WORKS-IN-PROGRESS for February, 2011

[legend4ry]

Its that time again..

http://www.dubstepforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=176841

Heres last months for the first couple of people.



GIVE FEEDBACK TO 3 PEOPLE BEFORE YOU POST YOUR TRACK: THOSE WHO DON'T WILL NOT RECEIVE FEEDBACK!

[jakedubber]

Alt Fire: This is my first attempt at this. Know that it may be a bit gimmicky but wanted to see if I could make elements work. Criticisms is appreciated.
Soundcloud

Everything's really out of time and playing over each other. It's really difficult to hear the individual parts because the track's so busy. Maybe try completely stripping down the drums to a simple 'bass snare bass snare' beat and work up from there. I'd keep the synth sounds you've got, but not what they're playing. Whenever I make a track I start with the drums, then stick in a few synths and make an A section for after the drop, then a B section, then work out an intro. That way you can spend as long as you like on all the different parts of the song and make sure that each bit sounds awesome. Looking forward to hearing this when it's a bit clearer

[barbearik]

Ok well... There aren't three tracks to review so I guess I'll just throw mine in there -

This is my second song that I've been working on, it's still not done in my opinion, but I'm curious to see what you guys think.

DAW's: FL Studio 9.8 Beta, Pro Tools 8 HD
VST's: Massive, Vanguard, Nexus2, Ohmnicide

Once there are more posts I promise I'll give some feedback
Soundcloud

[HomeNoiseRecord]

barbearik - loving that intro, nice and clear synths and interesting drums. once the drop kicks in after a minute or so though its a bit muddy, naybe switch to higher frequencies in the synths or pan them harder? great tune i just think the mixing needs some work

Alt Fire - listen to jake dubber dude! main thing i noticed was the parts just start after each other, try aiming for clearer build ups and releases with the use of crash cymbals, big FX perhaps. better than my first attempt anyways:)


Superginger - (from jans thread) more cowbell! haha, nice but im not sure if it fits in over the drop lol. great synth rising in at the beginning. it might just be me but i think your drums could do with being a bit punchier, or maybe just louder, have a mess with em and see what works. Defo keep those synths in, love them.


heres my latest abomination fellas, another attempt at fusing my guitar work in. my ears have had enough of listening to this over and over so i mixed down for some feedback, but you get the general idea.

Soundcloud

[MRP5]

HomeNoiseRecord Stoney ass riff got me noddin, also like what you have done with the guitar, not feeling so much of that reverb... turn up that distortion! This track is just straight different, love the feeling it gives off even though the progression is normally something i wouldn't find attractive it works. I wish it wasnt 4am or i would be listening with my krks but as far as the mixdown it sounds pretty legit threw headphones, ill critique on that in the morning. Definitely keep this one in the works..

barbearik Yeaa buddy digging the intro so far lets see where it takes me...... drums are nice love the reverse samples and the risers. Fuck dude this is awesome the sounds are very nice, the wobbles are deep. The progression of them is a little off from where the intro was taking me, there are some notes in there that are perfect, some that are not. As far as a first track shits nuts, great job. Fucking love that nexus progression btw

Heres a work in progess that really didnt get any feedback at all the end of last month, would love a little more input!
Soundcloud

[jamiecypher]

@Jakedubber: Really really hard to make any sense of. Decent sounds but still, i'd suggest some more coherent lines for your bass and possibly some better use of syncopation.

@barbearik: Left you a soundcloud comment cause I wanted to point out a very specific part of your riff. Love the general idea, love the drops, love the outro, but check my soundcloud comment.




Hi, I'm new to the whole dubstep production scene. I've been a musician for my entire life, play 5 instruments, and I often feel that I overvalue cool composition over general feel of song, so i'm here for some constructive criticism.
Soundcloud

I think this track has a solid feel, but it doesn't feel done. This is also my first dubstep song ever, though it's pretty gore-filled. Please, any tips, pointers, ideas on how to make my first drop hit hard without redlining so bad, overall mix ideas, anything.

Thanks so much in advance! This community rocks!

