Coldplay- Green Eyes and Etta James- At Last Covers For Critque

[emme207]

Hey guys, so last time I posted rock songs and this time I am going to show you more of a romantic side and see what you think. I know I need a good microphone and I am saving up for one currently. Looking forward to your critiques!

 

http://www.smule.com/recording/coldplay-green-eyes/350287919_289191568

 

http://www.smule.com/recording/etta-james-at-last/350287919_231097263

[Rosa]

I had given you the Like before I heard the second song, which is my kind of song!   (only saw one at first) You have a great voice. In the second one what fails is the mix between the music and your voice. I would like your voice a bit louder in the mix. But it doesn't matter...it still sounds good and I can see what a good voice you have despite the little technical inconveniences.  

[MDEW]

   I did not mention this on the other songs but we as an audience really need to hear the words in the song. You have a lovely tone and good pitch but the words are muffled or garbled. It is not because of an accent and not because of the microphone. Maybe you are singing in such a way that the consonants are too quiet. While it is true that we should sing on the vowels the consonants still need to be articulated.

 

 

[emme207]

39 minutes ago, Rosa said:

I had given you the Like before I heard the second song, which is my kind of song!   (only saw one at first) You have a great voice. In the second one what fails is the mix between the music and your voice. I would like your voice a bit louder in the mix. But it doesn't matter...it still sounds good and I can see what a good voice you have despite the little technical inconveniences.  

Rosa, thank you! And yes, it was a raw recording with no editing. I just wanted people to hear my raw voice for the purpose of critique. I agree with you though that it should be louder for the best sound.

[emme207]

12 minutes ago, MDEW said:

   I did not mention this on the other songs but we as an audience really need to hear the words in the song. You have a lovely tone and good pitch but the words are muffled or garbled. It is not because of an accent and not because of the microphone. Maybe you are singing in such a way that the consonants are too quiet. While it is true that we should sing on the vowels the consonants still need to be articulated.

 

 

Thank you for the advice! I appreciate any recommendations in which I can improve.

[ronws]

Now I am confused. Are you sure you are the same singer as the rock thread? Because in these, the pitch and timing was great. Granted, like MDEW, I would have like more clear articulation on the Cold Play song. But you did Etta James right with your voice and your style.

So, I don't get it. Was the other thread to throw us off so that you can show that you actually have some chops? It would not be the first time. A "sleeper" like the 68' Mustang I used to have. It had body panels replaced by my step-grandfather who did not do a good job with his home-grown paint job. But the 289 small block and Holley 2 barrel would punch and run like a scalded ape. I smoked a BMW and a Cutlass 442 with that. In fact, the only person who beat me was a college mate and she had a '69 Mustang El Grande with a 302 Cobrajet. But I digress..

Also, I think this style of torchy ballads works for you, especially with your penchant for creaks and glottal stops that are so popular in pop music today.

[Rosa]

She didn't sound off pitch to me in the other songs either...  emme207, there's an important lesson to learn in all this since you want to go to the Voice or similar: many people (singers included) are going to see you as off-pitch if you make the song too much yours, so there is a risk in it. Making it yours is something to strive for in my opinion, and I liked that about your style very much, but we can see the risks.

I've truly seen you as a fantastic singer all along, but I am afraid I don't have the tools to help you more. That's something Robert can do. So take the criticism as a possibility for improvement.

Prepare something for the Challenges! I believe you still can sing something much much more difficult, something everybody can understand it is very difficult, like Barbra Streisand, Whitney Houston...some great song.

[emme207]

7 minutes ago, Rosa said:

She didn't sound off pitch to me in the other songs either...  emme207, there's an important lesson to learn in all this since you want to go to the Voice or similar: many people (singers included) are going to see you as off-pitch if you make the song too much yours, so there is a risk in it. Making it yours is something to strive for in my opinion, and I liked that about your style very much, but we can see the risks.

I've truly seen you as a fantastic singer all along, but I am afraid I don't have the tools to help you more. That's something Robert can do. So take the criticism as a possibility for improvement.

Prepare something for the Challenges! I believe you still can sing something much much more difficult, something everybody can understand it is very difficult, like Barbra Streisand, Whitney Houston...some great song.

