Holy Night X-mas tune is finished..
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Posted on Dec 14, 2003 10:56 am
presley_07
Bohemian
Member Since: May 04, 2003
so it's finally finished
this is the link
members.tripod.lycos.nl/presleyr/holy.MP3
could really use some advice on the mix.
trying to mix it up before christmas ;) :D
well gotta go to work now
so I'll see u all later :D
thx
Presley
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WaltChief Cook and Bottle WasherMember
Since: May 10, 2002
Dec 14, 2003 11:44 am Presley,
First, thank you for doing this. Great to hear something besides a screaming guitar. No offence to the screaming guitar, just nice to hear something else. I also appreciate the classic and subject.
Capturing:
Piano: 10
Lead Voc: 10
Back Up Voc: 10
Percussion: 9 (just a tad unclear)
Bass: 9 (I'm a bassist, just extreamly critical)
Organ: 9 (A little distorted)
Mix:
Vocal Blend: 10
Percussion Blend: 9 (a little on top)
Bass Blend: 10
Organ Blend: 9 ( a bit on top)
Performance:
Vocals: 9 (couple small spots intonation)
Organ: (I would look at that part again)
Rest: 10
Overall:
Better than I would expect for an of the shelf Christmas album. Full, powerfull, and yet sweet. The organ disturbs me a little.
As always there is the caviat that I'm listening to MP3 pseudo audio.
Fabulous!
olddogMember
Since: Jul 02, 2003
Dec 14, 2003 04:00 pm Very nice job Pressley! I'm with Walt on the organ you might want to revisit that, and for my taste, in the opening the kind of wild organ riff didn't really fit. The only other thing I would add in addition to what Walt has said is that the vocals in the higher parts get a little shrill/piercing EQ wise here, might just be my speaker system (5.1 speakers) I don't know, might want to wait and see if a few more hear the same before messing with it.
Great overall job, I really like this. :)
Dan
Noize2uCzar of MidiAdministrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002
Dec 14, 2003 08:18 pm OK, so let me have minute while the goose bumps fade a bit... Ok, there I m back. First off, let me say very nicely done, bravo and all that. That was very soulfull and reminded me of some tunes like that from the eighties, nice arrangement and all. Like Walt said, its nice to here something differant for a change. I think you just inspired me to post a couple of christmass tunes for the season as well.
Anyway on to the meat and potatoes. As far as the organ goes, that is how it is supposed to sound if it is a B3, a bit of distortion is the way they were. I am curious just exactly what you used for the organ, it sounds almost like a Hammond, but cant tell for sure with the mp3. And I will say I am partial to the organ sound you used being a B3 player myself.
As the vocals, yes I heard the little intonation bit Walt mentioned but the rest was as he put it very powerfull, especially the ending. That is the part that gave me the goose bumps. I will give it another listen a bit louder tommorrow, but on my rig, it sounded splendid.
As far as mixing, try it a few differant ways, on differant systems to find the best mix.
As Walt mentioned the drums get a bit burried here and there, so maybe give a bit of attention there. And the organ blast in the intro, might go down just a tad as it does blast, but then again it is the effect that you may want, not sure.
cooloFrisco's Most UnderratedMember
Since: Jan 28, 2003
Dec 15, 2003 02:13 am That's pretty cool. If I were to be nitpicky, I could find some issues with the lead vocals hitting notes (especially in the runs), but overall it is very soulfoul and pleasant. Everytime the vocals go into "chorus" mode, it is beautiful. I think the percussion is fine, except the kickdrum seems to accentuate the beater fft sound more than the bass "punch". I like the organ (including the intro) personally. The kind of "electric" sounds in the toms gives the song an 80s feel as Noize said. Overall, that's a very cool piece. I'm a fan. I hope I can finish my Christmas songs before Christmas too.
tonyd1970The fat one always watches us.Member
Since: Nov 08, 2002
Dec 15, 2003 07:13 am very very nice. the organ riff at the start seems a little out of place- and the organ lead bit me once. (this is nit picky stuff much better than i can do.....) i agree with every on on its nice to hear something new (which is old)
great powerfull ending, and i do like the organ near the end, just not at the top, adds to the ending power and supports the vocals well.
great job- mix seems ok to me, i sure theres room for improvement but...i dont know how so ill keep my trap shut.
2 thumbs up here!
Dec 15, 2003 02:14 pm wow thx for all the replies guys
Noize = thx for the comparing it to a B3
it's exactly the sound I was going for
just can't seem to get it to sound warmer
but it will do Till I get a real B3
such a shame I don't own a real one:P
The organ you hear is one out of the Roland XV88
can't remember which one exactly , will look that up...
