My latest production

[juppu]

Hello,

Here it is - the project that I've been sweating with for the past few months. Go to www.artistcollaboration.com/users/juppu/fronnt.html (http://www.artistcollaboration.com/users/juppu/fronnt.html) and check out Francesca Lee's songs. They're pretty big (5-8MB), since some are 192 kbps Mp3s, but be patient...

I've produced these songs and done most of the engineering on them as well. I would be grateful on any feedback you care to give, so go on and thrash me...

These songs + two more will be available on a self-release CD in the very near future, if you're interested, email me . If you want to contact the artist or whatever, email me.

You can freely bollock me on any technical stuff, production stuff, programming stuff (I expect to hear some of this one...) and mix/recording things.

Some technical background: 'Nanana' was recorded on a Soundcraft DC2020 desk (drums, bass, electric guitars and keys) straight into a Tascam MX 2424 hard disk recorder. It was transferred into Pro Tools and some overdubs were done with the Digi 001, others through an 888 interface and either an 02R or AMEK 9098 preamp.

The other songs have been recorded on the 02R into MX2424 for the basic tracks and into Pro Tools (again Digi 001/TDM + 888) for overdubs.

Most of the songs have been mixed entirely in Pro Tools except 'I never', which was mixed on the AMEK Galileo. Outboard used includes TLA C1 tube compressor, Drawmer 1961 tube EQ, Focusrite ISA215 EQ, BSS DPR402 compressor, Drawmer DL241 compressor, BSS graphic EQ, AMEK Galileo Virtual dynamics (does it count as outboard? It's strictly in the board...), Eventide DSP4000, Yamaha R3 Pro, Lexicon 300L, Alesis Q2, Lexicon PCM 80, Yamaha SPX 990, AMEK 9098 EQ, EMU Morpheus + plugins.

Mics used include: U87, C414, SE300B, SM57, Beta 58, D112 http://www.audioforums.com/forums/smile.gif , MD421, MD441, C2000, M201 and possibly something else as well that I can't remember...

Most of the mixes have been done with Quested speakers with a pair of little DASes as reference. 'I Never' and 'Light Falls' were mixed on (huge!) Boxers, a pair of PMC speakers and NS-10s.

[BTW, I don't expect you to listen to everything...]

comments?

Juppu

[juppu]

D'OH! Dodgy link... www.artistcollaboration.com/users/juppu/front2.html (http://www.artistcollaboration.com/users/juppu/front2.html) try that.

Juppu

[TimMcTigue]

WOW! I just listened to "Goodbye", and - it's fantastic! Beautiful, original, wonderful. Love the song, love the production. Sorry I can't be more objective - it made my day!

Tim

[juppu]

Gee...Thanks!

It's good to know it's got such an impact on somebody else than me as well! http://www.audioforums.com/forums/smile.gif

That tune kills me every time I hear it, it was quite strange working on it - you feel like doing brain surgery, if anything goes wrong, you kill somebody. Very fragile stuff...

Cheers! Now you made my day! http://www.audioforums.com/forums/smile.gif

Anyone else?

Juppu

[juppu]

I'd love to hear some more comments...

Anyone?

Juppu

[jackcu]

Listening to "Goodbye" - Another great song. Production values and mix sound excellent on these PC speakers - I'll listen to it at home on my monitoring set-up.

What's a Cali - Texan doing in Liverpool?

Great stuff - I like it a lot.

Cheers,

Jack.

[This message has been edited by jackcu (edited 05-28-2002).]

[cooldrums]

Sounds like thay got there money's worth. Nice job! I gave the first 2 a listen. Nice dynamics were kept in the music.

[juppu]

Thanks both of you,

Jacku - the question is: what's ANYBODY doing in Liverpool? http://www.audioforums.com/forums/smile.gif Just kidding, I like it here. She came over to study... thanks for your comment, I think it sounds cool on good speakers as well as lousy ones. Some of the other tunes have a boominess to them (Check out Never Killed No One, the bass is fat - maybe a bit too fat in the 32Hz (6-string bass) and 150Hz area).

Cooldrums, thank you. I just wish I had been paid. http://www.audioforums.com/forums/frown.gif I covered expenses upfront and made a deal that if the act gets signed, I get paid then... [fingers crossed]

Juppu

[thisiszero]

Goodbye is a great track. I usally dont listen to this type of stuff as Im a techno producer myself. My only probblem with the tack is the echoe effect before the drums kick in. Its very slight but it just doesnt sit well with me. Also Im not crazy about some of the backup vocals. But **** Im not one to give acurate reviews. I like the track none the less. Good job and good luck.

[IDQ]

Listening to Na-na-na right now... my thoughts:
Overall, it sounds excellent. Any comments I might have here are getting down to the nitty gritty. The cymbals sound great. I think it could use a SLIGHT boost in the low end (kick and bass)... it feels a bit heavy in the upper midrange and could be offset by a bit more bass presence. The vocals sound good in general, but slightly unnatural. I'm at work, so I don't have anything to really look at the spectrum, but I'm guessing you EQed out a little of the vocals around 500 Hz or therabouts... they sound just a touch too bright... very strong in the 4-6k area.
My only other thought here would be to bring up the guitars a bit - then again, I'm a guitarist. In general though, it's a very professional-sounding piece.

On to Never killed no one -
First off, the vocals sound more natural here... a bit more warmth. The guitars towards the beginning have a bit too much "wah" for my tastes, but that's just preference. I don't have much criticism of the mix on this one - the song isn't quite to my tastes, but sounds good.

Light Falls -
The cymbals could come down in the mix a touch, in my opinion. I like this track a lot more than the last (just preference again). The guitars sound good... your use of reverbs is pretty right on - subtle, but effective. Can't decide what I think about the right-ear backup vocals.

