Peter, Roy and all:
First of all, let me say that that it seems quite obvious to me that you guys had WAY TOO MUCH fun "scoring" this shootout! You're comments on all of the entries were very entertaining and clever.
They were also equally educational. Listening to the mixes, I picked up at least one pointer from every one! And then, looking at your comments I found even more useful tips from each one.
The thing I'm most impressed with is your attention to musicianship. Both of you appear to be quite musically educated and seasoned and those qualities stayed high on your priority list throughout the entire process. This industry needs more folks like you who blatantly realize that a great mix can't exist unless the key is right, the tuning is on, the progression moves correctly and the mood of the music fits the lyric. Right On! I'm glad you paid close attention to what was going on musically as well as sonically! (is that a word?)\
I must say, though, that I did find some of the Minor/Major "clashes" to be quite interesting and daring in their own right. There's no clear cut "right or wrong" in that instance. It's just sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. I try that stuff all the time and those of you who tried it here should be "high-fived" for stepping outside the ordinary.
As for my mix, I can't take any credit for the guitar performances. I must give props to Adam and Dylan from
GARAGESTAR for laying them down. Although I had a hand in the arrangement, they MADE the riffs sound that huge and tight!
Jackson...great vocal. Your voice was a pleasure to listen to 893 times! After about 764 times, I started to hear a note that could've used a tiny bit of Auto-Tune treatment, but figured it was just my head playing games with me, so I left it alone. Turns out it didn't need it after all!
By the way, I LOVED your mix and arrangement. It was so cool to finally hear the mysterious "original" idea! A lot of emotion in your work as usual. Nice job!
Whoever said the vocal was a "tad" too loud...I agree! I wanted to "wetten" it up a tiny bit to make it soften up in the mix, but at the last minute (literally) I decided to leave it dry and serious. In my haste, I failed to give it one final listen and it ended up a bit "up front".
But that's why I did this. I wanted to learn more, and you guys were extremely helpful.
I anxiously await the next shootout. I'm sure we'll all be humbled when we have, like, 60 entries and we start discovering some amazing talent in here. I can just imagine the dozens of guys who are listening in on this whole endeavor chomping at the bit to get involved with the next one.
Thanks for bringing us all together with this well planned and nicely executed project!
I can't say how influential and user-friendly (with an emphasis on FRIENDLY) this section of the DUC has been to me in the past year and a half! If I had to rely on just the Digidesign Pro Tools Reference Manual all this time, I'd be cross-eyed and six months behind in progress at this point. Keep up the great work.
Thanks for the kinds words.
Regards,
Murph [img]images/icons/cool.gif[/img]