"the Travel Song" (mark2b content) updated mix w/p

[gonzo]

demo mix of "the Travel Song"

http://iacmusic.com/songs.aspx?SongID=50925&ArtistID=30211

or

http://tinyurl.com/3xvpga

thru a mesa mark2b, into a closed back 1x12 w/greenback, miced with a adk hamburg off axis and close.....

the guitar, is my custom built strat:
usacg custom body and neck...
alder body with maple neck/pau ferro fingerboard, and a hipshot trem.
the pickup is a Lawrence L-500L humbucker.

run thru a Barber DDSS pedal.
it's a special run edition, a 'katrina' model, they don't make anymore.
the boogie settings are set about in the middle (of available gain/crunch) and the DDSS was set the same, with a little hotter output than unity.

decided to keep this version real simple and raw- 6 tracks total.
it's got one guitar track, one bass track, a acid drum track, and a lead vox with 2 harmony vox tracks.

this is the one i'm going to try a multi-track guitar approach to... ala queen or anything with 8 guitar parts.
LOL

i have just purchased a Palmer PDI-09 filter box, for recording.
i also will be getting a Weber Mass lite attenuator, and i'm going to use the re-make of this demo, to test the palmer/weber combo.

the way i'll use the palmer, is to take the speaker out of my boogie, into the palmer. it has a thru output, and the thru will continue to the weber, where i'll crush the volume... and onto my greenback. i can mic this, or not.
but from the palmer is also a XLR out, and this will go to my mic pre, and convertor, and into the recorder.

the xlr out, will capture the full output sound of the boogie, while the weber will make it tolerable for recording in the same room as the monitors.

i was going to do that tonight (friday)...
'cept i have this nasty deep cut right across my left hand 'bird' finger, that'll keep me from re-tracking this until it heals...
probably strip it down to just the drums, and re-do everything....

so, i'm open to ideas about where i could have simple rhythm parts, versus multitracked rhythm and melody/harmony lines.....
i could change up everything, except for the drum track.
this bass track, is using my old method.. i've got a new method, which i think will sound much better, so i'll retrack bass as well.

whaddayathink?

 

[wads3]

WOW!!! Love the mark tone!

 

[gonzo]

wads3-

thanks for listening!

yeah, i love the mark tone too!

more experiments will ensue, beginning tomorrow, when i recieve my weber mass lite, and use the palmer junction to re-record new guitar parts for this thing.....

 

[Platypus]

That sounds huge through the 1x12.. great tone as usual gonzo

 

[Vigo1999]

Luv IT!!! 8) 8)

some parts remind me of Pearl Jam. the harmonies have some Vertical Horizons/Acroma vibe that i really dig!!!

yeah, the tone is wonderfull also (but oh well, Marks with Barbers . . . :wink: ).

man, i really dug the vocals :shock: i do like that vocal tone/range. is that you singing??

 

[gonzo]

Platypus
thanks man!
sometimes, i think it's easier to get a 1x12 cab to sound big, than a 4x12.
when i start experimenting with the palmer on this tune, it'll be the biggest factor for me, the 'bigness' of the direct sound.

so, we'll see!



Vigo-
glad you dig it....
barber DD with the mark2, is a great combo..
cuz the DD has that marshally grind to it, the mark's got that smooth character, and they blend so well.



here's the lyric, in case anyone can't make out the mumbo-jumbo....


the Travel Song

as we journey, into the great tomorrow
we will see, all around us, all around us
all the people, who have come from so far away
and they look weary, and they look weary
we will smile, and offer our friendship,
offer our sanity, offer serinity.

they turn to look for the tangible,
look as they will, they cannot find
the crucible of their devotion,
look here and there, come what may
all they see is apathy
in the faces of everyone else
then a man, with lights in his eyes,
shows them the way, and then explains,
he understands.

everywhere that i go, everywhere that i see,
everywhere that i know, everywhere, that is me.

journey to everywhere,
journey to everywhere,
you are here, you are there, you are there.

following light, following light.

I, travel with you now,
following light, giving me sight
stand steady as a stone,
directing me, calm as the sea.

following light.

 

[Vigo1999]

^^

yeah, i know about Barbers . . . theyre the only od pedals allowed to fly on my board . . . :wink:

but, again, is that you singing??

 

[gonzo]

YEP, I do it all.....

 

[123thefirst]

It sounds quite nice as it is, I don't think it needs more playing. The drums could fill more space in terms of frequency, ambience and dynamics.

The bass would sound really great with a lot more extension into the lower bass region 80 to 30 Hz with the mids reworked to bring that out without colliding with the guitar and with some tailoring of the dynamics so they sit nicely prominent without fighting with anything else.

