Soundcloud Share Thread

[EBES]

Another piece, which I think I'm about done with, for this independent prog album that I'm working on. No hard rock riffs in this one, although this one started its life with a hard rock riff in the chorus. That got rewritten when I started going over the scratch version of this song that I originally laid down in 2019 and making tweaks to the arrangement. Instead, a more laid back feel. Very clean open voiced guitar tones in the verses and dream pop or shoe gaze guitar tones for the rhythm guitars in the chorus and prechorus. A fretless bass instead of my Rickenbacker or Hamer basses. E Bow guitars, because I play guitar, not flutes or mono synths.
Vocal harmonies. My usual Pink Floyd inspired lead guitar tones. Korg and Arturia modeled analog synths, and G Force M Tron Pro Mellotron.
Also, the Una Corda piano! I've wanted to write some Una Corda into a piece for a couple of years. And I thought Una Corda would sound nice with a fretless bass. So when I decided to use my fretless bass in this song, eventually I hit upon the idea of writing in an Una Corda break.
And a parental advisory: This contains brief bass soloing.

Really lovely track! The guitar, bass and keys all flow together and complement each other in a really effective way. I agree with Rarebird about the quality of the bass playing in particular -- very dynamic and active, almost like a second lead under the vocal -- and the guitar tones here are lovely. Love how the different instruments come together around 2:32ish. The quiet music box-ish passage near the end is lovely and builds perfectly into the coda. Love that moment around 7:10... is that slides on a bass chord? Something done with an overdub? Fascinating effect.

[BobM]

Oh yeah, that bass playing is great and the tone is killer. I love soft flute-like synth leads that compliment without cutting the ears. It's a long song but your changes carried me through it without worrying how long the song was. My interest was sustained, hard to do in a 7 minute song.

[Yaman Aksu]

Not necessarily pros, more for homebodies, like me, that like to play and do stuff with music as a hobby.

Those who enjoy early-80s Marillion (or similar) might especially take a look, this is about a very very incomplete cover song:

It's only a few snippets from the song Grendel, played with an "I'm just arranging/practicing this on acoustic guitar" mindset, no big deal, just something that I'd uploaded to youtube several years ago. Hobby output. Not pro. Today someone has started a thread at the main forum about Robert Fripp's home videos and when I looked there and noticed that his Episode 11 is just him practicing, basically simply a practice session with some talking on it, it became clear again that even the greats upload/share sounds that are nothing but practicing, I figured it's just as fair to point to this very incomplete practice-like performance that I'd uploaded a few years ago since it sounds fairly decent for a very early incomplete version, at least some Marilo fans have appreciated it so far. The vid does have a really weak ending due to a guitar intonation problem, so don't bother with the last few seconds. There's also a second Grendel practice session video at my youtube account there, but perhaps less interesting since it just repeats-and-repeats until about halfway (to account for the right length of missing vocals).

https://youtu.be/AtJnI06BVS0

P.S. Before you ask: My work on this cover song is on hiatus. Might continue sometime in the next few months.

[Rarebird]

Finally finished my new song in memory of my dad. Used some instruments I got from him: Akai Z4 Sampler, Waldorf Blofeld



Instruments and sounds:
Akai Z4 Sampler
Alto Saxophone (ProSamples Session Instruments)
Tenor Saxophone
Muted Trumpet (ProSamples Session Instruments)
Trumpet (ProSamples Session Instruments)
Trumpets (ProSamples Orchestral Brass)
Trombones (ProSamples Orchestral Brass)
Tuba (ProSamples Orchestral Brass)
Waldorf Blofeld
Classic Synth (factory preset)
Nord G2 Engine
Solo synthesizer (sound I created myself)
Mallet Marimba (factory preset)
Mallet Vibes (factory preset)
Bass synthesizer (sound I created myself)
Arturia Prophet V3
Synthesizer pad (sound I created myself)
Tenor banjo, I inherited from my dad, some tracks with heavy effects, including octaver (effects from Cubase 8 Pro)

[clivey]

Finally finished my new song in memory of my dad. Used some instruments I got from him: Akai Z4 Sampler, Waldorf Blofeld



