Emotional Robot - 'Metal Mirror'

[Little_Fella!]

Ok so not getting much chance to make anything but this little dittie kinda almost made itself to be honest .. I had in mind the Nu Lot competition mentioned as the other tracks I am putting forward I had already written .. dark tech funk is what I am hearing from Meat Katie ... >> this one I am most comfortable with as for me it is the most competent piece, production wise, that I have done... the other tracks I am having to work much harder on to get them right

Emotional Robot - 'Metal Mirror'

I certainly know that the fact that I decided to enter has been of benefit as it made me stir ma stumps and improve to a production level that I felt is required/ so that I don't hang my head in shame as James Zabelia n Timo Maas slate ma mix big time ... we shall see

All feedback welcome as this is a proper project/ so refinement is paramount...

[DannyBlack]

heya mate!! im grabbing this now. can't wait to hear it, you always bring the dark funk :-)

[BloodStar]

like it. all those lead sounds are very nice, proper funky groove. nice progress as the track goes, subtle changes here and there emphasising the funk. sounds good.

production wise it seems to be quite good. got just few pointers, kick sounds tad boomy on my speakers. there is nice deep subbass, but i am missing some bass sound above the kick to give more texture to bottom end. some fat bassline to emphasise the groove could turn it into funky machinery.
all those lead sounds are very nice, kinda moogish sounding. :) would just try to bring bit more wetness in there. reverbs, filter delays, phasers, whatever to make the sounds flow and move around bit more.
funky accent of the track could benefit by adding some long modulated dub delays. those echos could also add more dark scary feeling :D
1 last thing, there is 1 hihat loop which sounds bit loud in, compare to kick. put it down fewdbs.

deffinitely looking froward to hear full version, as there is big potential in what you have got there. send more :)

[platform1]

ooo funky ... love the lead that comes in after 1 min..

only on headphones, so id take it with a pinch of salt but the highs do sound too loud and does sound abit empty in the low mid range.

[The_Laughing_Man]

Right sorry man, been so bloody busy with audio shit the only free time I get I tend not to want to spend listening to even more music.

Finally got round to this.

First thing is the hat at the beginning. Sounds like the EQ has been over boosted at the top rather than subtractively cut. It has a very over resonant tone and no transient hit.
I`d probably cut the first minute of the tune as well, as it takes 60 seconds before something happens, and not a lot happens bar the addition of a little sound.

Ok, going from 3:32 which seems to be the main meat, the little chordal stabby thing could be a lot more present in the mix.
If this is a lead part I would suggest really beefing it up as at the moment it sits just above the background. It`s also very brittle and digital.
I`d back it up with a nice rich analog sounding synth copying the part to fill it out, get some very very nice reverb on it and maybe some harmonic distortion ala tube gain.
The sound needs more lushness and more movement.
Similar problem with the other chordal pad sound. It`s just a little digital and brittle (protoplasm?), it could also do with being more up front in the mix.

Overall the sound of this mix is quite sharp and brittle, with over pushed resonance in the top end possibly the cause of EQ boosting. The top end lacks detail and definition and gets quite messy in places.
The bass and kick sit quite nicely, but the hats feel a little washed out and lacking transients.
The mid range sits back in the mix.
I`d really look at getting the best possible sounds for all the parts here. Making sure the samples aren`t too lo-fi maybe getting some hats with more depth and more obvious transients.
Use the best possible reverbs you can find to get a nice rich sheen to the ambience

I`d definitely look at the lead sounds and look to get them sounding more rich and full. A combination of EQ, analog saturation and sounds, and more spacial movement is needed.
I`d also then go back and program in more detail to the sequences.
All the little details that add a professional edge. Little hat rolls and fills, pattern changes and flourishes with the synths, more automation on stuff
The tune could do with a few more ideas really, at the moment you have 2 parts and then the percussion.
The first chordal part is quite nice (baring in mind above problems) but has little variation or movement.
The second part again only has one pattern with no variation.
As lot 49 seem to go for very musical hooks, you could probably do with something a little stronger musically. A nice big riff or a more musical bass part.

Lot 49 is a very commercial progressive/electro house label so they will be expecting very slick production AND programming so you really need to look at the details in all areas. They have a tendency in their releases to have very upfront riffs and sounds common with electro house and go for big analog sounds.

I quite like the tune but as it stands it lacks any real hooks for that big room electro house sound.

[Little_Fella!]

Ahaaaaaa... nice one Steve for havin' a butcher's

As I guessed there might be quite a bit of work to do on this... :dans taxi:

heh .. :;

I'll have a good swiff thro with what you have mentioned >> the brittleness is definitely me pushing the eq .. will sort .. ummmm the riffs are made by Albino3 n another good synth you gave me >> so I don't know what's gone wrong there .. obviously only a little bit of time has been available to spend on any of the tracks - which shows once you get into the higher levels of production.. boo!

Not to worry... it's good experience to have a go at something and understanding the shortcomings in order take stock for next time ...

Cheers Steve!! ... much appreciated charver

[Little_Fella!]

Mindya... I'm making a mistake there as I am thinking you have listened to my third pass on this track - which has addressed some of the issues you mentioned, with ready made movement that I had set up to perform and is sounding a lot better in the mix >> shame tho as I shoulda posted it up as would have preferred you to have listened to that.. bah n bother :whoops:

I'm hearing ya'z on the development of the sounds so will work on them today - as the deadline is tomorrow .. Lot 49 have changed their music policy with leanings towards a more techno edge, so not completely wide of the mark on that score, but definitely aware of the strength of the elements (lacking of) for this type of label...

Cheers everyone for your help... not expecting to win anything but am enjoying the challenge of trying it on :exclaim: :; :briggin: