Hello again

Hey EquipBoard, itsure has been a while. Almost two whole years. Apologies for that, I'm an asshole. Wh don't I catch you up on my life?

So after I got dumped, I was feeling super artistically strangled. I quit music for a while as I battled tendinitis, and I was really depressed. My band went to shit, and so did our album, which ended up not going online due to our dispute.

Disheartened, I started a new project. I have labored over an EP nw for a full year, making sure it turned out listenable. And now it is here. I present to you, Heartbreak Sounds. This EP broke my Epiphone, pushed my voice to the limit, made me take drums seriously, and improved my improvization skills. I picked up some theory, and learned to master GarageBand. And, at the same time, I coped with my menta illness and got better.

I treated those chronic stomachaches by the way.

https://soundcloud.com/mikey-m-159991560/sets/heartbreak-sounds

ya finished one, now make another one

Will do Jim. I'm back on the horse and I'm never getting off.

Unsolicited advice? there's a lot of sonic stuff to address next time but I would focus on pre-production hader... you have a potentially strong vocal style that shines through everything else there. I was not in love with the songs and didn't like the recordings but the vocal delivery brought me back for a 2nd listen on 3 out of 4 songs. If you can get the slop out of the performances it'll be good.... a little looseness is good, this much is holding everything back. it made the vocal sound sloppy and the vocal is what you've got, make it sound good. If you work harder at song craft and think a ltitle harder about what needs to there behind your vocal to make it shine, the tightness and sonics will follow (to a certain extent) because even a scrappy performance and recording of a good arrangement with a strong vocal ought to mix itself pretty well. Think about playing less. Space is good.

You should be asking yourself "is this the best lyric for the spot rhytmically and verbally? am I showing my voice to the ebst advantage and pushing the idea of the song ahead with every note? and how is the band highlighting the vocal? because I'm a good singer!" If I had a voice as good at your age I woulda taken over the world. Okay, maybe not, but the sky is the limit if you focus all your talents and really inspire the other musician to do the ebst they can with whatever level of ability they have because the audience wants a great vocal and I think int he right song you could deliver soemthing world class.

Thank you so much for this. I desperately needed some criticism. I see what you're saying- I was really sloppy on guitar, partly due to a lack of practice and partly due to the fact that it was broken. I actually spent two to three weeks redoing guitar parts on a broken guitar while I wait for the new one to ship. I also wrote very guitar-centrically this time, which you acknowledged as well. I didn't put a lot of effort into vocals and it showed.

Thank you for the compliments on my voice. :) I will take what you've said to heart and use it to my advantage. You're a good friend to have Jim.

Iw as not expecting to hear the vocal I ehard, irreally wasn't

Really? I thought I didn't sound that great on the record, but thanks so much! Means a lot to me.

you coulda performed them better, but if someone did the engineering for you and coached you a little your voice would kill it... you probably didn't comp takes, the phrasing is loose and unrehearsed (but the band is loose, so it musta been hard to focus your timing) and it sounds like you were all stressed out (maybe about hitting record yourself and jumping in front of the microphone?) BUT the core is there. You have a good voice and you really emote when you sing in a natural, unforced way. If you lived in philadelphia I would just engiener your next one for you on spec because I think I could get soemthing incredible out of that voice and the rest would follow.

Thanks so much, haha. Yeah, it was the jumping back and forth to hit record that got me all nervous, and my phrasing was fine in my head, but I ended up with some really wonky lines that I didn't completely love, but everything I've learned is going into the next one. Namely, get an engineer, because I sure as hell need one.

if you feel like roadtripping to philly you're welcome to bring your tunes to my buddy's garage/studio space he's dubbed 'the party.' people come in and do their thing and do other people's stuff and I would do your stuff there for beer.