(alt pop) Climbing the Ocean

[Bloma]

Here's a song that for years I thought I'd lost, but recently found! I have a shitload of songs I want to finish and release so I can let them go, and here's one of them. I made it probably around 2015. Mixing feedback would be appreciated. It's been a struggle to get this to sound half-decent but I need to move on.

[RTFX]

This is the first of all the songs you have on the shelves, you talked about the other day?
When it comes to the mix a couple of (minor) things could have some more attention.
- Some gain staging here and there (vox little less upfront and maybe some more de essing)
I really like the ad lib in the chorus! Catchy!
- Eq on the snare during the chorus; its sounds a little sharp compared to the snare during the verses.
Edit: when listening again, its like you layered the snare with something else in the first two choruses and not in the last chorus; or you did something with the reverb?
Anyway from me not much else and tbh i am a littlle splitting hairs.

[Bloma]

This is the first of all the songs you have on the shelves, you talked about the other day?
When it comes to the mix a couple of (minor) things could have some more attention.
- Some gain staging here and there (vox little less upfront and maybe some more de essing)
I really like the ad lib in the chorus! Catchy!
- Eq on the snare during the chorus; its sounds a little sharp compared to the snare during the verses.
Edit: when listening again, its like you layered the snare with something else in the first two choruses and not in the last chorus; or you did something with the reverb?
Anyway from me not much else and tbh i am a littlle splitting hairs.

Hey RTFX, yeah this is one of 11 songs in this batch. Thanks heaps for feedback! Yeah I always really liked the chorus in this one.

- The vocal is de-essed a fair bit, so it might need some selective eqing. The problem is with a lot of my recordings is I just recorded vocals in an untreated room. Never going to do that again!

- The snare is layered through the track, but each chorus should be the same, maybe something else is different that makes it stand out. I've gone back and forth a million times with that snare/clap trying to get it to hit hard enough but also sound cohesive.

[Bloma]

Edit: when listening again, its like you layered the snare with something else in the first two choruses and not in the last chorus; or you did something with the reverb?

Actually you're right, well spotted! There was a reverb and some other things on the first 2 choruses that weren't on the last, so I made them all the same. Also turned down the verse vocals, which immediately sounded better.

[RTFX]

Lets listen!

[Bloma]

Lets listen!

I updated the mix

[TritoneAddiction]

I like that you have a very personal style. Everything from your voice, instrumentation/sound selection to song writing. It's pretty much impossible to mistake this for someone else. Every song I've heard from you is very YOU. That's a good thing.

[Bloma]

I like that you have a very personal style. Everything from your voice, instrumentation/sound selection to song writing. It's pretty much impossible to mistake this for someone else. Every song I've heard from you is very YOU. That's a good thing.

Thanks a lot for saying that! It's definitely a cornerstone of anything I do, in that it has to be something that in my mind, only I could do. I feel the same way about your work.

[Benedict]

Mr Addiction is right, your material is always so very Bloma. That alone is a huge strength in a market flooded with "me too" clones.

I assume I am hearing the revised mix. I still see how you feel. It is good but could probably benefit from a different approach. I think I would be looking at the Drum/Bass combo as I think they are not matching what is above. I just had that very thing mixing a song that leans heavily to 80s Rock Ballad like Starship but under it was a Kik pattern that was completely out of the flow of that. I got there and so far, feedback has been really good.

If you want another take on the mix...

[Bloma]

Mr Addiction is right, your material is always so very Bloma. That alone is a huge strength in a market flooded with "me too" clones.

I assume I am hearing the revised mix. I still see how you feel. It is good but could probably benefit from a different approach. I think I would be looking at the Drum/Bass combo as I think they are not matching what is above. I just had that very thing mixing a song that leans heavily to 80s Rock Ballad like Starship but under it was a Kik pattern that was completely out of the flow of that. I got there and so far, feedback has been really good.

If you want another take on the mix...

Cheers Benedict.

Yeah, I reckon you're right, and it's something to do with the clap/snare. My main issue is how different it sounds on my headphones, monitors, computer speakers, and car stereo. I'll get it right on one source and then it's thrown out in another. The bass that comes in at the chorus is pretty chunky, as is the kick, and it's causing some issues.

Thanks for the offer, would you mind if I just sent the Reason file as is?

[Benedict]

Yes, so long as everything I need is there like any synths or vital REs are printed then slide it on over, scoot it on over. Make sure that there is a Guide Mix (this mp3 in Tk #1 is fine). I may kill some or all of your fx etc as I will do what I do so be sure anything printed is clean. You know that.

As usual with these things the mix will be good to use anywhere, main or bonus release etc, so long as it has my name on it.

PM or DM or Messenger me the Reason file link to Dropbox etc. I am on R12 but that will not be drama coming this way.

[Bloma]

Sent you a PM

[man made material]

Great song! loads of space in this mix too... constantly evolving which really holds the interest, awesome stuff!

[Benedict]

Bloma - Climbing The Ocean - Benedict Roff-Marsh Mix




Mix Notes sent to Bloma:
This has been a most interesting track to mix. Far from the typical (which is good). I feel shades of The Cure & Fad Gadget. It is a very surreal piece. Everything feels like it needs to be just so or the spell breaks. That means that for you this may seem to break the (expected) spell as I started again and while I drove some things more than my usual, nothing is OTT - I'm not down wid OTT, yeah you know me LOL

The track really comes and goes so I made a thing of that to keep the listener off-balance (no dance floor filler here). To that end, I finessed some of the levels/interactions, particularly of those Kik drums. I also copied some things about a bit to make the flow - no structural changes. I tried to keep the person as the center of this wash and flow of things that move around them (like the ocean).

[Bloma]

Great song! loads of space in this mix too... constantly evolving which really holds the interest, awesome stuff!

Cheers, it's not often I have space in a mix, so that's a very nice compliment.

[Bloma]

Bloma - Climbing The Ocean - Benedict Roff-Marsh Mix




Mix Notes sent to Bloma:
This has been a most interesting track to mix. Far from the typical (which is good). I feel shades of The Cure & Fad Gadget. It is a very surreal piece. Everything feels like it needs to be just so or the spell breaks. That means that for you this may seem to break the (expected) spell as I started again and while I drove some things more than my usual, nothing is OTT - I'm not down wid OTT, yeah you know me LOL

The track really comes and goes so I made a thing of that to keep the listener off-balance (no dance floor filler here). To that end, I finessed some of the levels/interactions, particularly of those Kik drums. I also copied some things about a bit to make the flow - no structural changes. I tried to keep the person as the center of this wash and flow of things that move around them (like the ocean).

Thanks for posting this Benedict, always great to get another take on things