Hurricane Katrina Relief Project Thread - Song 3 (RicBassGuy)

[nursers]

Originally posted by RicBassGuy:

Sorry, my bad. 150bpm * (2/3) = 100bpm.

No probs I had worked it out

 

I've pretty much done an organ line for both parts - nothing exciting, just good background. You are right about the instrumentation varying from the click track - a little concerned I might've followed the instruments too much but let's see what happens. I will do some more stuff tomorrow night them hopefully have something to submit....

[Billster]

Hey, I finally got to load the guide track into my system and learn the song.

 

I had a problem downloading the full reference mix minus vocals. I have only the click/rhythm track and the mp3 demo mix.

 

Where do we stand with Bunny's drums? I'm thinking ideally I'll want to have that to track to.

 

Ric, would it be possible to get the MIDI file for the drums as they exist now? I could take a standard MIDI file, load it into my system and use my drum machine for sound source in the interim.

 

Is there a reference vocal somewhere? I need to know where I'm going to have to stay out of the way and where I can accent.

 

I'm thinking some straight-ahead strumming for the A sections, a little something different for the bridge, depending on what the drum groove cooks up, and then for the 2nd half section doing a clean electric arpeggio thing with some layered harmony lines.

[nursers]

Bunny - I will PM you link for ftp to download my organ track. I'm offline for up to 5 days starting Monday btw

[Eric VB]

Dave and Bill, check PMs.

 

(It's not Monday downunder yet, is it?)

[nursers]

Sorry - had already left when i got your PM - Bunny has the link to my file

[Billster]

Still looking for a scratch vocal to work around

 

I know Bunny has had some technical difficulties, so I'm not wondering about the drums.

[nursers]

Check yer PM's Bill

[Billster]

Got it, thank you sir!

[Eric VB]

Thanks for keeping this moving, guys!

 

I've found myself bogged down in RL lately. Now Katrina's fallen behind Rita and an earthquake. What a year, eh? Anyway, I'll see what I can get done on my end this week. Would love to start seeing things come together, but as we all know Bunny has some serious computer problems hindering him.

 

I've given him license to completely rework the vocals (thank goodness). So, although you have something to work with, keep in mind it will probably change.

[Billster]

Bunny, any news on the drums?

[Eric VB]

Taking a cue from Billster's "benevolent dictator" posting, I do hereby put a deadline on this project, Jan. 31st.

 

I'd like to move it up, but we still don't have all the final tracks cut, and I don't know how much time we can put into it over the holidays. Personally, I'm looking at stealing some time between Christmas and New Year's to get my stuff done.

 

I'd like to have at least a couple of weeks for mixing, so having all final tracks by the end of the first week in January would be good. Of course, if we get things done before then, then we can move the schedule up. The sooner we finish, the better.

 

David already has his track done, but I haven't heard it yet. Billster is probably still recovering from the, ahem, scratch vocal. (Hey, I never said I was a singer. ) Bunny is still MIA on the internet. If I can't get a hold of him via other methods -- haven't tried yet -- I'll have to look for replacements.

 

What do we need to get this thing moving again? Still waiting for drums, Billster?

[Billster]

Still waiting for drums. I will hunt down the Bunny

[tweeksound]

Are all the part filled up here? I dont play Mandolin though.

[tweeksound]

Sorry, I don't have a 12 String either. I could Double track the rhythm and have one played an octave higher if that works. Let me know if there's anything I can do. I PMed you RicBassGuy.

Thanks.

Matt

[Eric VB]

Ok, Matt, you've got vocals now! (Check your PMs for more info.)

 

In other updates, we have a drum track now. Billster, look for it to come your way soon.

 

For all the yummy mixing and engineering stuff, what do you -- Bill and Matt -- want to do? Parallel mixes like was done for the "Rebuild" song ? Or is there some way you could work together? Or would you rather just have one person designated for all that?

 

So, assuming we can get all the tracking done by, say, the first week of Jan., that gives the engineering about 3 weeks to finish things up. Sound reasonable?

 

[updated the contributor list post on this thread.]

