I've been attempting to write songs since I was in school but never got round to completing one. I started writing this in the middle of last week and put all of it together over the last couple of days. This was pretty much an exercise in learning how to use BIAB, RealBand, StudioOne and Melodyne.
Ironically, the song is called Incomplete and is still not fully completed! Some of the lyrics need to be reworked and on this recording there are a few issues with the vocals which don't sound 100% and the mix. But I would like a little bit of feedback on it at this stage to help guide me as I continue to develop this and other songs. I've been really impressed with a lot of the songs I've heard on here so I hope that I can get some advice to help me reach the standard I've seen on here.
All of the instruments are BIAB. I'm only doing the vocals and there are a couple of samples from Splice. I put it together in BIAB and RealBand before exporting the tracks to StudioOne where I recorded the vocals, added the samples and pitch corrected in Melodyne.
Style is _POPBLAD (Pop Ballad w/ Synth Bass)
RealTracks in style: ** N/A ** 2325:Bass, Synth, Rhythm JazzFunkFat Ev 110 RealTracks in style: ** N/A ** 1690:Piano, Acoustic, Rhythm PopPromise Ev16 100 Loop in Song: HipHop\Old School - ush105c drums ev8.wav RealDrums [in style:SynthDrumsDanceRock^1-a: Bass and Snare , b: Snare and Bass RealTracks: RT2543:Pedal Steel, Background ModernCrossover Sw16 090
The vocal is a bit "too up front" - dominating the mix. You want it to be "tucked in" a bit more. To do that, bring the volume down (in Studio One) some - start with about 2 dB for the whole track - it might take 3 dB... you might also add some more reverb to it. If you are using one of the Studio One reverbs (they are very good), just turn the "mix" knob up a little.
The drums could be a bit louder in the mix. Maybe 2 dB.
The piano and bass sound good they are at the right level.
Richard, Good ideas and a nice arrangement. Yep, the vocal is too up front and rides on top of the mix rather than as part of it. It would be a good idea to tweak your vocals with a little tuning adjustment - either by retracking or using software. You sing WAY better than I but you do need some tweaking.
Cheers rayc "What's so funny about peace, love & understanding?" - N.Lowe
Yeah I wasn't happy with the vocals. I have took the advice to lower them in line with the rest of the mix and add some more reverb and they do sound a lot better. Although I do think I need to record them again as my technique was way off.
Congratulations on completing your 1st song... You will find Biab, songwriting, & recording only gets easier with each new song you complete... Keep up your passion for songwriting & work on writing every chance you get!
Richard, Definitely worth trying to tweak this first instead of re recording. FJ gave you couple of great points. Mixing is my nemesis but if it was my mix, I would lower volume on vocal channel and would add tiny bit or reverb and compression on master channel, which includes instrumentals and your vocals, so whole thing glues better.
Nicely done, especially for a demo I liked the arrangement and thought it flowed well, and was decently catchy too. There are elements of the mix that could be adjusted, but for a demo it's solid. Nowhere but upwards!
Looking forward to hearing more - thanks for sharing!
Thanks for all of the feedback, I really appreciate it. It's good to hear some positive feedback along with some really useful constructive tips as well.
I'll be rerecording a lot of it because I've reworked some of the lyrics and I'm not happy with the technique (with some of the notes seeming to go wildly off key in a way that I can't seem to correct well in Melodyne). Although the more I'm learning about studio one the better I seem to be able to make the current recording sound.
I've really learned a lot putting this demo together though and I expect this experience will really help me in future.
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202 New RealTracks Released with Band-in-a-Box 2026!
With Band-in-a-Box® 2026, we've released 202 incredible new RealTracks (in sets 468-488) in a variety of genres—featuring your most requested styles!
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but if it was my mix, I would lower volume on vocal channel and would add tiny bit or reverb and compression on master channel, which includes instrumentals and your vocals, so whole thing glues better.
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