'School Isn't Fun Anymore'

[walker]

This is a newly mixed tune that I actually recorded awhile back - 'School Isn't Fun Anymore'

The master was lost on my old hard drive when it died, so I remixed it for inclusion on my 3rd album (in progress.) Thank God I back up my 16-track data!

I used two basses for the song - my '79 4001V63 for the main bassline


and my '68 MG for the vibra-chords.


The chordal basswork that Chris Squire did on 'Heart Of The Sunrise' influenced me a great deal on stuff like this.

[beatbyrd]

Wow! This is one of the best tunes I've seen/heard posted on this forum. Fantastic job. Now, I have a couple of dozen questions. Professional studio or home recorded? Professional mastering? Tape or digital? How the heck did you get it all to sound so loud? My guess would be: professional studio, pro mastering, analog tape, and lots of compression (plus, see the first 3 answers). This tune just tells me that I've got a lot to learn and a long way to go. Again, great work, Mark. Tom

[jimk]

This tune just tells me that I've got a lot to learn and a long way to go. Again, great work, Mark.

Yup, on both counts, too.
JimK

[cjj]

Cool song, sounds great! Love the sound of those basses!

[longhouse]

Sounds powerful, detailed, and edgy. Great production and playing.

[walker]

Thanks guys! Much appreciated.

Tom - to answer your query the best I can: I recorded this at home/rehearsal studio on my digital 16-track (Roland VS-1680. LOVE this unit! It's totally portable and has it's own hard drive.) I did the mastering, too, (which I do professionally for those who may be interested) which is where a lot of the volume optimization is achieved and where some compression is applied. I didn't add any compression to the guitars or basses when tracking and mixing. I use tube amps for the most part which adds a nice warm natural compression of it's own. No compression was used on the drums - those are machine, and of course much easier to control than real drums when it comes to dynamics. I did compress all the vocal tracks.

One thing about mixing that I've learned through experimentation - not to be afraid to let some things be quiet in the mix. I used to make sure that EVERYTHING was of relatively equal volume in my mixes to assure that all parts would be heard sufficiently, but then realized down the road that those mixes sometimes sounded flat and lack dimension.

Another thing which helps in producing a good mix & master are the monitors. Right now I'm using a pair of Infinity 'Reference' monitors. Those are pretty transparent while having great presence, too. To keep the bottom end in check, I switch over to a pair of Cervin-Vega speakers with a 10-inch woofer. For the most part, you can mix and master on most any speaker. The key is being familiar with how those speakers sound, how they color music. Often what I'll do before mixing one of my own tunes is listen to examples of what I consider to be great, professional mixes by other artists through my speakers, then use those sounds as a guide, or template of sorts. These reference points definitely proved to be beneficial when mastering the new RRF album.

Hope that helps! Whatever you do, keep making music!

[86kubicki]

Very cool Mark - I really enjoyed that tune!

[antipodean]

I can't compliment you enough on all aspects of this Mark - composition, arrangement, performance and especially production. The depth and clarity of the mix really brings all the great aspects of the song to the fore - stupendous work there sir!

[walker]

Again, thanks! Y'all are too kind. Good to know that the hours spent figuring this stuff out is paying off.

[harley]

Incredible sounds, especially during the chorus. The build up under "We always said we'd change the world" sounded almost like a wave of sound that was going to resolve into crowd noise but didn't. Very interesting and quite good.

You said it was going to be on your next album. Do you have a release date?

[walker]

Thanks for the kind words, Harley, (which incidentally is the nickname for my 4001V63 JG because of all the black & chrome - the 'Harley Bass' dubbed by Matt Hill in Seattle who used to work on my gear out of BassNW)

Release date... umm, working on it! I've been trying to find/make the time to get the songs done. I'd REALLY like to achieve completion in the next two months or so. The tentative title of the album is 'Tea Party.' So far 6 songs are in the can, all of them listenable here on the same site that 'SIFA' is on:

'Tea Party'

I'll eventually get the merch part of the site active, which is another aspect of Bandcamp that I like.

I've got 6 more songs that I'm hoping to fit on to make the album complete. I think that's doable in two months time.

[ram]

Mark, what can I say, this one gave me a shiver – very powerful. Gave me a momentary flash-back to the Virginia Tech massacre – among other things. Technically one of your best efforts. In a word, masterful! You have really raised the bar with this one my friend. I am a fan and like all I have ever seen/heard from ‘Walker-vision’. I can hardly wait for the Tea Party to be available – I am trying to be the first on my block to have the whole set!!!

[walker]

Thanks, Tom! Your support in particular has been awesome as I wrestle with the band situation. I'm still keen on taking your advice and hitting the college circuit once we get to that level. We'll DEFINITELY have to stop at VT!

'SIFA' was written before the VT incident happened, but was greatly influenced by the Columbine incident and residual school shootings that followed. It's sad, and at the same time maddening that this violent social unrest continues on, now moreso rampant in China with the ongoing TREND of the brutal murdering of school children K-12.

Enyhu ~ Thanks! And happy listening!!!!

[ram]

Yeah the college thing was from my kids... they like your stuff as do their friends they play it for. Seems very logical to me that the show should go on the road. Around your area there would be a number of schools I'm sure you could find a way into. I think the demographics there and your music is a fit. And with stuff like this how could you miss!?!??!?? IMHO that is..

[walker]

Definitely worth considering - duly noted!