Instruments and sounds:
Akai Z4 Sampler
Alto Saxophone (ProSamples Session Instruments)
Tenor Saxophone
Muted Trumpet (ProSamples Session Instruments)
Trumpet (ProSamples Session Instruments)
Trumpets (ProSamples Orchestral Brass)
Trombones (ProSamples Orchestral Brass)
Tuba (ProSamples Orchestral Brass)
Waldorf Blofeld
Classic Synth (factory preset)
Nord G2 Engine
Solo synthesizer (sound I created myself)
Mallet Marimba (factory preset)
Mallet Vibes (factory preset)
Bass synthesizer (sound I created myself)
Arturia Prophet V3
Synthesizer pad (sound I created myself)
Tenor banjo, I inherited from my dad, some tracks with heavy effects, including octaver (effects from Cubase 8 Pro)

Listened last night and plan to give it a spin later nearer the end of the day along with my daily intoxicants.

I am beginning to come to terms with my constant need for movement and development within my usual listens. Your pieces move and develop,but at a pace that has me applying a soft footbrake. That's a good thing for a rocket like me.

[EBES]

Finally finished my new song in memory of my dad. Used some instruments I got from him: Akai Z4 Sampler, Waldorf Blofeld



Instruments and sounds:
Akai Z4 Sampler
Alto Saxophone (ProSamples Session Instruments)
Tenor Saxophone
Muted Trumpet (ProSamples Session Instruments)
Trumpet (ProSamples Session Instruments)
Trumpets (ProSamples Orchestral Brass)
Trombones (ProSamples Orchestral Brass)
Tuba (ProSamples Orchestral Brass)
Waldorf Blofeld
Classic Synth (factory preset)
Nord G2 Engine
Solo synthesizer (sound I created myself)
Mallet Marimba (factory preset)
Mallet Vibes (factory preset)
Bass synthesizer (sound I created myself)
Arturia Prophet V3
Synthesizer pad (sound I created myself)
Tenor banjo, I inherited from my dad, some tracks with heavy effects, including octaver (effects from Cubase 8 Pro)

Listened to this a few times this morning. The melodies here are so winding and intricate but very emotional at the same time, and the changes in texture between the piano sections and the more densely orchestrated parts are great. That muted trumpet patch is very expressive.

[Rarebird]

Listened to this a few times this morning. The melodies here are so winding and intricate but very emotional at the same time, and the changes in texture between the piano sections and the more densely orchestrated parts are great. That muted trumpet patch is very expressive.

Thanks. I suppose the muted trumpet you hear is actually the solo-trumpet, which somehow seems to sound the same as the muted trumpet. Don't know why, but I discovered it when I compared the 2 sounds. The muted trumpet is only used for some descending parts in the end.

[Distance of Man 1]

Instruments and sounds:
Akai Z4 Sampler
Alto Saxophone (ProSamples Session Instruments)
Tenor Saxophone
Muted Trumpet (ProSamples Session Instruments)
Trumpet (ProSamples Session Instruments)
Trumpets (ProSamples Orchestral Brass)
Trombones (ProSamples Orchestral Brass)
Tuba (ProSamples Orchestral Brass)
Waldorf Blofeld
Classic Synth (factory preset)
Nord G2 Engine
Solo synthesizer (sound I created myself)
Mallet Marimba (factory preset)
Mallet Vibes (factory preset)
Bass synthesizer (sound I created myself)
Arturia Prophet V3
Synthesizer pad (sound I created myself)
Tenor banjo, I inherited from my dad, some tracks with heavy effects, including octaver (effects from Cubase 8 Pro)

Very interesting interplay between synths and sampled orchestral instruments.
Musical inspiration, synths and other instruments... your dad left you with some wonderful gifts.

[Rarebird]

Very interesting interplay between synths and sampled orchestral instruments.
Musical inspiration, synths and other instruments... your dad left you with some wonderful gifts.

Yes, though we didn't like the same music, with some exeptions. My dad loved traditional jazz. Everything made after 1930, was not worthy of the name jazz in his opinion and don't start about jazz-rock, because that was an atrocity in his eyes. We both loved Bach and other baroque music, he liked some stuff by The Beatles, one Achim Reichel album, some folk stuff, like Elster Silberflug, Comedian Harmonists, all stuff I liked as well.
We both loved collecting records and CD's, so he understood it when I wanted to visit recordstores when we were on vacation.
He played banjo, but was not very good at it, but he knew how he wanted things to sound. I'm a lousy keyboardplayer, but love to compose. So in a way something we had in common, though I created new music and my dad played existing music.