[4Cysdub]

Hi All,

@MPR5 - smash-that-clip-3: very 90´s feeling with that synth, the beginning part is a bit too full in my opinion, maybe one element needs to be removed or a less distorted bass? as from 1:30 I really like it (and now that I´ve listen to it a few times in a row I REALLY like the groove in it), I would personally slow down these drums but I guess that makes the style of the track... nice one..

@barbearik - untitled first track: intro is nice though not spacey enough for me... would have taken it easy on drums and played more on melody of the synth (which I like btw, maybe a bit less reverb). The in-between intro is not necessary I think, especially with that kick every step... then this bass needs some melody in my opinion, some keys are not proper in there i think (1:23, 1:37). I really like the variation of the bass at the end of the track, nice job!

@jakedubber - double-dare: wow! i like it! even though kind of a bit too much de-structurized for me hears, there are some good ideas in there. The kick indeed needs some more boost, and the synth more volume throughout.. apart from this, i really enjoy it man!

now, this is my first "finishing in progress" (hav to be careful how we name things now ... haha) track and I would defo appreciate constructive feedbacks. I already think the bass is a bit too loud but hey...:

[jakedubber]

@4Cysdub and jamiecypher - If you're talking about my first February post, that's not my track. I was posting feedback on Alt Fire's track and quoted him so his track was in this new thread.

I'll be posting my current WIP tonight and I'll give you guys some feedback then (I'm in college at the moment)

[HomeNoiseRecord]

just a bit of an udate guya iv changed the mix a bit since my post earlier today, new ones in the sig

4cysdub - i like the drop but im not sure about the quiet bits in between, maybe just my speakers but it sounds a bit too dead. maybe a bit of change in the eq could liven it up a bit?

[superginger]

#4cysdub
some unique sounds there.. seems very well produced! over my head... I enjoyed the listen! maybe a lack of variation! but that's maybe how you want it:)

#jamiecypher
I gave you feedback on the other thread!

#MRP5
NIce synths mate!! very melodic and nice! intro sounds good. the kickroll comes in quite harsh though. the kick and snare needs more gain and more equalizing! drop is sweet.. but I'd say maybe you add a couple of synthleads or something to get more variation. the sounds at 0.41-044 is soo fucking cool! very nice end of the pattern. keep it going bruva!

#HomeNoiseRecord
thx for feedback mate! about your track, I'm not a fan of these simple melodies and I don't really think that dutch synth fits in. the guitar edits are a bit weird in my ears too. second drop got nice lfo-work! not a fan of the wobble synth though.. :/ keep at it!

#barbearik
sweeeeeet ass melody man! likinbg the drums and the whole intro a bit housey intro! nice kickroll but I'd automate the volume of it since it makes the other sounds to drown. the delay synth afterwards is quite awkward! the transition gets a bit weird into the drop. the drop is well made! but I donät like the melody of it at all :S maybe keep the wobbling to one or two notes or just work it as you did with the synth! well made though! hope you fix it

over to my track.. it's a remix, but I only used the trancey synthlead and the melody for my edit. please give feedback and preferably on soundcloud! I really hope you won't just skip my track cause mine often do get skipped...
Soundcloud enjoy and feel free to download!

[valaB]

Hey Guys!
JakeDubber: Good job on mixing the drums...in my monitoring environment they sit really well. Once the drop happens, I would randomly silence the bass, and add some effects in the place for a little more movement. I do like the static synth going on in the background during the bass heavy sections. Adds a really cool feel. Another suggestion would be to automate filter cutoff during bass heavy section. So have the lfo doing its thing, but then add a filter on top and automate certain wobble sections to add more umph.

MRP5: Drums need to cut through the mix better. Just not any sense of power in them. You need to create more energy going into the drop. I've just recently started looking at my tracks as a continuous flow of energy with dips and peaks. I find in your track it's static as far as energy flow. Filter sweeps, pitch automation, silence, are just some of the tools i've been experimenting with. There are interesting elements going on after the breakdown, but because you have pads going on the whole time, it's hard to hear them. Whenever you add something new, make sure to really put it at the front of the track if that makes sense. The track has potential!

jamiecypher: Interesting intro! I like the riff playing as it's a bit different. Now IMO the drums need some work. First off, I wouldn't add reverb to the kick. I would however add reverb to the snare . You've got the right idea as far as buildup, but it still falls a little flat. I would experiment with adding a little more silence after the vocal drop. After the drop, your main bass synth is a thin. Have you tried working with FM synthesis? You can come up with some thick dirty bass. Awesome communication between drums and bass after the drop! That is something I'm trying to work on. Another suggestion would be to have more than just 1 bass sound. Duplicate your midi bass track and create another sound, then interchange between the two. or three. or four. etc... Great job for your first dubstep!


