Sweet Dreams

[moose]

Hi all

Here is a track I recorded some 3/4 years ago which I have just finished remixing and mastering (I seem to do that to all my music every now and then).

It is my only (nearly) no-guitars compo. so go easy on my k-board's skills
enjoy

http://hu.lk/56rbbwfafv0g

[theBadger]

After listening to this track for the first time I had to have a little lay down on the comfy sofa that I keep in the live room.

Not only does Mr Moose play some of the sweetest and most original acoustic guitar tunes but now I find out he also plays piano.

And he plays it well; with feeling.

I like this tune hugely. I like it's veneer of simplicity of D B G A: and the subtle complexity that it hides.

I like the ludicrous over-done reverb that appears occasionally. I find myself waiting for it and then smiling with smug satisfaction each time it happens because it really does work.

I like the EP that comes in half way through and gives a new tonality.

I like the timing. I always like the timing on Mr Moose's work. Reminds me of the bear joke: why the big pause?

But there's something that frustrates me about this recording. Some of the 'roll over notes' sound odd. Wrong to my ears. What do I mean by 'roll over notes'? I don't know the correct term but like if I was going to play the note 'b', I might play the note 'b-flat' first and then roll onto the 'b'. Like a sort of flam on the drums or hammer-on for guitar.

In this tune some of the roll over notes sound weird. I've tried to listen and hear why; but I can't work it out. Perhaps the 'grace note' is being held for a few milliseconds longer than I would expect. Maybe its because it is being played guitar style? I don't know.

It is possible that I've been playing them wrong all these years and I'm just used to how that sounds.

That small question apart, this one has been downloaded and placed in my 'keepers' folder alongside 'gray hills' and a few more of your tunes that I've leeched. tx for sharing it with us moosey.

The best bit is that I can't ruin it by playing piano all over it because you've already done a great job.

(tB picks up an old guitar and furiously starts practising. Grate, twang, grind, plink, boing, scrape, bleed, plaster, sob, cry.... )

[moose]

Thank you TB for your kind and warm support.
Since you're a piano player (and a darn good one for what I've heard) I was thinking of you when I uploaded this track in here and waited with trepidation for your response (I knew it would come, soon or late).

I will look into the grace notes thing... perhaps you're right. Perhaps the translation from me playing to the MIDI roll was not as succesful. Or perhaps (more likely) my piano technique sucks.

[theBadger]

I was thinking of you when I uploaded this track in here and waited with trepidation for your response.

It worked.

How about you and me do another collab moosey?

[ARTiST-MATRiX]

I like the track
I like piano

I would mention the same as tB. some of this "roll" notes are sounding "ugly / unbeautiful" to me too.

[moose]

Ooookkkk!
I went to look into the midi files of both the pianos and did I find something wrong? Oh boy. I did indeed.

Notes were overlapping all over the place. not just the grace notes but in other places too.
So I tweaked the MIDI roll here and there to make it sound "right" (I hope so anyway but you'll tell me, right?)

While at it I also just ever so slightly reduced the rev fx on the piano. I know TB liked that but don't worry.. it is still there, but not so huge. It was a bit too much, really.

Soooo thank you for your constructive comments and enjoy the new version

https://soundcloud.com/peghead-1/swe...ams-28-10-2014

Bt the way, TB... another collab? Yeah" Of course

[ARTiST-MATRiX]

Yeah moose thx - I enjoyed it
It's really better now, specially at 0:18 and 00:30
At 01:55, perhaps I am wrong, but I hear a strange harmony at the last chord and some lightly clipping here and there. I don't know if it is the soundcloud encoding, but it sounds like a transient.

[moose]

What you hear at 1:55 is a dissonance between electric and acoustic pianos and it is wanted. Creates tension released by the following chord (that's the idea, anyhow.
There's no clipping whatsoever in the original file. This is Soundcloud doings.

Peaks in the mix prior to master hit around -6.0db in the loud spots and the final limiter in the master channel is set at -3.0db for the Soundcloud file (-0.3 for the "proper" master file) so there is no way to get clipping.
It could be that the Soundcloud decoding exagerate the distortion (saturation) of the el. piano or that of the guitar.

[ARTiST-MATRiX]

Ah OK. Thx moose for your explanation about the idea at 1:55
I've thought me, that I can be wrong and it is wanted. So it's just a taste thing

I know, you know how to mix and I know, the soundcloud sound is often "strange" - that's annoying.

Greetz

[moose]

All is good. ART.

Thank you for taking the time to listen and give opinion too.
Every bit helps to improve on what we do (make music)

ciao