Kakyo.basic.zip: 听进去

Hypocrisy

Sun, 03 Feb 2008 23:14:28 GMT

Peter Tägtgren! Enough has been said about the godfather of Scandinavian metal. From the production quality of the two relatively latest albums <Hypocrisy> and <Virus>, it's obvious that this guy has been on an everlasting experiment on the juxtaposition of the cliche molecules of metal music. The way he mixes guitar, vocal, and drum sounds are so different in these two albums; a few incredible DAFx such as pitch-bend are cast into the chaotic guitar stream as condiments, making them sound so different from their north American peers (except Death).

In <Hypocrisy>, the vocals were deeply reverbed and placed in the far background, leaving the wall-of-sound of guitars surging relentlessly in the front; the slow-to-mid tempo leaving the chemical enough time to spread through the physical and mental space. The guitar mix sounds more powerful than ever by virtue of the settings.

<Virus>, however, presents a return to the old formula, in terms of the composition, dynamics, and the volume framework. But here, more subtle tuning to the bits of sound ingredients is functioning. The EQ on guitars are more dynamic, in the fast riff, low-end is accentuated, making it sound more destructive than most thrash metal; when the black-metal squeaking vocal kicks in, high-end takes the lead. The sustained growl was occasionally downward pitch-shifted to form a sense of abyss. In one track, the lead guitar was pitch-shifted to become out-of-tune and created a dramatically colorized riff, when all the other instruments are still in tune at the moment.

P.S., now I think I'm better at telling the mic types used in vocal recording.

P.S. II, Hypocrisy did a few Iron Maiden tricks in these two albums; I suddenly realized that L'Arc en Ciel's vocal style was probably derived from Iron Maiden (and probably other NWOBM alike); they even had a song called "Route 666", which is almost a tribute to Iron Maiden's "The number of the beast".

3.J-Pop, Chill-out

Fri, 18 Jan 2008 05:15:35 GMT

Artist	Song	Album
田中理恵	"瞳のトンネル"	<24 wishes>

I. Where is the Magic?

Spectral, spatial, tonal balance

full in all three aspects.

rhythm arrangement

each instrument plays its distinct part in the completion of the global rhythmic stream; the mixing makes them pretty identifiable.

II. 11 Aspects (brief)

Concept

chill-out, tunnel (eye's tunnel), night, cure

Melody

sparsely spaced high-pitched local hills; catchy key change leader

Rhythm

intricate

Harmony

smooth transition with beautiful key changes

Lyrics

cliche

Density

full

Instrumentation

spectrally full

Song Structure

straightforward transitions with elegant key changes

Performance

so-so vocal, everything else perfect

Equipment Q

N/A

Recording Q

vocal is clear

III. Which of the 11 is the mix based on the most?

3, 7

IV. Compression Level

Overall

5/10

vocal

6/10

snare

8/10

others

5/10

V. 4 Tools on each instrument

		Volume		EQ		Pan		FX
		Overall	Dynamics	Overall	Dynamics	Overall	Dynamics	Overall	Dynamics
1	vocal	2		low-cut		center		reverb (2)	bridge (chorus, double, fatten)
2	kick	5	4 (chorus)			center
3	snare	4	3 (interlude)			center		dry	verse (single), chorus (double, fatten)
4	shaker	4				left
5	conga	4	0(chorus)	low-cut		right
6	tambourine	4 (bridge)
7	bass	3		hi-cut, lo-cut, lo-mid boost		field
8	keyboard	4				center	right (intro)
9	electric guitar	4	3 (interlude)			left
10	acoustic guitar	4-	4 (chorus)			right
11	background vocal	5				+center+
12	reggae guitar	5 (bridge)				center		reverb (4)
13	melodic synth	2				field	stereo panning	reverb
14	bells	3~2 (bridge-chorus)				center -> field
15	ambience	6 (verse)				center
16	electric organ	5 (chorus)				field
17	synth bed	5 (bridge)				+center+

Comments

13.melodic synth is the unique foreground role in the interlude, so its volume was set to Level-2.
Don't quite understand why the acoustic guitar on the right was not as loud as the electric guitar on the left.
All rhythmic instruments and chord-progression involved instruments were emphasized when they functioned.

