Is Your Music Any Good? Find Out Here!!

[Tedster]

(Brit accent): I say, I've just read a spot of that Joe Meek article...quite a possibility for a proper British whodunit there.

[the stranger]

John Palumbo, I really enjoyed Sail Away more than All Fall Down. On a song level, I enjoyed it more. Sail Away had a nice sound on the vocals. Scott from MA, Alphabet Soup, which I'm assuming is the former band, was quite a cool little number. I actually listened to it a few times in a row. It had the good quality of leaving you wanting more. Tedster!!!!!! The second link was a good link, but after I downloaded it, it wouldn't play. It sounds like it was put in a blender. I'm not sure if it is a contaminated file or what? After the little description, I was really wanting to hear it. See if you can figure out what the deal is with it. I still need to register at the other link. Killer thread, Craig!!!

[Tedster]

If it sounds like it was put in a blender, it may well be an improvement on the actual song! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!! Paroxysms of laughter!!! [img]http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/biggrin.gif[/img]

[Anderton]

John Palumbo -- "All Fall Down" I'd suggest compressing the vocal more and raising the overall level a bit in the mix. It has to compete too much with the instruments. The doubling effect is nice, it would be nicer 1 or 2 dB louder . Drums need more upper midrange. The acoustics sound "boxy," but you might be able to fashion that into a distinctive sound by going more for room mics and compressing them. In other words, if you're going to have a boxy drum sound, make it a BOXY!! drum sound. Re the bass -- were you miking the amp or going direct? It sounded like amp...in any event, a little distortion in appropriate places (like the chorus) would add a nice touch.

[MusicMan]

i agree wholeheartedly with your suggestions, and I thank you for listening. I am in since, in the process of re-recording that song, and other for my album. I have decide to keep the vocals in the verse less indestinct and making them clearer. The drums were a two track sub mix that I have since improved upon greatly. I think the bass was recorded direct, at that the time I recorded this (on the Roland VS840EX), I had not learned how horrible there pre amps are and have added a DBX586 to my rack. I really appeciate the responses, and will try to listen to more of others works. Was also hoping to get comments on the song writing not just the recording. I am always interested in arrangment/musicality type suggestions. -John (formerly songbirdx@home.com)

[Anderton]

Scott from MA -- with the positive review given previously to Alphabet Soup, I thought I'd check it out. I liked the Police-ish vibe, also the vocals are distinctive. It doesn't suck at all! Here are my comments: 1. The drummer needs more variations to differentiate the song sections. He does that in one place toward the end, but not enough. The overplaying works well in some places, but he needs to lay back a bit more in others. 2. Vocals need to come up. Not so much in level, I think a little compression will give them the needed lift. Also, some tempo-synched echo in appropriate places will help add interest, given there's only one person singing. 3. Drums need better EQ. I should just store that phrase in my text buffer somewhere, so I can paste it in at will . Too many demos have "tubby-sounding" drums. The music struck me as kind of polished punk. You can definitely take this further with attention to production.

[Scott from MA]

Wow! Thanks, Craig and Destructo, for the compliments and suggestions! Good timing too... I've been feeling rather discouraged about my music lately. "Alphabet" was recorded on a rather crappy 4-track, and went through a few generations of tape before making it to my computer. Poor sound quality aside, I'm very proud of that song, as it is one of the few MSFRG songs that I wrote the lyrics for (usually I wrote the music and Pam wrote the lyrics). Destructo... you are correct, MSFRG was my old band. We have since gone our seperate ways. I have recently begun collaborating with a new lyricist/vocalist, and we hope to be recording and posting some songs this winter. Thanks again for your input. Scott

[Guest]

I'm currently working (with Heather Perkins) on a CD that will have 99 short and quirky tracks, keyed to the squares of the Snakes and Ladders game. You can check out some examples (they're all easy downloads) at: http://www.mp3.com/SLAW I have more traditional pop and folk-rock songs at: http://www.mp3.com/PledgeDrive I just posted one called "Josephine" that I would love to get comments on.

