Snax

I know I should be taking a much needed vocal rest but I got inspired today and wanted to record a song I've wanted to try for a long, long time. This is the Judas Priest version of the song Diamonds & Rust. I was a little scratchier than usual due to the heat being on in my bedroom at night which dries me out really badly. Enough excuses though, here's the song...

https://files.me.com/muskysnax/nxu69y.mp3

I just posted in that thread for anyone who wishes to read about my own tonsil issues and eventual tonsillectomy earlier this year.

The number one goal if you want to sing like Halford is to first develop a powerful, clean head voice. Then it's a matter of adding grit for effect where you want to. If you just blast away out of control you'll wind up with swollen vocal folds and no power after a short while. Wish I would have had this knowledge back when I was gigging! Man I put my voice through a lot of stress back then!

I suggest working with Robert Lunte over Skype. He's the man when it comes to hard rocking vocals without a doubt. not that other teachers aren't good either but if you want to cut through the bullshit and get to the real dirt, Robert's your man.

Glad you like what I did. I did realize it was a demo and not a mastered final product which is why I played with it. You guys kick ass and you and I have the same taste in singers! Keep rocking'!!!

If you can send me the separate tracks I'd really enjoy mixing it for you. I really do like your singing. You could have a great career in music in my opinion.

Here's the raw vocals for you. This might help you hear the rasp effect better. I do feel it in my soft pallet. You can hear me really pushing my voice to the limit on this song! If you skip through the blank space in the middle and get to the second half of the vocals you will hear where I did some edits to get the phrasing right. Unfortunately they were done in a hurry and are painfully obvious! lol

https://files.me.com/muskysnax/0pr45l.mp3

What I was trying to say was that the muscles to support "correct" technique will grow stronger and you won't need to pull chest because your voice will sound full due to placement. I'm a lifelong chest puller and only recently have tried to let go of that chest weight and find out how to add fullness to my head voice. Pulling chest is a very tough habit to break but you'll be glad you did in the end as will I. We're on the same journey. ;)

Thanks for the trivia Ron! :cool:

Thanks guys! I'm going to try some tunes from the Painkiller album soon Thanos. I've actually been working on the song Locked And Loaded from Halford's Resurrection album. That one is going really good but I do need to force myself to take a few days off.

As for the different feeling between the Halford voice vs Brian Johnson the Halford rasp requires a lot of support and is more of a full voice. The Brian Johnson tone is more of a reinforced falsetto and I can't bridge into chest with it very well yet. I'm hoping to be able to sing with the Brian Johnson voice deeper into my range which will let me sing some more AC/DC than the few I've done thus far.

Funny that you mention the Halford screams because, believe it or not they are very easy for me to do and I can unleash them right from the second I wake up in the morning! Sometimes I'll let one rip just for a laugh while I'm having a shower. My girlfriend isn't quite so thrilled with all the screaming though! Ha,ha,ha!

Hope you don't mind but I remastered the demo and gave it more dynamics and it kicks even more ass now! Hope you like what I did. Here's a download link for ya...

https://files.me.com/muskysnax/k2p0nk.mp3

If you play it back to back with the original you will really hear the difference.

I'm just listening to the demo song as I type this. Excellent vocals! The beginning reminded me of Axl Rose actually but you have your own vibe going on too. I have a question for you though... did you use falsetto in a few places to be able to reach the notes or what it an artistic choice? I felt that the falsetto took a little something away from the rest of the performance. Like you lost a little aggression or edge on those few spots.

Overall I'm really impressed with your singing and the song itself and the rest of the band sounded very good. Thanks for sharing this with us and welcome to the best vocal forum on the planet! :)

Glad you like what I did. I used a variety of techniques and plugins with Logic Pro 9 on my Macbook. I removed the background hiss and some crackles with Sonnox Oxford plugins. I agree that the reverb made your vocals sound better. Your performance was outstanding, you just needed a little enhancing on the production side of things.

Of course I was limited by the fact that your voice and the piano are on the same track so whatever I would do to one I would do to the other.

The more I listen to your performance the more I like it!

Here's the tweaked audio. Hope you don't mind me playing with it. I removed a lot of noise and gave you some live room sound to it. I also compressed it to bring the levels up.

https://files.me.com/muskysnax/xe6nh9.mp3

Consider me a fan! That was very well performed and quite unique to boot. I'm going to take your audio off the video and do some studio tweaking to remove the hiss etc and give you a little reverb. Then I'll post it in a link for everyone to enjoy. That was seriously good!

Not bad dude! Keep on doing what you're doing and the muscles will strengthen where they need to to support your technique. I'm having the same thing with my own voice after learning new ways to use my "instrument".

That's a really tough song with some wicked range so don't be too hard on yourself. You did really well my friend.

Before I give myself a much needed vocal rest I wanted to redo the song "The Sentinel" by Judas Priest. I gave it everything I had on this version and like it much more than the first one I posted a short time ago. Still room for improvement of course but I had fun going for it knowing I'm going to take a break over the weekend at last.

https://files.me.com/muskysnax/01uzk0.mp3

I'm going to give my voice a bit of a rest and do some light vocalizing and breathing exercises and then I'll try this one again. For sure it's a bit too much for me to do just yet. I want to be able to sing it with control and not feel like my head is about to explode! lol

Thanks akarawd! It damn near killed me singing this song though. It sure doesn't come easily to me. Lately I think I've started pulling chest a little too high into my range. Time to start doing some vocal exercises and remember to lighten up as I go higher.

Great comments Ron!

Before I take a little break from singing I wanted to redo Back In Black. The music sounds a little hollow due to the vocal removal software but here it is... https://files.me.com/muskysnax/9ke988.mp3

Ah yes, Lights. I love that one! Good call Ron. I'll give it a go soon. I'm having a tough time with my singing lately actually. Probably from a lack of energy lately what with the time of year and all. Gotta get my ass in gear and get working out again.

Thanks Olem! I have posted a Journey song a while back but it was in a lower key than the original. I didn't realize it until later. No wonder it seemed to easy. lol

I'll try and record one soon. Any suggestions as to which song?

Hey man, i'll do it!!! I'll even throw in some Willie Nelson too! lol I could do a few other voices you might recognize like Smeagol from Lord Of The Rings and Mr Burns from the Simpsons!

I guess for those of you who checked out the recording it might sound ok or even pretty good as a finished piece but I remember the multiple takes and many flat notes along the way! There's a whole lot of post production slice and dice going on to put this vocal together. I couldn't make it through the whole song in one continuos take without running out of breath or feeling light headed from pushing too hard. I know I'll only get stronger though. Thanks so much for the comments and suggestions everyone!