Taxi say this platinum artist has tuning issues?

[aubreyz]

Jun 2, 2009, 12:08pm, billg wrote:Wow, I just listened 4 times to the "hear the words I say" part and i don't hear the problem there. I hear the singer go to the falsetto and then four trailing falsetto accent notes . . . Aub is this what you hear as a squeak?The production nor the song either one is my cup of tea but I don't hear the pitch issues.Hmmm... that is odd. First listen, I cringed. To me it sounds like he chokes off the last note like there wasn't enough breath and almost squeaks. I guess that's how subjective this is. Were I tracking that, there's no way I would have kept that take, unless the guy just didn't have anything better -- but hearing his other cuts, he's got the goods. The bridge annoyed me too, but I didn't even get there.I was kind of surprised Vikki didn't seem to catch it either. But hey... never said my opinion was right, or the only one... but it is my opinion Aub

[billg]

I think it may come down to whether or not you use (or if your used to ) using some auto tune software.Ok funny story . . . When i posted a work version of a song once here on P2P. A "tough love" friend let me know that there were pitch problems (i knew there were, it was just a bit beyond my limited vocal capabilities). So this friend offers to pitch correct the track for me. Actually he did a really good job. I got the track back & was pretty impressed at how there weren't really any noticeable artifacts etc. Anyway, a listing came up and I submitted. Beyond the fact that it wasn't right for the listing it was also noted that there were some pitch problems. I think my voice is immune to pitch correction software here, for laughs;http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30969073/

[hummingbird]

Jun 2, 2009, 12:21pm, aubreyz wrote:I was kind of surprised Vikki didn't seem to catch it either. I was kinda addressing the other reasons for return. I hear off pitch on 'eternity' (before the last chorus) as well. IMO it's less a pitch problem than a technique problem... the lifting of the palet for the 'eee' is constricting the voice, which makes it sound under pitch.But really, the fact is, even if the vocal was stellar, and the mix was fab, this song would have been returned because it did not fit the criteria of the listing. I can't see why TAXI would refund any submission fee for a track that is off target.

[michael11]

Andy was one of my favourites and I am pleased he's achieved the level of success he has.To me his voice seems tired and is defiantly flat on some parts of the verses,it's great when he gets going though.I think it's a bit mean asking Taxi for a $5 refund,it's tax deductible isn't it???!!!

[mazz]

It's amazing to see the different responses and how different people hear and perceive pitch and other issues.Here's another question regarding perception: If the OP hadn't mentioned the artist or the Platinum status, etc., would we have come to the same or different conclusions? If we had known up front that it had been mixed by the famous engineer, would the mix have sounded different?Does the mind influence what the ears hear? I say yes. Anyone else?Mazz

[billg]

I had never heard of the singer or producer before, don't think that had any effect on what I heard. And I'm not crazy about the song and I HATED Tears For Fears, just too synthy for my taste. But I still just really don't hear any pitch issues. What I do hear is a guy that may be more of a blues or R&B singer venturing into different territory. Blues and R&B singers are used to sliding up/down to notes & playing a little fast & loose with 'rules'. I'm gonna go out on a limb and say that ALL of my favorite soul singers from the past (Wilson Pickett was my fav although I may have just spelled his name wrong!) would have been nit- picked to death if someone wanted to concentrate on whether or not they were perfectly on "pitch" all of the time. Voice harmonics (good and bad) and the ability to sing freely and with emotion to me is part of what soul music was . . . yup, I said was because i don't really hear any soul music anymore.I used to hear people say that "so & so was a good soul singer until he/she took voice lessons", it was kind of a common joke. Now I think you can add auto tune software as another "soul killer" . . . maybe not the use of it in a particular situation, but the expectation of perfection. Can you even imagine a blues artist using auto-tune?I have no idea who Andy Abraham is, but I'll go do some googling. he sounds to me like someone who might be a bit more in his element with a soul or blues song & that could be creating some of the vocal issues you guys are hearing.

[eokamura]

I didn't hear anything horribly out of tune in this but there were some awkward vocal moments. i think auto-tune would have made it sound even more awkward but that's coming from someone who hates auto-tune. Talk about soul sucking, ruin the moment heavy handedness. I can't listen to the radio without wondering if what you hear is actually what you hear. Pitchiness is part of a singers character in my opinion, you lose that, you lose the character. I even hear a difference between pre and post electronic tuner recorded music. When people were forced to tune by ear you could hear different overtones in the ensemble playing. Not saying it's better, just different. And for thr record I use an electronic tuner all the time. eo.

[slideboardouts]

I just took a listen and I'll throw my opinion in for whatever its worth...First off, I definitely here the"pitchy" part that Aub is talking about. The "hear these words I say...e" at the end of the first verse. Whether it is off pitch or a technique problem like hummingbird mentioned, it is not pleasant sounding to me. It was kind of a show stopper, and I wasn't listening for it either...it jumped out at me. In fact, I had to listen to that part again so I could hear the words to see if that is what Aub was talking about. And, FWIW, there were two other people listening with me (one a vocalist and the other a totally non-music person) and both thought it sounded "off."I also noticed that the instrumentation sounded a bit stiff and thin overall, especially at the beginning. Also at the beginning the vocals sound a bit too upfront, but as the song develops everything starts sounding better production wise IMO.I would definitely have to agree with the screener on this. I think he/she nailed it. The song didn't match the a la's in the listing, and the performances and overall production aren't quite where they need to be IMHO. -Steve

[mazz]

I'm with you guys in that part of the expressiveness of a singer is in the way they manipulate pitch. Etta James wouldn't be half the singer she is without creative and expressive use of pitch. What little I know about east Indian music tells me that it's a huge part of the beauty of their music.But if this song is pitched to compete in today's pop music market, then, unfortunately, it needs to sound like pop music aimed towards today's pop market and that means Autotune.It's OK to try to break the boundaries and knock everyone out with great, untuned singing, but I don't think the guy singing this song is going to be the one to do that! I guess I don't hear today's music with today's ears. I'm not a big fan of the way Autotune is being used and I think there will eventually be a backlash, just like with everything else the music industry ever became enamored with (remember the stiff drum machines of the eighties?, the huge snare drums?). I still come from the era when you had to be able to play to get the chance to play.Mazz

[billg]

hey, remember these?http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j_G66Bl_6KUWhen I got into a band that had one of these in the 70's I remember the first thing I thought was how much easier my life was going to be . . . only because tuning by ear and smoking pot didn't agree with me. I never thought I was in tune when I was high (probably because i wasn't, but nobody else was either!).