Skol303

Band biogs are indeed a tricky business... I used to read a bunch of these when I worked as a music journalist, and some of them were awful! Generally speaking, they need to be "interesting" and full of personality in order to stand out from the plethora of dirge put out by other bands competing for the same attention. And of course, the style of the biog should reflect the style of band and their music. A dash of humour - if done right - can add personality to a biog and help the artist come across as being "human" and not overly pretentious. But it's a careful balancing act and jokes about pizza, as mentioned by the OP, are exactly the sort of thing to avoid. The worst offenders are always those that try to be overly serious or generally over-sell themselves as being the "next big thing" (no journalist or A&R person wants to hear that, as they believe it's their job to decide who's the next big thing! Sad as that may be). There's also a certain annoyance that comes from reading about someone who first "first in love with music at the age of 3, listening to his/her father's Motown records..." etc. Nobody likes a smart ass, after all. So yeah, it's not an easy thing to get right. But I'd say the key things are to focus on conveying your personality, rather than trying to show-off. Journalists and A&R folks are interested in what makes your band [i]different[/i] from others, rather than what makes you [i]better[/i]. Why? Because they're looking for interesting things or different angles to help sell their magazines, or fill their artist roster. And they sure as hell ain't interested in what pizza toppings you enjoy! Keep that stuff for banter down the pub, which is where your band will stay if that's your approach... [disclaimer: not that there's anything wrong with pub gigs!]

[quote name='Dropzone' post='1342893' date='Aug 17 2011, 11:10 AM']I have a really old version of cubase and have heard the wonders spoken of reason / record. Essentially I want to record rehearsals and also hopefuly some fairly decent home recordings. Is there a way to try reason /record out without paying for it? And is this suitable for what I need? Ta Mike[/quote] In short: yes and yes! I'm an avid user of Reason/Record myself... love 'em... very intuitive softwares and great for home recording in my opinion: they're quite literally a "studio in a box". The (only) main limitation is a lack of VST support, but you can very easily ReWire Reason into other software, such as Cubase or Logic, if you're desperate to use 3rd party plug-ins. You can download demos of both softwares from the Propellerhead website - if you want to record audio, then 'Record' is what you're after (I guess the clue is in the name!): [url="http://www.propellerheads.se/download/"]http://www.propellerheads.se/download/[/url] Bear in mind that Reason 6 is being release on 30th September, which effectively combines both of these softwares into a single package. If you buy either in the meantime then you'll get a fairly hefty discount on upgrading to Reason 6. ... and before anyone else mentions it, I'd also recommend checking out Reaper - a very cheap and reliable DAW that's superb value for money: [url="http://www.reaper.fm/"]http://www.reaper.fm/[/url] [^ dammit, beaten by 51m0n! ... must type faster in future!!] Have fun!

[quote name='Blademan_98' post='1342335' date='Aug 16 2011, 07:55 PM']Buttery Biscuit Bass[/quote] Ha ha, yes indeed...like it! Although I think Greg Wallace probably has the copyright on that one

[quote name='KiOgon' post='1341826' date='Aug 16 2011, 01:01 PM']BTW "All your bass are belong to me" ain't exactly good grammar is it![/quote] You're obviously not geeky enough for that particular gag...unlike me! [url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_your_base_are_belong_to_us"]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_your_base_are_belong_to_us[/url]

I have two bases, both second hand: one cost £30 (Hohner Rockwood; since defretted!); the other cost £200 (Ibanez EDB-600). Both sound "ok" in my humble, hobbyist hands. Yet when they're played by a friend of mine - who is a professional musician - they sound bloomin' great! Ergo: is it the "workman" or his "tool" that matters most? (no sniggering at the back, please). As I imagine that with other areas of music, there's always a risk of people having "all the gear and no idea", as the saying goes That said, if you're having a whip-round, then I generally settle for nothing less than the £2,500+ category. Yep, definitely that price bracket.

[quote name='NJE' post='1333716' date='Aug 9 2011, 03:52 PM']No I mean find a very good friend who has a multiple user licence and get it installed for the price of a pint and being a good friend. [/quote] Ha! Funny you mention that, as I have a friend who did exactly the same thing and shared his Logic license... not with me however. I've been spitting in his pints ever since [kidding, of course]

[quote name='NJE' post='1333609' date='Aug 9 2011, 02:22 PM']The latest Garage Band is supposed to be very good but if you can 'aquire' a copy of Logic it is incredibly good.[/quote] By 'acquire' I assume you mean spend your money on a legitimate licensed copy? In the same way I acquired my bass guitar by, y'know, not robbing it from somebody's house... Just saying I'd also recommend checking out Propellerhead Reason & Record - superb (and relatively cheap) softwares in my opinion; I'm constantly bleating on about them on this forum (so yes, I am bias): [url="http://www.propellerheads.se/"]http://www.propellerheads.se/[/url] Interface-wise I use a Tascam US-144mkII which I find to be very reliable and probably available for cheap second hand on ebay. If I were to buy a new one tomorrow I'd certainly be checking out the Focusrite Saffire as already mentioned here - I'm always hearing good things about it.

