alien mind

[dobro]

I really can't bore my usual forum with this one any more. So I'll bore this forum. :)

How are the levels on it, especially the vocals?

Other comments completely welcome.

https://soundcloud.com/yousemusic/alien-mind

[jopatius]

Alien mind:

0:48 very very late in a party, like 04:00 in the morning, somebody could start to play this

1:27 I like how the gitar supports the song

2:22 Damn, I kind of like this

Ta'om

0:50 my mouth is open. That KBD riff I know where it is from... anyway, it's a sidetrack on my thoughts right now.

1:57 I have no idea what this is about but yes this works

3:03 love how that guitar is now playing that kbd riff

Fake love:

The first two sóngs were so good in being "something else" that this one is not that impressive anymore. Quite OK in may ways but a "filler", I'm already waiting for the next now

For good new quitar:

0:52
What's this, are you like captain beefheart with a supporting hippie-comunity full of musicians, or is the singer this time your wife or something?

How many musicians are there by the way? What we are hearing here is a real sax, and that was not present in the first three songs.

2:24 already waiting for the next song

soul in shadows:

1:02
This would work in a gig among the others but the first
two songs were so impressive that...

1:40 OK you were able to surprise me again

1:59 Damn I loved that

3:05 this makes me feel good

Was that all? No more songs from you?
I'm going to listen to the first two again.

Alien mind:

0:22 I'm smiling

2:00 I'm already thining about the next ssong, - could I this time figure out what the Ta'om is about?

Ta'om
0:52 Now I remember where that riff is from!

at the end of Ta'om:
For me, one element of a good song is that there are so many good elements thrown in there that when you listen to it for the first time, or second, or third, you kind of look at the soundscape paying attention to different details every time, and you know this works, you just don't know why, because there are so many good details. Every time (for the first few listens) you listen to different details, and the songs remains fresh as a whole.
This is one of those songs, a good song in that way.

Oh yes, you were asking about something about vocal levels. You don't need my advice for that, this package is working well enough already, you need to focus to creating more good songs!

Oh yes and that one riff was the same as in Doop: Riding on a storm:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cPHuXZMI3L0
the guitar stuff at 1:21

[kindafishy]

Pretty unique sounding stuff here. Zappa comes to mind, perhaps predictably, but I've not really heard much like this myself. There's some very cool, stylish musicianship and very creative writing happening here.

I can't help but feel that the vocals are very much like they are not so much part of the overall song, but rather they are sort of laid on top, mainly due to the heavy body in the voice that lift them up and out, rather than letting them sit back in the mix. They are very close and intimate sounding, whereas the music is not. Strangely, I didn't get this sensation as much after about 1:44 or so, almost as if the vocalist stepped back from the mic just a little bit, reducing the proximity and letting a touch more air in.

Overall, I think this is really cool and different. Quite odd, yet still very accessible and catchy. I could easily become a fan of what you're doing here. With each listen, I am finding that I am appreciating the melody, harmony and rhythm of it all more and more.

Very cool stuff, man.

[dobro]

I can't help but feel that the vocals are very much like they are not so much part of the overall song, but rather they are sort of laid on top, mainly due to the heavy body in the voice that lift them up and out, rather than letting them sit back in the mix. They are very close and intimate sounding, whereas the music is not. Strangely, I didn't get this sensation as much after about 1:44 or so, almost as if the vocalist stepped back from the mic just a little bit, reducing the proximity and letting a touch more air in.

Hey, that's interesting - I'll listen again with that in mind and see what happens. I had pretty much the whole album done and then retracked the vocal for Alien Mind at the last minute, so I'm trawling opinions on it. Thanks for the listen.

[dobro]

Oh yes and that one riff was the same as in Doop: Riding on a storm:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cPHuXZMI3L0
the guitar stuff at 1:21

Oh man, that stuff's great. Now I'm a Doop fan. I never saw/heard them before. Yeah...same riff...I wonder if my collaborator borrowed it. He's European, so maybe.

Gee, thanks for the kind words. All I was interested in was feedback on the one tune, but you really listened to stuff. What you heard is about half of the album. It'll be up on the net soon, I think. Maybe I'll link to it here.

[jopatius]

Kindafishy: for me this is not Zappa at all.

For me, Zappa is trying to say "I'm smarter than you, aren't I" and I just want to walk away from that. I have a guitarist-friend who is a Zappa-fan and I have tried to share his love to Zappa - but failed.

But this music from dobro - he is providing us with a seemingly simple texture, which contains a micro-cosmos - well I don't know what it is, but it is not irony or trying to prove that he is smarter than us. I like it.

[kindafishy]

Kindafishy: for me this is not Zappa at all.

For me, Zappa is trying to say "I'm smarter than you, aren't I" and I just want to walk away from that. I have a guitarist-friend who is a Zappa-fan and I have tried to share his love to Zappa - but failed.

But this music from dobro - he is providing us with a seemingly simple texture, which contains a micro-cosmos - well I don't know what it is, but it is not irony or trying to prove that he is smarter than us. I like it.

Yes, I can see where you're coming from. Zappa can present himself with a bit of a rough-edged pretentiousness that I don't hear here. Perhaps this is what it would be like if the Central Scrutinizer was less about probing and more about simply being inquisitive.

I am guilty of always searching for a 'sounds-like' mostly to ground myself. I always mean it as a compliment, so I hope it is taken as one. In this case, I mean it as the highest compliment as I am a Zappa fan.

That being said, yes, dobro, you've got your own thing going on here without a doubt, and I like it as well.

[mschuster]

Great vibe! you got a good thing going here dobro.. very eclectic..

i think the levels are ok.. although i probably have no justification whatsoever to say that since this isn't a genre I've ever worked in - or listen to. i might play with bringing the vox down just a tad, but then again - it's got a good vibe now. maybe don't monkey with anything.. ;)

[dobro]

Yeah, the vocal. I dropped the level a bit, raised the highpass a bit, and put a small chamber on it to push it back a bit. Bits. Thanks, everyone. I'm gonna listen again tomorrow morning, and if it sounds as good as it does now, it's done.

[dobro]

For me, Zappa is trying to say "I'm smarter than you, aren't I" and I just want to walk away from that. I have a guitarist-friend who is a Zappa-fan and I have tried to share his love to Zappa - but failed.

Check out the first Mothers of Invention album - the first ten tracks are non-stop awesomeness, but beyond that, you can hear Zappa trying to work out an artistic direction in terms of lyrics and song ideas - he's still vulnerable in some of them, and alternates that with the putdowns typical of his later songs. He comes across simply as weird and wonderful. He doesn't have the body armor and the cruelty of some of his later stuff.

[martifingers]

Not bored in the least. Slightly thrown by the vocals at first but swept along and seduced into liking this a lot. Early Zappa I guess but there's a whiff of Beatles playfulness. Just listened twice and still liking it... more please!

PS The 3/4 time is a delightful choice.