Heh, we're all born with different personalities and different things that we gravitate towards.
Likewise, for you, I think I would overcompensate for a while in the other direction. One thing I noticed is that after I built my lyre, I got better at improvising all kinds of music, because I was composing in a narrower range.
I think music is like a sort of fractal - what happens at the higher levels is also reflected in the lower levels. I.e. the relationship between pitch is a very fast version of the relationship between rhythm. Melody contains a structure, and reflects its superstructure in a way too.
So, what I'm saying is I think that if you zoom in, when you zoom out again, the view will be clearer, and then your natural tendency to wander and explore with the music will take you more deeper places than you've ever imagined. :)
The synths are a little harsh - EQ and compression can help with a lot of this. Compression can retain a lot of the clarity while softening up the sound a lot.
I liked the bass synth.
At 1:16 I feel like I want a bit more punch in some way.
Second track is interesting with the sound effects in the beginning.
Analyzing some of those, I think I can hear more of what is going on. I also really am enjoying that style, listening to it.
They are doing little pauses and polyrhythms in an otherwise actually very well-timed beat. The contrast between the beat and the violation of the beat is what gives it its flavor. There's a consistency to the pauses since things are looped in that style. It's like the beat version of microtonal music (heh, now I need to make some off-beat, microtonal music). A lot of the variations are also very subtle.
Listening to your track again, I think the part that wasn't quite capturing it was the synth, where it sounds a bit more random than loose, like it's not actually tied to anything, not returning to a sense of time like the referenced tracks you mentioned do.
You did a good job of creating an interesting track for sure though.
I think a lot of the stuff sounds forward in the mix. I use Reaper, which you can also use on Mac, though I am on PC. You can use it for free indefinitely. I eventually paid because I think the company is honorable and I wanted to honor the way they do business.
Then you can do a lot more fluid mixing. Clutch for me is being able to use a send, to that I have all tracks being sent to the reverb track, but then each track has its own delay and volume of the delay, which lets me control how close or far away things sound very quickly.
The composition is nice. I think the mix is a bit thirsty; people go too dry because it can be hard to make a very wet reverb sound clean at least initially. Cut out the highs and the lows (cutting out the lows is a trick I got from Ty).
Also, near = drier, louder, more delay to the reverb (i.e. if you're standing 2 feet away and there's a wall 100 feet away and you yell, it'll be really loud compared to the echo, and if you go up to the wall, the echo will be much closer to the same volume as your yell, and there will be almost no delay between your voice and the echo). Mixing in space like that can help make things much clearer. The delay makes things sound crisp, while the reverb still adds the color.
Heh SM57 user, though I didn't use it for this track. I'm going to switch back to it pretty soon in all likelihood since I think it produces a cleaner sound.
Anyways, this is really stellar work. Heh, I see you're not the only one using water effects! Heh.
Generally, you want all the sounds to be in one reverb. But, the best way to do this I've found is to use a send - send all the tracks to the reverb, but have a delay on that send. Have the reverb track be all the way wet. This allows you to mix in space more realistically.
Near things are drier and have more delay, far things are wetter and have less delay. I.e. if you're 2 feet from me with a wall 100 feet behind you, you'll be louder, and the echo will be relatively quieter, and it will take longer to reach my ears.
I'm thinking maybe the tracks could use some compression, like the mix is clear, but the sounds are still a bit harsh on my ears. Compression is good for taking the mud out.
Also, a tip I got from Ty is to cut the lows out of your EQ, I think I was hearing some rumbly lows in the background.
Great work though, this is really cool, and a really neat vibe.
I think the instruments could use some EQ/compression - I've been finding out recently that compression is one of the biggest reasons that a pro track sounds so easy on the ears. A bit more near/far as well would do a lot I think. It sounds like you've got more of a handle on the reverb, cutting out the highs. Though, I don't know if you're cutting out the lows as much - cutting out the lows really helps with cleanliness.
A lot of people ( myself included) starting with water foley. Lol.