[Uh Clem]

OK, I'm in. New Holiday Festive composition @ http://www.mp3.com/thedurians Enjoy. Happy Holidays. ------------------ Steve Powell Bull Moon Digital Atlanta GA [i]music is a problem for everyone[/i] you could hear things differently [url=http://www.bullmoondigital.com]www.bullmoondigital.com[/url]

[Eduardo Apolonia]

Here is something on the heavy side. [img]http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/cool.gif[/img] The sound is bad, it was recorded in a garage. [img]http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/frown.gif[/img] I would appreciate some thoughts about it. http://www.RawMachine.com/SoundFiles/Green_in_Greed.mp3 [This message has been edited by Eduardo Apolonia (edited 12-05-2000).]

[the stranger]

Ed, Definitely reminds me of Sepultura. This is of course a good thing. Where do you hail from? [img]http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/smile.gif[/img] Definitely more in my realm of taste. \m/,

[Eduardo Apolonia]

Thanks for your comments dr destructo. I am from Portugal. If you are interested in hearing another one here it is (this one doesn't remind Sepultura, I think) : http://www.RawMachine.com/SoundFiles/Give_me_a_Gun.mp3 I liked your songs, like it was said before I think that the drums could be more present. Are you playing all the instruments? [This message has been edited by Eduardo Apolonia (edited 12-05-2000).] [This message has been edited by Eduardo Apolonia (edited 12-05-2000).]

[the stranger]

Ed, Yes, I'm playing all the instruments. I'm going to have to work on the drum sound. I'm really glad to get input from everyone, as the constructive criticism can only serve to strengthen my projects. I'm going to check out that other song. I'll be back.

[Guest]

Just finished another song and posted. [url=http://www.mp3.com/RickWade]www.mp3.com/RickWade[/url] Clik "Seen The Sun" I think you guys n gals are about the only people hitting the site, so thanks for the stats [img]http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/wink.gif[/img] Cheers Rick

[Tedster]

Okay, more reviews from me (not that anyone cares) [img]http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/smile.gif[/img].. Tonemonkey...Pop Song...this is a style I really dig. Well recorded, sorta Pettyish...loved it! John Palumbo...Sail Away was my fave here...great tune. Sorta Hollies...definite 60s vibe...maybe a touch of Quicksilver Messenger Service... The other tunes were good too, but Sail Away was my personal fave... Walters...Snakes and Ladders...Yep! Definitely sounds like a video game! Holiday Gift Set...Rod Serling says: "Number nine, number nine, number nine"... Another example of "bizarre + art = bizart"... Eduardo...loved the drums and guitar riff! This isn't my musical cup o' tea...but well done. You'd probably not be into the stuff I do either... [img]http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/smile.gif[/img] Great example of what someone once termed "Cookie Monster vocals" [img]http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/smile.gif[/img]

[Anderton]

>>I'm really glad to get input from everyone, as the constructive criticism can only serve to strengthen my projects.<< That's the whole point of this topic. Thanks to everyone for continuing to participate.

[Eduardo Apolonia]

Tedster, I listen to your song Fly. Although the song is not my style I can say that it has a good vibe way better than a lot of musics that they put on radio trying to sell them, and has all the potential, what I didn't like on the song mixing wise ( I know it is a rough demo as you said but I will comment it anyway) was the effect on the voice and on the solo, I think both could be more dry. I downloaded your other song but it has a strange effect on all the song, I think that the file is corrupted. Is it a 56Kbps 32Khz mono soundfile? That is what appears in my Mp3 player. Try to download it and see if the sound is OK . I will try to make my comments in all the songs posted here.

[Tedster]

Hey, thanks for going to the trouble, Eduardo! Which raises the question...is it better to flog around with home mixes until you get it right, or just say heck with it and when you get something to a certain point, go to see a pro at your local hometown studio... Arguments pro and con? Maybe another thread entirely???

[F7sound -]

Here's what I did with just a single 14 second sound. Not for the faint of heart: http://www.f7sound.com/fluid.htm Michael Oster F7 Sound and Vision http://www.f7sound.com

[blackwon88]

An old (1997) Hip Hop experiment, vocals done on a cheap condenser mic and music on a EPS 16+ recorded direct to cassette and bounced to 4 track cassette to add backgrounds and mixed down to a well used 2track cassette tape never could get the same vibe in the studio. http://www.theblackproject.com/animosity.mp3

