Oh god....

[Mor Paul]

Well, I'm working on a song. Since I suck with lyrics even more than I suck at guitar, it's instrumental. I suck at recording slightly more than I suck at making noise, so it sounds better in person (except for the fact that in person, it's louder, and you can't click an X to make the pain go away).

So, it's untitled, sloppy, full of mistakes, got lousy production, but it's a start. Here's my first recorded song.

http://unrealgamers.net/kaihenstudios/Untitled%20Song%201.mp3

There are a few (lot) of parts in there that I wish I didn't play, but I was just trying different things in there.
Music tips, playing tips, and recording tips are welcome. I don't expect it to do anything for you guys, I mostly like the intro



*Recorded using a laptop mic.

 

[imminentG]

Man, this is real neat, I especially dig the part it kicks into around the 2 minute mark.
I think I am gonna spend a little time playing over it; soon as I heard it I started singin' in my head!

 

[Mor Paul]

Okay, I will say I like the beginning and the end. The beginning is why I made the song (just wanted to make something up, made that chord progression), and the very end, I think that turned out well.

Maybe I'll try to rerecord it with a proper mic and mixing.

 

[JaySwear]

i liked it! and when i recorded my acoustic i just used a crappy USB mic that came with an xbox 360 Rockband game. wasn't great, but i was really surprised how well it picked up the guitar! anyway if you can find a USB mic somewhere you should give it a try.

 

[bigguspickus]

What, no shredding?  arty07:  :icon_jokercolor: Seriously though, it didn't suck.

The intro was good. Kinda like Pinball Wizard, except less loud. Which guitar did you use for the lead? The phrasing in some parts reminded me of The Allman Brothers. Other parts, like when it slows down around 1:30, sounded like early Pavement.

A suggestion for the recording: Some of the unwanted noise sounded like it came from the mic picking up stuff (computer, fans, etc.) in the room, and then stacked with the tracks. You could experiment with recording directly, from the line out, if your gear has that feature. And for the mixing, I'd try sliding the rhythm tracks over to one channel (something like 75% right, 25% left) to give the lead track some more room.

Having done a bit of this myself, I respect the time and effort it takes to get a song recorded, even just a demo, and I say:

:rock-on:

 

[Alfang]

OMG I was gonna say pinball wizard too, so I will, the intro sounds like pinball wizard.

 

[mayfly]

When tracking albums, we always had the "Chair of Humility".  That is, the chair that you sit in when evaluating your takes to see which one makes it on the record.  It's usually centered behind the desk, right in the middle of the nearfields.  And no matter how good you thought you played or sang, in the Chair of Humility you always suck suck suck.  Then you want to re-track it.

It's kinda how it is.  :icon_jokercolor:

 

[m4rk0]

Nice, I also got the Pinball Wizard vibe out of it.
Also, a little more delay and it would have sounded like The Edge a little.

 

[Mor Paul]

Okay, I swear that lead part didn't sound as much like Pinball Wizard when I recorded it!

I was sure there was a bigger gap between the notes!  :laughing7:


Thanks, guys, btw. I'm going to mess with the lead, especially in the beginning so it doesn't sound so pinball wizardy. I've got two buddies with recording equipment, so maybe I'll be able to get a proper recording.

Also, the song is starting to grow on me.  :laughing7: That's how I am, I hate my stuff when I'm done, but after a while, I get used to it.

*Edit* I played the wrong rhythm in the intrro  :doh:
That's why it sounded so much like pinball wizard

And Karl, I'm pretty sure I'll be recording it with a click track unless I find another friend to play the rhythm part.

 

[GoDrex]

That's how I am, I hate my stuff when I'm done, but after a while, I get used to it.

That's how everything I ever record is, because I can't never play anything exactly the way I would like. Sometimes the mistakes end up having a certain charm. I like a lot of things I've recorded that I can't duplicate. Stuff starts to sound "right" even if it's not. I've got no problem with it. Other people may think it sounds crappy though.  :laughing7:

 

[JaySwear]

That's how I am, I hate my stuff when I'm done, but after a while, I get used to it.

That's how everything I ever record is, because I can't never play anything exactly the way I would like. Sometimes the mistakes end up having a certain charm. I like a lot of things I've recorded that I can't duplicate. Stuff starts to sound "right" even if it's not. I've got no problem with it. Other people may think it sounds crappy though.  :laughing7:

blah blah blah haha i heard your solo for the soloist compilation. that was some BADASS playing. max and i were talking about it last night. i can't imagine what you wanted it to sound like if that solo you came up with wasn't exactly right!

 

[GoDrex]

Thanks. Well we're always hardest on ourselves right? If you're talking about the blues jam, well it's OK, but it's not all that if I judge it on what a guy that plays a lot of blues could do. I kept that recording because after a couple of tries at it I felt like that one didn't suck. But to me it's lacking. The other "jam" thing I had to break in to 3 separate parts because I couldn't manage to record anything in one take that I could live with. 30 seconds at a time is about all I can manage before it starts falling apart. I recently recorded a jam that goes on for like 5 minutes and there's a lot of nonsense going on it in because, like I said, if I don't break it down into 30 second or so chunks, it just turns into flailing. :laughing7:

I've been trying to operate a guitar for a long time so yeah I can get something that sounds better than a typical beginner, but I'm very aware of my limitations and my cliches. I hate doing many takes hoping for a magic one to happen, so for my own recordings I often settle for something I think doesn't suck. If I don't cringe at it when I listen back then I keep it if it functions in the track. Otherwise I start to feel more and more frustrated and I start wondering why I'm even bothering.

Anyway - my point was that lots of times things that happen by mistake or that are accidents end up sounding good to you if you listen to them a bunch of times. I've noticed it lots of times.

Like this thing -- I honestly believe that every single note that I play there is PERFECT. It can never be repeated.  :laughing7:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4u0lh76K1rA

 

[kboman]

Groovy stuff, Gary! And LOOK at that hair! arty07:

 

[Tempest]

Max you don't suck, and neither do you Gary  :icon_thumright:

And Max yes the intro is pretty cool, and very Pinball Wizard as has been said, keep it up  :headbang:

 

[kboman]

I have no idea what Pinball Wizard is, but I'm interested to see where this song goes. Too tired now to give it a good review.

 

[Mor Paul]

Does anyone have any suggestions to improve the song?

 

[line6man]

Max, I told you that track sounded like Pinball Wizard!
You got all bored and wouldn't agree that it did, so I'm glad to see that other people think so too.

 

[Mor Paul]

Max, I told you that track sounded like Pinball Wizard!
You got all bored and wouldn't agree that it did, so I'm glad to see that other people think so too.

Agreeing with you only leads to problems.
So does disagreeing with you.

 

[line6man]

Max, I told you that track sounded like Pinball Wizard!
You got all bored and wouldn't agree that it did, so I'm glad to see that other people think so too.

Agreeing with you only leads to problems.
So does disagreeing with you.

Indecisiveness only makes me angrier.  :icon_jokercolor:

 

[bigguspickus]

Does anyone have any suggestions to improve the song?

Try throwing a tempo or key change in somewhere to break up the different parts of the song... whatever the verse and chorus are called in an instrumental.

Did you have an acoustic guitar and electric guitar doubling the rhythm part? Try taking one of those out for a section, and then bringing it back in for suspense.