Here is mine, p51, now yall dig in and tell me what needs to be better!

[Mawsta]

barbearik- This is pretty good man, very impressive especially since it's your first track! First thing i would like to say is i love your kick, very punchy and clear. Also love the build up, but it seems like it goes from one build up directly into another build up, i was kind of expecting the drop after the first one haha. I like all the synths, good sounding stuff, i do feel the melody can be improved on it though. I don't know what scale your on but something about it sounds dissonant. Very good stuff man keep making tunes!!!
HomeNoiseRecord-I like that your trying to something creative and original, that being said i do have a few criticisms. Something about the drums and the bass just doesn't feel right, sort of out of sync with the rest of the song. It seems like your dirty bass might have too long of an attack time so its off time with what it should be. And i feel like there might be a little too much reverb on your snare drum, idk im just not feeling that snare haha. Also it might just me but the level on this tune seem pretty quiet. That being said, i love all of the parts with the guitar, and it has some crazy potential. Keep at it man!
jamiecypher-Yo man welcome to the dubstep production scene, i'm very new myself but heres my opinion haha. First thing i think the intro is pretty cool, i however downt like the little metronome sounding noise you added to the snare in the drop. I also noticed i can barely hear the kick drum after the tune drops. Maybe EQ it and raise some of the upper end frequencies so that it's alittle bit more punchy through your mix. I like the crash symbol though, ive always been a fan of alittle crash in my dubs I like the second section of the track much better as well. The constant motion sounds pretty amazing. Overall i liked it alot man! keep up the amazing work!
superginger-DUDE! first of all, i love the beginning synth, very trance like, and then the bass comes in oooooooooooooooooooooooo fuck yea. Love that. The more cowbell sample was a good touch as well :p My favorite parts where when the synth was in the background, but it was pretty massive throughout the whole thing. I will be giving your track a download keep up the good work!
4Cysdub-Bro you can never have too much bass! haha I liked it man, it was pretty filthy. I think there could be alittle more highhat activity in the back ground. I could only hear them very slightly, and also maybe change up their pattern alittle bit. Same thing with the wobbles. After while alittle change up is nice to hear. Nice first track though keep up the good work!

Now onto my track, i haven't been able to work on music as much as id like to with school and work and relationships, but this is what i have to offer for this month. This is a little collab between one of my very good friends. We were feeling pretty mellow at the time so we went for a more mellow dubstep compared to the more dirty fast paced ones that i've made so far. Id like to get alittle feed back, it's hard to mix on my headphones theyre pretty crappy. Hope someone out there enjoys it
Soundcloud

[barbearik]

@ Everyone

Thanks for all the nice comments!

But ya... I have no idea what I want to do with that drop, I've messed with the notes like 100 times and nothing sounds right LOL any tips? And ya I haven't mixed or mastered this one yet

@ jamiecypher - sounds pretty good! the only thing I'd change out is the kick and snare samples... other than that, some proper mixing and that should be one pretty unique track

@ MRP5 - Dude that intro arp is DOOOOPE!

@ Alt Fire - Ya this one is all over the place bro, sick samples, interesting wobbles, just practice practice practice and you'll refine all of your techniques. Also, don't be afraid to take the time to write
different drum patterns for every section of the track, or else you get that cluster fuck of noise.

[djconor]

superginger - your synths are way down and the drop is epic. i cant really think of anything you should change. good job man

4cysdub- thats a crazy first track. the only thing i can think of is to make different wobbles every once in a while in it but overall its a good song. nice work

jamiecypher - good song. the middle quiet part is a bit long and repetative but it still sounds good.

now heres my first track. its not finished but i dont know what im missing. id like some feedback to know what else to put in this.

Soundcloud

[Malleus]

With the new month I'll throw in some feedback and repost my WIP with high hopes for some more comments. Working backwards up the thread...

@Mawsta
That was a really solid tune. Loved the feel and was quite unique. My only criticism would be that the drum samples seem a bit 'stock' so to speak. I think the song would kick a bit more if they were more defined samples, right now they're just bordering on cheesy. Other than that great stuff!

@valaB
This shit is prime! Great stuff man. The production is perfect, love the panning, and for someone who's not big on glitchy dub like myself you really pulled it off well. Simply a good listen.

@4Cysdub
I really like this track a lot. Its got some really hard hitting drops and creative sequences. I'd say the production is good as well but its hard to tell with youtube vids that aren't high def. Get yoself a soundclound and lets here that shit at 320! I'd download that shit man!

@jamiecypher
The track is very interesting but I'm personally not a fan of using actual drumming plugins and real drumming techniques. It takes away from the whole dub feel. It is however very unique and I know there's a crowd out there that enjoy that type of stuff. Its just hard for me to say something sounds good or bad considering its not what I'm used to creating or hearing.

@MRP5
The whole track is very harsh on the ears. I'd say work on bringing down the high end EQ a bit. Certain pitches in frequency can be painful to listen to and I think you're getting up in that range. Its a very cool tune though. Has sort of that NES feel with that arpeggio rolling in the background...but the mix is just a bit too overbearing.

@HomeNoiseRecord
I'm not huge on the feel of your song but thats just personal opinion. I salute you for the creativity factor. You've also improved the track quite a bit from the original post to your sig. I just think the guitar feels out of place possibly because its got the wrong guitar effect initially. Also it's a bit too 'happy' sounding if that makes sense? Keep working though!

@barbearik
Really enjoyable stuff. I'd say the clap/snare is a bit weak in the mix and could use coming to the foreground a little. And as stated above some of your notes in the bass are off. Really kinda gives an uneasy dissonant feel to the song when it goes into those notes. But great work so far man!

And here's my little clip of what I'm working on...much more to come soon.
Soundcloud

[Sonic Arts]

@homenoiserecords: Love the metal style. I left you some comments on your older version by accident. Take a look at them anyway though, they still apply to your newer version.

I can't stay now, but I'll get to some more feedback later on today.

[NICORISONE]

Posted this before, still not finished:
Soundcloud

Not dubstep at all but this is something I am currently working on with my friend:
Soundcloud

[valaB]

Correct on my feedback post. The feedback for Jakedubber is actually for barbearik...I got the names confused

[Sonic Arts]

Thanks to everyone who gave me feedback on the Campfire Dub, I'm going to post that one with better an improved snare later on.

@nicorisone: very chill track. check out my comments on your Soundcloud. the only thing I wanna add is you might consider changing up the drums every once in a while?
@valeb: nothing to add really. I really liked this one. If there was something I'd change, maybe more contrasting dynamics? like more pronounced builds? although I like the soft part near the end.
@djconnor: I'd rethink the synths that your using at the beginning. The strings sound a little cheesy. Good LFO work though, and I kinda like the synth at the end. It sounds like your drums need to be more pronounced too, although I'm listening on headphones right now. Overall, the track sounds kind of empty, but it has potential for sure.

Here's another one I've been (slowly) working on. It's very much a WIP. I know it's not really dub in any sense, but feedback would still be appreciated.
Soundcloud

[ruthyloops]

@Alt Fire: I like the idea of this track but i think you should remove the hi hat and program in a new pattern. The mix is a little bit muddy. As someone said a few posts up maybe start with your basic kick nd snare and then go from there. I think it has potential. The use of the sample is nice.



MRP5: Really liking the synt at the start but maybe turn it down a small bit. Love the build nd drop. Soulds very 80s which is cool. Looking forward to hearing the finished version. Kinda reminds me of Kavinsky. Fair play. looking forward to the finished product.


4Cysdub: Really liking this but you should deffo upload it to soundcloud. Liking the bassline. Like your work with the sample too. At parts its very atmospheric. Cool track well done


Here is my track that I'm looking for feedback on...Please feedback on my soundcloud if you don't mindnice one


Soundcloud