aravindmadis

Thanks.. I have been meaning to do a lighter version.. I am pretty sure I can do a version that addresses all criticism(valid ones at that), but the truth is that I love Freddie's raw power in this song  I feel that the song will lose its character a little bit with a lighter tone... The emotion that I feel while singing this song is one of a superhero.(you get the idea!).. 
 
But in the end, we sing for listeners and listeners are the best judge.. So let me work on a different style and repost later!

Well this is very frustrating. I a bit of time to sing yesterday and had a set of exercises that might help you recorded, but either they didn't get saved or got deleted. I haven't forgotten about this thread.
 
I did see what would happen if I took a shot at this song:
 
https://app.box.com/s/nugmg07eskx1sfeos0p6eundqx8s1efp
 
You can hear me accidentally push on the line "but I've come through" which is corrected on "but I'll never lose" (same vowel, same melody)
 
There were a few wobbles, but this song is within comfortable my range now and I could get it if I don't push. So if I get time to record again today, I will once again record the exercises for you that I warmed up with, so you can hear them.
 
Basically it's starting more from almost falsetto (not disconnected but light), and building up the resonances and closure into a lighter configuration that requires less 'push.'

Hey Aravindmadis, very nice try man. You got the balls to pick a very hard song, my friend. I liked one thing in special, that is you did not sound as a cartoon character not for a second. Great improvements, man!
It sounds to me that you are straining and shouting a lot on the high parts, with the exception of the falsetto/light head voice on "keep on fighting..." (very nice, by the way). I agree with the other guys about changing your approach to this song. In my humble opinion, you could either try it on a lowered key (1-1/2 step down) to get the coordination, muscles, and stamina right, or "keep on fighting till the end..." (sorry I couldn't resist) continue singing on the same key but making several changes as needed. I don't think the notes are your problem, as you probably have recorded songs with higher notes. You are probably struggling because of a combination of lyrics (vowels and consonants that throw you off), the notes you are coming from right before the change in pitch, and to much power. If you want to keep trying on the same pitch you must start training with a much lighter coordination of "mixed" or head voice, and pay attention to your support as you ascend. Keep practicing just the change in pitch with less power and support. When you get the coordination right the timbre will change with time, and you may sound as powerful as you like. Keep on rocking man!

Hey, man! Very nice try.
This is not an easy song to sing. When you go higher you start climbing notes, e.g. when you sing Bb4 "through". When you sing the higher part of the chorus you tend to force.
My recommendation is that you try to sing the song a step or two lower to avoid these killer notes. As soon as you're ok with this lowered key, then go higher.

Great Job aravindmadis.  well done.

Sounds cool. Ron... What a unique voice yours is :)

I'm glad you like it, and it's nice that it "feels" emotional!

Thanks!

Toughest songs for me are the ones that suddenly mix belting through the passagio.  Like this song is relatively simple and all of a sudden, the A4 comes out of the blue.  I am not exaggerating.  I can actually sing some Maiden songs with a fair degree of comfort which have much higher notes.  But rock and metal singing has a higher margin for error(no kidding).  Learning how to bridge and sing high is a challenge.  But once you get through the tough part, the rest is tone.  Except really qualified listeners, slight variations in tone may not be obvious to the casual listener.  
 
Here it sticks out like a sore thumb when you make small mistakes.. 

I feel your frustrations friend. I totally agree with you! Even though I can sing Knocking on Heaven's Door (Guns version), Iris still gives me trouble on the chorus with that A4... Keep rocking man!

Actually, on listening again, I hate this version!! To me this is a deceptively tough song.  I struggle with quick jumps across notes.. The range is not an issue, but I think I need to work on the progression of the notes... 

Thanks to YouTube we get to listen to amazing singers like you. I believe you. Am sure it took several years to hone your art

Thank you. I record and mix my cover songs at home. I'm serious

Took me some adjustment. Bruce has tonality that is "wider" than yours. The only thing I think could change is in the chorus. Sing "life" as l ah f and drop the dipthong to ee. It would make that note stronger and give more of a natural flow, to me. But yeah, you definitely have the range for this song. And I like the grit you get on the pre-chorus.

Such a killer song you've selected for practice Very nice try, nevertheless. Why don't you sing the song a step or two lower? I don't think it's harmless to sing it in the original key. You should pay attention to breath support and holding back your air. This will help your vocal folds produce a more thick and stable sound.

