tracks from an album I'm working on

instead of making a bunch more threads i figure it would be better to put all of these in once place. nothing is final with the tracks ill post but they are probably near-final editions. all feedback will be greatly appreciated!!!

this one's called Journey to Pluto

http://soundcloud.com/zanderone/journey-to-pluto

i think it's a good track, maybe perhaps throw some snippets of a sweet sample with vocals in it

Yeah, I felt kinda bad for pushing this down the page, by posting in my own thread. Sorry dude.

I wish the part at 2:15 was its own track, mostly because of dat melody. It's just one of those simple but good sounding melodies that never gets boring. Now, this is just my worthless opinion, but a part of me wish you'd just have went all out 'cheese' with that melody. It's like you keep building and building, and then you just somehow forget about it and move on, which is a shame. It would have been amazing if the track would've just exploded at 3:45 with some sweet drums and more synths.

I'm not sure what I'm saying makes any sense at all, but what I'm TRYING to tell you, is that I really like that melody at 2:15, and that I wish it went on for longer. I liked it.

Whatcha using for compression on this track? I thought it felt kind of claustrophobic at first, which didn't really gel with those big grandiose vocal pads, but then it balanced itself out more or less when the bassline came in. Mayyyybe the kick could stand to have a little more kick but other than that I dig it atmospherically. It's got a big spacey feel which I think could really be made next level with some slightly mixing adjustments.

Compositionally, it sort of goes through a few different standalonish sections which makes it hard to judge on first listen, or devoid of album context

  On 8/26/2012 at 11:39 PM, Friendly Foil said:

Yeah, I felt kinda bad for pushing this down the page, by posting in my own thread. Sorry dude.

 

I wish the part at 2:15 was its own track, mostly because of dat melody. It's just one of those simple but good sounding melodies that never gets boring. Now, this is just my worthless opinion, but a part of me wish you'd just have went all out 'cheese' with that melody. It's like you keep building and building, and then you just somehow forget about it and move on, which is a shame. It would have been amazing if the track would've just exploded at 3:45 with some sweet drums and more synths.

 

I'm not sure what I'm saying makes any sense at all, but what I'm TRYING to tell you, is that I really like that melody at 2:15, and that I wish it went on for longer. I liked it.

I kind of felt the same way and I really like the idea of building up the middlesection. I would need to flesh it out more of course. i'd say expect a newer version sometime in the near future with some tweaks to the future (i may have to hold it out for the final version of the album though)

  On 8/26/2012 at 11:28 PM, Ivan Ooze said:

i think it's a good track, maybe perhaps throw some snippets of a sweet sample with vocals in it

thanks ivan! yeah that's basically part of what's to come with the editing is effects and samples so stay tuned

  On 8/26/2012 at 11:44 PM, Cryptowen said:

Whatcha using for compression on this track? I thought it felt kind of claustrophobic at first, which didn't really gel with those big grandiose vocal pads, but then it balanced itself out more or less when the bassline came in. Mayyyybe the kick could stand to have a little more kick but other than that I dig it atmospherically. It's got a big spacey feel which I think could really be made next level with some slightly mixing adjustments.

 

Compositionally, it sort of goes through a few different standalonish sections which makes it hard to judge on first listen, or devoid of album context

thanks cryptowen!! yeah the mix is still kinda rough (and uncompressed so far) and will be a lot cleaner on the album. Also, i will have to play around with the tracks and such - i could easily see this turning into two separate tracks down the line perhaps.

Really good tune! Loved the lfo at the end too. A solid song that with a little more editing will make for a hit on your upcoming album. Looking forward to hearing the rest.

Cheers.

cryptowen, i just realized what you were asking (i think) - the sidechain compression was just ableton's compression plugin

thanks 747 - hopefully ill have some fresh tunes from the album up later this week!

very impressive dude! you just get better and better. :)

  On 8/27/2012 at 1:04 AM, sergeantk said:

Also, i will have to play around with the tracks and such - i could easily see this turning into two separate tracks down the line perhaps.

I would recommend keeping it as one track. I love tracks with a lot of ideas and I don't think this one has too many.

Thanks guys!

  On 8/27/2012 at 5:10 AM, Face Culler said:

  On 8/27/2012 at 1:04 AM, sergeantk said:

Also, i will have to play around with the tracks and such - i could easily see this turning into two separate tracks down the line perhaps.

