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Hi, Marty. HA! Just as I was reading how you didn't use Maj7th chords I heard one. I should have written "I tried to avoid Major 7th chords".  Yeah, I felt free to skip The Story, but knew I'd enjoy it. It also had me play this cool song 3 times while reading. Man, David, we could talk for hours and hours about all this. We not only have the RhymeZone in common, but most everything you write about. It's funny - all of us are doing the same thing. Most of us are mostly invisible about it. Okay, the 4th listen was not distracted by The Story... Man, there is some great changes going on in there. Thanks! I posted an explanation of what I was trying to do with the changes a couple of posts back. What an incredible job, first in picking the band, and even more amazing was in the mix. So much going on, but nothing goes on unnoticed.  I've got to confess - the BiaB style did most of the work here. That's the real magic. Thanks for listening and commenting!
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Hi, floyd jane. I enjoyed reading your thoughts concerning the write.
I like that you think long and hard about your choices. Probably a bit too long. Lovely vocals and harmonies. Thanks! I really liked how I was able to get Amara to phrase the vocals. I'd lay down the scratch track with nothing but "la"s to make sure it was a good register for her. But when the lyrics were added, I'd tweak it again, to make sure it sounded natural and the words were intelligible. If it were a different SynthV voice, the melody would have ended up different. I really like the piano and mandola. That's why I picked the style. No credit to me on that one. The drums choice is interesting. (Interesting is an interesting word, don;t you think?) Hehehe. Yes, it's an "interesting" word. I picked the drums because I figured the person who made the style was more "hip" to contemporary sound than me. It looks like my ears need to be schooled in the more "modern" sound, because you're not the first one who made the observation. There are also issues with the bass, but since people were kind enough not to mention the anemic sound of the bass, I thought perhaps I'd be able to let that slide as well.  I appreciate the honest criticism.  I ALWAYS enjoy your songs/productions/musings...
I think I've listened 5 times now... Thanks! That's high praise. 
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Hi, Misha. Wow, what a detailed song summary! Ha! I figured if I suffered while making this, then you should suffer while reading about it. Although this wasn't the longest it's taken me to come up with lyrics. I recall burning a backing track and listening to it in my car every day for about three weeks before something finally clicked. Super chord progression here. Good balance between acoustic / electronic instruments. Clear mix and listens well. Thanks! I believe you might want to consider d-esser on main vocals. I've considered that, but I thought it was part of her vocal style. It's a bit more /sh/ than /s/ in places. But I'll have a look at it. Normally, I'll just reduce the amplitude using automation instead of using a de-esser, as it gives more control over the result. Maybe second harmony vocals slightly lower. On the second verse? I'll have another listen, thanks! Thanks for listening, and all your helpful feedback!
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Well worth the read & listen.
Super work with the synth vox but the whole package is excellent.
Cheers
rayc
"What's so funny about peace, love & understanding?" - N.Lowe
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David,
I had to laugh ... 'Nothing's Changed (Updated)'. It clearly has!
I love the new bass and drums - and that mandola closing out with movement left and right. Really good. BTW - thanks for the chord progressions in your previous post.
Andrew
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I like the title Nice lyrics, bit sad, but the conclusion is set nicely in "if we both try..." Cool chord progression and intriguing melody, very original feel, like written by a very experienced guy who has been making hits for decades Nice sounding lead vocalist, but there's something in those backing vocals that feels bit annoying, Felicia's tone perhaps? Nice band, I liked the mandola intro and the effected outro. The drum sound fits well with the pop mood. Professional sounding mix, doesn't feel crowded and gives space to the singer. BTW. You have used name Amara, Arama and Amaya (SoundCloud) for the vocalist... On Dreamtonics page, there are Amara and Ayame, bit confusing Janne
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Hi,David,
Interesting changes and a good write.
I really enjoy your attention to detail! Both with the track and the vocals, so many subtle things going on. That combined with a good mix makes for a great headphone listen.
Listened a couple of times, good stuff!
