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First post to the forum / first piece uploaded

Discussion in 'Critique & Feedback' started by Tom Welsh, Feb 8, 2019.

  1. #1 Tom Welsh, Feb 8, 2019
    Last edited: Feb 8, 2019
    Hello all. I've been a fan of unleashed for several years now and so I've finally signed up to this forum to join in with whatever's going on here! I have a piece to share as well - something I've just finished about 10mins ago which I only just uploaded to SoundCloud etc. It's not the normal 'orchestral style' composition you might come to exepct but it does have a tune and some development*.

    *a 'B' section.

    P.S I hope you all like 80s music / synthwave.

    P.P.S. I'm the guy who sent Mike 'Forever Sunsets' on the last unleashed which he compared to being like a hamburger with chocolate inside.

     
    Julian Jage and Martin Hoffmann like this.
  2. #2 Doug Gibson, Feb 8, 2019
    Welcome. Look forward to hearing more of your music and reading your posts.
     
  3. #3 JP Beveraggi, Feb 8, 2019
    Welcome Tom, let me share my impressions after a couple of listen.

    1. On the arrangement side, your sound choices are very coherent and the mix is very clear. Muted strat, 808 style drums, plucked synth bass line are all appropriate and make your production skills shine through.
    2. On the composition side, I can hear an A section repeated twice which moves to a Coda. I am not sure it would qualify as a B section. The synth tune is memorable but the vibe of the track clearly dominates over the melodic content in my view. I will more likely remember the sound world rather than the actual musical phrases.

    Great work overall

    JP

    P.S: This track has a Royksopp feel to it.
     
    Martin Hoffmann likes this.
  4. #4 Tom Welsh, Feb 8, 2019
    Thank you for the feedback. I think I agree with most of what you're saying. I feel I'm at a stage where the production aspect has become fairly straightforward for me and is probably my greatest strength but I'm now struggling to fit my production ideas with my compisition ideas as I feel sometimes there is a mismatch between the two. I want to write pieces that are melodicaly led and have some degree of harmonic complexity but I just need to find a way to make that work with this arrangement style / sound palette. I guess I'm trying fuse 'vibe' (specifically the 80s) and 'melodic story telling' but it isn't easy...

    Thanks again!
     
    Martin Hoffmann and JP Beveraggi like this.
  5. #5 Julian Jage, Feb 8, 2019
    I really like your track. The vibe is fun and the sound is solid and clear.
    The A section with it's melody is certainly the most memorable for me. The other parts feel like vibe and the melodic elements are rather ambiance, for example at the 0:34 part. I think it could be more interesting and varied, if you develop clear and different ideas and melodies for the B section and make them present by bringing them more in the foreground.

    While the typical synthwave music seems more on the side of vertical development, I think it should be similarly possible to apply the ideas of vertical development as with other styles or the orchestra by developing your melodies and sections or introducing new colors and dynamics when it makes sense in the piece.

    Since we're here, have you listened to the 80s piece by Mike?
    This should be a good example in this style to show clear ideas with multiple sections and developed melodies in recurring parts to give a sense of progression.
     
    Bradley Boone likes this.
  6. #6 Tom Welsh, Feb 9, 2019
    Yes I heard that track a while back It's a real mastery of so many 80s tropes it leaves me feeling very inadiquate... Shame the sax couldn't be real. I'm already working on something else that's intentionaly a bit more symphonic but with 80s synth sounds / production. I might revisit the mod squad masterclass to give me some inspiration as per development too.
     
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