Very peaceful and well mixed. I love the microtonal little flourishes. Microtones really help with atmosphere; nature is messy and the tones are all over the place, and microtonal sounds make a nice in-between.
Also - I was going to comment similarly about the plucked instrument, but Fox beat me to it.
It's right in the heart that I can feel it, and that that is where it was composed from.
Constructive feedback wise:
Some of the sounds are still kind of midi, which can be a tough thing to overcome with limited tools. Mix wise, my biggest advice is that near things are drier with more delay and far things are wetter with less delay to the reverb. I.e. if you're 10 feet away and there's a wall 100 feet behind you, you'll be louder compared to the echo and it will take longer for the echo to reach my ears, whereas if you're 90 feet a way and there's a wall 10 feet behind you, you'll be quieter and the sound of the echo will be louder compared to you.
Mixing near and far is how you can get really big things in space.
Also, for making reverbs be nice and ambient and wet, you want to cut out the lows and the highs in the reverb EQ itself so that the sounds are mixed spatially.
Great work overall though, I really liked this composition. :)
Overall, I think notation software is good for concepting, but it's not going to take it to that next level of polish. A midi controller goes a really long ways in making humanized, realistic, expressive dynamics. It's very hard to artificially create the dynamics that come out of you when you're in the mode of experiencing the spirit of the music.
In fact, in a lot of my tracks, sometimes my first take is the best take, and I can't even recapture the magic of the first take, somehow.
So, imagine how hard it is to get that vibe check clicking dynamics in! I definitely recommend a midi controller to any aspiring composers - a weighted full keyboard is best and is what I use. It's not a super expensive top of the line one either - just enough to play notes and make music.
Ah.... nice and soft. Easy on the ears right out of the gate.
I think execution the strings still sound somewhat MIDI - this can be hard to manage, but I'll record my voice in a lot of my tracks when I am using some virtual instruments. I also overlap my attack and release, which helps make it sound more realistic and dynamic.
I think some of the basses start to muddy the mix a bit. I think some of the other sounds could use a wider mix in space, near/far, and L/R. Compression also helps soften things without killing the overall volume. Near/far is done with reverb being drier with more delay on closer things, and vice versa for farther things. Spatial mixing helps our ears pick out and separate sounds so they don't sound like they're overlapping in the same space, which makes the overall experience feel more realistic.
It also makes it so that you don't end up feeling like you have to turn up the volume to hear everything.
More time on balancing the volume of some of the sounds would also help. Overall, the mix isn't bad; these are just some things that would help.
The atmosphere is nicely done, the vibe is there. Great work! :)
Composing modally is definitely a good vibe check for this jam! :)
The mix is nice too. I think maybe some of the elements could use a little more compression/EQ to make the highs a little softer and easier on the ears, especially for ambience. But, overall it is nicely mixed.
Mix wise, to get that cinematic sound, you'll want to mix things more in space, both near and far. It sounds copressed in space. Close things have more delay and are drier on the reverb, far things have less delay and are wetter.
Also, the dynamics are still pretty midi - one thing I do is I overlap attack and release, and set the attack and release to longer on my sustained midi instruments like strings, vocals, and horns. Also, compression makes more complex mixes softer.
Great work though, I can hear what you are after and I can just imagine how epic it would sound with a nice cinematic mix.
The ostinato is perhaps a little dynamically too mechanical which makes it a bit grating. It would definitely benefit from velocity/midi controls if you can use a midi controller.
Nice soft opener, though it still has that midi cello sound - one thing to make strings sound more realistic is to overlap the attack and release so that the transition is more seamless in volume, otherwise you get this unnatural dampening of the sound from note to note on every note.
I like that the mix is balanced and not overpowering. I think that it would benefit from a little compression, and having dynamics that are a little more organic, which can be hard with VSTs, but it is doable!
Great work! Also, really dig the vocal part towards the end.
I definitely want the timing to be a lot tighter on this. I really like the composition. I think this track would benefit from compression to take some those funkier sounds and soften them up without removing their presence.
