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Syntek
Metalhead

Joined: Mon Sep 13, 2010 1:14 pm
Posts: 655
Location: United Kingdom
PostPosted: Thu Apr 17, 2014 7:49 pm 
 

Hey all.
I've been working on a neofolk project that I started on new years', and I have to say its been a pretty time consuming process.
Primary influences include Her Name Is Calla, Árstíðir, Vàli and Ólafur Arnalds.
Equipment I used to record with include a generic £50 classical guitar I bought about 8 years ago (strings still remain unchanged) and a £5 headset microphone to record guitar and vocals with. This in mind, I think the results are pretty formidable. Everything else was programmed via MAGIX Music Maker 16's "Vita" VSTi.

https://soundcloud.com/evael

Opinions are most welcome, criticism especially.
Tell me what you think, guys.

EDIT: Oh, and bandcamp link, in case any of you are interested in downloading the full .zip:

http://evael.bandcamp.com/


Last edited by Syntek on Sun Apr 20, 2014 5:35 pm, edited 4 times in total.
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Nordic_Warhammer
Metal newbie

Joined: Thu May 31, 2007 10:12 pm
Posts: 292
PostPosted: Thu Apr 17, 2014 7:56 pm 
 

I like quite well myself. It is dark, and somewhat foreboding. It sounds pretty damn great, especially considering the resources you had at your disposal.
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newp
Veteran

Joined: Mon Apr 21, 2008 2:07 pm
Posts: 2697
Location: Canada
PostPosted: Fri Apr 18, 2014 2:01 am 
 

Lovely stuff man, your acoustic guitar playing is very nice! Really good feeling to this stuff, melancholic and epic without seeming like it's over-reaching. Plus I'm a bit surprised you got these recordings with a shitty headset mic, nice work.

I don't listen to music like this on a regular basis so I don't have anything to note on the songs, but I think you could improve the production a bit. I thought the dynamic between the quiet and loud parts might be a tad too much, but maybe that's an aesthetic choice? In the last transition of Into the Depths the jump after the piano section from soft to full seemed slightly too much and in Fell Guardian those low bassy synth/piano-ish notes resonated quite a bit. Not overly much mind, but in my monitors they felt a bit hot. Also in Into the Depths, I'm really not crazy about your choice of kick sample. It's too suby. It would be more suited to electronic music and makes the mix feel a bit wonky with the other instruments. Maybe try something a tad more flat and woody and then add a touch of reverb to the high end of it to get that 'boom' sound without totally filling up the low end of your mix?

Just a few thoughts on improving the production side. Otherwise it's quite good, your vocals and guitars sound great. The stuff you contributed to the song challenges I enjoyed so I figured I'd check out a song our two but I've ended up listening to the whole EP you've got posted, hah. Lost At Sea and January's Long Shadow are my favorites of the bunch I think.

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iamntbatman
Chaos Breed

Joined: Sat Feb 21, 2009 5:55 am
Posts: 11421
Location: Tyrn Gorthad
PostPosted: Fri Apr 18, 2014 9:42 am 
 

Sounds really interesting based on the description. I'll give the EP a proper listen and post again (or edit this post) with feedback.
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Syntek
Metalhead

Joined: Mon Sep 13, 2010 1:14 pm
Posts: 655
Location: United Kingdom
PostPosted: Sun Apr 20, 2014 4:06 pm 
 

Nordic_Warhammer wrote:
I like quite well myself. It is dark, and somewhat foreboding. It sounds pretty damn great, especially considering the resources you had at your disposal.


I'm glad you dig. I'm pretty surprised at the overall sound quality too, heh.

CorpseFister wrote:
In the last transition of Into the Depths the jump after the piano section from soft to full seemed slightly too much

Ahhh yes, all aesthetic. The jump didn't seem too extreme on my monitors (but then again they're pretty shite so who knows).

and in Fell Guardian those low bassy synth/piano-ish notes resonated quite a bit. Not overly much mind, but in my monitors they felt a bit hot.

Again, this was initially accidental but in turn it also made the thing seem massive, so I thought I'd keep it how it was.

Also in Into the Depths, I'm really not crazy about your choice of kick sample. It's too suby. It would be more suited to electronic music and makes the mix feel a bit wonky with the other instruments. Maybe try something a tad more flat and woody and then add a touch of reverb to the high end of it to get that 'boom' sound without totally filling up the low end of your mix?

This I was less aware of, so cheers especially for pointing it out. I can notice it also now, so I'll make sure it's a touch less bassy in the final mix.

Just a few thoughts on improving the production side. Otherwise it's quite good, your vocals and guitars sound great. The stuff you contributed to the song challenges I enjoyed so I figured I'd check out a song our two but I've ended up listening to the whole EP you've got posted, hah. Lost At Sea and January's Long Shadow are my favorites of the bunch I think.


