Page 1 of 1

Pumpkin King - March 09

Posted: Tue Mar 10, 2009 10:38 pm
by Pumpkin King
Well I guess I could say this is finished. It's called Adrenaline Machine.

I'd say this is has more of a prog metal kind of sound, or could be for a movie soundtrack... though I honestly don't know. And I'm not sure if I should add any solos in there or not. So any comments or suggestions would be great. :)

http://soundclick.com/share?songid=7412861

Posted: Thu Mar 12, 2009 9:20 am
by X-Trade
I think the sounds and melodies are great. but I wouldn't say it sounds finished - there is a lot more to a track than just melodies and sounds

Next you should try some panning of the instruments, use of reverb and delay to give some of the instruments a sense of space. and add some bass, or give some of the instruments a more bassy edge. the overall sound seemed a bit thin at the moment, despite the number of large and heavy sounds you use. I also think the lead sound could be more upfront (but with a beat perfect delay at points), and push the drums back in the mix - currently their the main thing that seems to stand out.

Posted: Thu Mar 12, 2009 1:10 pm
by Stephen
This would be a perfect background for a car commercial, where the car is speeding down a salt flat, spinning, negotiating curves, etc.

I agree that the low end needs more energy. I just turned the bass control up on my mixer, and it sounded much better.

I like the drums actually, and also believe that if there was more energy in the bass area, the level would be fine, then you could balance the other instruments accordingly.

Just a suggestion, but if you do add some delay on any of the instruments, as X-Trade suggested, try to match the tempo/bpm, within a few beats per minute, and I think you'll like that.

Nice work.
Regards,

Posted: Thu Mar 12, 2009 4:33 pm
by botega
Hey Pumpkin King Joe

you have a really cool energetic track here that could fit as a movie soundtrack but not only... prog metal is what it is!

a little polish of this track will definitely emphasize the "hidden" parts and bring the sound as it should be: in your face!

you already got some good advices from the friends above like using effects, panning, EQ... if you'll use these parameters wisely it will do the trick.

i was also thinking... this track will be greater with some voice&lyrics

how do you make the final mix? are you using computer DAW? or is it a straight recording from the Triton sequencer?

Posted: Thu Mar 12, 2009 10:53 pm
by ellll
Hello my friend,

Lots of excellent ideas flowing here indeed....The energy is non-stop, and actually the "melodic" content...., very hot here ..., is excellent as well...!!

However, I agree there is a need for more bass energy.... It would allow a "hotter yet" sound, while staying in the bounds of reasonable...., allowing a far more ambient presence for the whole song..!!

Thanks for this one...It was really tight in many ways!

My Regards, John

Posted: Fri Mar 13, 2009 1:58 am
by georgeinar
Love the title, and the song as well. The energy is just great. And while you may want to consider some of the suggestions, I do enjoy the uncluttered smooth sound here. I wonder if more opening up would help to provide variety, where most drops out except for drums and a lead or just bass and lead, or an orchestrated part where the beat changes. I'm impressed by the overall sound here and how it gels so nicely. I do think the string synth part is too quiet.

Posted: Fri Mar 13, 2009 3:33 am
by Pumpkin King
Thanks everyone! I'll use the suggestions and let you all know when it's updated.

botega - If I could sing, then I'd definitely add some lyrics and vocals. But I can't. :lol:

The thing is, is that I was originally thinking of adding a different section towards the middle to slow it down. But it wouldn't sound right without any vocals, which is why most of my music never takes a break.

And all my music comes from the Triton Extreme. What I do is record it with the sequencer, save the sounds as wav files, put them to my computer, and then add some final touches with Audition or Sonar. If I had my own laptop, the process would be less time-consuming...

Posted: Fri Mar 13, 2009 9:16 am
by joet63
Hi Joe, I think there is a mixture of genre's in there and all of them good,

I liked your song, it has loads of momentum, energy and drive. i won't give you any advice as I'm a newbie at this game as well, great work.

Joe

Posted: Sun Mar 15, 2009 2:42 am
by DrWho
Wow - serious energy here - really pulls you on and takes you away. I don't think I've ever heard anything quiet like this. I really like the ending sound especially :-)

What synth. and tools do you use to produce this?

={> Art

Posted: Fri Mar 20, 2009 2:14 am
by GrahamBanks
Nice!
I agree the synth sounds could come a bit more up over the drums.
To me it sounded like this IS the solo of a bigger piece, or maybe the first movement of a sonata form piece, and the second movement would develop more of a solo on the top.

I don't mind the lack of a real bass part. Lots of prog metal gets way too overblown because 5 different instruments are all showing off at once. This piece keeps its focus better.

Posted: Fri Mar 20, 2009 11:17 pm
by Pumpkin King
Thanks again everyone. I'm considering making the string synth part a bit louder, but am unsure if I should increase the bass. I don't think I will add reverb though.

DrWho - As I said to botega, I use the Triton Extreme and it's sequencer to produce all of the melodies and sounds. Then I use Audition or Sonar to tweak some of the sounds up a bit. I mainly used Audition to edit the ending sound though.

Graham - Most of the songs I create always seem to be parts of bigger pieces of work. For ex., "Conceptual Improvisation" and "Meditation" are both works of mine that have more than a few parts to it. And I'm still working on them (or plan to eventually). But I'm trying to get away from that because it's a stressful process trying to come up with a continuous piece. I enjoy it though, and I have had thoughts of making my last work of OSAM containing parts of a few OSAM songs. 8)

Posted: Fri Mar 20, 2009 11:56 pm
by pwmccredie
I like the ending alot...its very arrogant. It kinda seems to me like its a one sided argument, like a musical tongue lashing. Maybe some variation from the level it was on might be nice, or a drop out with the beat and a bass presence left standing.

Nice work here though.

Posted: Sat Mar 21, 2009 4:27 pm
by Lorenzo
I really like this kind of prog rock/metal and it's a pity you haven't a real band with you to create such kind of music!
Regards, Lorenzo

Posted: Wed Mar 25, 2009 6:52 pm
by Pumpkin King
Thanks for the replies.

Lorenzo - Yeah I was in a band awhile ago. Not anymore though. But I'm happy with creating my own kind of music.

Posted: Thu Mar 26, 2009 7:29 am
by Dee
Hi Pumpkin King

I should have listened to this one when I got up this morning :shock:

Very nice rhythms and flow - and as others have said, the synth with the rising tune could stand out more, and I thought a sudden drop out of the drums somewhere near the end, and then having them blast back in, would add even more spice.

Regards from
Dee