It's a really fun story you came up with, and I really love the vibe!
I would keep doing improv - I would play with a metronome more and play with more of a sense of rhythm.
Your compositions I think are constantly in a transitory state. And the thing is, you're actually composing music that is appropriate for a transition - but it's like that transition is all the time.
This is funny because most people have the opposite problem, their music is overly static going anywhere.. I would start experimenting with ostinatos, and repeated melodies, and bring down the complexity a bit.
Some clean hooks with consistent rhythms would give you a really solid contrast to bring some meat to your current style.
I'd recommend playing an arpeggio or ostinato and then just playing a melody over it, and get used to "staying in place" for a while musically, and then changing directions when it is appropriate. Think like you're telling a story.
Mix wise I'd look at compression and EQing things, as well as placing things in more positions in space, both near and far, and L/R. Near far is accomplished with wetness and delay - closer things have more delay because they're close, so you hear it and then the echo follows a little later. A lot of mixing is about creating an illusion of space to make things sound clean/clear.
That harp is still sounding quite midi - a lot of VST harps are just hot garbage for no reason I've found. Waaay to plucky and you can't fix it with low velocity and volume, still stay sharp.
I think some of the nature sounds are a bit too sharp and forward. A little compression and EQ would allow you to retain the presence while making them gentler (important for ambience especially because you'll have the same sounds over and over again).
Constructive feedback: Mix is small and a bit midi. This could work in a lot of indie games.
Generally, mixing in space is about delay between each ear and volume. There are some plugins that do this (I like DearVR micro because it can be had for free and it does a good job and I use it in my mixes). A sense of near and far is achieved with reverb and delay on the reverb. Closer things have more delay, farther things have less delay.
Also, with compression, you can make things sound less muddy and that lets you have a wetter, bigger reverb without it getting messy. Plus, you should cut the highs and lows on your reverb to make it cleaner. Doing that gives a big sense of space.
I like the sounds you picked, and how it fits the vibe. Sounds like its Dune inspired.
I'd say the mix is a little dry and narrow. It sounds like the sound that I'd want to be big and wide (the main sound) is like a small thing in front of my face, rather than big and filling the space.
I'd apply a realistic reverb and pump the space up.
I think I know that Clavi EP you're using in logic, I remember playing with that before I switched to PC many years ago.
I think the double bass is inserted really well. The composition here is really nice and chill too. It isn't too much, not in your face. It has a bit of that sound like some of those old school games.
I think my main critique would be a lack of elements that necessarily imply a desert, but the vibe does make me think of light a nighttime desert scene in a spyro game.
The composition here is really good. I'm really enjoying what you're working out here. I think its good that it's your strongest point too - the other skills are more teachable, composition is harder
I think the execution would be the bit that would help you take your stuff to the next level, especially in terms of dynamics of the instruments. They still have that artificial MIDI sound. I hate most midi harps because they absolutely suck at not being really twangy for no good reason, not soft like a real harp. Its like they record the sharpest attack plucks and pitch to that.
The execution isn't bad. If you have a midi controller, it would be a good idea to play it live. Do you play any instruments IRL? Also singing is a great way to insert dynamics.
Great work overall. This track is really cool and well composed. :)
Nice intro and textures. It fits in the space nicely.
I feel like the high is just a tad harsh and could use a little eq work. Some of the notes still have that kind of midi sound that would benefit from a midi controller (generally, my recommendations are a midi controller, mic/dac, as you can find the resources to invest in them.)
For reverb, you can go a lot wetter. A way to manage it is to cut out the high and low. As fox mentioned, I also got the same trick from Ty about cutting out the bass reverb to reduce some of the muddiness of it.
A lot of cool ideas here, it's a cool piece overall. It's just thirsty! Heh. The mix is still clear overall and panned well.
If you can get a microphone or a midi controller and record live, it humanizes it. Even one or two non-digital instruments can make the digital ones sound less digital when they are in the mix.
