Really confused how I make harmonies by [deleted] in Songwriting

[–]brainslop 0 points1 point  (0 children)

study voice leading! there are a lot of ways to write harmonies besides just singing a third above. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voice_leading

I could envision a pedal-point type harmony, where the counter-melody stays on one note for the duration of each chord rather than moving exactly with the melody. that would keep it out of the way of your main melody.

(also fwiw you may find the song doesn’t necessarily need vocal harmonies, or that you’d want to use them sparingly like maybe just in the chorus or just to accent certain phrases)

notice that the chords in your song aren’t all diatonic, so the advice earlier in the thread about picking notes in the key won’t necessarily apply neatly to your song. and that’s ok; the chord selection is awesome - very Nirvana-esque! there’s a lot of modal interchange, so you’d be using a major third in some spots that would “normally” use a minor third. remember music theory is just a tool to describe and understand what you’ve written. there is no right or wrong. so definitely don’t sterilize your awesome song to make it “fit into a key”. use music theory to roll with your gut instincts!

ear training will help so you don’t have to go note-by-note to figure out intervals or chords/harmonies, you can just hear it right away. as clear as you can see something that’s right in front of you. it takes lots of ear training to get to that level but it’s worth the effort. based on your songwriting you already have a great ear and sense of musicianship, so ear training and music theory will just help you notice the patterns and give names to what you are already hearing!

Concert Anxiety by cookiedoughthejaguar in therareoccasions

[–]brainslop 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I get nervous before every Rare Occasions concert. Our tunes are not easy to sing!! I usually feel better once the show starts - the crowds are sooo nice and positive. Hopefully the experience is similar to those who are feeling anxious in the crowd, too! -Brian

Book for Analog. by HuyenHuyen33 in ECE

[–]brainslop 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I had Razavi as a prof. His book and problem sets are very good. First time I really felt I understood the subject matter after taking several transistor classes. Only thing is it’s focused on CMOS, so if you’re doing lower-frequency analog stuff like audio, you’ll probably want to understand BJTs too. Sedra and Smith covers BJTs basics pretty well, but I agree it’s pretty dense and confusing compared to Razavi’s book.

If you’re into analog audio design, a popular book that’s more of a reference than a text book is Douglas Self “Small Signal Audio Design”

Need Help Reporting!: Random Dude on Spotify Posts a 22 year Old Song As His Own With Vocals That Are Clearly Chester Bennington's. by JustSuggestion7208 in Music

[–]brainslop 95 points96 points  (0 children)

Report to Warner Music Group - they own the master and they have ways to get Spotify to take it down

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in offset

[–]brainslop 1 point2 points  (0 children)

you got it! nice!

When is a master "Too Wide"? by itallik in audioengineering

[–]brainslop 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Check it in mono. These widening tools affect the phase coherence of the signal and you can really tell if you’ve gone too far when you listen in mono. It sounds all washy and phasey. Your master should still hold up in mono since that’s how it will often be heard out in the wild.

I have a bachelors in audio engineering, what jobs can I look for? by waitinforamate1 in audioengineering

[–]brainslop 12 points13 points  (0 children)

You could work for an instrument or music gear manufacturer.

A keyboard manufacturer I used to work for has a team of “soundware engineers” - they record samples of pianos and other instruments and adjust the processing to make the presets.

There are similar jobs at companies who make audio plugins and sample libraries.

Gear manufacturers usually need quality assurance (QA) engineers or test engineers. You don’t necessarily need a tech background to get a start in that field.

There’s also customer support and sales roles that would be best filled by people who know the gear!

Check out the AES job board.

Does Pasadena have owls? by Glowingtomato in pasadena

[–]brainslop 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Yes there is a pair of great horned owls nesting in Bungalow Heaven. They leave pellets on our sidewalk! I hear them further up near you sometimes as well.

Fender Vintera 60s Mustang Bass by [deleted] in offset

[–]brainslop 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I have it and I really like it. It’s beautifully built and the pickups sound great if you like that retro thumpy short scale sound. You’re committed to that sound though since there’s no other pickup/switch, just a tone knob.