 

[gonzo]

123thefirst

thanks for listening....

i'm tweaking the new version, with your suggestions about the bass frequencies...
i typically do high pass at 40hz, because i don't have monitors (well, really, more the ROOM) that i can trust in the super lows....
classic rock mixes almost always did high pass around there (albeit, for vinyl concerns, i'm sure) but nothing's worse than having muddy bass in a boomy environment....

the playing, well, really, it's kinda like playing folk music, thru a grindy amp!
LOL
it's just the one part.... but i'm carrying rhythm, lead, and melody parts all at the same time, by selectively playing certain parts at certain times...

i made my first pass at the multiple guitars (4 tracks, all doing different things) and with this high gain sound, it's just about too much.
i can automate the mix, and bring things in and out, but i think i'll do another pass, and try the old brian may approach, with single note lines multilayered, and see if i like that as much as the good ole single-track!

 

[gonzo]

ok, new mix is up...

with 4 guitar parts, all direct thru the palmer..

 

[plumptone]

I'm loving this tune. It's a very interesting mix of influences. The guitar work is stellar. What's interesting is that although the tone is different, it's got a very Brian May vibe going on - I guess that's the layers. The Mark tone is killer - love those amps.

Your drummer is really good - I like his feel. Great cymbal work.

The real grabber for me is the interplay between vocals and guitar parts - it's very clever and very well thought out. The vocalist could do YES very well - his timbre and vocal range are very similar to Jon Anderson's. It's a pleasure to listen to. Harmonies are spot on as well.

I wouldn't change too much. Even though I've listened only on little headphones, to my ears you've nailed the bass freq's.

Nice work. Very nice.

 

[gonzo]

plumptone

thanks for the kind words...
the tones, i try to tweak on a track by track basis...
part of it, is the guitar.
it's a custom USACG strat, and the electronics, the bill lawrence pickups, bring something a bit new to the table.

the barber, lets me put a grind on top of the boogie smooth.
the drums, are programmed using ACID.

i do tweak the parameters, the tempos, the levels, but it's basically a glorified drum machine.

the vocals, i do myself, but i've heard this 'yes' comparison before, tho i honestly don't hear it.... it's cool, i'm just glad somebody's listening!

i've got a brand new version of this now, new bass track, added guitar track, new mix, new master.....

 

[plumptone]

I realized after I posted and re-read the thread that you were doing the whole thing yourself. Great job - especially the drums. Had mee completely fooled.

I'm a strat/tele guy myself - I currently have a 1988 strat plus with the lace sensors and a 2001 Am. Dlx with noiseless pups. I've thought about doing some pickup changes - how do you like the Bill Lawrence stuff?

Regarding the Barber pedal - what is it?

 

[gonzo]

plump-

the barber, is a discontinued style....
direct drive SS

you can get versions of this pedal with special MODS to the boards, that basiclly give you the same thing the DDSS has..

i bought it as a 'Katrina Relief' effort, that dave barber did, donating the purchase money to victims of katrina, back when that happened.

here's a barber link:
http://www.barberelectronics.com/

plus if you browse the harmony central reviews, you'll read all sorts of nice stuff about the barbers..

i call the DDSS the tube screamer killer.


i love the bill lawrence pickups.
i've changed all my single coils to stacked lawrences....
and the humbucker on this recordings, is just flat out ballsy, and full range..
which means, you have to tweak your standard settings a bit on the amps.
my duncan custom custom, has a great sound, but it is a specific frequency...
this 500L model lawrence goes way higher, way lower, a much bigger picture of the sound..
which allows for more tweaking in dialing in specific sounds.

new version of this, put up in a new thread, this forum....

 

[gonzo]

here's the stuff on the custom strat:

my USACG strat project

(headshot)

(side headshot)

(jackplate)

(bill lawrence pickups, and the hipshot trem)

(backshot)


body: lightweight Alder 2-piece, with a contoured heel, routed for a 2-post
Hipshot trem, non locking, side jack, fall-away cut out on the back side of the bottom bout.

pickups: humbucker-single-single, Bill Lawrence L-500L and 2-280s (n & m)
Q filter for the L-500L wired to 'tone pot', and a master volume.

neck: hardrock maple neck, with a pau ferro fingerboard. 6150 frets, 1-5/8" nut width. small fender-style headstock
Gibson scale length neck, 22 frets, fingerboard radius, of 12". the shape of the neck is a thin "C" shape,
with a .78" neck thickness at the 1st fret, up to .85 at the 13th, mother of pearl dot inlays.

headstock: tiltback design, 13 degrees, graphtech nut.