ValveDriver

This is pretty good. It's kind of all over the place, but it works here. I think the only thing I noticed that didn't sit quite right was the section starting at 1:45. The kick and synth levels were a bit higher than the rest of the track. I think a minor adjustment there and it would be spot on.
Either way. Cool track.
Take care.
V.

Welcome back, Paul. I hope everything is looking up for you, brother. Good to hear you're still at it.
Take care, bud.
Aaron.

Well man, I've been listening to industrial since the early days of Wax Trax, and I gotta say, you did a fine job with this one. The high-gain guitar work definitely has that KMFDM ring to it, and yeah...there's a lot of synth work in here. Good job on that. Did you create all the patches yourself, or are you using presets/loops?
Excellent work, man. Keep it up.
Take care.
V.

Paul, how are ya now?
Considering you just picked up a DAW in January, I'd say you're doing alright. There are definitely some improvements that could be made, but you're off to a good start.
One thing I suggest is that when you decide which key you're going to work in, figure out which notes/chords correlate with that key. Then when you're composing, you can make sure that everything sits in the right place. I bring this up because there are parts where your instruments don't quite sit comfortably together, creating a dissonance that leaves it sounding "off". Because it is. That doesn't only apply to your synths, bass, and other instruments, but, your kick drum as well. Any time you have a drum with any sort of a decay or sustain, like most electronic drums do, you'll want to make sure they're tuned to the key as well.
But, I have to say, for a beginner, job well done. You'll learn as you go. I've been doing it for almost 20 years and I'm still learning new things all the time. As long as you enjoy it, you'll keep improving.
Keep it up.
Take care.
V.

I must be showing my age, dude. You said "old school vibe" meaning Dre, Cube, Easy E, or Tupac. I read "old school vibe" and I was thinking some DJ Kool Herc, Afrika Bambaataa, or Grandmaster Flash type shit.
Either way, it sounds good. A nice return. I think the intro is fine. I'm going to mention this, but take it with a grain, because it may just be my earbuds, but it sounds like the vocals could come up just a C hair in the mix.
Other than that, damn near perfection.
Good work.
Take care.
V.

Well that was unexpected. I love the New Orleans jazz cabaret sound here. Honestly, I think this is your best by way of vocals. They fit right in the mix, and they sound good. If you were to do more of this, I would not complain, one bit.
As far as Mercury being in retrograde, I think that's every day in my camp!
Take care.
V.

Bullitt, how are you?
I listened to this, and as I did, it reminded me a lot of the mid/late 90s and early 00s industrial bands. Assemblage 23 to be specific. Maybe some Wupscut if it had more distortion. But that's not important. We're here to celebrate your track. Not theirs.
I, for the most part, agree with Manuela on her assessment. As it stands, it's a great track. You've mixed it well, and it has plenty panning and spacial dynamics that give it movement. It does have enough change ups that, overall, it's not a monotonous track at all.
I think, personally, I would have added a few impacts and dowlifters for that extra little touch that would make this song soar above and beyond. Especially at the 2:10 mark like Manuela had mentioned. A good impact right there would kick that section off with great power. But, you know, that's just, like, my opinion, man. Take it for what it's worth. As I said, this is great the way it is. Even if you change nothing.
Take care.
V.

Hey Bullit. I'm really liking this. That bass line is fantastic. Such a good groove. Your mix is done very well, and you have a lot of movement. Which, to me, is important in minimalist tracks.
I agree with Danke, it could almost be trip-hop, or even chill-out. But, as he also said, genres really don't matter. It's just a good track, and that's what matters.
Excellent work.
Take care.
V.

Zoot said that you should use your voice more. I agree. It's like Dave Gahan had a kid with SImon Le Bon, and then sent it to grow up with Richard Patrick.

I had completely forgotten about Talk Talk. I was never that deep into them, but I never complained when they would come on. However, Rio is a great album! You were right to use them for influence. This track has a great mix of the 80s/early 90s sound. Listening again, I'm willing to guess there's some influence from Uncle Al J. via the Twitch era, too.
I like this, man. I'd love to hear more from you like it.
Definitely going into the fav's for sure.
Take care, mister.
Aaron.

I have YET to be let down*. I kind of missed a very important word there. Meaning, I like everything you've done.
Again, take care.

Ya know, everyone is always saying, "this needs vocals", or "this would be great with someone singing". I say, Nah, man. Sometimes that just gets in the way. Sometimes, it's good to just sit and chill to the music, ya know what I mean?
Honestly, dude, I think you could have easily filed this one under chillout, or even ambient as well as hip hop.
I dig it, man. Of the tracks of yours that I've listened to, I have to be let down. Good work.
Take care.
V.

I dig it, man.
The47 mentioned 90s scific in his comment. I can get on board with that. Or even a 90s cyberpunk flick. Something like Strange Days.
Either way. Good work. It's not just a bunch of sound effects thrown together and passed off as cinematic. It actually has movement and intent.
Take care.
V.

47, what's goin' on, man?
It's good to finally see more metal on here than just me.

This is a cool piece, but the mix needs a little adjusting. Individually, everything sounds good. The tones on your guitars are nice and tight. The drums have a nice snap that breaks through the distortion. The bass guitar has a great low end rumble that really supports it all. All of that is good. It's mostly just the levels. Listening to this on my monitors, the metal section needs to come up to the front. Right now, the strings and keys are dominant. It sounds like the bass, drums and guitars are all balanced pretty well with each other. I think if you lower the strings and keys, then boost the master, you might have it taken care of. The vocal sample in the beginning sits right about where it should, so I wouldn't mess with that at all.
Just my opinion, man. Take it for what it's worth.
As far as concept and execution, great work!
Take care.
V.

Darren! This is fantastic!
As a metalhead before all, my brain has become accustomed to frequent riff, chord, and tempo changes. At first I kept waiting for something to happen, but nothing really did. But soon enough I relaxed enough to just sit back and let it flow.

I'm glad I waited.

This is some high quality work, my friend. I've always loved listening to trance, but it's one I've never really attempted to create. The few times I did, that metalhead brain of mine kept getting in the way and making it more complicated that it needs to be. So, my hats off to you, mister!
Excellent work.
Take care.
V.

Hi Kay.
This is definitely an upbeat track. I can surely see why people would want dance to it!
You've done a great job with the use of your voice in this one. It's very dynamic!
Excellent work.
Take care.
V.

Pretty cool track, man.
I may be way off here, but I'm going to go out on a limb and assume that you're a fan of Rush. Or, maybe it's just because that I am, and with my own exposure to them that I associate some elements of your synth work to their sound. When I first heard the sequenced synth starting at 0:16, my mind went instantly to the intro of "The Spirit Of Radio". There were a few other synths in there that reminded me of their work over the years, too. But, to be clear, I don't mean to take away from your work in the slightest. Quite the opposite, in fact. I mean it as a sincere compliment.
So, either way, excellent work.
Take care.
V.

I can honestly say that this is the first time I've heard Delta Blues on Looperman. I can also honestly say it's a breath of fresh air.
I'm going to go out on a limb and say Johnson and Hooker are some big time influences here. Even if they're not, excellent work.
Take care.
V.

I don't know, man. I think it's perfect just as it is. It would be a good interlude between tracks on an album. I think, though, that if there were vocals, Beth Gibbons would be the only option. Actually, on my third listen through, I can also hear Gilmour and/or Waters as well. In fact, this does have a very Pink Floyd feel to it without it sounding like an imitation.
Good work as always. I like the way you do things.
Take care.
V.

There is it is! There's the Crucethus I ran into over a decade ago!
This definitely reminds me of your earlier work, but with the evolved quality of the now. I love the instrumentation in this. The vocal samples fit so well, too.
You know, I've never been able to put a finger on it, but I think the best way to put it is that you, sir, are the Jackson Pollack of music. You have a way of throwing so much at the canvas, and it all lands exactly where it needs to, and makes the big picture a true work of art.
As far as chill-out...yeah, for me it certainly is. Considering I fall asleep to bands like Infant Annihilator and Cannibal Corpse. It always cracks me up when a dude will say, "Yeah. I listen to some pretty hardcore, shit, dude. Ever hear of a band called Avenged Sevenfold? They fuckin' ROCK, man!". I just want to put my headphones on them, and go full Marty McFly, and hit play on some Larcenia Roe type shit.
Anyhow, I hope everything's going well for you, Steve. It looks like you had pretty rough road lately, and I sincerely hope it's getting better for you, brother.
Take care, bud.
Aaron.

Glenn, Hello. I hope all is well with you.
I may have said this before in an earlier track of yours, but I would absolutely love to hear a collaboration between you and our very own Mr. Tumbleweed. the two of you have a very similar style and level of talent. (That's a compliment to both of you.)
Someone once told me that what makes a truly great artist is the ability to conceal his influences. Normally, I have no problems being able to hear musicians influences. In your case, I detect none. Which makes me wonder, who are your main influences. If I had to choose, I would say Santana is on the list. Maybe David Gilmour?
Either way, beautiful work, sir. I thoroughly enjoyed a few listens through.
Take care.
V.

What an INTERSTELLAR intro. I'd say you went into OVERDRIVE on this one.
As soon as I saw the title, I knew we were in for a treat. I knew the riff before the second note started! I've danced with Floyd for decades. I'd recognize it anywhere.
I have to say, that's an interesting incorporation. With the effects you put on the guitar riff, you really made it fit well. That's not a combination I would have thought of. Industrial with some Floyd. To say it without hearing it, it doesn't seem like it would be something that could work, considering they're such contrasting genres. But you did it. You made it work.
Excellent job!
Take care.
V.

You've definitely mastered the art of dynamic movement, and creating a spacious mix.
Your choice of vocals works so well. Did you build around them, or did you have the song already, and the vocals an afterthought?
Also, do you create your own synth patches, or do you use loops/presets? So far, what I've heard of your music your synths are top notch. So, I was curious.
Excellent work here.
Take care.
V.

You've made some interesting choices with interesting results. Overall, not a bad track.
Take care.
V.

I really like this. It's totally an 80s synth-pop style track. It takes me back, man!
I may have to look into some of the vocal effect plugins you use, because my voice is not exactly fit for use in music. But these last few tracks you've done have had some really great effects on them.
Excellent work, keep it up!
Take care.
V.

Yeah, I gotta say, this is about what it sounds like after having the tranny rebuilt or replaced. This is the feeling of watching that 4 figure dollar amount walk straight out the bank account. Hell, I could use this as my bank notification tone for every time I have to dump more into my Durango.
As far as the track goes, I dig it. It's kind of a Rock/Blues sort of thing. Do you plan on doing more with it? I think it could be something, man. You could do like a true blues track, and make it all about how "she" did you dirty and took all of your money. "She" of course, being your car.
Anyhow, cool track man. Keep it up.
Take care.
V.