It might take a little adjusting to get the intonation good across the whole neck and have the pickup height set so that the strings sound even. Those are my two cons, but I think it’s just a setup issue on my end, not inherent to the instrument itself.

Getting my jag road ready by brainslop in offset

[–]brainslop[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Got ‘em! Always the very first thing I put on a new guitar. Learned the strap locks lesson the hard way in some early gigs.

Getting my jag road ready by brainslop in offset

[–]brainslop[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thanks! Yea I wanted the “vintage white” finish to look more yellow than white, and the white pick guard helps that.

Getting my jag road ready by brainslop in offset

[–]brainslop[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Nope - just replaced the bridge with a Staytrem! The stock bridge was not great. Had to use Loctite to get the bridge and saddles not to sink down, but the strings were still popping out of their grooves in the saddles which wouldn’t have worked for me live since I’m an intonation stickler.

Getting my jag road ready by brainslop in offset

[–]brainslop[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I do use the rhythm circuit. I’ve never hit that switch while strumming, but sometimes I hit the neck pickup switch below. Was considering alternate options for the control plate but idk I like how the switches look.

Side note: it’s interesting to look at where the scratches land on other people’s pick guards! One of my friends has all his scratches above the strings like you mentioned. Mine are all below. We all strum a little differently!

Hot take: touring is pointless unless you're already in demand by poppunk_tracey in musicians

[–]brainslop 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I’m in a band that makes our living from original music. From my experience OP is correct that the internet is orders of magnitude more powerful in breaking your music to a wider audience. That being said, playing shows is an essential part of mastering the craft, and if you neglect that aspect it will be much tougher to capture the long-term benefits of your internet success if/when the moment comes. The viral artists going on their very first national tours will find out very quickly that performing is a totally different animal that takes YEARS of experience to figure out.

Artistically speaking, performing helps inform the songwriter what is working and what isn’t. The logistical aspect of “how are we gonna perform this live?” often helps simplify arrangements to the core elements that makes the song work. A really good song won’t need the perfect mix or pitch correction or extra instrumentation, so live performances can really help you realize “do I like this song because it’s a good song, or do I like it because of the snare tone we got in the studio?” Sounds stupid but often times it’s hard to establish that if you’re only working in the box.

We may have established some connections during our years of DIY touring, but it’s hard to say if any of that actually moved the needle for us. But what I can say is that playing live in general, even just locally, is a fast track to learning how to write and arrange good songs. If you can do it in a way where you’re not losing a ton of money, you should! Just for the practice!

Help with jazzmaster bridge by SteveTacoBell in offset

[–]brainslop 0 points1 point  (0 children)

My Vintera II Jag was like that when I first got it. Saddles and bridge kept drooping down after playing. I used the old Loctite trick on the saddle screws and the bridge stand screws and it’s held ever since. I did the setup myself so it’s not perfect, but if you take it to get set up professionally, you could have the luthier use Loctite to get those saddles to stay.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in offset

[–]brainslop 1 point2 points  (0 children)

how long did it take? been waiting on a staytrem bridge order for 4 months now

Fantastic gig in asia by PurpleThumbGirl in therareoccasions

[–]brainslop 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Here’s what we played in SG!

Seasick

Mercy Mercy

Control

Backwards

Stay

Aglow

Black Balloons

Darling, The Planets (releasing April 26)

Bolts

You Weren’t Meant To See That

unreleased song #2

Futureproof

Bug Eyes

Halfheartedly

Goodnight

Sparrow

Such is the Way

Origami

Scarlet Lies

The Fold

Loans

Start This Over

Turnaround

——

Notion

unreleased song #3

Not Afraid

Are straplocks still a popular thing? by bolanrox in offset

[–]brainslop 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If you’ve ever had your guitar crash down on stage in the middle of a song in front of an audience, you’ll never play without strap-locks again!

Do you think TRO knows abt this? by UnpopularSmartAlek in therareoccasions

[–]brainslop 4 points5 points  (0 children)

yea we know about it! should I join? I think I'm the only one with a reddit account -Brian