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Excellent tune David. Boy you mastered the vocaloid. Makes the song such a cool listen. Well done
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Hi, Ray. Well worth the read & listen. Thanks! Super work with the synth vox but the whole package is excellent. I appreciate that. Amara was a fun voice to work with. I was just happy when it finally came together. There were times I had some serious doubts about it getting off the ground.
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Hi, Andrew. I had to laugh ... 'Nothing's Changed (Updated)'. It clearly has! Yep, and I kept making changes after that! I love the new bass and drums - and that mandola closing out with movement left and right. Really good. BTW - thanks for the chord progressions in your previous post. Thanks! I hope you find something useful in them. And thanks for stopping to listen and comment.
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Hi, Janne. I like the title Nice lyrics, bit sad, but the conclusion is set nicely in "if we both try..." Thanks - I'm glad that worked for you. Cool chord progression and intriguing melody, very original feel, like written by a very experienced guy who has been making hits for decades I wish! Nice sounding lead vocalist, but there's something in those backing vocals that feels bit annoying, Felicia's tone perhaps? It's likely the high harmony part that you find grating. Felicia is on the vocal, and it's a bit aggressive, and it's set high in her register. I should probably dial her back a bit at some point. Nice band, I liked the mandola intro and the effected outro. The drum sound fits well with the pop mood. Professional sounding mix, doesn't feel crowded and gives space to the singer. Thanks! BTW. You have used name Amara, Arama and Amaya (SoundCloud) for the vocalist... On Dreamtonics page, there are Amara and Ayame, bit confusing Yeah, names aren't my strong point. It should be Amara, thanks!
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Hi, Dave. Interesting changes and a good write. Thanks! I really enjoy your attention to detail! Both with the track and the vocals, so many subtle things going on. That combined with a good mix makes for a great headphone listen. I've got to give credit to floyd jane for pushing me to make this better. I thought I was done, and he gently suggested it needed some more work. Of course, he was right. Thanks for stopping and commenting, I appreciate it.
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I'm curious how you realized you had copied the indigo girls. No, on second thought, nope, I don't.
Your songs are quite an undertaking and I really enjoy your story as much as the music, which, incidentally, was good.
You can find my music at: www.herbhartley.comAdd nothing that adds nothing to the music. You can make excuses or you can make progress but not both. The magic you are looking for is in the work you are avoiding.
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Hi, Scott. Excellent tune David. Boy you mastered the vocaloid. Makes the song such a cool listen. Well done Thanks! If there's a trick to using SynthV, I think it's to write songs to the strengths of the voices. It's a lot easier to have them sing songs they can sing, instead of trying to force them to sing something they can't. And if they can't... it's easy enough to change things. The nice thing is they don't complain when you decide - yet again - to make some minor change to the vocals. Thanks for listening and commenting!
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Hi, Herb. I'm curious how you realized you had copied the indigo girls. No, on second thought, nope, I don't. Ha! As I mentioned, I changed the lyric while doing the writeup for this thread. The prior line felt a little clunky, so I made the change, re-rendered the song, uploaded it, and changed the lyrics in the writeup. Later the next day, I was still trying to re-work the lyrics (which is easy when you've got an AI vocalist) when it struck me. Funnily enough, neither of my daughters noticed it. And The Indigo Girls get a lot of play in our house, so they should have caught it. Your songs are quite an undertaking and I really enjoy your story as much as the music, which, incidentally, was good. Thanks! I used to have a guitar book by Tommy Tedesco. He had a bunch of neat stories in it, because he figured most of the people wouldn't end up doing the guitar exercises, so he may as have amusing stories so they felt like they got their money's worth. Thanks for listening and commenting!
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Hi David.
What a fantastic song! I love what you've done. The lyrics and melody are great and the production is brilliant. Your use of Synth V is excellent. It seems to me that your creativity was most surely firing on all cylinders when you put this song and its production together.
I enjoyed my listen a lot.
--Noel
P.S. Thanks for the detailed insight into what you did and how it was achieved.
MY SONGS...Audiophile BIAB 2025
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