^ Phew! Well, I'm glad I guessed right I'll try playing track A again tonight and pass on any feedback, for what it's worth. And don't be too hard on your own mixing skills! Your version actually has more potential than B in my opinion, as there's more 'room' in the mix and more scope to produce a decent finished sound from it - rather than simply ramming all the levels up on maximum! Although there is a time and a place for distortion, for sure. If you're not happy with the studio cut then I'd definitely have a go at remixing it yourself, assuming you have the time. It'll save you a bunch of ca$h and it's also a great way of learning about music production, which is itself very useful (as it helps when communicating your 'vision' to other, better studios). Like I said, I'm no professional myself - I'm just a humble home hobbyist! - but there are plenty of very helpful folks on Basschat who know a ton of stuff about music production and mixing. So if you need any help then simply ask - the advice you'll get here is top notch, in my experience. Best of luck!

For some reason I can't get track A to play on your SoundCloud page (could be my bandwidth or something...?!). But regardless, I'll stick my neck out here and take a punt on track A being the studio cut, even though I can't actually listen to it! Why? Because: -> I'm guessing that track C is your own version, only because it's more subtle than... -> ... track B, which I'm guessing is your guitarist's version, only because it's quite overdriven and distorted with the levels set too high (in my humble opinion); hence his reason for thinking it sounds better than the studio version - because it's loud! Which is typical of a guitarist! So, by the power of deduction alone, I'm going with track A being the studio mix. If it's not track A then seriously, I'd find another studio to work with. I'm certainly no "pro" myself, but I'd be disappointed if I'd paid money for mixes B or C (no offence meant by that at all).

[quote name='Mugz.wood' post='1331816' date='Aug 8 2011, 10:55 AM']i found EQing the kick before putting on a noise gate helps keep the kick sounding good and not sacrificing to much whilst clearing of the clutter[/quote] ^ Cheers for the tip! Makes sense... do the EQ'ing before I put a gate on the volume. Haven't tried this yet, so it's now on my 'To Do' list with this particular track

In terms of learning how to improve my bass playing, I use various tuition books and the standard exercises they recommend. And I try to practice these exercises routinely each week (ie. avoiding the temptation to simply jam along to records, although that's a lot of fun!). In terms of learning how to play new songs, I always do this by ear and use notation (or tab) if/when I get stuck. Certain types of software help too... especially if I need to adjust the pitch or tempo of something in order to work out what's going on (ie fast and fiddly sections). For this purpose I use: - Propellerhead Record - Audacity (which is free!) - A great little iPhone app called Robick

^ Nice tracks there Bilbo. And each very different from the next. My pick of the bunch is probably Easily Done; "dodgy vocal" and all I often do the same thing and scat or hum along accompaniment to help sketch out an idea. Though you really don't want to hear my singing, trust me! (something to do with the Geneva Conventions, or so I'm told...). PS: the kettle drum on Fanfare reminds me of the opening bars of the 'Captain Scarlet' theme tune, which I've now had ringing in my head since: [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwhMl60b668"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwhMl60b668[/url]

Lots more crazy guitars here... [url="http://www.musicradar.com/news/bass/the-most-outrageous-guitars-on-the-internet-198301#!1"]http://www.musicradar.com/news/bass/the-mo...t-198301#!1[/url]

Do I detect a hint of jealousy here, gentlemen?

[quote name='51m0n' post='1327486' date='Aug 4 2011, 05:26 PM']Hi pass the offenders as high as you dare. Really, I know its bass, but a high pass filter at 45Hz is the least you can do to get rid of really subby issues and will leave all those lovelrly harmonics...[/quote] ^ Nice, I like this idea. [quote name='51m0n' post='1327486' date='Aug 4 2011, 05:26 PM']...prioritise the low lows from the dub synth, the mids from the bass guitar, the kick should provide slap at around 4KHz and a healthy supportive whallop, in order to do which it must duck the other two (and hard). A good trick if you want the kick to really get noticed is to set a good 15ms of preattack on the compressor doing the ducking so the other instruments noticeably go away just before the kick turns up.[/quote] ^ And this one! As you guessed, it's the dubstep synth that's currently dominating the mix, so thanks again for the tips on how to "tame" it. Less itsy-bitsy tweaking and more brutal chopping is going to be my new approach to this particular track! Thanks again for the help - and also to Rimskidog for the tip about EQ'ing with everything in the mix. Great stuff guys, superb advice much appreciated.