@Gneetapp.. Thank you for your kind words.. It is a very slow progress for me and it has taken me nearly 2 years to get to where I am today, especially with a full time job that does not involve music!  Yes, there are some spots where the pitch is not exactly in the center. The amount of effort & skill required for perfection is out of my reach now.. 
 
Yes, I plan to redo my earlier songs.. 

Oh man! Oh man! Aravind, your improvements have no bounds! I'm so jealous (in a good way)! Your timbre was so nice with the low end, and very little nasality. Awesome singing! yeah, you had a few spots just a bit off-pitch, but who doesn't?! I think you should revisit some of your earlier recordings where you sounded too nasal, and redo them. Nice job! Keep rocking!

Hi folks.. Did a cover of this song.. Heard the version done by Bono before I heard the original and have since been hooked on to the song.. 
 
Lot of emotion in the song and the lyrics and I love to sing these kind of songs.. 
 
https://app.box.com/s/3q33lx11j48cz41iwjy8gyswmcqkymg5

I think this forum has some of the toughest critics.  I mean this in positive way.  SexyBeast I am sure has the right things in his mind when he is critical about his impression of my singing and his feedback in the past has been really helpful for me to sort out some of my problems.  
 
Having said that I think the perception of nasality varies across cultures.  Where I live for example, this would not be considered nasal at all.  There are very popular singers who are much more nasal than me.  The issue is that here the focus on singing is as much on the right pronunciation as it is on whether the note is exactly at center.  Vowel modification of any sort is really frowned upon in our music.  I would for e.g. get blasted for being too anglicized if I were to sing traditional Indian songs.  We all at this forum know that singing across a big range without vowel modification is physiologically impossible and western music is more accommodating of accents and modified sounds than for e.g. traditional Indian music would be.  
 
Because the focus is a lot on proper pronunciation, we tend to be more forgiving of nasality, especially when it comes to sounds that are more nasal like "m" and "ng".. I guess the key for singers is to focus on what the audience wants.  And audiences tend to want different things... 

I think this forum has some of the toughest critics.  I mean this in positive way.  SexyBeast I am sure has the right things in his mind when he is critical about his impression of my singing and his feedback in the past has been really helpful for me to sort out some of my problems.  
 
Having said that I think the perception of nasality varies across cultures.  Where I live for example, this would not be considered nasal at all.  There are very popular singers who are much more nasal than me.  The issue is that here the focus on singing is as much on the right pronunciation as it is on whether the note is exactly at center.  Vowel modification of any sort is really frowned upon in our music.  I would for e.g. get blasted for being too anglicized if I were to sing traditional Indian songs.  We all at this forum know that singing across a big range without vowel modification is physiologically impossible and western music is more accommodating of accents and modified sounds than for e.g. traditional Indian music would be.  
 
Because the focus is a lot on proper pronunciation, we tend to be more forgiving of nasality, especially when it comes to sounds that are more nasal like "m" and "ng".. I guess the key for singers is to focus on what the audience wants.  And audiences tend to want different things... 

I think this forum has some of the toughest critics.  I mean this in positive way.  SexyBeast I am sure has the right things in his mind when he is critical about his impression of my singing and his feedback in the past has been really helpful for me to sort out some of my problems.  
 
Having said that I think the perception of nasality varies across cultures.  Where I live for example, this would not be considered nasal at all.  There are very popular singers who are much more nasal than me.  The issue is that here the focus on singing is as much on the right pronunciation as it is on whether the note is exactly at center.  Vowel modification of any sort is really frowned upon in our music.  I would for e.g. get blasted for being too anglicized if I were to sing traditional Indian songs.  We all at this forum know that singing across a big range without vowel modification is physiologically impossible and western music is more accommodating of accents and modified sounds than for e.g. traditional Indian music would be.  
 
Because the focus is a lot on proper pronunciation, we tend to be more forgiving of nasality, especially when it comes to sounds that are more nasal like "m" and "ng".. I guess the key for singers is to focus on what the audience wants.  And audiences tend to want different things... 

I think this forum has some of the toughest critics.  I mean this in positive way.  SexyBeast I am sure has the right things in his mind when he is critical about his impression of my singing and his feedback in the past has been really helpful for me to sort out some of my problems.  
 