[tweeksound]

Oh, disregaurd that PM about still mixing Ricbassguy. I didn't check here firsat.

Um, ya

I'm pretty sure Bill would be the best man for the job.

I would like to do my own mix and master just for the fun and experience but in the end I'm pretty sure I and the rest of the artists involved would rather use Bills Mix.

Would that be okay?

[tweeksound]

Could I possibly have the phonetic spelling to help me pronounce these words?

 

Creole

 

lead

 

jambalaya

 

etouffee

 

beignets

 

cafe au lait

 

 

Thank you.

[Eric VB]

Originally posted by Matt Marcil:

I would like to do my own mix and master just for the fun and experience [...] Would that be okay?

Works for me!

[Billster]

Hey, if Matt wants to mix, I can head up to Concord for a day sometime in January. Hit me with a PM about equipment/software/file type needs.

[Billster]

Originally posted by Matt Marcil:

Could I possibly have the phonetic spelling to help me pronounce these words?

Creole = Kree-ol

 

lead = If you're talking about the bridge and "lawless lead", that would be "led"

 

jambalaya = jam-ba-LIE-uh

 

etouffee = et-too-FAY

 

beignets = bean-YAY

 

cafe au lait = kaf-ay aw lay

 

 

I have a scratch vocal mix,

I wouldn't have known etouffee from soufflee

[Eric VB]

Yeah, a lot of French influence in the Creole/Cajun cultures in New Orleans. If you only hear the names verbally it can make spelling a nightmare! (And this coming from a guy living in "day-TWAH"! My apologies to the French and French-speaking people everywhere.)

 

I had to consult my wife and her years of high school French to make sure I got everything right (or at least close). The only one I remember being significantly different from what Bill gives is "bayn-YAY" for beignets.

 

(It's probably my own misconceptions that lead to "jum-ba-LIE-yuh", "ay-too-FAY", and "kaf-AY oh LAY". But maybe I should check on these again?)

 

FWIW, most of those words refer to food items or dishes. They can be found outside of N.O., but really I don't think they taste as good anywhere else. So, they're kind of like comfort foods that people may have grown up with. Now, living God knows where for the last how many months, I imagine evacuees are starting to long (or "hunger") for these little pieces of home. (Imagine a dish your mom made growing up that you just can't get anywhere but your mom. Something like that.)

 

I wanted to record a newer version of the scratch vocal track, especially since even I don't sing it that stiffly anymore, but I didn't have time. So, Matt will get the same crap everyone else had to put up with. (Hey! Stop laughing! ) Just be sure to note that I expect the final vocal track to sound tons better than the scratch. How you do that is up to you.

 

The scratch vocals are slightly different from the lyrics I posted here. Also, since then I have changed my mind on the last line of the 2nd verse.

 

Original:

Don'cha know that I'm too damn poor for that

 

Scratch: (took out "damn")

Don'cha know that I'm too poor for that

 

Now: (took out first "that", put "damn" back)

Don'cha know I'm too damn poor for that

 

I needed to drop a syllable and I regretted dropping "damn" in the scratch version. It's bluesy here and the "damn" fits and makes for a stronger sentiment, IMO.

[Eric VB]

Just a little FWIW here ...

 

Last night I went to visit my friend who hosts an open mic. I just came to hang out; I didn't plan on playing anything. Well, the turnout was a little thin due to the weather and the holiday season, so my friend had to fill out a lot more time playing himself than he normally would. His voice started giving out and he was pretty desperate to get anybody to come up and play a few songs. (Another guitarist borrowed my friend's guitar and sang something like a 6 song set so my friend could eat his dinner.) Anyway, he kept begging me (from the mic) to come up, so I finally caved in. Like I said, I didn't have anything prepared; I do mostly originals now and for the life of me I couldn't remember the lyrics to anything except this song.

 

So, I proceeded to butcher "Water's Risin' High" -- which I hadn't played the guitar part for in a while -- for the handful of people in the bar. (There was a guy helping out by playing percussion things, which made the transition to the 2nd half difficult for me. Well, that's my excuse anyway. ) I bobbled the entrance to the 2nd verse of the 2nd half, then apologized ("See what happens when you don't practice?") while waiting for the chords to come around again.