^ Superb! Many thanks 5im0n, really appreciate your input on this. I think I'm probably being to much of a "wuss" with my EQ'ing and gating, judging by your advice. Must admit I've been trying to balance everything - rather than being selective about what I can and can't lose altogether. I'll now approach this with a more 'ironed fisted' method, as you suggest! [PS: Nemesis the Warlock and ABC Warriors... I'm a big fan of those strips myself]

^ Thanks folks, that's what I love about this forum - it's damn useful! Beedster: nice tip about trialing on different media. I always use my iPod (with tinny white Apple 'phones) and car stereo to test each mix. This particular track sounds pretty good on the iPod, but very muffled in the car... but I'll keep testing it. Valhalalf: cheers for the freq chart: I've got one of these printed and stuck on my wall, but it's always good to have another one! I'm definitely going to run it all through a spec analyser as you suggested, and try to work out where the cancellation is at its worst. Garry: yep, another good tip about dropping the faders. I'm normally a stickler for leaving these alone until after I've EQ'd (god knows why, bad habit most likely) but I'll try out your suggestion to give me more room to play with. Not sure if there's going to be a mastering stage as yet - so it might be down to muggins here to do the best I can with it! ... I'll post a link to the finished track once I'm done with it (assuming my mate is ok with that, I'm sure he won't mind). Don't hold your breath though - Mrs Skol and I have our hands full with the newly arrived Skol Jnr at the moment, so my music work is a case of "as and when between changing nappies" at present...!! That reminds me, must wash my hands... Thanks again.

[quote name='Valhalalf' post='1326815' date='Aug 4 2011, 12:48 PM']Have you looked at all the low end instruments using a spectral analyzer?[/quote] ^ Good suggestion, thanks! I'd honestly not thought about doing this... I tend to mix more with my ears than with my 'eyes' (if that makes any sense?), but in this case I think a spec analyser will be very useful indeed. Thanks again for the tip.

Hi folks, I'm currently working on a track for a friend that I need some help with. It's a kind of 'electro-metal' thing - not my usual cup of char, if I'm honest! The problem I'm having is that... Distorted bass/guitar + pounding kicks + dirty dubstep synth = A MIXING NIGHTMARE! I'm struggling to find any headroom in the mix with so much going on at the lower frequencies. Currently, I'm trying to separate the different elements using the standard approaches: EQ'ing, compression, panning, side-chaining the kick and bass, etc, but it's proving difficult as my mixing skills aren't great! (I'm a poor hobbyist, not a pro...). Currently, it still sounds very muddy, with the various bass frequencies ganging up to form a muddled wall of sound. Anyway, I appreciate there's no 'magic solution' here, but if you have any gems of wisdom then please share them Ta.

[quote name='paul_5' post='1325019' date='Aug 2 2011, 10:59 PM']Fo sho'. Dat's how he roll. (and similar hackneyed cliches in young peoples' street vernacular)[/quote] Tsssk.... these pesky meddling kids! I dunno, what is the world coming to, eh?

[quote name='Prime_BASS' post='1318447' date='Jul 27 2011, 05:20 PM']This is so full of win.[/quote] I agree. It's like: "What shall we do today, Cowboy Dude?" "I dunno... maybe mosey on over to the park; stack up some bass cabs; belt out some crazy distorted riffs. Same as we always do". "Yeah, same as we always do. I'm so on it". "Let's do this ****. I'll get my hat". At least that's how it plays out in my head...

No video, dude! ...or maybe you uploaded the wrong "home made porno" - sorry, "promo". Yeah, I'll just get my coat...

Great stuff Mike! I particularly like it when you switch to the lower octave playing - there's a nice funky riff that kicks it off at around 3.15 in the vid that I'm going to be attempting to steal - ahem! - I mean practice myself when I get a spare moment. That Focusrite is sounding good too. Can't stretch to a new interface myself at the moment, but the Scarlett 18i6 does look good for the money. I'm still using an old Tascam 144-MKII myself - kinda clunky, but it gets the job done ok. At least for my standards! Keep 'em coming.

Likewise... the potential here is fantastic - you're both clearly good musicians, and I enjoyed both tracks - it's just somewhat let down by the recording. But then I'm probably being picky. Get yourselves some better tech/software (as already mentioned by Mike above) and you'll improve on this immediately. If only my own musical output could be so easily solved... PS: nice playing on the upright - I want one!

Nice, really like it. Very catchy, original, folky, musical... it had me humming harmonies straight away, which is always a good sign! Great production too. I'd be very happy with this indeed