mark skinner

Great song Keith. I really like the different directions it travels. I didn't have Any problem with the lead guitar at 2:45 , in fact I thought it sounded Fantastic! I did have a problem with a muddy guitar at 2:20 leading up to the louder lead break. I also think your vocal needs to come up in the verses and the bridge when you're singing in a lower register. The parts with the harmony's and double tracked phrases sound good. The song has a wonderful feel to it , and gives me a little bit of a "Yes" vibe. I think you sat on this one the perfect amount of time . Loved it .. mark

Great Cover ! This one somehow slipped by me. I loved the power and overall feel of the middle section. You Nailed it , especially with the phased vocal section. It sounded so good I think I would try a little of the effect on All of the verses. The others were a little quiet. I think the last verse especially needs some boosting and fx. Loved it .. Hope your wife recovers soon .. mark

Cool Ride . This one could use a video .. I loved the way the volumes stepped up in the different sections. I especially liked the build up after the 3 Min mark. I did think the ending could have been faded .. Very impressive mix .. mark

Alex , after listening to "yesterday project" , my first and Main suggestion would be to "back off" from the microphone. I think you are causing most of the problems you're trying to fix later with all of the plugins. The proximity effect of the mic seems to be taking a toll on the low end , and your breathing is nearly as loud as some of the vocal phrases. "S" and wind problems get a Lot worse when you are right on the mic . If I had to "fix" that track , I would cut it up and edit out all the noises instead of using FX , and it would Never be as good as getting a clean mix to start with. As far as EQ , I would suggest turning the track input echo on , open up the pro channel EQ and expand it out using the >> arrows and pressing the pin icon to lock it on the page. Sing some and "look" at the EQ module to see what's going on before ever actually recording. It's pretty easy to see the giant jump in frequency's on the graph when you are too close. Respectfully .. mark

Deesnay , I checked out the first song. Lovely Soundscape .. The song sounded to me like some Gaelic/Celtic compositions I used to listen to by an obscure fiddle player. The lead singers timing and pitch are Fantastic! I'll for sure check out more of the album. Thanks .. that was a Real Pleasure to listen to .. mark

Steve , Incredible , smoky bar vibe. Very nice playing by everyone ! I liked a lot of the EQ and space in Fiz's mix but , I prefer the better overall balance and smoothness of Abel's. I really enjoyed both mixes but I'll tell you , I was pretty worn out by the time I finished reading about it.. Nice .. mark

Nice one Glen ! I liked the swelling on the cello track. Hard to tell it was a cello but sounded great to me. My first impression of the piano was I thought it should be a little brighter.. Great track with a Lot of potential. Enjoyed it .. mark

Hello Alex , welcome to the forum. If your distortion is coming from your vocal track , solo it with No plugins and listen for distortion. Check your level on the track and the master. Early in the mix , it shouldn't be louder than -6 db. I would also look at the EQ in case something is booming or spiking in a certain frequency. Add one plugin at a time and recheck your volumes and listen hard for distortion. Continue this and you might find the culprit. Unless one of the plugins has become problematic , it may just be too much gain added by the FX and will need to be addressed. (Gain Staging). This should be a starting point. Good luck , let us know what you find .. mark

I recently had to replace my failing Roland interface. I picked up a Tascam US 2x2 to get me by for now. Perfectly adequate for what I do , but I've never been quite sure of the sound. When I'm done tracking and satisfied with the everything , I shut everything down for the night. The next morning I'll boot up and everything sounds muddy and scattered. Confusing when everything sounded great the night before.. I accidently knocked my stand over and my condenser mic hit my desk Hard. Knowing I smashed the grill , I ran my fingernail over it to check it out and heard the scratching thru my monitors. Phantom power was Off. Turns out that when I first boot up the pc and my USB interface powers up , there is voltage sent to the mic but not the full 48v. Turning the phantom power on then off again drops it to 0. My mic has been picking up the monitors and messing with the mix in the mornings. I normally just turn the phantom power off when going from headphones to monitors with no problems. This has been something I've been fighting for awhile and made me question Everything. I'm glad I knocked my mic over (while it was close to my monitors). I guess troubleshooting isn't always so straight forward and I guess you get what you pay for .. mark

