Pink Floyd The Wall Side 3, Parts 2 & 3 (Nobody Home, Vera, Bring The Boys Back Home, Comfortably Numb)

[Ross S]

Hey all, a few months back I posted Part 1 of what is certainly one of my most ambitious cover projects to date, an extended remake/rework/remix/reproduction of one of my all time favorite album "sides",  Pink Floyd The Wall, Side 3 (Tracks 14-19). Part 1 was tracks 14-15, "Hey You" and "Is There Anybody Out There?" Presenting now Parts 2 & 3, consisting of tracks 16-19: Nobody Home, Vera, Bring The Boys Back Home, and Comfortably Numb. 

A multitude of digital means and methods were used to recreate these iconic tunes (which were originally done in analog, of course!). All vocals are 100% redone. Here's how everything else came together: 

Nobody Home- Full reproduction, using a variety of synths and samplers, both software and hardware. Some highlights: I used Addictive Keys for piano, and a Yamaha MOXF8 for strings and things. The iconic "fly to..." echo was done using Native Instruments Replika plug-in. Incidentally, this track was one of the first recordings I did when I got back into home recording in 2021, and I believe the first I posted on the Cakewalk songs forum back then!

Vera- Full reproduction, again with a combo of software and hardware. Did my own revised arrangement on this one, kind of a more "unplugged" take. The main go to here was Spectrasonics Keyscape, for both piano and harmochord.

Bring The Boys Back Home- This was a challenge to even get in the ballpark! Highlights here were East West Symphonic Orchestra Gold/Opus, Spitfire BBC Orchestra, Kontakt Jacob Collier Audience Choir, and some large doses of my trusty Korg Kronos!

Comfortably Numb- This one is primarily a vocal cover, consisting of my lead vocals recorded over predone instrumental backing track. It includes an layered alternate melody part (done by David Bowie in a live performance with David Gilmour). No pre-recorded BGV's on this one, all the vocs you hear are mine. Instrumentally, I did rework it substantially by layering several synths/strings/choirs over the existing tracks to enhance and embellish the sound. It is not on the embedded recording above (Soundcloud has a time limit!), so you can listen to it here.

 Interface for the entire project is a Focusrite Scarlett 4i4, and my microphone is a CAD Trion 8000 tube condenser.

Background TV sounds and assorted voices taken from original tracks, of course, again with a wee bit of embellishment here and there!

If anyone missed Part 1 and is interested in checking it out, here is a link to the original forum post: 

Everything I recorded was done via synthesizers, samples, and sequencing. All done in CbB. I know I'm definitely swimming in deep waters here, but this was a very fun and incredibly challenging project! Didn't attempt to reinvent the wheel, just tried to polish up the rims a bit, and create an immersive listening experience for these timeless and iconic tunes!

 

Edited Thursday at 03:04 PM by Ross S

[PhonoBrainer]

My good lord, amazing. Utterly ambitious yet fully realized. So well done.

Apart from the uber-accurate instrumentation, its your vocals and how they capture the actual nuances of the original. Amazing especially if you are "experienced" in the original.

Q - do you know where a quality streaming version of this movie is available? My wife hasn't seen it and its difficult to find these days.

Holy cow, Ross, you nailed it.

cheers,

-Tom

[Martin Schiff]

Fantastic job!

[Wookiee]

Brave man, very Brave indeed. Mix sounds good here.

[timboalogo]

Comfortably Numb brought tears to my eyes just like the original did, Ross. Just sounds amazing.

Timbo

[FreeEarCandy]

Well done. You captured Rodger's voice perfectly and a lot of other details in the music. No critic. Just admiration. Thanks for posting and sharing the excellent work, Ross!