Wondering what you think

[[Cameron]]

Evening gents and gentettes.
A couple of buddies and I are in the band. I'm sure you are worried considering the quality of my last post about being in a band. I'd like to put that god awful music behind me and present you with this
http://www.purevolume.com/redscarf
I was wondering what you thought. Positive reviews, constructive criticism etc. So please give a listen and tell me. Any of those that pick up what the band name is a referance too get an imaginary cookie!

-Cameron

[Gregjazz]

Sounding good!

A few notes:

- All the tracks are only in the left channel? (I can only hear it on one side)
- Some things are clipping, when you record, turn the input down

I'd love to hear a studio recording of you guys after you write some more tunes and rehearse more. My favorite song is definitely Junkie, got that psychedelic feel to it. It could use some sort of percussion instrument to seal the groove as the song develops. Maybe even just a djembe or congas would do, not even a full kit.

I'm not sure what your goals or intentions are, but you might want to look into song form (i.e. verse, chorus, etc.), or some way of organization within your tunes, as right now they sound jam-like. Like maybe if you had a tight, loud chorus to Junkie, and then in the verses it could break down to that chill atmosphere with the smooth, mumbled vocals you got going.

Showing promise, keep it up!

[[Cameron]]

Thanks for the reply Greg. Not sure whats happening with only being in left channel. I'll see if I can figure that out. It's meant to be on both. Odd. I realise some things turned out a tad bad in recording but due to time constraint we could re do. Lack of beats is due to lack of drummer being informed about recording. But we're getting together later in the next couple of months in a studio. We know the guy running it so its fairly cheap, $100 a day. Glad you liked Junky. I wrote the song so it was my call on how it sounded. I did the vox for that one. First time I've ever been happy with my own voice.

[Gregjazz]

I did the vox for that one. First time I've ever been happy with my own voice.

Sweet!

You know, doing vocals is half mindset. I mean, nothing will replace having good pitch and practicing, but as for the actual tone of your voice... I mean, take me for example. I have the silliest-sounding singing voice (ex. http://www.gregjazz.com/download/arachnophobia.mp3) but it just took some "getting out there" to boost my self-esteem. I guess it's a little better to have a silly singing voice and be proud of it rather than having a silly singing voice and trying to hide it.

[[Cameron]]

AHAH! I figured out the one channel problem. Rather stupid and obvious. When Audacity recorded it recorded as stereo track but put nothing in the right channel. Only recorded to left. So obvious! Gah, Well its fixed now.

[Ubel]

Well I must say this is not exactly my type of music, but in it's genre/style/whatever it IS quite impressive.

[Paper Carnival]

Not my style of music either, but it's quite impressive! Junkie is good but repetitive. Like suggested, a louder chorus would be awesome. S.A.M.F has a nice progression at the end. My Special Place is ok, but I wasn't impressed by it.

[biothlebop]

It sounds a bit like older psychedelic rock (because you use traditional guitar/sound processing effects), generally too murky/delayed/reverbed out for my taste. The third one is cool, but because it repeats one basic pattern, I guess it would work more of as an transition/skit between two songs (if you expand it beyond an ep).
I love the psychedelic/experimental rock genre though, from some of the older stuff (Velvet Turner Group's Scarlet Warrior is great, it's got strange lyrics, children singing, a flute riff and other stuff that makes it sound quite special in my ears), to the newer (Flaming Lips). Today the possibilities for different sounds thanks to computers is so great (I want to see the marriage of techno sounds with rock), that I think you could try some electronic sounds as well.

[ManicMatt]

I want to see the marriage of techno sounds with rock

Surely that's been done before! I'd name a band but my definition of techno is vague at best. And when you say rock, does that mean with guitars or not? I ask because I have a song of mine called "denial" on myspace that I consider to be electronic rock, but this DJ guy said it sounds like techno.

oops hi-jacking someone else's plug! Ah yes... if it's fixed why is it still panned to the left? I'd pick the first track as the best and the middle track... erm well not for me.

[Hammerite]

id say a combination of electronic and rock are radiohead (post-ok computer) and post-mellon collie smashing pumpkins.

[ManicMatt]

No, they said techno and rock, not any kind of electronic music and rock.

[biothlebop]

Yeah, I didn't come to think of Kid A there (Idioteque is the shit), and haven't listened to Smashing Pumpkins a lot (will do as it sounds promising). It could include guitars, since it's the staple of modern music, I didn't really mean rock with sound effects, clicks and beeps. Also, I used the word techno, because the music is very different from rock, when electronic music could mean any song with an electric guitar or amplifier.

What I was going for was the thing that much of techno-electronic music (apart from some strange underground Hip-hop-ish music, example: Clouddead, go listen: http://promo.mudhut.co.uk/NinjaTune/velvetant.mp3) has little use of vocals or narratives. It's music made for dancing, or chillng to, when rock can be that but also is a product of music and poetry. Hip-hop/rap does that partly, but the vocals are not usually sung but spoken in a deadpan manner.