[Chip McDonald]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Anderton: [b]1. If you want reactions to your music, tell us where to find it.[/b] I've recently put up some "acoustic guitar based" music at the following address. What I'm curious about is... "Just what genre of music is this?" I suppose it's "new age", but..."?". Some of it is rather dark; other bits are rather busy, and there are actual relatively aggressive guitar solos here and there...? ..and what of the melodies? www.mp3.com/chipmcdonald "Busy For Nothing" (second selection from the top) - I'm also curious as to whether or not it seems like the guitar is over-hyped in the high end? I wanted a very "close" effect, but it seems difficult with cheap gear.. A very subtle line to approach, I don't know if I went over it or not? Is the effect too "non-contemporary"? "A Particular Bandwidth of Emotion" - It bugs me that the guitar melody of the main theme is not perfectly congruent with the doubled piano? Specifically, the front/back sound stage: is it crazy to want to hear the guitar "close" but with a fairly distant piano? I can't think of a recording that has an acoustic guitar doubled with a piano line like this, so I'm not sure if this sounds alien, I'm too close to it...? I tried doing the guitar part with less inflection, but that seemed worthless, then matching "piano inflection" seemed odd sounding, so I ended up with this, which isn't perfectly matched, but artistically valid? Is the solo too "self absorbed"? Is the "distant drum of non-specific ethnic origin" to thumpy in the low mids? Is there too much ambient clutter? I tried to balance things front/back, but "?" "Languid Shell Beach" - Too strident treble in the reverb of the drums? Too "cold" eq wise? Am I shooting myself in the foot having a pseudo-aggressive solo on music like this? Are the different sections too strange? What kind of music is this? "Persistance" - is the intro too freaky for this kind of music? Is the acoustic part at the beginning too stark? (uhg, I've just listened to it for the first time as an MP3... it sounds like I've got Dolby B on it (without being encoded), weird? Strange, it sounds massively drier as an MP3 than .wav; the other tracks seem to have survived the MP3 conversion better... strange...?) Huh.. also sounds squashed, but it wasn't... VERY odd...? Uhg.. Oh well, maybe that will be interesting to someone.. "North Carolina Creepy Stick" - is this too upfront eq-wise? I wanted an "in front of you" effect, but have since realized no one really does such a thing and it's probably too odd in general? Again - is aggressive soloing out of place for this kind of music? What kind of music is this? Uhg, the bass is too inconsistent level wise. Hmmm... The break in the middle is probably too dramatic as well? Uhg... There's a bend that's slightly out of tune... Ahg. Not enough dynamics in the low end of the rhythm guitar parts? The harmony part after the solo isn't complementary because it's too loud in the mix? The attack on the solo bits sounds too strident. The reverb sounds too much like the reverb on Stanley Clark's _If This Bass Could Only Talk_.. ack.. Is there really any point? Maybe this is a bad idea.. Ahg... Hmm.. Maybe I should go and erase all of that stuff and delete this post? Well, at least the post in itself is perhaps entertaining.

[the stranger]

Chip, I gave your stuff a listen. I have a lowly 56k, so it was the lo-fi version for me. And I can't really comment on the production with the real audio mangling. [img]http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/smile.gif[/img] I can comment on the music, though. This is definitely mood music. I couldn't listen to this all the time, but in the right frame of mind, you would definitely be striking a chord. You have a definite mellow streak, eh? You have some nice guitar skills. I liked Lorentz, it had a cool creepy vibe to it. Persistence and Majestic 12 were cool, too. You really teased me with the minute long intro that has the shredding in the background. My tastes are on the heavy side, so I'd like to hear you do one of those tasty little numbers and have it bust into a major thrashing frenzy. [img]http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/smile.gif[/img] ------------------ [url=http://angelfire.com/indie/drd/][b]destructive workshops[/b][/url] ------------- [url=http://www.mp3.com/societicide][b]Want to hear some of my stuff?[/b][/url]

[Chip McDonald]

