Hey guys... just thought I'd pimp myself a little bit. Feel free to hit BACK if you don't want to listen to member music.

I'm getting ready to release an album with my band:
www.myspace.com/themodernantiques

It's kind of a mix between Wilco and Death Cab/The Postal Service

Check it out if it sounds interesting to you!

Tyler

not bad... let us know when u release the whole thing...

i liked it. it was really poppy, but i mean you definitely have talent.

You gotta come better than that if you're gunna pimp yourself on these boards, that was not good at all.

hey thanks for the comments!

i'm adding some cello on the album tomorrow...
and then resinging almost everything (i left my windscreen at the keyboard player's house).

but i think the whole thing should be mastered in a couple weeks.
hopefully before 'narrow stairs' comes out.
(hopefully not before it leaks though...)

hemingway...
i think i can come a little better than this.
the song on the page is just the closest to being done right now... and it's not indicative of the rest of the album.
it's by far the poppiest.
it's also by far not the best.
but i do appreciate the honesty still.
what don't you like about it?

if it's the recording... i can try to make it better... although i have recorded everything in my 8x8 dorm room at school.

if it's the songwriting... well i'm afraid i'm doing my best there.

thanks guys!

This message has been edited. Last edited by: acousticrock,

Pop filters are really cheap, or you can just get a coat hanger with nylons.

I'm pretty critical, don't take it personally, here's what I'd do. Ditch the ooo aaa backing vocals, it's like a bad beach boys song, change the vocal melody or just break it up, bring that little break that comes at 2 mins or so in after like 1 minute, and go minor with it so it's not so repetitive. Bring up more of the electronic sounds since they're what's interesting about the song, get more low end in that guitar, it kind of sounds like...medieval. Ditch the bongo drum or whatever and put a snare in, and also make those drums way harder, like get a real drum track, should get a bass in there. Main thing is the repetitive 2 chords on guitar, definitely break the song up.

alright sweet...
thanks for the details.

pop filters are 40 dollars in my city...
i use a vintage mxl v67 mic so those cheapos don't fit over it.
i've never heard of the nylon trick so i'll definitely try that.

haha i guess unfortunately for you - the beach boys are my favorite band of all time. i've been debating cutting some of them out since i actually think it sound ridiculous with the oooahhh every time. so i'll try that.

the break at 2 minutes is actually already minor.
it goes:
emin
bmaj with an eflat in the bass accidentaled
gmaj
cmaj
bflat maj accidentaled
fmaj accidentaled

i'm super proud of that chord progression it's one of the weirdest things i've ever done but i feel it flows so nicely. also - i don't think i've heard another song with that progression in it either.

i can definitely do some more mixing on my acoustic guitar and i can bring out the electronics too. i think they're the coolest part also... but right now they're turned up the most they can be without peaking so i might just have to turn everything else down.

i'm not sure about your suggestion with the drums. like i said i'm recording in my dorm room and i've already asked around for a private space to record a set - but i've got no hook up. i've heard other people say they like the sound of the cajon box in this one... but i do appreciate your suggestion with it.

about half of the album is with that cajon box and the other half is electronic beats.

i'm actually hoping this album will just be a demo that i can sell enough of to get into a real studio to redo everything. so if i get to that point i'll totally be able to record some powerful drums.

it's awesome getting some real critism. i can handle it at this level when it's not those vague "this sucks!" comments. it's nice hearing someone who doesn't already know me say something other than "yeah dude it sounds good" without maybe even really checking it out.

The beach boys are one of my favorite bands too, but they do have some lame songs :P

haha!
i hope you're not referring to "vegetables".

Here's what I think-

-use a compressor on the lead vocals
-use real drums (and tambourine!)
-rerecord the acoustic guitar and hit every beat (as ben does on soul meets body) and put it deep in the track.
-EQ the acoustic guitar differently (like 'hemmingway' said)
-Bring the bass guitar up
-Either cut the ooh's & aah's or make sure they're absolutely perfect (which includes mixing)
-Add fills with acoustic and/or electric guitar

i like the idea of filling with my acoustic... i've even got a few that i just didn't record.

but i've got a confession.
i have absolutely no idea how to mix things.
so when you guys tell me to mix the acoustic guitar - i don't know where i'd go with it.

i only know as far as to make it sound better than how it was originally recorded - i don't know any tricks.

mixing simply has to do with the volume of individual tracks relative to one another.

EQing has to do with bringing up (or down) particular frequencies of an individual track. In otherwords, if you're using a graphic EQ, it's just like adjusting the volumes for each area of frequency.

No offense by this at all, but if you don't have the concept of mixing down you should really reconsider releasing an album or anything like that until you do. I think it's a good idea to certainly let other people hear what you've come up with in order to get feedback, however.

Good luck!

hey thanks ultra...

i guess i was using "mix" and "EQ" synonymously.
i do know how to mix then...
but i'm an amateur with EQing and effects.

i do have someone lined up from a studio to help with the mastering process... which hopefully with entail some more EQing.

my whole idea with what i've got on the myspace now is just to give people a taste and to get people excited about the new album coming out.

i've done a lot of solo stuff the past 3 years just under my name so i thought i'd try to get some people interested in the new stuff BEFORE the disc came out so i can tell more people about the release.

so all of this advice really helps.
i can take everything you guys have said about the recording process into consideration because i still have time to mess with things before and during mastering. i can even punch in a few guitar parts.

the songwriting/structure crique is less helpful since i'm proud of what i've written and i feel that it's a matter of taste if people like it or dislike it. so although i still like the critique of the songwriting, it's less helpful in terms of changing things for the album.

as i'm listening to the rest of the finished material, i'm pretty positive i chose the wrong song to post on my myspace based on studio quality. i just chose it because it's been a favorite of fans at shows... not to show off my production abilities.

just wanted to give you guys an update!

i finished an EP for the album.
i also posted a new song from the EP.
this one's got the electro-beats that you all suggested before.

feel free to tear it apart like you did last time!

www.myspace.com/themodernantiques

It's kinda catchy... but it gets off beat a bit (I'm only listening w/ the left channel).