Preview of the new CD!

[RR0849]

Here is one track from the upcoming CD. Rough mix and no vocals but good enough to get an idea of the material. I bought a Roland TD6V to get some new drum sounds.

http://www.jacksonguitarpalace.com/mp3s/lifelong_plan.mp3

Comments are more than welcome!

[RR0849]

Two more songs...

http://www.jacksonguitarpalace.com/mp3s/without_lilith.mp3

http://www.jacksonguitarpalace.com/mp3s/danger.mp3

[jackson1]

As a guitarist and a producer, here's my very brief comments. (I listened primarily to the latest two songs).

1. I like your guitar work. Sounds like you put a lot of effort into this. Lots of riffs and change of modes. Nice work!

2. I hate drum machines They take forever to program and often the result is... quite un-natural drumming. Quality of cymbals are often disappointing too.

3. The Loudness War. You said it was a rough mix, and I sure hope it is, with regards to compression and limiting. Especially the track "Without Lilith" is severely squashed to have max loudness. Maybe the squashed sound is what you guys are after (?), but there's no dynamics left, nor is there any ambience and air left in the recording. The bass drum is quite distorted due to this hard limiting.

Shown below is how the Lilith track looks like, maxed to the max, channels left and right:




And here is how a more natural sounding and less fatiguing recording with less limiting looks like.
To make this as loud as the first sample, the only thing you have to do, is reach out and turn you Volume knob a few dB's up on your amp. Very easy and with a much better sound quality in return:



Good luck with the album and don't let my comments bother you too much

[RR0849]

Thanks Henrik - good input!
I agree that the cymbals are the weakest link with drum machines and of course the lack of human dynamics/groove. Although thanks to triggers and midi quantizing most real drummers sound like machines these days too.

By rough mix I basically mean that since all the tracks are not there yet (vocals and some solos) there is no point in putting a lot of effort into mixing. So I just bounced the tracks, ran it through Creamware Optimaster wizard (that's where the loudness comes from) and then normalized the wave to 95%. When I start mixing and mastering I aim for a more 80s vibe.

It's great to get comments and that's why I post these early versions. I'm so used to the songs that I can't really hear where the problems are with sounds or the mix etc. So keep them coming!

[jackson1]

Although thanks to triggers and midi quantizing most real drummers sound like machines these days too.

You're absolutely right. Even chugga-chugga rythm guitars gets chopped up and quantized during editing. Makes even the lamest guitarist sound tight (on the album).

When I start mixing and mastering I aim for a more 80s vibe.

Cool, it should match your playing style.

Just listened to Lifelong Plan: 03:13 - 03:35 = Sweet!
Jani, care to share how you're recording the rythm guitar sound? What gear?

[RR0849]

Thanks! Rhythm guitars were recorded in my small guitar room with following:
- Marshall Silver Jubilee 50W stack, Ibanez STL Super Tube for overdrive
- 2 of the speakers miced with really old Sennheiser MD421 and Shure SM57. I also had a new Shure SM57 on there but it didn't work out. I also had a Neumann U67 (loaned from a friend) as a distant mic but I don't think it made the mix either.
- Every mic goes to a tube preamp (Art Tube and ALTO) prior to going to ADAT -> PC (Pulsar creamware card)

That's it basically. The mics are really close to the speaker cause I try to minimize the room sound (just because the room is small and "cold" sounding). I tried using a blanket over the miced cabiner recently and that seemed to work well but these tracks were done before that experiment.

I use Cakewalk as a midi sequencer and to record the tracks. Creamware effects. I'm gonna try Reaper software later. I have a really old PC (333) and I have to bounce tracks a lot which is frustrating. I just always end up buying guitars instead of recording gear.

I have 3 kids so my "studio time" is very limited. I try to play rhythm tracks as if I was playing live - the whole song at one go. There are mistakes here and there but it kinda balances well with the machine drums and makes it feel more like a band.

[jackson1]

Cool info. I have a pair of matched, early 80s 421s too and they are really good at this kind of guitar sound.

I'm looking forward to the final result!

Wait, I have a digital recording secret:
Record at moderate levels at the DAW! Don't push the digital input faders to just below overload. Stay WAY under when recording. That's the secret to a warmer, thicker and airy sounding digital recording, especially on a multitrack project.

[RR0849]

Wait, I have a digital recording secret:
Record at moderate levels at the DAW! Don't push the digital input faders to just below overload. Stay WAY under when recording. That's the secret to a warmer, thicker and airy sounding digital recording, especially on a multitrack project.

Thanks! It's a little too late at this point but I'll keep that in mind for the next project.

I like the MD421 and Shure SM57 combination a lot. Both of those are from the 70s IIRC. 421 gives warmth and fatness to the sound and 57 brings out the attack.

I'll post more clips later. Thanks again for listening and commenting!