Originally posted by dr destructo: [b] You have a definite mellow streak, eh? You have some nice guitar skills. [/b] Thanks for the nice comments... I have a mellow streak, BUT there's another side of the coin (see below...) [b]You really teased me with the minute long intro that has the shredding in the background. like to hear you do one of those tasty little numbers and have it bust into a major thrashing frenzy. [img]http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/smile.gif[/img] [/b] How about just a major thrashing shredding frenzy throughout? [url=http://www.mp3.com/chipmcdonaldguitar]www.mp3.com/chipmcdonaldguitar[/url] (note the "guitar" bit at the end... ) Check out "Provoked Food Response". Remember, you didn't see that link here... Your stuff: "Free Will": I like the long and somber 70's Pink Floyd sounding intro. The hip hop beat with heavier vibe is cool. I like the "peaking out" vibe at 2:35; reminds me of the end of "Empty Spaces" from _the Wall... "Trancendance" - I liked again the juxtaposition of the hip hop hat rhythm and the gothic heavy stuff; also, I think I hear an E11 in there, which is interesting... "It's So Easy" - again the hip hop rhythm track with heavy guitars, which is cool. Kinda has a vibe like the Pumpkin's _Pisces Iscariot_ outakes CD, which is cool. I think you should focus on the hip hop rhythm combination with the gothic heavy guitar sound as a unique thing... The more death/grindcore sounding stuff isn't really my taste, so I prefer the things that standout (to my ear) as "different". One thing, though; the up front/direct fuzzy guitar thing is cool from a raucous Sonic Youth sort of standpoint, but with an overall stripped down production style I think it gets kind of over bearing (for my tastes). I'd want to hear that in contrast with a more "polished" sound for B sections that "open up" more. Are you recording the guitar direct? I'd either try to mic it to match the recording style of the other instruments, or maybe run a send on the drums through something "very colored/small and bright" and blend that in to keep the guitars from being too upfront/dominant (like on "Eyes Tinted Green"). Capitalism sucks? I'd agree in a dialectic sense but you probably mean in a purist Jello Biafra manner, huh? Thanks for your comments... [This message has been edited by Chip McDonald (edited 12-13-2000).]

[the stranger]

Chip, Thanks for your comments. As you can probably tell, I'm going in quite a few different directions, music-wise. I'll definitely be using your advice regarding the instrumentals. I can definitely see what you are saying. On my list is a decent acoustic electric, just so I can get more contrast/dynamics. Do you mike your acoustic or what? Yes, A lot of the guitars are direct. I've been doing a lot of that lately. The stuff I've been doing as of late has been miked amp, though. I really prefer a miked sound, but direct is just so easy. It does get a bit to bright, though. Of course, a lot of the guitars being dominant is my lust for raging guitars. [img]http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/smile.gif[/img] Plus, my singing sucks (in a dialectic sense), so I'm probably overemphasizing to compensate. I appreciate the comments about the direct guitars clashing with the miked instruments. That is the type of constructive criticism I can use. [img]http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/smile.gif[/img] I'm still pretty green at the whole recording thing. I'm at the "mix a song 73 times and see which one works" stage. I just started doing the 4-track thing a couple of years ago. "It's So Easy" was done with two cheap consumer tape decks and a cheap radio shack mixer. Every track is a bounce on that one. So I'm trying to learn how to mix. Back when I did that song, I would have to get levels, etc. right when I hit record, because when all you are doing is layering with two tape decks, you only get one try. Anyway, thanks for listening to my stuff. I really appreciate you taking the time. P.S. I got a kick out of the Jello comment. How'd you just happen to guess one of my influences? [img]http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/smile.gif[/img] (I'm 32, so DK is a fav) Now, I'm off to that link. [img]http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/wink.gif[/img] [This message has been edited by dr destructo (edited 12-14-2000).]

[the stranger]

Chip! I like it. I'd really like to hear you do a number like your mellow stuff that slowly keeps building into something like that. (Or come over and throw some leads on my stuff) [img]http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/smile.gif[/img] Oh yeah, I meant to add to my earlier reply that "Free Will" and "Transcendence" are variations on the same theme.

