Originally Posted By: dcuny

> The first third had a very Tom Waits vibe.

I think I know what you mean, and that only came about after invoking BIAB, so, thanks BIAB.

> The transition was a bit MIDI-ish, and the guitar interlude was unexpected.

You're not supposed to use words like "MIDI-ish" any more! =8^) Except of course you're right. I used BIAB to airbrush it, but this old piece is MIDI in its soul. There are a few sounds that embarrass me a little, but it helps to invoke a creepy program so any musical flaws can be explained as depictions of morally flawed characters.

As for the guitars, I assume "unexpected" is some kind of not-good, and I guess I agree. On their own, they're just lightweight packing material, and I will probably change them to something else. I do like the 3 pedal steels, which are the same RealTrack triple-tracked. And the menacing low brass might be heard as expressing its own disdain for the guitars.

> The increasing percussion and dissonance worked nicely, and the violin helped hold the piece together.
> The ending was effective.

Thanks! The harsh, loud parts of this one are really what it's about for me. I no longer remember how I constructed those dissonant chords, but I've always liked them.

> I think it matched your as well as one can expected music to.

Matched my... story?

> But there wasn't that much a sense of space, which (to my ears) made it sound more synthetic.

That might have something to do with a conscious restraint with reverb, it was even flatter at first. I will listen for other ways in which your advice might be applied.

> I hope that was helpful! smile

Totally, many thanks!