Lyrics

瞳のトンネル

無理しないで　いつでも　あえるから
素肌の距離こえて　よびあおう
夢のトンネル　のぞいてごらん
昨日の涙　星のよう

いつのまにか　ついている　瞳の傷
内緒で　たどらせて　ほしい
だれにも　いえないくらい　つのる想い
だから　暗闇も平気

こわれたなら　その場所　見せてごらん
いろんな君の中　入りたい
不安な夜　くぐり待ってる
遠く感じた　その手のひら

少しずつに　さみしさ　減らせるから
変わるの　おそれたら　だめさ
記憶の奥いくほど　好きになれる
もっと優しくのぞいて

隠れた地図の中　消えない　痛み
それは　遠い　?郅巍·浃蓼婴�

うつむくとき　よぎった　微笑の傷
指先で　治してみたい
光に負けないくらい　満ちる想い
だから　暗闇も平気

2. J-Pop (guitar pop)

Fri, 11 Jan 2008 06:32:01 GMT

Artist	Song	Album
My Little Lover	"YES~free flower~"	<Presents>

I. Where is the Magic?

mod(Concept, tempo, key, spectrum)

A stubborn lingerer for the lost relationship, driven by a steady rhythm; key-change in verse-bridge-chorus (major-minor-major) ; spectral contrast between the dense low-end by the bass and rhythm guitar, the sparse yet stand-out high-end vocal, two distorted guitar fill in the in-between range and further enrich the high-end;

II. 11 Aspects (brief)

Concept

loss of love, back-trip, anxiety, resolution, loneliness

Melody

sparse, parallel sentences, each being a question and an answer, lazy envelope in verse, jumpy in chorus

Rhythm

steady 4/4, lead guitar occasionally offers a bit swing

Harmony

major->minor->major for verse->bridge->chorus

Lyrics

minimal

Density

sparse compared to usual guitar pop, no busy track at all

Instrumentation

typical guitar pop, except for the high-pitched synth track as the complement to the vocalist

Song Structure

straightforward pop

Performance

normal; the vocal may have a bit pitch problem in one of the bridges but rather unnoticeable.

Equipment Q

the guitars sound very "Japanese"

Recording Q

clean overall, the guitar on the left channel sounds dirty

III. Which of the 11 is the mix based on the most?

6, 3, 2; a small density, a steady rhythm, and an extremely sparse melody require that the space be saturated with a proper combination of volume/EQ/pan/FX.

IV. Compression Level

Overall

6/10

Bass

8/10

Guitars

8/10

Vocal

6/10

Snare

6/10

Acoustic guitar

N/A

Kick

N/A

Hi-hat

6/10

V. 4 Tools on each instrument

		Volume		EQ		Pan		FX
		Overall	Dynamics	Overall	Dynamics	Overall	Dynamics	Overall	Dynamics
1	Vocal	3		HP		center		double(chorus), reverb(4), dehiss
2	Kick	3-		HP		+center
3	Snare	3		LP		center		reverb(2)
4	Hi-hat	3		HP		center
5	Bass guitar	3		Low-boost		+center+		fatten
6	Rhythm guitar	3		Low-boost		+center+		fatten
7	Lead Guitar	4	Solo+	Low-mid boost		right		distortion (analog)
8	Ambience guitar	4				left		distortion (digital)
9	Acoustic guitar (chorus)	4				+center
10	Keyboard (downbeat only)	5				+center+		reverb(4)
11	Synth (chorus)	4				+center+
12	Background vocal	4				center		reverb(4)
13	layered vocal (vocal duplicate)	3-				field

Some Why's

FX on vocal: melody is sparse, the entire song is predominated with the low-end rhythm-kits, and almost only the vocal takes the hi-end position; therefore the high-end should be reinforced, hence the FX on vocal, especially the reverb helps to fill in the mid-range.
Pan: the center is too busy with the rhythm-kits, two guitars that serve their unique functions are thus panned to the sides; all the neutral sounds like the keyboard are centered.
Highly foreground bass: the concept stresses on the "trippy" and stubborn thoughts.