Good to hear, man - thanks for checking this out and giving some pointers.

iamntbatman wrote:
Sounds really interesting based on the description. I'll give the EP a proper listen and post again (or edit this post) with feedback.


Hey, I look forward to it!

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iamntbatman
Chaos Breed

Joined: Sat Feb 21, 2009 5:55 am
Posts: 11421
Location: Tyrn Gorthad
PostPosted: Sun Apr 20, 2014 11:54 pm 
 

This was really pretty great. I really liked the ethereal, floaty vocals; those were a really pleasant surprise (I was expecting more straightforward neofolk vocals). I actually really dug the production as it did a great job of capturing the natural sound of the guitar while smearing the rest into this rich dreamy haze. I'd love to hear a full-length!
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HeWhoIsInTheWater
Metal newbie

Joined: Sun Oct 03, 2010 9:47 pm
Posts: 251
PostPosted: Wed Apr 23, 2014 4:19 pm 
 

I really liked it. I work at a college radio station, and this is better than most of the indie/folk crap that comes through. The atmosphere is great; I wouldn't have noticed that the peripheral instruments were synthesized had you not mentioned it. My favorite part by far was the degradation thing at the end of the third track. I can't wait to hear more!
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iamntbatman
Chaos Breed

Joined: Sat Feb 21, 2009 5:55 am
Posts: 11421
Location: Tyrn Gorthad
PostPosted: Thu Apr 24, 2014 9:08 pm 
 

Hope you don't mind, but I pimped this in a pretty big post-rock group I admin on Facebook. Maybe some listens/downloads headed your way.
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Syntek
Metalhead

Joined: Mon Sep 13, 2010 1:14 pm
Posts: 655
Location: United Kingdom
PostPosted: Fri Apr 25, 2014 4:46 am 
 

HeWhoIsInTheWater wrote:
I really liked it. I work at a college radio station, and this is better than most of the indie/folk crap that comes through. The atmosphere is great; I wouldn't have noticed that the peripheral instruments were synthesized had you not mentioned it. My favorite part by far was the degradation thing at the end of the third track. I can't wait to hear more!


Degradation thing, eh? Interesting. :p
It's great to see you enjoy it though, man.

iamntbatman wrote:
Hope you don't mind, but I pimped this in a pretty big post-rock group I admin on Facebook. Maybe some listens/downloads headed your way.


Oh no, that's perfect!
Feel free to give me a link to your page also, either here or via message. I'm curious to see what kind of feedback its getting (if any, haha).

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HeWhoIsInTheWater
Metal newbie

Joined: Sun Oct 03, 2010 9:47 pm
Posts: 251
PostPosted: Tue Apr 29, 2014 11:43 pm 
 

Syntek wrote:
HeWhoIsInTheWater wrote:
I really liked it. I work at a college radio station, and this is better than most of the indie/folk crap that comes through. The atmosphere is great; I wouldn't have noticed that the peripheral instruments were synthesized had you not mentioned it. My favorite part by far was the degradation thing at the end of the third track. I can't wait to hear more!


Degradation thing, eh? Interesting. :p
It's great to see you enjoy it though, man.


Well. This is awkward. Turns out my headphones were literally dying as I listened to it and the degradation was them sputtering out. Regardless, great atmosphere!
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Syntek
Metalhead

Joined: Mon Sep 13, 2010 1:14 pm
Posts: 655
Location: United Kingdom
PostPosted: Tue May 20, 2014 6:22 am 
 

HeWhoIsInTheWater wrote:
Well. This is awkward. Turns out my headphones were literally dying as I listened to it and the degradation was them sputtering out. Regardless, great atmosphere!


Goodness, that certainly sounds violent, haha.

Just giving this a quick bump to see if there's any more feedback I can get on this - so far the results have been pretty encouraging!

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PhilosophicalFrog
The Hypercube

Joined: Thu May 04, 2006 7:08 pm
Posts: 7631
Location: United States
PostPosted: Tue May 20, 2014 2:40 pm 
 

said it on FB, but gonna say it here so the thread stays up, I really like this. Really well-crafted and thoughtful composition. I will definitely come back to this.
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Auspicium
Metal newbie

Joined: Sat Aug 23, 2008 4:33 pm
Posts: 223
PostPosted: Thu May 29, 2014 9:34 am 
 

Damn dude, this sounds great.

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baconboom
Metal newbie

Joined: Thu Oct 24, 2013 1:33 pm
Posts: 124
Location: United Kingdom
PostPosted: Sun Aug 10, 2014 2:04 pm 
 

This is brilliant! The blend of neofolk, post-rock and neoclassical creates a beautiful and dreamy atmosphere.
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