Lynn Wilson

This is a fun song to hear, which is what it's all about.  The middle section, with the harmonica, seems a little disjointed or out of place, but that's a matter of taste.  As stated above, it's a little narrow stereo-wise, but that's easy to remedy if you care.  Keep 'em coming.

What's not to like?  Oh, maybe that it's over too soon.

I agree with Mark, and I'm glad to see you back.  This song is very timely, and I'm glad to hear it.  Don't stay away so long, and stay warm and dry.

I've been listening to this song for the last few days, and I like it better each time I hear it.  I think it might be a little over-compressed, but that's just my taste.  The whole mix could be made louder without compromising the dynamic range, but that would require a total remix.  All in all, it's a good song that a little extra effort could make into a stellar mix.

Dynamics begins with your playing technique, then your arrangement.  Forget about setting levels at this point, in fact, turn everything down 10 to 20 dbs to start and use your ears.  Even after lowering your settings, you'll still have plenty of signal to noise ratio to work with.  Some instruments and voices need compression to smooth out the performance, and some don't.  Let your ears be your guide.  Most popular music doesn't have an extremely wide dynamic range, but the overall sound is elevated during mastering to commercial levels.  However, some music, regardless of style, has and needs a wide dynamic range.  That depends on your preference.

There are many good tutorials on this topic available on youtube, so don't be afraid to dive in.

Beautifully done, Mark!  It loses nothing in the translation, and you own this version.  You chose a great song!

Use the save as feature to convert back to a project file.  It does include all VSTs, like any save function.

On 1/10/2021 at 12:44 AM, thegaltieribrothers said:

Hi Lynn,

I'm with you with the penchant for Sci-Fi + searching for that 'Crease in Time' myself 😉 

Love the song, love the idea - great lyrics and nice guitar playing.

Thanks for sharing.

Good Job!

regards

paul

 

Hi Paul, I'm glad to hear from you!  Thanks for your time and encouragement!

On 1/10/2021 at 4:03 AM, Wookiee said:

Not sure how how I missed this one, nice track, mix seem to be OK her @Lynn Wilson

Hi Wookie, thanks for coming by.  If it sounds OK on you Adams, then I'm OK!

5 hours ago, DeeringAmps said:

👍’s Kevin, put it to bed...

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What he said!

It's always a pleasure to hear you play, Kenny!  I think you captured the mood perfectly.  It's great to hear so many of your tunes in such a short time.

There are some nice things in this song that catch my ear such as an interesting chord progression and melody, coupled with serious lyrics that would be depressing if not for the somewhat uplifting arrangement.  Yet, there are things that don't quite fit.  The vocal is hard to listen to because besides being distorted, it's very bright EQ-wise.  Then, there's something of a hole after the first round of vocals before it starts all over.  I do like the synth (or,sound) that you use in the beginning, although the beginning is very abrupt.  This can be a gem of a song with a little more time spent on the mix, so good effort, all in all.

Classic Freddy, indeed!  It sounds very swampy to me, and it gets in your mind and kind of mesmerizes you.  Serious lyrics make this dark, yet seems to turn a light on a particular character that we all know.  You have the soul of a poet, my friend!

Jesse, I want to take the path you're on.  Love this

Gary, this is fabulous!  I like both versions, so you did a fine job!  Thanks

Like Bjorn said, I always look forward to hearing your songs, and this is no exception.  Your lyrics, voice, melody, and sparse arrangement create a mood that I seem to crave.  Have a marvelous new year, and stay creative!

20 minutes ago, Marcello said:

Thanks a lot for the comments! Do you suggest any particular limiter plugin for cakewalk?

Which ones do you have?  I like Adaptive Limiter which came with Sonar, but there are tons of freebies available at the KVR website that will do the job.  Set the output to something like -0.3 to -0.5 and experiment with the threshold until it sounds good and loud to you, but don't overdo it.  Let you ears be the guide.

First, there's a lot to like about this composition.  I like the overall arrangement, the haunting chord progression, and the guitar tones.  The song has decent dynamics that can easily be maintained even after mastering this.  I hope you intend to write lyrics for this, as it needs either a vocal track or an instrumental solo to fill the need for something to tie this all together.  Your use of EQ is OK, and the drums are relatively balanced with what's there.  If you're worried about the drums clipping, apply a limiter on their output to keep them in check.  Not worried about the bass until you say so.  All in all, you're on the right track, so what you may lack in knowledge, trust your instincts to get you to the finish line.

Great song and good mix.  I love the vocals and guitar tones, very polished!  I'd like to hear the bass guitar a bit more, which would make this a stellar mix, imo.  However, this is really good as is.  Happy New Year to you!

This is mesmerizing, like floating on my subconscious mind.  Quite therapeutic!  Well done!

41 minutes ago, jack c. said:

That's just my two cents worth, not necessarily a universal truth. 

          that are worth lotsssssssssss of money in me ears.will use this in coming songs.the other stuff (instruments) apply the same technique?

jack  c.

Dynamics - ALWAYS!!  Helps to create depth in a mix or song.

One of your best!  I love this synth!!

Jack, it sounds like you're playing a MIDI keyboard and all the notes are about the same volume throughout the song.  I'm just saying, differences in volume within the song can create tension and highlights which can give the song "polish".  That is, some sections louder, some softer.  Same goes with singing.  That's just my two cents worth, not necessarily a universal truth.  Still a terrific song.

This has your unique charm, which is a rich tapestry of memories and pictures in my head.  Good job on the finger picking; it's much better than my finger picking which I try to avoid.  Your song output is amazing, and it just gets better!

This is a good song in search of a good mix.  It has a haunting melody that could easily be enhanced by raising your vocal to be at least as loud as the guitar, if not louder.  Your voice has a sensual quality that can be very appealing, and I would play that up, as it could be one of your strengths.  I'm not hearing the bass gtr and drums as loud as I'd like which would make the song pop, if you know what I mean.  I do like the guitar tone and playing in this, as they give the song a cool, bluesy vibe.  Hope this helps.  This is a gem waiting to happen.

Jack, this song takes me back to my college days when I listened to Todd Rundgren over and over.  I really like the melody and chord progression in this.  Your vocal hits all the right notes, and could even be louder in the mix to put it in front of the instruments.  The only thing that stood out to me was the lack of variation in the dynamics of the keys (mainly) and the song overall.  I think this will be stellar with a few tweaks, but overall, nice writing.