Metal Return

[squids]

I wish I'd seen this thread earlier. I can completely relate to the frustrations of being returned with comments that don't always sound consistent, accompanied by moments of anger and confusion when something wasn't forwarded for this listing while it was forwarded for a listing two weeks ago that was almost identically worded.I'm with ibanez......I've gone through and through a lyric line looking for jes the right word or for jes the right way to sing it (time allowed), knowing that instinct will kick in when I hear it. The problem is that instinct doesn't lend itself to rational explanation or a dry accounting of what's needed. Music is wonderful but sometimes it's a pain in the a......

[stoney]

For me as a mixer (not of this genre) the vocal is way to low guitars have a nice thick scape to them with a typical 'clicky' kick. Too much reverb on the hats as well for me.I think the main problem apart from the way too low vocal is it is too repetitive perhaps it needs more contrasts or hooks to give the onslaught of guitars and vox more power? The vocal line is essentially one note but I think it has a very aggressive dark flava that could be developed into something really cool!Just my thoughts!

[stoney]

Just read the bottom of your posting.....Just goes to show one screener view from another will always be different.Good Luck with the forward

[daniel481]

Hey Squids,Sorry, I didn't see this sooner, but yes, those things can definitely get really frustrating. Especially when you've just gotten a forward on it and you're thinking you've finally begun to understand the screeners, only to be foiled by the next one! I know I always have room for improvement and definitely understand that I'm not always gonna nail every listing, but I'm also having to continuously remind myself that returns will probably always happen for reasons I don't understand. And stoney, thanks for checking in. I mixed this the way that I've heard many death metal songs be mixed (which is often pretty different than a standard rock or pop song, especially in regards to the vocal level), and it appears that one screener really liked it and one didn't. I've been mixing professionally for quite a while, and am often reminded of how subjective it can be. Can be frustrating sometimes, but I guess that's how we learn, huh? Thanks again for your tips though.Dan

[mojobone]

I'll throw in with squids and ibanez, here, fwiw, but I do wish you'd included lyrics; the only word I clearly understood was "rash". I bet the rest was entertaining.Maybe the screener was "vibing" that you didn't use live drums, which would be stylistically correct-no matter how 'robotic' drummers tend to sound in the genre. I won't comment on levels, because I listened on headphones, but I thought the overall mix was a tad muddy, and more differentiation between sections woulda been nice. You might want to watch Metalocalypse and listen to some Dethklok, if you haven't already. It may not help your music, but you'll laugh and feel better.