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I took my 2015 Subaru Forester in for routine service and walked out with a $10,000 repair estimate on a car worth less than that. So I did what most people would do: I got a second opinion. This song is a combination of band in a box and me playing instruments myself. Guitar BIAB Strumming Track: 4455:Guitar Acoustic Rhythm AmericanaMovinAB Ev 135 Organ: Playing my Midi keyboard with Logic Pro BeBop organ sounds Bass BIAB: 3588: Bass, Electric, NashvilleRadioPopPushA EV 110 Fiddle BIAB: 4457:Fiddle, Background AmericanaMovinAB Ev 135 https://soundcloud.com/joseph-stroffolino/subie-in-distress?si=4353e646cda5430d9e38315c62a0dd9a&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing
Last edited by Joe Stroffolino; 01/03/26 09:01 AM.
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Joe,
That's a great song. Love the Dylan-esque feel to this one. Great lyrics and an excellent mix!
Bob
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Thanks Robert, I am really trying to find the right balance between playing a few of my own instruments vs. leaning more heavily into using more BIAB tracks on my songs and I'm glad to hear that you think the mix sounds good. Also I wanted to say that I just listened to a few of your songs on SoundCloud and I really like your song "Ballad of a LoFI Girl". Thanks for the comment. Joe
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Hi Joe! This is a very likeable song and one that many can relate to, so right out of the blocks you have a song with great appeal. I like your melody on top of a familiar chord progression, and then venturing into a different progression on ‘Subie has been a good partner …’ to give the song good variation. Your lyrics also tell a good story that the listener will follow and look forward to the happy ending. Sometimes, the lyrics are a little busy and you can be heard tripping over the syllables - maybe replace words here and there with others with less syllables, or remove words altogether. e.g. ‘I drove it home with a smile on my face, thinking maybe I’ll buy one like this someday’ or remove ‘thinking’ and keep ‘maybe’. If you’re open to it, I have some mixing and arranging suggestions … - Start off with a simple ‘core’ band than add (or switch in/out) other band members as the song progresses
- Check that the guitar on the right is playing in time with the drums - sometimes it felt slightly out of time, but this was also complicated but the busyness of the lyrics.
- Check that tracks have their own space in the mix - I try not to have instruments with similar busyness or frequency range in the same left or right space
- If one track of the song is busy, have other track(s) less busy e.g. keys playing held chords that only change with each chord change - I find this also works to create a verse or bridge with variation from everything else
I understand what it’s like to have worked on a song and then receive suggestions - so carry these forward into your next song if they help. Overall, a VERY likeable song, and not a one-hit wonder - I’ve listened to several of your other songs (you’re prolific or have been doing this for a long time) and you have a great knack for finding novel topics and making them humorous or relatable. Looking forward to more posts from you to the forum! Andrew
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Apprentice
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Hi Joe
A very relatable experience and song therefore for all of us. You’ve got so much experience crammed into 3 minutes 15 seconds and it’s all relevant. I like the way you’ve referenced your Subie to a horse, as a stead. A good write and mix.
Kind regards
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Hi, Joe. Fun song!  The lyrics were a bit cramped, but that's no biggie. But as Andrew suggested, I'd consider dropping one of the busy guitars, because it's fighting for attention and getting in the way of hearing the lyrics. I enjoyed the listen!
-- David Cuny My virtual singer development blogVocal control, you say. Never heard of it. Is that some kind of ProTools thing?BiaB 2025 | Windows 11 | Reaper | Way too many VSTis.
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I have now the seventh Subaru. This time Outback. They're so fantastic here in Finland, where roads in the country side aren't so fine. The four wheel drive and the heigh road clearance are important. I have got good advices from Subaru Club Finland. So I can really bond with your lyrics.
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Oh, man, I can relate, Joe. This is a fun song. I had a Subaru (spelled backwards is U R A Bus). I had to drive mine with a fireplace glove after the gas pedal broke off --and it was a stick. Man, sure glad you saved the 10K. If that's her in the song pic with the pigeon passenger, may she drive another 100K.
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Andrew, Thanks for the listen and the great comments. I am planning to go back and make some changes to the song and your suggestions will be very helpful. This was definitely a bit of a hybrid approach: a combination of BIAB real tracks along with me doing some other playing and I suspect the guitar that feels a bit off was the track I played on my acoustic guitar (the strumming track). I am debating if I want to go back and re-strum it again or just use a BIAB strumming track. I am definitely trying to strike that balance between injecting some of my own playing into my songs vs. relying entirely on the BIAB tracks but I think in the end, I need to go back and do what's best for the song (which may be using more BIAB tracks).
I am thinking that this year, a good compromise, may try a dual path with my upcoming songs where I produce a fully fleshed out version of a song relying mostly tracks that I am not playing myself and then create a second version with just me and my acoustic guitar (something I could play in public in a singer / songwriter style. I did that recently with a few of my songs on SoundCloud (Lukewarm King for example) and it was a fun challenge to try pulling it off without all the whistles and bells.