 

I would recommend keeping it as one track. I love tracks with a lot of ideas and I don't think this one has too many.

i was thinking it could be something pretentious with split names although it depends how I am feeling post-production. I am definitely gonna expand the midsection for the final version. I always have a concern for not being too long but I think here it works just fine after lots of relistening and consideration

The beat repeat at 1:03 does it for me, and I love the progression of the synth with the bass tone. Very melodic

this is a pretty good track! the only thing i could say about it is a lot of the sounds (drums, bass, some of the main melodic parts) are so muted/quiet in relation to the pads that it makes for an odd mix. not sure if that's the aesthetic you're going for, but it's a little distracting on first listen. but nonetheless, a good track!

I really like the synth/melody that comes in at 1:04, especially with the filter sweep. Personally I think I'd have preferred it if that came before the drums, a bit like how it sounds at the very end. But that would also make it sound a bit more ambient-ish and it is of course your track, not mine :P But overall a nice track, with a relaxed feel but some nice subtleties. I'm going to keep an eye on that album.

Digging the mellow spacey B12/Black Dog vibe in the beginning, comes together nice and smooth. The side chaining is a bit much, spoils the chill vibe with its abrasiveness. The other synths that come in are just a bit too abrasive too. I don't like that clap much at all, seems to have all the life squeezed out of it.

The transition between the two parts in the middle doesn't quite work for me, it's kind of a non sequitir. But I like that second part, though it's a bit simplistic. The refrain of the intro is nice.

I think if the sidechaining wasn't as intense, the clap had a bit more bite, the synths were a little more fine-tuned to the mood, and if you re-did 1:05 to 1:53 it would come together a lot more nicely.

This is beautiful man, I really really enjoy your chords and melodies.

The only thing I would change is I'd actually try either taking the sidechaining out to reduce it greatly and either layer a slightly louder very percussive sound like a rimshot or something over the clap to make it pop a little more and maybe bring the drums up in the mix slightly.

As for the structure I also enjoy tracks with lots of ideas, I think this works well as one cohesive tune, I just think you could stretch a lot of the parts out a little.

All in all an enjoyable listen, thanks for posting :)

oh oh and one more thing, dat intro!! Love that

Thanks guys I really appreciate the feedback. I will be able to work more on this track over the weekend, and I have a lot to consider now! I have a couple new tracks I'm cookin up as well so stay tuned.

Here's a new one. Not sure if this will make its way on the album but I like it anyways

http://soundcloud.com/zanderone/once-in-time

Great opening Autechre-style pads, which sit nicely with the strings when they come in. I wasn't totally convinced by the minimal synth lead that comes in at around 1:20 mark, a stronger melody line would life this.

The bass also feels quite plain and sine wave-y, and obviously this is a track where the bass needs to sit low in the mix, but I wonder whether a more interesting bass synth would make this stronger.

i'm not much into that dub/techno/house-y sound personally, but this works pretty well as a track nonetheless. the bassline is well written, though perhaps a little too subtle or quiet in the mix. one minor suggestion, the hi hats are a little too loud in the mix, and i really wanted the noisy synth break in the middle to 'pop' a little more. well written track all around though!

as usual, i find the compression disturbing... maybe the corrective actions suggested above would fix that for me, i don't know shit about sidechain comp... eh i feel kind of useless now, bravo!

I love the first track, and anything I could give for advice has already been said for it.

In the second song, I really like the strange flash pads that come in at around 2:25, I feel like they should be more involved with the song, and come back for a finalization at the end.

Overall, great work!

i appreciate the comments guys, i already went through and modified the sidechaining... so don't worry too much. expect a polished, finalized version of the first song on the album! and as for the second one, who knows.... but thanks regardless :D

  On 9/4/2012 at 2:42 AM, sergeantk said:

Here's a new one. Not sure if this will make its way on the album but I like it anyways

 

http://soundcloud.com/zanderone/once-in-time

i think its really good, but u should make the low end of the kick drum louder so that u can dance to it better

  On 9/10/2012 at 9:35 AM, voyager1 said:

  On 9/4/2012 at 2:42 AM, sergeantk said:

Here's a new one. Not sure if this will make its way on the album but I like it anyways

 

http://soundcloud.com/zanderone/once-in-time

i think its really good, but u should make the low end of the kick drum louder so that u can dance to it better

the break in the middle is amazing though, i love the texture of the sound and the images it brings me

heres a work in progress track.

http://soundcloud.com/zanderone/memory-faded-wip/s-B7Y1v

amazing stuff man. sounds a bit lke Gas. its very minimal but packs a huge punch.