Lyrics (Mandarin translation)

说过的话一句句　沉重地消失了
恋爱的结束像是　夏天的香气
急忙地走着　在回去的途中
回过头时　只有长长的影子

寂寞的时候也要　Yes Yes
心动的时候也要　Yes Yes
踌躇的时候也要　Yes Yes

沉沉地睡着　一直睡着啊
焦急地等待　都是为了你

炽热的阳光也要　Yes Yes
傍晚的大雨也要　Yes Yes
微笑的时候也要　Yes Yes
不管哪一天都要　Yes Yes

说过的话一句句　沉重地消失了
急忙地走着　在回去的途中 (寂寞的时候也要　Yes Yes)
(心动的时候也要　Yes Yes)
(踌躇的时候也要　Yes Yes)
(微笑的时候也要　Yes Yes)
(不管哪一天都要　Yes Yes)

1. metal

Wed, 09 Jan 2008 20:29:36 GMT

Artist	Song	Album
Dissection	"Thorns of Crimson Death"	<Storm of the Light's Bane>

I. Where is the Magic?

Form

Symphonic with interleaved violent/gentle sections

Melody

coherent yet variable rise and fall of the envelope across sections

Sound sample

the interplay with the acoustic guitar

II. 11 Aspects (brief)

Concept

death, tragedy , whisper, wind,

Melody

catchy, hummable, coherent inter-sectional envelope

Rhythm

intricate sectional development, internally simple

Harmony

typical 5th-based death-chord

Lyrics

poetic

Density

mostly full, sparse in the beginning of Section A and D (acoustic guitar only)

Instrumentation

metal formula, unusual acoustic guitar, samples (rolling thunder)

Song Structure

cohesive, complex form

Performance

immaculate except a buzz from the solo acoustic guitar in Section D.

Equipment Q

(N/A)

Recording Q

clean

III. Which of the 11 is the mix based on the most?

1, 7

IV. Compression Level

Overall

8/10

Electric Guitars

9/10

Vocal

lower than on guitars

Drums

N/A

Hi-hat

8/10

V. 4 Tools on each instrument

		Volume (x / 6)		EQ		Pan		FX
		Overall	Dynamics	Overall	Dynamics	Overall	Dynamics	Overall	Dynamics
1	Vocal	2		hi-pass		center		reverb(4)	B.(fade in-out)
2	Kick	3		<300Hz-		center
3	Snare	3-				+center+		reverb(2)
4	Hi-hat	3--				+center+
5	Cymbal	3				+center+
6	Toms	3		low-pass		field		reverb(4)
7	Bass Guitar	4	C(Solo-1sec)					reverb(3)
8	Lead Guitar	3	C-end(3-2-6) D(2)		A(hi-pass, hi-compression), D(hi-pass off)	center	B,D(field)	echo(intro), fatten,	A(reverb(3)) D(echo on ending hi-pitched note)
9	Rhythm Guitar	3	C-end(3-2-6)			field		reverb, fatten
10	Acoustic Guitar	3		<300Hz-		center		reverb(4)
11	Thunder	3	3-6-2-3				center-field-center

Lyrics

Music:Nödtveidt/Norman
Lyrics: Nödtveidt
See the plains lie ghastly silent as being frozen in time
A place of distress where evil still lies vigilant enshrined
Years that passed are now centuries and forgotten seem the
fallen ones
But on lived the memories in the spirits of a battle sons
Chorus:
Hear the choirs
Is it the wind that brought back their cries?
Once forged in blood by tragedy
Sharp were the thorns of crimson death
Through the air again our voices whisper
and awake are now your eyes
For too long closed in slumber - but death didn't prove our demise
By ages so dark we've been sculptured
as fragments of story and tales
As we haunt we are endlessly captured
and shrouded in the wind that here wails
Chorus:
Hear the choirs
Is it the wind that brought back their cries?
Forged in blood by tragedy
Dark were the thorns of crimson death
By ages so dark we've been sculptured
as fragments of story and tales
By the place that we haunt we are captured - Against
eternity we can prevail
Chorus:
Hear the choirs
Is it the wind that brought back their cries?
Forged in blood by tragedy
Dark were the thorns of crimson death
(Backing vocals by Legion)

Wilco – "Impossible Germany"

Tue, 01 Jan 2008 00:50:18 GMT

Instruments (especially the guitars):

fattened
spread across the stereo field
reverbed
compressed

Vocal:

dry (no reverb)
panned to the center
high-pass filtered

Catchy interaction between the dry and localized vocal and the wet and spatial instruments.