\m/ Metal \m/

[Mantis]

The production sounds really crisp too. Would you mind sharing what resources you used to achieve that sound? It's something I always struggle with when trying to get to grips with the mastering process for a recording.

[ManBearSquid]

I can give you a rough idea of general set ups, but when it comes to any plugins etc then I can't name any names as that side was mostly handled by my friend, Mike, who engineered this project. There were also numerous pedals used in various combinations that I can't fully remember.

Covid got in the way of this, like many things, and so we had a hiatus before continuing some remote working before we could get together again. During that time is when I did the vocals with a USB mic in my room.

One thing I can say is that getting a good quality DI recording from your instrument makes a huge difference. We went through a few stages of reamping (another reason that it's difficult to remember exact final settings etc). Also, new strings - regularly. We changed strings for almost every song, mostly because two of them are 13+ mins, but I'd say that you shouldn't be recording more than two more conventional length songs without changing strings first. It really does make a difference. For demos or pre-production, I wouldn't bother, but for finals it's absolutely worth it.

We used Reaper for the DAW and recorded my PRS semi-hollow, loaded with a bridge humbucker and a P90 at the neck (with the humbucker rarely being used) which made a big difference in the clarity of chords for the tone. This was played through an Orange rockerverb that went into a torpedo loadbox and then into a zilla 2x12 cab. We didn't mic up the amps which we had intended to do in a studio space for some reamping to attain some nice natural sounding feedback/amp noises etc. However, that didn't come to pass due to lockdowns etc.

We used a similar set up for the bass, which was a Dingwall 5 string. Again, clear DI was key.

Drums were done using superior drummer (3.0, I think) and the general sound to them was mostly handled by Mike, I just took the lead on programming them and consulted with a drummer that I used to play with to try and make them seem more real.

As far as EQ, compression, and all that stuff, it was mostly down to Mike with me being there to offer my insight on how it was sounding but not being at the controls. I really couldn't say what plugins he uses. Some are stock, some are free downloads, some are premiums.

So much of it was trial and error and realising that what we thought would work best just wasn't always the case. For that reason, many hours were spent listening and tweaking.

For mastering, I outsourced it to Jarosounds (he did Somali Yacht Club's latest album) and he was fantastic to work with. I had it stem mastered, which cost a bit extra, as it allowed him more sonic space to work with. I have next to no knowledge of mastering myself.

If you're interested, I can link you to one of the songs before it was mastered, after this has released, for you to hear the difference? It has a basic master chain thrown on for listening purposes that essentially just boosted and levelled the volumes to work together, but the difference between it and the finished track was amazing to me.

[Mantis]

Cheers mate, I'd appreciate hearing that pre master track for sure.

I'm going straight into Reaper with an Axe Fx 2 nowadays but it's just that final touch that glues everything together that I'm always eluded by. I suspect it is down to some pretty significant EQ and volume automation to balance all of the different instruments in the mix.

Did you double or triple track much?

[ManBearSquid]

Sure, I'll PM it to you after release.

I forgot to note that we also used a cab sim software which allowed us to simulate mic placements which is a huge factor in the sound of the guitars.

Another key but of advice that I'd give would be to find the right tones for your mix. A great sounding stand-alone guitar tone, or bass etc, isn't always the right fit for the overall thing once it's all grouped together. Quite often, I found, the guitar tone didn't grab me too much until I'd double tracked it and heard it with some bass and drums, even if the latter were just quick demo versions to find the vibe. I'd be happy to send you a sample of a single guitar track for reference to the final thing.

All guitars were double tracked, with some sections having a similar version of the riff recorded with a fuzz tone to be blended into the mix. Sometimes, it would be simplified down to the root notes of the riff if the chords were a bit too complex for it to work with a big fuzz tone. I also did some overdubs with a cleaner, kind of crunchy tone, if the riff had some arpeggio, just to really bring out the melody. So it wasn't so much about adding tons of parts over each other, but just picking out moments using additional tones.

[ManBearSquid]

Not sure if I should bother making a new thread (some sort of I Made This thread that people could use for things they've written, music or otherwise?) or just dump it here. I chose "dump it here".

Anyway, here's a link to the bandcamp page for the Low Oxygen EP that will be releasing tomorrow, all for the paltry price of £4:

https://lowoxygen.bandcamp.com/releases

I believe the first song can be streamed now.

Cheers for checking it out when it drops.

[Mantis]

Sounds great, dude. I feel like I need to hear it live in a low ceiling room with the bass cranked up, a smoke machine and strobing light show on to experience it fully. Really tasty sounding mix overall though, good stuff.

[ManBearSquid]

Thanks man! Haha aye, that'd be the vibe for it, for sure. I'm keeping it a studio thing for now, but I would be interested in gigging it some day should a band ever form from it at some point.

I've PM'd you the track without mastering and one with basic mastering.

[Mantis]

Nice one, cheers. Seems like it was mostly there in the stem mix and the mastering just balanced the levels a bit better. Interesting to see how the wave form changes between each version.

[Drarok]

Any fans of Bury Tomorrow in?


Just hearing the new album for the first time, enjoying it so far!

[Snowy]

Musically I like it but I can't get on with the vocals

Allow me an offering in return though, I have been listening to Ayam by German act Disillusion and loving it. Not new, it was released last year, but new to me:



It is pretty complex and does take a listen or two to get it's hooks in.

[Drarok]

Musically I like it but I can't get on with the vocals

Hah, I get that. I can't explain what the difference is between vocals I like and those I don't, but it's a strong preference. So many bands I like the music but can't get on with the vocals, so they're basically unlistenable.

I have been listening to Ayam by German act Disillusion and loving it.

I've never heard of them before, first track sounds good!

[Snowy]

Musically I like it but I can't get on with the vocals

Hah, I get that. I can't explain what the difference is between vocals I like and those I don't, but it's a strong preference. So many bands I like the music but can't get on with the vocals, so they're basically unlistenable.

I am glad that isn't just me - vocals are probably the biggest factor in music clicking with me - or rather not clicking with me! There is a popular style that a lot of metal vocalists seem to adopt, which Bury Tomorrow are one of, that I just can't get into. Imonolith were similar, liked the music but again they had that vocal style that just doesn't work for me.

On that Disillusion album, listen to Abide the Storm, I think the fourth track in. It is just mighty, huge start, then a long noodling section (with trumpet used which is really uncommon but works amazingly), before building to an absolutely titanic ending reprising the opening riffs. Can't get enough of it.

[Drarok]

(with trumpet used which is really uncommon but works amazingly)

Brass has a great tone, it's really good in rock and metal…

Instrumental track with a lot of Sax in:


Shrezzers have Sax in almost all their songs:



And Ice Nine Kills have Reel Big Fish in one of their songs (I love these guys, pretty tongue-in-cheek):

[Mantis]

You all know by now how much I love my post metal and djenty stuff. So needless to say I think this is the best release of the year so far. The chap from Cloudkicker has teamed up with a drummer and released an EP under a new project called The Supervoid Choral Ensemble. It grooves like hell.

[Drarok]

I've found my new favourite thing!

• "I’ll search for you in the guts of the lost world" is a brilliant metal line to kick off into an epic guitar solo
• The section from 3:21 is some of the best breakdowning (breaking down? breaking downing?) I've heard in ages
• I love heavy music with orchestral bits in

This comment sums it up well: