Introducing: my metal band Hoarfrost!
- Thread starter Nyaricus
- Start date
Thunderfoot
Hero
The difference though is that noodling is playing without a plan, Dream Theater never does that, they plan every note extensively. Overplaying however. . . .Kurashu said:
Overplaying is the (usually forgivable) sin of the extremely talented. Listen to Malmsteen Vai, or Skolnick...the guys from Dragonforce...or even John Popper's work on harmonica...
As His Majesty Emperor Joseph II allegedly said to Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart of his Marriage of Figaro "Too many notes, my dear Mozart."
***
Another thing I find is more common among those musicians who truly make their mark is that they listen to a broader range of music than most of their contemporaries, and tend to apply lessons from those other artists to their own work...even if its not within their genre...or instrument.
Prince, for instance, is infamous for playing all of the instruments on his recordings, and hiring musicians who can play the parts to go on tour (or appear in videos). However, he doesn't just hire these guys, he also mentors.
He recently instructed one of his current guitarists to listen to a particular blues vocalist and do what she was doing, but with his guitar and in the funk (not blues) style in order to better capture the feel of one of the pieces that was going to be a staple of the tour. It took him a while, but he pulled it off...and it made a difference.
Its just a matter of keeping an open mind.
Thunderfoot
Hero
Very,very true... (I think I'm just going to copy this and post it after any of your quotes on music.)Dannyalcatraz said:
Oh and BTW, you forgot Neil Peart on your list. (Give 'em hell professor)
Why, I'm fatter...errr...flattered!
Mark Hope
Hero
Coming a little late to the thread, so apologies. But if you're still looking for feedback, here's my take (from the perspective of a rock/metal bassist with professional recording and gigging experience). I'd also add a +1 to everything that Thunderfoot said upthread - I'll echo a few of his excellent points below:
First off, kudos for getting your act together enough to record songs and get them out there. A lot of guys never even get that far. Those aren't empty platitudes - as you'll know, it takes a hell of a lot of effort to whip songs into shape and you can be proud of having gotten that done.
It's also encouraging to hear that this genre of metal is still alive and kicking. Big thumbs up for keeping the flame burning
.
Other posters have covered the issue of acoustics and recording quality. That's good advice, and is important if you intend for these recordings to catch the attention of listeners, fans, gig promoters, record companies or whoever. You always wanna sound your best. Still, maybe you don't see yourselves as being at that stage yet and just want to get your stuff out there, in which case the acoustics are less important than the substance of the songs, which is where I would focus the main attention of my comments.
Positives:
Your music has a good atmosphere to it, and evokes a strong feel. This is an absolute intangible and cannot be faked, so you're doing well to have caught something there that is hard to define.
You have some cool, catchy grooves going on in the riffs (Fields of Ash and the middle section of Rise ov Thor in particular.) Makes the music enjoyable and gets the blood flowing
The use of harmonies by the guitar players is nice. I could do with hearing more of this. You have two guitarists - use them! Don't just have them mirror each other's parts. Try having them play totally different pieces that riff off each other (some of the stuff at the start of Splayed Before a False God captures this approach well.)
Not-so-positives
Your drummer needs to tighten up his playing. He is good on the straight beats, but his fills and rolls are messy - and in some places, unecessary. Less is more. At present, a messy fill is worse than no fill at all. This applies to the whole band - everyone can be a bit tighter - but it was most noticeable with the drums. As a bassist, I would find it hard to lock into a groove with him.
Your bassist needs to push his playing forward in the composition. I don't mean he needs to be louder - he just needs to differentiate his parts more strongly from the rhythm guitar.
I'm not a huge fan of the death/doom/black/whatever vocal style (even though I've been in bands that used it copiously.) It obscures the lyrics, even makes them pointless, and makes your music sound samey. That's just my personal feel, however, and there's clearly a market for it (or vocalists wouldn't still be doing it after all these years, lol!) Still, I'd recommend tweaking your approach and finding a way to enunciate the lyrics more clearly. You can keep that power and aggression while managing to make yourself understood
Oh, and the intro to Splayed Before A False God needs cleaning up. It's fun to hear you guys goofing it up and nattering about it, but I'd ditch that from a public release.
General Comments
You're all clearly competent players and play with feeling and passion. Folks will tell you that blind luck matters more than skill and feeling. Don't listen to them. While blind luck can get you a fortunate break, maybe snag you some good gigs or a recording deal, it cannot sustain you. Luck can set you on the road, but only passion, skill and (above all) commitment can keep you there.
I'd say that you definitely have what it takes to get gigs on your local scene and maybe further afield than that. As has been said, you may not be the most original songwriters, but we can't all be avant-garde genre breakers. There is always room for solid metal on the local scene, even if it is derivative of other bands (as your is, to a certain degree.) If you can find yourselves a niche, work on your chops and groove in it. And have fun! At the end of the day, that's the best reward you can hope for.
First off, kudos for getting your act together enough to record songs and get them out there. A lot of guys never even get that far. Those aren't empty platitudes - as you'll know, it takes a hell of a lot of effort to whip songs into shape and you can be proud of having gotten that done.
It's also encouraging to hear that this genre of metal is still alive and kicking. Big thumbs up for keeping the flame burning
.Other posters have covered the issue of acoustics and recording quality. That's good advice, and is important if you intend for these recordings to catch the attention of listeners, fans, gig promoters, record companies or whoever. You always wanna sound your best. Still, maybe you don't see yourselves as being at that stage yet and just want to get your stuff out there, in which case the acoustics are less important than the substance of the songs, which is where I would focus the main attention of my comments.
Positives:
Your music has a good atmosphere to it, and evokes a strong feel. This is an absolute intangible and cannot be faked, so you're doing well to have caught something there that is hard to define.
You have some cool, catchy grooves going on in the riffs (Fields of Ash and the middle section of Rise ov Thor in particular.) Makes the music enjoyable and gets the blood flowing
The use of harmonies by the guitar players is nice. I could do with hearing more of this. You have two guitarists - use them! Don't just have them mirror each other's parts. Try having them play totally different pieces that riff off each other (some of the stuff at the start of Splayed Before a False God captures this approach well.)
Not-so-positives
Your drummer needs to tighten up his playing. He is good on the straight beats, but his fills and rolls are messy - and in some places, unecessary. Less is more. At present, a messy fill is worse than no fill at all. This applies to the whole band - everyone can be a bit tighter - but it was most noticeable with the drums. As a bassist, I would find it hard to lock into a groove with him.
Your bassist needs to push his playing forward in the composition. I don't mean he needs to be louder - he just needs to differentiate his parts more strongly from the rhythm guitar.
I'm not a huge fan of the death/doom/black/whatever vocal style (even though I've been in bands that used it copiously.) It obscures the lyrics, even makes them pointless, and makes your music sound samey. That's just my personal feel, however, and there's clearly a market for it (or vocalists wouldn't still be doing it after all these years, lol!) Still, I'd recommend tweaking your approach and finding a way to enunciate the lyrics more clearly. You can keep that power and aggression while managing to make yourself understood
Oh, and the intro to Splayed Before A False God needs cleaning up. It's fun to hear you guys goofing it up and nattering about it, but I'd ditch that from a public release.
General Comments
You're all clearly competent players and play with feeling and passion. Folks will tell you that blind luck matters more than skill and feeling. Don't listen to them. While blind luck can get you a fortunate break, maybe snag you some good gigs or a recording deal, it cannot sustain you. Luck can set you on the road, but only passion, skill and (above all) commitment can keep you there.
I'd say that you definitely have what it takes to get gigs on your local scene and maybe further afield than that. As has been said, you may not be the most original songwriters, but we can't all be avant-garde genre breakers. There is always room for solid metal on the local scene, even if it is derivative of other bands (as your is, to a certain degree.) If you can find yourselves a niche, work on your chops and groove in it. And have fun! At the end of the day, that's the best reward you can hope for.
I can't agree with that more!
With talent, professionalism and drive, you can be a happy and profitable musician even at the local level.
A note on that boldfaced word above.
Be professional.
Be professional.
Be professional.
It will get you as many gigs as your talent.
Back in the 1990s, there was a band here in Dallas called Wyld Peach. Just like Red Hot Chili Peppers, Faith No More, and Fishbone, they mined the Punk/Funk fusion vein of hard rock, and like Fishbone (and unlike RHCP and FNM), they were more from the Funk side.
They played SXSW back around 1992 or so, and utterly brought down the house. Everyone thought they'd be signed for sure, joining the other 3 bands at the top of the heap. They were definitely talented enough to do so. Some bands- even some with national recording contracts- refused to play with them for fear of being blown off the stage.
However, there was another side of things unknown to the public- the band was wildly unprofessional. They showed up late, or sometimes not at all. They played short sets. They played long sets. In other words, they were unreliable from a promotions standpoint, they were unreliable from a gigging standpoint, and they didn't make many friends among their fellow musicians.
Thunderfoot
Hero
Mark - Great points all around - I want to key in on couple things you mention and really drive it home.
And as for the note on professionalism - If you aren't, no one will treat you as such. Take it from a professional.
I had keyed on this, but this is a very apt description. One note though, less is not more, just enough is just enough, too much is too much and too little is too little. As a producer I cannot tell what those amounts are, but I can definitely tell you when they are wrong.Mark Hope said:
I couldn't agree more. Too often bassists are relegated to three notes or so in steady quarters. GOOD Bassists know when to travel to fill up the dead spaces. GREAT bassists know how to stand out while not killing the other instruments or vocals.Mark Hope said:
Seconded! Luck WILL get you the breaks, talent will not. However, talent will get you a career, luck will not. You have to be good AND lucky to strike it rich, settle for being good and the lucky part may take care of itself.Mark Hope said:
And as for the note on professionalism - If you aren't, no one will treat you as such. Take it from a professional.
Nyaricus
First Post
Thanks to all for the great feedback! WOW! EN World has been lagging (sometimes not even opening) so much as of lately I've kinda been avoiding it, but I came back and this thread was filled with great responses 
I just want to say that the band from the start has been saying that we don't want to be a B.S. band that does the whole stereotypical "sex, drugs and rock'n'roll" rubbish. We want to make music we enjoy and that has plenty of integrity to it, get shows going for us, get fans, get merch - the whole bit; something professional, as has been mentioned copiously 
I know where I stand, and I think my bands mates are on a similar playing field as me. That's all I can ask for at this stage of the game.
cheers,
--N
I just want to say that the band from the start has been saying that we don't want to be a B.S. band that does the whole stereotypical "sex, drugs and rock'n'roll" rubbish. We want to make music we enjoy and that has plenty of integrity to it, get shows going for us, get fans, get merch - the whole bit; something professional, as has been mentioned copiously
I know where I stand, and I think my bands mates are on a similar playing field as me. That's all I can ask for at this stage of the game.
cheers,
--N
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