[Chip McDonald]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by dr destructo: [b]list is a decent acoustic electric, just so I can get more contrast/dynamics. Do you mike your acoustic or what?[/b] Uhg. Big Uhg. Yeah, I mic it. But I'm trying to get a sound I'm hearing in my head that - after I've looked at it in retrospect - doesn't exist at the moment in recorded music as far as I can tell off hand. My big problem is the fight to make Cheesy Cheap Gear give the illusion harmonically that it's Fairly Nice Expensive Gear. Which means a certain detail in the high end combined with a certain signal to noise ratio combined with a certain quasi-lack of coloration. Plus a quiet signal. Which meant I ended up tracking everything with the mic maybe 2 inches away from the guitar; I wanted the high end to be detailed, as if I had a nice preamp. I feel that most non-educated/non-industry listeners make their first impression sound-wise based on the spectral content of what they hear, and even though doing this makes it seem strident (relatively) the detail should be fairly... uhm.. deceptive? Which then causes a lot of eq problems from being so close. So - I found myself spending hours and hours micro-positioning an SM-81 microphone to find the least out-of-wack eq balance - *for each part in a tune*. In other words aiming for the G and B strings specifically if that's the two I was playing a figure on, and then spending a silly amount of time positioning the mic lengthwise along the neck so the resonance would be consonant with the notes I was playing... THEN getting anal about the deflection/angle ... ahg... I think I gave myself an ulcer doing those 11 songs. It took almost a year; if I had had a quiet enough preamp - one which would have allowed me to come off the guitar a bit without noise creeping in, one which would have been detailed at that distance without having to eq the high end - I could have done those tunes in a couple of months, and with better musical results. Life in the trenches I suppose... What sucks is that it's so unprofessional in the end. There's spots where, *because* I was so tight on the mic, there's a moment of weirdness spectrum wise because I moved the guitar more than a millimeter... String noise is ridiculous (to me; I may be too critical of that, I dunno...), went nuts on some things trying to avoid it - and had to let it go (which is killing me RIGHT NOW AS I TYPE THIS)... and during solos part of my mind was thinking "I need to lean forward a hair so that when I finish this phrase this string won't be out of ear shot of the mic"... non-musical crap like that that is embarrassing. Ended up having to play with so much force and accuracy - because of the proximity of the mic picking up every little nuance - which I think prevented me from reaching a musical point I wanted to get to - the "Folding Space" point, so to speak. Which is always there for me, but having a microphone at times literally a quarter inch from a string is stilting. If I had been doing acoustic guitar in a louder, pop/rock sort of context I would have probably blended a bit of direct in (not to the point of too much cheapnis.. )and put more distance between the guitar and the mic - since the volume would be there and the music would help lessen obvious S/N problems... But that would have been too easy. [b]I appreciate the comments about the direct guitars clashing with the miked instruments. That is the type of constructive criticism I can use. [img]http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/smile.gif[/img][/b] Well, I'm just thinking in terms of creativity that I don't think people have really explored *competantly* before. Billy Corgan is the only one who comes to mind; I recently heard some out takes from the last Pumpkin's release and there's a couple of tunes that uses ridiculously washy/bright sounds for the sake of that sound... (he seems to be pushing every which way to do something different?). One tune in particular he used a washy/buzzy sound in the chorus, and the verse has a blatantly "old analog tape/rolled off highs" sound. At the same time, though - his "buzzy" sounds - like on "Today" (Siamese Dream) are only "bright" in the sense that the harmonic balance is shifted towards the upper end; it's still a mic'ed sound, and the eq balance on the end result *isn't* tilted overly to the high end. If you reamped your bright/direct sound it would knock down the treble in the *recorded* sound, but the effect of having a cutting, harsh sound would still be there. I haven't really heard anyone experiment too much with blatant mix eq doing things through a mix, except for recently in the electronica scene... I tried to do something like that at the beginning of "Busy For Nothing", and in some other places, but I was stretched to thin to think productively in that manner when I mixed all of that stuff (too rough shod as well). ANYHOW... hmm.. this will sound like an oblique tangent, but go get Sarah McLachlan's _Fumbling Towards Ecstacy_ and listen to how the drums/drum machine parts sometimes has a flat, small sound (not in the low end, mind you) - but now and then a bright distorted guitar comes in. Pierre Marchand did a real cool job in using the spectrum creatively on that recording I think; I'm waiting for someone to write music thinking in terms of "my dull sound; my peaked-eqed mid sound; my bright fizzy sound", etc. [b]recording thing. I'm at the "mix a song 73 times and see which one works" stage.[/b] That's how you learn, I suppose... [b]I just started doing the 4-track thing a couple of years ago.[/b] I wore out/killed not 1, not 2, but THREE four tracks when I started out long ago... Sitting next to me is a file cabinet full of about... probably 300+ cassette tapes full "learning", instrumentals and experimentation, bands of my own and others... A *big* learning boost was when I got my second 4 track - a Tascam something or other - that had semi-parametric eq on it. If your 4 track doesn't have that - consider trying to sell yours to a friend and obtaining something with it, or buy an outboard eq unit so you can learn to twist a knob around while listening to the spectral balance of what you're recording... Invaluable. [b]"It's So Easy" was done with two cheap consumer tape decks and a cheap radio shack mixer. Every track is a bounce on that one.[/b] I've got a tape a made with a friend when I was around 11 of a Star Wars parody we did bouncing between our respective boom boxes (has anyone noticed they no longer make them with built in microphones? The Classic Panasonic Boom Box - RIP). Loads of fun making our two voices into the sounds of thousands of suffering people in an Imperial attack... [b]etc. right when I hit record, because when all you are doing is layering with two tape decks, you only get one try.[/b] Forces decisions, which is good I think. [b]P.S. I got a kick out of the Jello comment. How'd you just happen to guess one of my influences? [img]http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/smile.gif[/img] (I'm 32, so DK is a fav)[/b] I didn't... Hmm.. There was a time around the early 80's, when the New York punk scene was in a nascent stage, that certain themes tended to crop up a bit... and there was no beating around the bush about the subject matter. You know, themes like "Reagan SUCKS", etc.. Somewhere that morphed into "mature" metaphorical punk lyrics, which then morphed into lyrics that just had the words of the metaphors - but lacked any real content. Rap lyrics are like that now - empty metaphor. I just remember Biafra as being the ultimate example of that no-nonsense cut to the quick attitude... Rollins kind of ushered in the metaphorical attitude, but Biafra didn't couch his opinions at all. Which is what bugs me a bit about RATM - they're not blatant enough. In other words, I want to hear some good old-school punk music put George W. in his place over the next 4 years... but I'm afraid that's not going to happen, and we need a good anti-"King George I" type song more now than ever. Ahem... (sorry about the diatribe...)