 

Well, despite all the performance problems, I still got what I felt was sincere applause for the "maiden public voyage". Another singer/songwriter/guitarist came up to me afterwards and started talking with me (gave me his card), and that made me feel better. So, I may be patting myself on the back, but I felt that if the performance was not that good then the song must be working, right?

 

I know you guys are going to make this a great recording. I can't wait 'til it's done so at least I can have something to promote out there for Katrina relief. I think the window of opportunity is still here if we want it.

 

Hopefully the other tunes are nearing completion, too. I'd rather promote a 4-song EP than a single. Or a full length CD, if the Tsunami songs are available, too.

[Billster]

Hey Ric,

 

You say you have drum tracks? Where may I obtain a copy? And a plain bass track? All I have are the demo mixes which I'm thinking will be confusing to track to.

 

I have had a few PM's with Matt about getting together for a mix session. What exactly are the instrument tracks at this point? Do you have keys from Nursers?

[Eric VB]

Uh, I got a hold of Bunny and he said he'd send his drums directly to you, Bill. I kind of hoped he would have already gotten in touch with you by now.

 

Nursers originally sent his keys to Bunny. I suspect it may be easiest for David to find his original and send a copy directly to you.

 

I plan on getting the bass done when I have time off from work, Dec. 25 - Jan. 1. I've tried a bunch of things and I think I finally have a system now with less latency issues. If I can't get a good bass track now, maybe I should find someone else to play bass!

 

As for mando, maybe I'll borrow my buddy's acoustic/electric and just record direct. It should sound better than using a dynamic mic in an untreated room. (If by some stroke of luck I can still get that deal on studio time and get it scheduled, that would probably be best.) [When PMing Matt, I had the idea of using a 12-string guitar instead of mando, but then realized it would be an octave lower. Also there would be fingering problems. So I'm back to trying to make the mando happen.]

[tweeksound]

Thank you for the pronunciation on the words.

I don't know where the scratch vocal track is.

Where can I find it?

[Eric VB]

Sorry, Matt. I didn't get a chance to send it yet. I'll PM you when I do.

[Billster]

I have the drums. I'm going to spend a little time developing guitar parts before I commit to "tape" (Disc? Virtual tape? ). Maybe after the first of the year I can get the individual bass track and start pulling mix things together.

 

Concord is about an hour north for me. Maybe I can head north and track Matt's vocal directly into the final mix format?

[tweeksound]

Bill,

I will be able to export a .wav file, or transfer digitally, or whatever works best with your rig, directly from my DAW. So there shouldn't be a problem with adding my vocal track into the mix at anytime during the process.

 

What did you have in mind?

Not sure what you meant by track it directly into the final mix "format".

 

I'll be in Virginia from the 22nd to the 26th.

I will have email and the net.(dial up connection though).

 

I will be practicing the vocal till then and will record it when I return.

Matt

[Billster]

Matt, my thinking was that if we get together for a session, I could track your vocal with my portable rig and we could commence directly to mixing.

 

I don't plan on that happening until after the first of the year.

 

I need to obtain the raw bass, mando, and organ tracks, and also record my guitar parts

 

Then I can spend some time pre-mixing the instrument tracks before we put down your vocals. As an added benefit my instrument pre-mix can be checked on your monitors as well as mine. (BTW,what is the monitor situation at your studio? It's the weakest link in mine.)

 

We track your vocals, and then can brainstorm on refinements to the mix together. I can burn you a disc of all the raw tracks to load into your system for your own mixing enjoyment and head off to flog together my own final mix. We have each post up a mix and let the jury here decide what they like.

[tweeksound]

My monitors are the weak link for me as well. I do a most of the mixing on AKG studio headphones and then proof check with my Radio Shack speakers.

What would be the advantage of tracking my vocal on your portable rig as oposed to my DAW?

What mic could you bring that would be good.

Any really great pres?