And I completely agree with the comments on perhaps trimming a few words on the lyrics. I could feel that in a few places while I was singing them and I suspect if I make a few strategic trims, it might make them a bit easier to sing. I really appreciate you checking out my song. Thanks so much. Joe
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Thanks. It really is a great car and now it's been fixed its drives as well as the day I bought it. And I am definitely not going back to the dealer again as I really am convinced they really were trying to scare me into buying a new car. I'm just glad I found an excelllent independent shop and I'm feeling very confident that I can keep driving my Subie for many years to come.
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Thanks David, the song is definitely lyrically driven and plan to take those great comments into account as I make a few tweaks to the song. Really appreciate you giving it a listen. Joe
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Thanks, overall it's been a really good car. I think the trick is to find a good independent shop to do the repairs which I have done. And as for the Seagull, I am living in Arizona now but I snapped that picture back in 2018 when I was working in Redondo Beach, California and it was such an odd sight to see that bird on the roof that I just had to pull out my phone and capture that image. I have a friend in California who just had to get rid of his Subaru. He had, I think it was a 2004 Forester and the catalytic convert failed. According to him, the car for that year had a California unique converter. He couldn't find any used ones and when he tried to get a new one, the only place you can get it from is the dealer and the cost for the new converter is $4000. And in CA, when you get your emissions checked, apparently they track the serial numbers on the converter and if you put a non-California converter on the car, or try to bypass it with a pipe they will find out and you will fail emissions. So in his case, because the car was so old, he ended up getting rid of it. Really appreciate you listing to my song. Joe
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Very cool song. When you get done wrong, there's a song in that somewhere if you think long enough.
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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Thanks, and the way I see it, better to vent via writing a song vs. keeping it all bottle up inside. Appreciate you listening to this one.
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Nice one, Joe. Funny, relatable story told in a breezy, musical way. I'd agree with the previous suggestions on production, but there's something to be said for just grabbing the song and not letting go like you've done here. Super job!
DC Ron
BiaB Audiophile
Presonus Studio One
ASUS I9-12900K DAW, 32 GB RAM
Presonus Faderport 16
Too many guitars (is that a thing?)
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If you are curious, I made some tweaks. Same as the original link which is the nice thing about SoundCloud (can keep making updates). As for the tweaks, I removed my guitar and replaced it with a BIAB guitar track.
I also re-sang the vocals and trimmed a few of the words and I took out the fiddle and from the verses and removed the organ from the first verse. I think it sounds better and I really appreciate the feedback you gave me.
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Thanks Ron, I've been a bit reluctant to lean too heavily on BIAB tracks but I realized that after replacing my own strumming tracks with a BIAB strumming track, the song just sounds better. And at this point in my life, especially since I want to focus on songwriting, I am never going to be as good of an instrumentalist as the players on the BIAB real tracks.
I think going forward, I am going to perhaps create two versions of my songs: one where I use all the whistles and bells (BIAB and vst plug ins) and then perhaps also create a version where I do actually play my own guitar and sing so I have a version that I can play live in a singer songwriter style.
Thanks so much for checking out my song. Joe
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If you are curious, I made some tweaks. Same as the original link which is the nice thing about SoundCloud (can keep making updates). As for the tweaks, I removed my guitar and replaced it with a BIAB guitar track.
I also re-sang the vocals and trimmed a few of the words and I took out the fiddle and from the verses and removed the organ from the first verse. I think it sounds better and I really appreciate the feedback you gave me. Hi Joe! Definite improvement, and helps make the song shine. I heard some good lines in there that I missed on the first pass. I’m gonna check out a few of your other songs. Yes, Soundcloud is good for being able to replace tracks - at least the paid version - and I will often upload and replace multiple times during song mix to listen to it where others will. It’s a pity I can’t do the same with YouTube. The balance between BIAB tracks and my own is one that I have pondered as well. There are some instruments that BIAB does way better than I ever could (or could record); some that won’t do what I want it to; and other times where I just want to optimise my own playing content so that I suffer less ‘imposter syndrome’. Using BIAB styles and tracks honours the spirit of this User Showcase forum as well. Your decision to upload busked songs is a good one - I might consider this myself. Well done! Andrew
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A $10,000 repair bill. Robbery for sure. $4,000 seems a lot better. Enjoyable song that left me with a smile.
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Andrew. I really appreciate the second listen. I will definitely start spending more time on this forum. It's such a great resource full of so much talent. Speaking of busking, I just dropped a song today called "The Clown Car's Heading Towards the Cliff". I started the song using solely BIAB tracks and then, I decided to just try it with just my guitar and voice and that's the one I ran with. That being said, I am going to go back and finish up the BIAB version too and perhaps post them both. Thanks again. Joe
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