[the stranger]

[quote]we need a good anti-"King George I" type song more now than ever.[/quote] [img]http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/smile.gif[/img]

[Guest]

Hey a place where we can spam ourselves and not get hollered at [img]http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/wink.gif[/img] Cool! Actually these MPN message forums are a breath of fresh air. Seems all others are nothing but beggin for Dl's. I'd like to partake in this thread as time permits. I'll start from the top and work my way down. Managed to listen to three artist this morning. [dr destructo] Did two lo-fi listens and lo-fi in any form seems to turn metal into a thrashing machine so I Dl'd Scorpio. Love the lead guitar work, would like to hear it out in front a bit but that's a personal preference not a deficiency. I cranked the DL and it brought my 15 year old guitar slingin son out of his hell-hole. "Who's that?" he wanted to know. Other than my constantly yellin at him to keep that damn guitar down so I can mix a piece of music this afternoon, that was probably our quality conversation for the weekend so see... your tune had a positive effect on my household. [img]http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/wink.gif[/img] [alphajerk] Listened to "The Merle" thing and have one short but positive comment: "I want to get drunk and listen to this band in a honky-tonk in my neighborhood." NOW!!! [Jonathan Hughes] I DL'd "Voltiac". I'm a sucker for a "droney ambience in D Minor". The kind of stuff you do, I've wanted to try ever since I first got my hands on a synth. However, at 47 all these rootsy influences I carry around with me, seem to make whatever I start with end up on the contemporary side. Now that I look back my life has been one endless trance so I should leave it there maybe. If the robots are safe and happy, I'm safe and happy Off to work for now. Enjoyed ya all. ------------------ William F. Turner Guitarist, Composer, Songwriter

[the stranger]

William, Thanks for the comments. I had originally mixed Sorpio with the melody more upfront, but I thought it was a little overbearing. I may have subdued it just a tad to much. Hmmmm.... You(or your son) may want to check out Free Will and Transcendence. They're also instrumentals of that nature. The Intro and Outro are instrumentals, too (they are more metal, though).

[x factor music]

Okay, here's a couple of projects to listen to: First is Madding Crowd, which was my experiment with ACID matched with a Dream Theater-esque guitarist in the area with my vocals on top. http://www.mp3.com/artists/33/madding_crowd.html And then there's little 'ol me, which was me and my synth, guitars, and stacked vocal harmonies for a Journey meets Shawn Mullins vibe: http://mp3.com/jeremey Thanks!