Chill out, already (Everybody Calm Down reviews)

[Elvis]

Interesting. Several different reviewers have suggested that our song sounds like it was meant for kids. Hmmm . . . . . perhaps we should pitch our next CD to the people at Walt Disney Co.? Kaching!

[fluffy]

I've always felt that Octothorpe's songs are best for kids aged 21+.

[boltoph]

Interesting. Several different reviewers have suggested that our song [Octothorpe] sounds like it was meant for kids.

All I can picture is Sesame Street's Ernie and Bert singing this song, and there are parts that really crack me up, aka "find your inner ear". Needs more horns/horn harmonies. I think there were scenes where Bert had a hard hat on in a workplace or something. It could also pass well as muppets! It cracks me up, I like it. Actually it's way more muppets, they had a band. This would work in their band, quite well. I was just more of a Sesame Street kid.

[MC Eric B]

j$ - Yes, I agree, my lyrics for Everybody Calm Down were not so great. I actually refrained on purpose from trying to make the lyrics too deep and poetic this time, to try to make the song have a more relaxed reggae vibe to it. I am sure some reggae songs are complex and emotional, but I was going for a more stereotypical laid back feel good Caribbean sound.

MC Eric B – One thing I am curious about – you have written elsewhere that you are proudest of your lyric writing ability. Is this an example of that? ‘Cos they’re OK but nothing special, to me? Maybe I am prejudiced but it’s not like they’re stellar, just the best thing about this song, which is of course all relative. I am trying not to be too negative, but really … actually the song itself is OK within the arrangement and it flew past during the listening but the words are nothing.

[Spud]

How is it that Octothorpe sounds EXACTLY the same from the last time I listened... a few years ago now?

I've been thinking about this for a few days and I've got to say - you've got me. We've got a new drummer. We have guitar. I have a new 8 string fretless bass that sounds like nothing I've ever heard before, Crash is now recording on keyboards instead of me, we have a new studio and mostly new gear, and yet we still sound the same. It must be a testament to the persistence of our musical vision.

[Aardwolves]

Aardwolves – I know nothing about you so forgive me for asking – has the vocal been sped up? Or are you in fact 12? Either way I love your voice, it’s so affecting, even through the mud and the haze of the recording. Can’t make out too many words (without looking in the lyric archive, natch) but it’s a very pleasant sound peaking through the aural molasses and that’s all that matters. Because of a combination of the simplicity of the arrangement and the recording quality, the song does feel a little longer than it is, but hey, I love the fact that it sounds like it’s been recorded in a Chelsea Hotel bathroom onto a portable dicta-phone – somehow I feel all G’n’G should be recorded that way!

Hahaha, I get the "12-year old" thing a lot, online and in person. I'm a tiny 22-year old Asian chick, so try as I might, I can't really help sounding like a squirrel. Thanks for the review! I appreciate it.


(This is me playing someone else's guitar in a hotel. No dicta-phone, though. )

aardwolves - Do you record the guitar and vocals at the same time? If you could put up a pic of your recording setup, I'm sure people could give you some really helpful advice. For songwriting, having the breaks in there where you don't play anything ... it feels like you just couldn't come up with a transition between sections. Until you pump up the production values a bit (or at least try), I don't think I can vote for this. But your voice is great, and your songwriting is pretty solid.

I do record them at the same time, because doing them separately sounds even worse (if you can believe it!)... I'm going to try separating them again for next week's fight, though. Here's my (very minimalistic) setup... looks pretty similar to J$'s, though much more poorly-drawn.



Explains a lot, doesn't it? Thanks for the review/suggestions!

I'm going to go shopping for something (cheap) to better my next entry, but I haven't figured out yet what would be the best investment at this point. Mic, maybe?

[Leaf]

How is it that Octothorpe sounds EXACTLY the same from the last time I listened... a few years ago now?

I've been thinking about this for a few days and I've got to say - you've got me. We've got a new drummer. We have guitar. I have a new 8 string fretless bass that sounds like nothing I've ever heard before, Crash is now recording on keyboards instead of me, we have a new studio and mostly new gear, and yet we still sound the same. It must be a testament to the persistence of our musical vision.

I think that's exactly what I was getting at. Cause, yeah, nuts and bolts wise, it's different... but ideologically it seems ... well, you.

hen I think of it, this actually makes tons of sense. I suppose what I was saying was "sounds like Octothorpe". Much as this new Metallica album SOUNDS like Metallica... and therein lines the subtext I suppose. Metallica the past ten years-15 years... didn't SOUND like them, as I had grown to define them in my mind. Sure they did new stuff and experimented, probably a great thing for their growth and need to express, etc, but what they originally "stood" for created an expectation... in my mind... I happen to be one of those fans that is thrilled by the fact they have re-embraced that vision (in their song writing of course, cause performance wise I don't think they lost it at all)...

Ironically, I don't THINK I have that kinda of strong style... but then again, how would I know?? I probably sound like me too whether I'm playing metal or reggae or some other thing.

Maybe the neatest thing to take from it is that an identifiable style and vision is clearly a big part of Octothorpe as I swear, other than the occasional "skyline" popping up in "shuffle" I had n't critically listened for a few years. But I still know it's YOU (the band), right away.
Something like that.

[fluffy]

I'm going to go shopping for something (cheap) to better my next entry, but I haven't figured out yet what would be the best investment at this point. Mic, maybe?

