feelings with everyone. ms