I still miss him. But well, we spend a lot of time together. Yes, sometimes I didn't like that he hated it when I went to a friend, because we spend most evenings together. We ate together and talked a lot, also about music, even if he didn't really understand things. I can read music and my dad not really, just chord charts, something I can't really handle.

Not sure if my dad serves me with inspiration. It seems to come from nowhere in particulair.

[Rarebird]

The last days I've worked on a new sound for the Arturia Modular V3 for a new composition for piano and synthesizer.
Originally I wanted to make my new album 'Annus horribilis' with 3 compostions:
'Annus horribilis'
'Dad'
'Dezember'
But I've decided to add a fourth piece.

[Cuda]

Just joined the board and first time posting here. Tune is original and written many years ago. There are only two of us on this project. I (try to) cover everything but the vocals. I am definitely not a keyboardist and know that part is lacking. The mix and some of the performances are definitely*still just "roughs" but we figured it was refined enough to share.

https://soundcloud.com/aranami/the-last-goodbye-12

[hFx]

Quite some first post there! Welcome to PE and it's an excellent piece of epic music you posted there! An 19-minute modal piece is quite a daring feat but you did it well with a good catching theme, a great arrangement and strong musical performances! The guitars (I guess that's your main instrument) and vocals are really good and I liked most of the other performances too. My only concern (IMHO of course) is the drums - really good arranged, but a bit too static with regard to dynamics and quantization. A more "live" drum feel would make a good effort great. Also, as you say, the mix is a bit rough. But again, a very enjoyable 19 minutes, really shining in the lowkey parts. I really look forward to hear more music from you!

[clivey]

Yep. It's a bit of an epic. Very fine piece with many many impressive elements.
Will be relistening soon .

Congratulations.

[BobM]

Yikes, it's long, but I'm listening now at about minute 12. This is damn impressive. Those vocals are awesome. I do agree that better EQ and mixing, on the drums especially, would make this stand out quite a bit.

[Cuda]

Thanks to all for the warm welcome and thank you very much for giving the tune a listen. Also, thank you for the feedback! I am a long time session musician but have next to 0 experience behind the board. And the "board" in this case is a crappy laptop loaded with SONAR X2. Still learning, so any feedback is greatly appreciated!

[EBES]

Just joined the board and first time posting here. Tune is original and written many years ago. There are only two of us on this project. I (try to) cover everything but the vocals. I am definitely not a keyboardist and know that part is lacking. The mix and some of the performances are definitely*still just "roughs" but we figured it was refined enough to share.

https://soundcloud.com/aranami/the-last-goodbye-12

Really remarkable song! I'd second all the praise that other folks have shared. The vocals are very expressive and layered, the flow of the parts is great and the combination of complexity, ambition, and emotional earnestness is excellent. Really looking forward to hearing more.

[Rarebird]

Just joined the board and first time posting here. Tune is original and written many years ago. There are only two of us on this project. I (try to) cover everything but the vocals. I am definitely not a keyboardist and know that part is lacking. The mix and some of the performances are definitely*still just "roughs" but we figured it was refined enough to share.

https://soundcloud.com/aranami/the-last-goodbye-12

I think the opening vocals could use some tweaking, making it sound more distant (perhaps chorus and delay). Love the keyboards, what keyboards did you use? Great song and love the vocals.

[Cuda]

Thank you for the feedback! Keyboards: Synths Roland FA-08 and Juno-DS61, Piano Mason & Hamlin Model AA

[Distance of Man 1]

Just joined the board and first time posting here. Tune is original and written many years ago. There are only two of us on this project. I (try to) cover everything but the vocals. I am definitely not a keyboardist and know that part is lacking. The mix and some of the performances are definitely*still just "roughs" but we figured it was refined enough to share.

https://soundcloud.com/aranami/the-last-goodbye-12

This is a masterpiece. I guess it figures you're a long time session musician. All the performances are very tight. All five tracks you've got posted sound like pro musicians played them.
Your vocalist is outstanding. It's a real asset teaming up with a super talented singer, since the vocals are a major element that a lot of listeners connect with.