Having said that I think the perception of nasality varies across cultures.  Where I live for example, this would not be considered nasal at all.  There are very popular singers who are much more nasal than me.  The issue is that here the focus on singing is as much on the right pronunciation as it is on whether the note is exactly at center.  Vowel modification of any sort is really frowned upon in our music.  I would for e.g. get blasted for being too anglicized if I were to sing traditional Indian songs.  We all at this forum know that singing across a big range without vowel modification is physiologically impossible and western music is more accommodating of accents and modified sounds than for e.g. traditional Indian music would be.  
 
Because the focus is a lot on proper pronunciation, we tend to be more forgiving of nasality, especially when it comes to sounds that are more nasal like "m" and "ng".. I guess the key for singers is to focus on what the audience wants.  And audiences tend to want different things... 

It is so weird that you say this, because the visualization that I had singing this song(it actually came from the video) was like this.  I found the part with the old man saying goodbye to his wife(presumably of many years) the most touching.  To me it felt that he had to remove her from life support and if she gave the slightest indication of any life in her, he would do anything in his ability to keep her alive and yes, it included fighting really hard even if things get dirty
 
I am a big fan of singers who can emote.  I will always prefer a singer with flaws if he can emote over a technically pitch perfect singer who cannot convey sadness/joy in his singing.  
 
Killer I was most impressed in a recent post of yours when said something on the lines of Piano having 5 octaves and for range, you can have instruments, but only a human voice can express emotion in a note(unlike an instrument where you need a series of notes to actually feel emotion).. I couldn't agree more with you on the value of emotions in singing

I do not want to contradict you buddy, but you do sound like a singer, a good one actually...   Would like to hear your voice with no effect because it sounds a little robotic at the end of the phrases   finally, I hear a lot of Axel in your voice, that could be good or not... I think to copy is great at the beginning or as an excercise. I suggest you to keep this influence and go further, find out what makes you unique

You nailed it on the emotions. Bono's version has a subdued melancholy and he sounds like he is closer to giving up on the subject.
 
Yours has a raw, pleading feeling in your gut as if you're not quite ready to give it up and are willing to fight for it, even if it things get dirty.
 
For me that's a big part of what singing is about. My favorite singer (David Ruffin) had a quote where he said, "I don't know what kind of voice I have. I guess it's just the feeling I get for a song.' It's how he emotionally interprets the song.
 
Ray Charles, another huge inspiration, was asked if he ever got tired of singing Georgia on My Mind, as it was so famous, incredibly good, but on his set list, and he replied, "No. Because every time I sing it, I'm feel different." So he always had more emotions to express in his singing and the interpretations always came out that way.
 
I'm really big into emo singing as a singer and as a listener (not the genre). I believe soul singing isn't a genre or sounding like X or Y soul singers, but is what you did here. It's when you lay your heart bare and put your vulnerability on the line.
 
Honestly, it can make technique harder. Emotions have their way of coloring the sound, they alter the resonate spaces, vowels, and even affect the laryngeal muscles directly, and so forth. The main technique I've been working on lately I think of as 'emotional bridging.' The concept is kind of like bridging chest and head voice, but the other bridge occurs between the emotional state of the singer, and trying to get it to the intended pitch!
 
It's much harder than singing like a robot. But for me, those are my real soul singers. Someone can have a spot on Ray Charles impersonation, but to me that person isn't a soulful singer by being able to do that. He might be able to imitate a voice that fits into the soul 'genre,' but genres are just arbitrary boxes to put music into. Genres aren't soulful.
 
For me, real soul singing is  when you allow yourself to be vulnerable, putting your heart on the line, expressing yourself as an individual, and try to express your emotional interpretation of a song as best as you can, as you. It's is a risk. It's a lot safer to try to calculate what the audience might want. It's a lot scarier than being Ray 2.0 and it requires 'letting go' and allowing 'you' flaws and all to color the sound. Most of my heroes had to find their voices, find who they are, and express that. That's why they are my heroes. Someone can imitate these guys and it's an impressive technical feat, but they already existed. Already did their thing, but it's more impressive to me when people find their own ways of communicating with their singing and connect with me.

singing high has nothing to do with voice fach.  it is a skill that needs to be learned.  It is not like tenors can sing high notes just because they happen to be tenors.  They have to train hard too.. 
 
Voice fach is only reflective of the timbre of the singer in a specific range and is not at all indicative of the range a person can sing.