The very first thing to check is make sure GoldWave is recording at 44KHz 16-bit. Your recordings sound like they're being done at a MUCH lower frequency.

After that, it really depends on where you want to take your music and how much you're willing to spend. If you have $300 just rattling around (and who doesn't?) you could get a recording interface with phantom power, an MXL condenser mic, and a mic stand, but if your budget is lower your options become much more limited. As I pointed j$ towards, the Griffin iMic is a pretty good "my first recording interface" for $50ish (which isn't wonderful but it's certainly better than what's built-in to your laptop), and I've seen others for as low as $15 but I can't vouch for any of their quality.

You can also find USB microphones which are basically just a recording interface and a dynamic mic all in a single unit - pretty good for budget, not very good for expandability. But if you're just doing simple acoustic G&G tracks it may be sufficient for a while. (There's also some pretty high-quality USB condenser mics out there but they start at $150ish.) I definitely can't vouch for any brands but I've seen several out there for $30-$60. Also, the Rock Band and Singstar Karaoke microphones are exactly the same thing, so if you have either of those games (and who doesn't?) then you already probably have something better.

[Billy's Little Trip]

Hermit crab!! Oh my god, I just peed a little.

Between your hermit crab and J$'s "irate" partner in the other room illustrated as a bold explanation point in a speech bubble coming from the other room, I haven't laughed so fucking hard in a long time.

[Caravan Ray]

Between your hermit crab and J$'s "irate" partner in the other room illustrated as a bold explanation point in a speech bubble coming from the other room, I haven't laughed so fucking hard in a long time.

It would be funnier if J$'s irate partner was actually a hermit crab.

(though if that was actually the case - I really do not want to hear J$'s entry for "In The Tank" ...eewww!)

[Aardwolves]

It would be funnier if J$'s irate partner was actually a hermit crab.

(though if that was actually the case - I really do not want to hear J$'s entry for "In The Tank" ...eewww!)

GASP! WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO LARRY AND MR. KRABS?! D:
They're not irate, they're just a little crabby. (insert UGGGGH here)

Fluffy, I'm going to try to fix the Goldwave thing (I'm currently just using the "CD quality" presets to no avail) and will look for the equipment you mentioned when I'm out and about - thanks! The USB mic/interface combo sounds like my best bet for the cash I have, at least for now... and then perhaps my songs will only mildly irritate the ears rather than slaughtering them. Huzzah!

[Billy's Little Trip]

Tiff, I kept meaning to ask on the last song. About the Gold Wave mixing. Do you by chance use their hiss removal pre set? I've used it before and got very similar results with the underwater sound. I suppose it could be coming from Mr Crabs and Larry's tank, but more likely from Gold Wave.

[Aardwolves]

Tiff, I kept meaning to ask on the last song. About the Gold Wave mixing. Do you by chance use their hiss removal pre set? I've used it before and got very similar results with the underwater sound. I suppose it could be coming from Mr Crabs and Larry's tank, but more likely from Gold Wave.

Nah, I just use the CD quality recording preset and that's about it. I don't do anything to the sound once it's recorded, as usually it sounds even more convoluted.

[Billy's Little Trip]

You didn't have Larry in the tank with Mr Krabs, so I had to use my imagination. Don't hate my imagination, hate the game.

[fluffy]

Fluffy, I'm going to try to fix the Goldwave thing (I'm currently just using the "CD quality" presets to no avail) and will look for the equipment you mentioned when I'm out and about - thanks! The USB mic/interface combo sounds like my best bet for the cash I have, at least for now... and then perhaps my songs will only mildly irritate the ears rather than slaughtering them. Huzzah!

Hm, well, "CD quality" usually means 44KHz/16bit since that's what the CD standard specifies, so it's probably just your mic or your laptop. So yeah getting a USB mic is probably your best bet for the near term.

[nyjm]

i wanted to join the tech talk, but i want reviews, too.

so i made a new thread over here. i'm interested to see what this community comes up with.

[Billy's Little Trip]

Oh, thanks for reminding me nyjm. Here's my set up:

[fluffy]

and here is mine hastily drawn while intoxicated it is not to scale

[Caravan Ray]

Oh, thanks for reminding me nyjm. Here's my set up:

What will you do if your microphone holder gets voted in as vice-President?

[fluffy]

I think it's cute that you were still pretending to use the Behringer DSP compressor thing when you drew that.

[Spud]

Hey, Calm Down, fluffy. It was cabled up.
Also I have deleted the post to minimize thread pollution. I will re-post over in the other thread when I have redrawn it.

[jeff robertson]

Tiff, I kept meaning to ask on the last song. About the Gold Wave mixing. Do you by chance use their hiss removal pre set? I've used it before and got very similar results with the underwater sound. I suppose it could be coming from Mr Crabs and Larry's tank, but more likely from Gold Wave.

Nah, I just use the CD quality recording preset and that's about it. I don't do anything to the sound once it's recorded, as usually it sounds even more convoluted.

Some sound laptop drivers automatically try to remove hiss from the microphone signal. At least I know Thinkpads do. I guess it makes sense for their intended usage, which is things like webcam broadcasts and corporate tele-conferences and shit like that. You can probably turn it off, but it's probably a better bet to avoid the laptop's builtin microphone jack entirely.