I agree the drums are buried at times
Gonna re-do them
The organ blast in the beginning is the way I wanted it I don't know if it's TOO loud but on
my headphones they're not
and the organ solo is a bit of a mess but when
it was recorded I was like: " hmmm 3am allready better get some sleep" and I was too lazy to redo it
again thx for the replies
Presley
Dec 15, 2003 02:17 pm as for the background vocals at first they were way too much interfering with the lead vocals
but then I read a post around here about cutting the High ends of backing vox so I tried and they came out well or at least on my machine:D
that's why I love this place
cuz I keep finding good tips withouth asking :D
Presley
Noize2uCzar of MidiAdministrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002
Dec 15, 2003 06:06 pm I started using a Peavey Spectrum Organ years ago, becuase of its ability to get a warm distorted sound. It is hard to find now, but I liked its sound as opposed to some of the others I tried for more money. It has a pretty good Leslie simulator and a very large pallete of organ sounds. I can emulate drawbars with a midi slider, or I have also automated them as well in Sonar. I too would prefer to go back to the old B3 but there is just no room for it here. I had a highly modified one ala: Jon Lord from Deep Purple that would just scream like a banshee when the overdirve was cranked up on it. but that was the seventies, now I go for a bit more subdued sound from them.
Nov 30, 2007 07:39 am hey guys,
just a question...
anybody got this one on their hard drive maybe?
I don't have it anymore...
I would love to hear it.. just to hear... how I sounded four years ago...
my voice and playing has changed alot haha
so if anyone has it... please email or post it for me
thanks!
Nov 30, 2007 07:56 am oh the file should be called holy.mp3
Nov 30, 2007 02:03 pm haha i was clicking on that link for like three minutes, not realizing it was from 2003
Noize2uCzar of MidiAdministrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002
Nov 30, 2007 05:46 pm presley, I may have it. I'll be back in a bit to let you know.
Noize2uCzar of MidiAdministrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002
Nov 30, 2007 07:52 pm Presley, you hotmail would not accept the file. email me with a new email if you have one and I'll shoot you the link to download it.
Keith WarrenMans reach exceeds his graspMember
Since: Oct 23, 2007
Nov 30, 2007 07:57 pm Really well done. Nice levels, well mixed, all around frosted flakes quality; grrrrreat!
Dec 01, 2007 06:24 am thx noize, !!
really appreciate it ...
hope to do a remake, this christmas if I get around to it... should be fun to compare... haha
thanks!
Dec 01, 2007 06:55 am presley, i think it's awesome, but if you can accept some criticism...
if you remake it, i think you should not do as many vocal flourishes/runs. i think that this song's melody is nearly perfect for a reason and that ya gotta make sure you hit the key notes in that song. i don't think changing them just to change them improves the melody. i think that the notes to change are the passing tones, not the resolution tones, except occasionally and pointedly. also, if you're going to do 'runs,' i think you must take care to hit each note in the run perfectly.
this has always been the thing that has turned me off to american idol, the extreme focus on vocal runs. sometimes things can be too ornamented, and i think your version here would be stronger if you would figure out what the key notes/feelings you want to hit are and then to spotlight them. i am more impressed with a held note, one that zeros in on a cool mood, than i am with mosst runs (except for really good ones), and i think a lot of other people are too, even when they don't necessarily know that they are.
on the plus side, your voice is pleasing and you can clearly sing, and i particularly like the way you are 'hurrying' one of the words in the song (i listened to it this morning, so i can't remember which word it is right now). i am just mostly noticing that the melody is being altered in ways which, i think, make it weaker, and to me it seems almost arbitrary. i am only saying this because i think that if you key in on the resolution tones and 'what they accomplish,' you can really make this thing kick ***.
this is probably my favorite christmas song. i've got the johnny mathis version posted over in the 'christmas music' thread, and when i listen to that, i notice that mathis does include runs for sure, but they're always incidental ones. i think the resolution tones are important for the contour of the melody. but he produces much variation and uniqueness by simply paying very close attention to his phrasing and making that his own. i think that if you could find your own phrasings (like your one 'hurry' on that one word) you could really make this thing your own, while simultaneously staying true to the mood of the song. i think you;ve got to get into a real zone, a real mood, to sing this song and make it hurt, and to keep that mood foremost in your mind. ornamentation can threaten that, i think, unless it's pretty subtle and well-chosen. for some reason--and this is no criticism of your vocal abilities, which i think are great--your melodic alterations are coming across to me as a bit self-conscious, as if you believe that for it to be good and unique it has to be very different from the original. it almost seems that i can hear your decision making, and it's injecting a mood of ...deliberation. which is not what this song is about.
i'm opinionated because i;m drinking. it's really a good version, but i kind of want to almost pull more emotion out of you by urging you to think about those vocal ornaments a bit...
Noize2uCzar of MidiAdministrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002
Dec 01, 2007 04:37 pm Your welcome Presley. Not a problem at all.
And wow, forty is out of the closet isn't he. I gotta agree with some of his thoughts here. Now that you are older and wiser I am sure you can do this tune great justice. AS it was back then you did a fine job indeed. Now you can take those idea's and run with them. Keeping in mind some of the tings forty stated.
It is very hard to turn a new trick on a traditional tune like this one.
I will be posting my digital Christmas stuff again starting tonight or tomorrow. Watch for that and when Holy Night comes up you will get the idea of what forty is talking about. There are of course no vocals but there is the instrument version of the melody line the vocals would have taken. And it follows along the lines sort of what forty is talking about.