Outstanding song writing too. Great melodies and harmonies. It certainly takes a talent for composition to write a 19 minute piece that never sounds repetitive, or like disjointed, unrelated musical ideas just stuck together.

Your music is way ahead of a lot of independently released music, even as good as or better than a lot of music on major labels.

[Rarebird]

Thank you for the feedback! Keyboards: Synths Roland FA-08 and Juno-DS61, Piano Mason & Hamlin Model AA

Looks nice. My first synthesizer was a Roland System 100 Model 101.

[Cuda]

Another tune uploaded. A little shorter piece this time. Demo mix at best. Still needs some work (balance, frequency clashes, etc) but we have a group of tunes we want to get to this stage before doing detailed refinements to the mixes. So - up it goes. Any feedback is very welcome!

https://soundcloud.com/aranami/hope-mix-04

[clivey]

Another tune uploaded. A little shorter piece this time. Demo mix at best. Still needs some work (balance, frequency clashes, etc) but we have a group of tunes we want to get to this stage before doing detailed refinements to the mixes. So - up it goes. Any feedback is very welcome!

https://soundcloud.com/aranami/hope-mix-04

You have definitely got your sh** together. Another prime cut of 2020's progressive music. Me myself am not qualified to advise but as the others stated, the drums perhaps letting the otherwise very high quality of the production down, but hey, that is probably an easy fix.

[hFx]

Another tune uploaded. A little shorter piece this time. Demo mix at best. Still needs some work (balance, frequency clashes, etc) but we have a group of tunes we want to get to this stage before doing detailed refinements to the mixes. So - up it goes. Any feedback is very welcome!

https://soundcloud.com/aranami/hope-mix-04

Ouch... What did I just listen to? A few times every decade or so I'm truly stunned by a piece of music previously unknown to me at the first listen... Now it just happened again!

I find this piece so full of creativeness and energy - inspiring, complex and full of surprises (I do love daring arrangements, more related to classical music than verse-chorus-etc). Lovely chord progressions with a number of goosebump moments. Not the least, some great guitar playing and timbres... As good vocals as the last piece and notch or three up regarding the keyboards. I feel almost ashamed to provide any production comments on a piece of this calibre - but again, I do like the really drum arrangement very much but sit would still benefit from a few more ounces of dynamics...

Just went through the Prog Report vote listings and most of the artists/songs wouldn't top this piece... and this is a demo mix?

[BobM]

Yeah, you've got your sound nailed down (do I hear a bit of Magenta influence?), though you are right, the "sound" needs some better mix and master. Keep them coming, I'm fully enjoying your music.

And if you get a chance, I recently released 2 new songs with collaborators. One is pop, the other jazz. Hope you enjoy them

UPSTREAM (pop)
https://www.bandlab.com/post/24c9846...e-000d3a980004

ANTONIA ( a Pat Metheny cover )
https://www.bandlab.com/post/455b821...e-000d3a980004

[Distance of Man 1]

Another tune uploaded. A little shorter piece this time. Demo mix at best. Still needs some work (balance, frequency clashes, etc) but we have a group of tunes we want to get to this stage before doing detailed refinements to the mixes. So - up it goes. Any feedback is very welcome!

Another home run. Excellent piece. I'll echo others here that the songwriting, arrangement, the guitar tones you're capturing, the performances, are as good as or better than other stuff coming out, even on record labels.
You can always find something that will add that little extra to a mix, but I think the production sounds great already. I think the drums sound powerful and punchy. The one thing I hear with the drums is on tom rolls/fills, it's audible that the same sample is being retriggered in quick succession. What drum software are you using by the way? It sounds very good. Anyway, newer drum software like Superior Drummer 3, or any drum software with a bigger sample library, should have enough tom hit samples that it will sound more natural. Otherwise, maybe varying the velocities of the tom hits a little more may or may not help. Again, if the sample library it's playing isn't large, staggering the velocities might make the fills sound uneven.

That's a pretty minor quibble. I enjoy prog albums like Castanarc's Journey to the East, which I think has great melodies, but which I recently listened to and noticed the drums are obviously a drum machine. So what? I love the album. It was originally recorded in 1984 so back then, if you were using programmed drums, it was more obvious. Nowadays it's easier to make drum software sound like a real drummer (a really good one) playing in an expensive pro studio. But the song is still what grabs my attention.