The other thing I meant was that I want to see electronic sounds with the expressivity of a guitar. You cannot control the exact tone of a acoustic instrument, every time you play a chord on one, it is slightly different (kind of like the unreliability of a Theremin). This applies to analog modelling synthesizers as well, about which I think Aphex Twin once said that they can not ever be replicated digitally since the room temperature, humidity and probably a lot of other things affected the circuitry and sound of the device. If you left one running for a few hours, when you came back it could be detuned or just sound different.

I believe entirely digital/midi-reliant instruments are not able to produce nearly the same level of complexity or frequently produce tones that sound alike. I have seen that there are midi-guitar and midi-flute pickups though, but I haven't ever tried any. Randomizing and lfo:s do their thing, but It's not exactly the same.
Electronic sequenced music is usually so on-beat that it gets tiring in my ears and subgenres sound like copies of the first song in the main genre (techno, rave, downbeat whatever) that came up with a idea, since that idea is easily replicated when machines did the original.

In summary what I meant was: I want to hear electronic music that sounds alive, like played by imperfect, but talented people with their own styles on real instruments, but the sounds are not from this world.

[biothlebop]

I did the vox for that one. First time I've ever been happy with my own voice.

Sweet!

You know, doing vocals is half mindset. I mean, nothing will replace having good pitch and practicing, but as for the actual tone of your voice... I mean, take me for example. I have the silliest-sounding singing voice (ex. http://www.gregjazz.com/download/arachnophobia.mp3) but it just took some "getting out there" to boost my self-esteem. I guess it's a little better to have a silly singing voice and be proud of it rather than having a silly singing voice and trying to hide it.

You definately made the right choice! Your soft singing put a smile on my face (in a good way). It reminded me of a song a couple of my friends did:
http://koti.mbnet.fi/el_tonic/blacksheepboys/chinese%20food.mp3
The lyrics are from a chapter about chinese food in their English textbook.

[ManicMatt]

In summary what I meant was: I want to hear electronic music that sounds alive, like played by imperfect, but talented people with their own styles on real instruments, but the sounds are not from this world.

First of all dude, the mods don't like anyone double posting. Modify your last post in the future. Or face their wrath ooooh!

Clouddead. *Plays the song* Ha this is the track I had off a magazine coverdisc and I kept playing it! Hmm maybe you'd like Cex? Check out Maryland Mansions for his best work. (Keep in mind that that before his last two albums I don't think he rapped/sung at all)

Yeah but techno music is a very specific type of dance music! Just ask Increator! If someone uses the word electronic and mean a electric guitar, they are being misleading.

Hmmm electronic rock with no singing... T. Raumschmiere? http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=29765331

Sadly he's copped out and put mostly the vocal songs on that site to better promote himself, as the 2005 album has singing on only half of the album. So play the last track monstertruckdriver which has no vocals.

Interesting, to play a synth like a guitar you say? I'd never do that anyway as I compose everything and don't play anything live except my singing obviously. (My music is linked on my profile if you wanna check me out!)

As for replicated sounding electronic music in many bands, I'd have to argue that I've heard guitar riffs from songs that sound like something I've heard done before. Unavoidable really.

And maybe I'll take off this bit on my music page that says "sounds like: nine inch nails" because although I've been told that many times, I don't want people thinking that's where I got my inspiration from, because quite frankly I got into NIN after people told me I sound like him, as I got curious and wanted to hear!

[biothlebop]

Yeah but techno music is a very specific type of dance music! Just ask Increator! If someone uses the word electronic and mean a electric guitar, they are being misleading.

Yeah, I know techno is really specific, that's the thing actually. I haven't heard music that could be classified over several techno/trance/house/jungle/breakbeat/hardcore categories. Electronic "techno-music"  or danceable music is ofen easy to pidgeonhole in one of those categories. Otherwise it just gets a new/progressive tag. I dont listen much to 4/4 dance music when I'm not in a club so most of my information comes from here:
http://www.di.fm/edmguide/edmguide.html

But I also think that there is a load of unexplored possibilities in melting every such genre down and making a song that borrows from here and there but doesn't feel at home anywhere. In a worst case-scenario it wouls plainly sound like a mix of several tracks. And why stop there, when there is music outside electronic categories?

[ManicMatt]

Yeah I've been on that website, InCreator put up a link in a thread once.

Egad! I must go bed.

Outside electronic music? Well sure I got shitloads of non-electronic music too, but we were just talking about that specifically!

*Goes bed*

[Mordalles]

I guess it's a little better to have a silly singing voice and be proud of it rather than having a silly singing voice and trying to hide it.

i can assure you that it is a much better thing to hide it if your singing voice is as silly as mine.  in fact, i think in my case it might be mandatory.

[biothlebop]

Outside electronic music? Well sure I got shitloads of non-electronic music too, but we were just talking about that specifically!

*Goes bed*

Yep, but with that I meant that the music should include electronic sounds, but could include traditional instruments as well (which most of rock music is, if the electric guitar is still traditional).

Same here.

[Hammerite]

didnt tangerine dream use guitars occasionally.
i heard edgar froese was a good guitarist.