Smooth .. I really appreciated the triplet percussion driving everything. Wondering how you achieved it. The relaxed vocals were Fantastic. mark

Not just the performance , the "mix" was Awesome. Top notch production ! Loved it .. mark

I thought that was a Beautiful and Well performed song. There were a few spots that reminded me of Paul Simon. I thought the guitar tones were awesome and thought I heard a pedal steel at one point ?? Enjoyed it . Fantastic job .. mark

Great Production ! I'd love some information about the Fantastic drum track .. Nice .. mark

Keith , first off Great job on the vocals , I especially liked the Ahh section. I think you got a really good balance between the main vocals and the harmony on the "chorus" sections. I think the verse sections are lacking the "main" vocal with the harmony's taking center stage. It made me miss the flow and feel you had going in your first version. Maybe they could be balanced a little more like the chorus sections. I enjoyed hearing this one again. mark

This video brought back some memories and most were good for this version of windows. What I really thought was "funny" was how they referred to the version of windows that they used in school. We were still using slide rules ! This is a Halloween Community College project I created (music computer lit) using a Win 98 notebook running Music Creator 3 (I think). The finished wav then went to the film class for a video production. It was pretty cool , wish I still had a copy .. All done in piano roll with a wireless mouse. "Never" froze or crashed . I Much later ran the original thru Ozone for a final mix , and kept it just for the memory. Enjoy or not .. mark https://soundclick.com/r/s8n8j7

Like everyone , I'm loving the sax (and the vibes) . I do think if you check your "lows" on the tracks , you'll find there's plenty of room for some high passing. I believe the song could sound cleaner pulling a little of the bottom end out. Especially for one pitched this low. I think it's mainly the rhythm guitar and bass. As far as the piano , I didn't listen to the first mix , but my first impressions were that it needed a little different EQ and try to tame the attack some . I'm not really sure of what I would do except maybe pull out some around 1K. and see if a different reverb would make it sit better in the mix. Anyway .. I Always appreciate the many suggestions I get when posting something , and I Really did like this song ! Enjoyed it .. mark

Wookie , I Always enjoy listening to your work and this one was sweet indeed . I especially enjoyed the subtle bow stroke sound on the arp parts. Enjoyed it .. mark

This song is Very Easy to listen to. I'm sure it was a pretty complex project but you have captured the simplicity of the song. I thought the vocals and mandolin tone was Excellent. Enjoyed it .. mark

Gary , this is a Really Nice one. I love the pristine reverb and space around the guitar. I hope you can duplicate it when you track the song again. Good luck I can't wait to hear where it goes .. mark

Amazing talent ! He can even slap a capo on the1st fret and doesn't have to retune. I'm going to have look him up. Thanks mark

Steve , Very Nice .. I always wanted to cover this one , mainly for the cello parts. I Really enjoyed reading the backstory about the song . Thanks for that. I thoroughly enjoyed the cover . Great job .. mark

I Always Love your violin work , and this one Really shows your talent. That being said .. the drum track is what really grabbed me . It was "perfect" for this kind of production. The only thing missing was surround sound. Enjoyed it .. mark

Jesse , I sure did like this one . Several years ago on a beautiful day , drifting in my boat and quietly fishing. I got "one too many" phone calls and threw my phone as far as I could into the river. I haven't looked back .. and still don't own one. There is somehow a since of freedom knowing you are on your own and may have to fend for yourself at any time.. Enjoyed it .. mark

Very Nice .. I like both version but this one gave me that familiar feel of the original. Enjoyed it .. mark

Bjorn , I have always been intrigued by throat singing and how it's done. It seems very easy for several bird species , especially cow birds , and it seems like the sound created by a good didgeridoo player. Most of the examples I've heard have been pitched real low with a phased drone sound. I've never heard it pitched up like in the samples you've presented. Now I'm even more intrigued , if it is possible in that register. I enjoyed the song , pretty experimental .. mark