This act has some talent... good voice on her... good luck, and I hope they get signed so you get paid. You've done good work, and it definitely highlights the strengths of the act, which is important to selling it.

Now the disclaimer - feel free to ignore any of the above comments, cuz I'm not exactly a professional - my mixes probably won't sound this good for years - I just like to listen and pay attention.

In case you wish to know as far as basis of comparison, I'm listening through Grado phones.

Keep it up, and I hope this is helpful.

_Shawn



[This message has been edited by IDQ (edited 07-01-2002).]

[9MileSkid]

I really liked "Goodbye" (very nice, laid back mix, with the appropriate focus on the voice), but what is truly brilliant here is "Kaira". Now take that concept and run with it =). I would honestly love to hear more.

-m

PS. The remix ain't half bad, either =).

[This message has been edited by 9MileSkid (edited 07-02-2002).]

[mocsa]

When I started to listen to Goodbye the first thing which was evident is that the vocal was EXTREMELY sibliant. It is interesting that nobody noticed it. Sibilant means here that it (the s-es) has so much high content that it feels like somebody is hitting nails through my brain. Actually, it was annoying.

This is just my first impression. Otherwise the mix is very good.

When I listened I used in-ear phones, which are not the ultimate monitoring equipment but I did not notice such harsh s-es in any songs I listened to on these phones so far.

Never Killed sounds OK in this respect.

[juppu]

Wow!

Last time I checked this thread, it was the 33rd on the list or something like that... http://www.audioforums.com/forums/smile.gif

Thank you very much for your comments, folks, I really appreciate them.

IDQ, thanks for the long and detailed reply! "Nanana" IS a bit too bright and bass light, I took the attitude of mixing it to the contemporary radio curve = +6dB boost at 6kHz, -6dB at 100Hz... I know it isn't a huge deal, but the mix could be that little extra bit better with a bit more bottom end.

About the sibilance... I know 'Goodbye' is extremely sibilant, but I decided to leave it as it is, mainly because I don't like de-essers. They usually make the sibilance sound like a lisp or make the top end sound uneven. It's also an artistic choice in a way, I quite like the eternally echoing esses... Yeah, it's a bit odd...

Thiszero, I feel sometimes the comments of people who come from a completely different background can be very, very helpful.

Thanks for your comments again, guys, I wasn't expecting this many [considering the size of the mp3s...].

9Miles, I got a new 6X 2 tune coming soon, it's called Jesus Baked Beans, it's a bit longer than Kaira... + The remix is pretty much finished. http://www.audioforums.com/forums/wink.gif

I might not be back for a while, I'm going home this friday and don't have Internet access most of the time (actually, I won't have even electricity for a month or so...), but I will be back here from time to time.

BTW, at the moment, I'm finishing another project by a similar artist, unfortunately not as talented+the project was 4 songs in about 5 days+mixdown, so the quality isn't up to scratch. Besides, it's mixed on speakers about the size of a fuzz pedal...

Thanks again, guys [and/or girls]

Juppu

[9MileSkid]

Originally posted by juppu:
It's also an artistic choice in a way, I quite like the eternally echoing esses... Yeah, it's a bit odd...


For what it's worth, I agree with that. I like the straight vocals sound, especially for a song like this.

-m

[Matthew Skinner]

Sounds great, nice track which I'm enjoying listening to while I work.

The quality is top notch, one thing that does anoy me is what I think is snare wire rattle in the quite passages in goodbye, listen about 1:00.

Is that the snare wires rattling and are there any tips on how to prevent this (other than a gate) ? I do a fair bit of live sound work and would love any suggestions on how to prevent or reduce it at the source.

[smitty9898]

Originally posted by Matthew Skinner:
Sounds great, nice track which I'm enjoying listening to while I work.

The quality is top notch, one thing that does anoy me is what I think is snare wire rattle in the quite passages in goodbye, listen about 1:00.

Is that the snare wires rattling and are there any tips on how to prevent this (other than a gate) ? I do a fair bit of live sound work and would love any suggestions on how to prevent or reduce it at the source.

To reduce the buzz from the snare wires, weave a piece of shoe string through each snare wire. Over, under, over, under etc. This may "choke" the snare a bit, but it will get rid of the buzz. Use soft shoe string.

[Michael Quayle]

To my ears, that 'snare rattle' is very deliberate - sounds exactly like a brush on a snare skin - fits perfectly with the mood of the song IMHO - very nice.

[Michael Quayle]

BTW Juppu, are you up at LIPA, or you just get a weird kick out of living in Liverpool http://www.audioforums.com/forums/wink.gif (Sorry, born again southerner here - like my shandy and everything) http://www.audioforums.com/forums/wink.gif

[imitation-music]

Juppu I just wanted to say that I listened to a few of franny lee's songs and I think they sound very very good. http://www.audioforums.com/forums/wink.gif

[juppu]

Cheers, folks... Been away and I was happy to see this thread has got some new replies since I left...

Thanks for the compliments + critique. The rattling is deliberate, yes indeed... And Michael, I am at LIPA, starting my final year. And I don't enjoy Liverpool (anymore) and luckily I'm not there right now. Working back home, starting some goddamn (hardly) gospel propject this thursday.

It's nice to be a freelancer except that you have to sleep in a cardboard box and eat dead rats and pigeons. http://www.audioforums.com/forums/frown.gif

Have a good rest of the summer, I'll be actively back in september!

Juppu

[bryceyaworsky]

Just trying to help you get paid... I think 'Goodbye' would be a good song to ship off to some movie studios, since it would probably sound great in almost every romance - ie: Jerry Maguire, City of Angels... You get the picture.
I love the lead guitar! It almost makes me wonder if you got the Edge into your studio!