Rosa, thank you so much! I really appreciate your kind words! I also believe you are spot-on correct in what you said about how this is a lesson to learn. I think what I am realizing is that the highly trained, professional ear will notice all the flaws (which is expected, since they are of course experts) and the average person tends to not pick up on these things as much and kinda just appreciates the raw talent and not all the technical things in a performance. The feedback I have gotten from other people, friends, etc. who are not professionals tends to be extremely positive and they all swear up and down I could go on The Voice with a lot of success. My boyfriend (obviously biased of course :P) fell in love with my voice long before we were dating. I keep telling these various people that I need improvement and further training for sure before anything like The Voice happens, but they all think I could do it now. Haha. Now, I am not at all naive and I plan to train a lot more before that happens because personally I know I need work because I've done research and I realize I don't sound professional. I just say all this to demonstrate that your point, and that I think you are dead right.

So with all that said, I'm definitely going to start going for a more professional route but still keep my unique style and tone, because that's what my family, friends, and the average untrained ear seem to love about my voice. I just need to polish it up and work on technicalities with the right tools and professional teacher.

[Rosa]

That way of thinking is correct, and the right one to propel you to improve, but trust your pitch, I say! I am not your family and truly like you. 

You can experiment and see if your family and friends also like some difference in style...because what they like is that you sing VERY WELL.  

[emme207]

6 hours ago, ronws said:

Now I am confused. Are you sure you are the same singer as the rock thread? Because in these, the pitch and timing was great. Granted, like MDEW, I would have like more clear articulation on the Cold Play song. But you did Etta James right with your voice and your style.

So, I don't get it. Was the other thread to throw us off so that you can show that you actually have some chops? It would not be the first time. A "sleeper" like the 68' Mustang I used to have. It had body panels replaced by my step-grandfather who did not do a good job with his home-grown paint job. But the 289 small block and Holley 2 barrel would punch and run like a scalded ape. I smoked a BMW and a Cutlass 442 with that. In fact, the only person who beat me was a college mate and she had a '69 Mustang El Grande with a 302 Cobrajet. But I digress..

Also, I think this style of torchy ballads works for you, especially with your penchant for creaks and glottal stops that are so popular in pop music today.

ronws, I understand what you are saying and I am definitely the same singer. I think the reason for this is that I am very experimental and I am still trying to figure out "what works" for me if that makes sense. I have so many different sounds I can do and still trying to find myself musically. So when you say that you like these two covers better than the rock ones, that helps me get ideas on which direction to go towards. I myself have always been drawn to singers with very unique voices with memorable tones that cannot be mistaken for anyone else. I guess I am just trying to develop a memorable sound because that is what draws me in personally whether I'm listening to a professionally-recorded track or a webcam cover on Youtube. I'm still trying to find myself musically and trying to figure out what works. I have never had lessons and that is part of why I decided to join here to get an idea of how much work needs to be done since I am aiming to get professional vocal training in the near future.

[Rosa]

emme207, I am going to explain what I meant before because I think you didn't understand what I mean: if you change famous songs very much, some people won't like it at all and can even perceive it as off pitch. Some others will see it as personal style and like it. This same thing can happen with the jury of the Voice and you'll have to analyze the risks carefully and make sure it is not perceived as off-pitch by people.

Having a personal style is a great aim to have. It must be easier to achieve with your own songs than with others' though. It still can be done with famous songs, but working them very carefully. 

[emme207]

8 minutes ago, Rosa said:

emme207, I am going to explain what I meant before because I think you didn't understand what I mean: if you change famous songs very much, some people won't like it at all and can even perceive it as off pitch. Some others will see it as personal style and like it. This same thing can happen with the jury of the Voice and you'll have to analyze the risks carefully and make sure it is not perceived as off-pitch by people.

Having a personal style is a great aim to have. It must be easier to achieve with your own songs than with others' though. It still can be done with famous songs, but working them very carefully. 

Yes, I totally get that and you are definitely right!

[ronws]

4 hours ago, emme207 said:

ronws, I understand what you are saying and I am definitely the same singer. I think the reason for this is that I am very experimental and I am still trying to figure out "what works" for me if that makes sense. I have so many different sounds I can do and still trying to find myself musically. So when you say that you like these two covers better than the rock ones, that helps me get ideas on which direction to go towards. I myself have always been drawn to singers with very unique voices with memorable tones that cannot be mistaken for anyone else. I guess I am just trying to develop a memorable sound because that is what draws me in personally whether I'm listening to a professionally-recorded track or a webcam cover on Youtube. I'm still trying to find myself musically and trying to figure out what works. I have never had lessons and that is part of why I decided to join here to get an idea of how much work needs to be done since I am aiming to get professional vocal training in the near future.

I also have a unique voice and do better in certain genres than others. And it really helps to work in a genre that matches your voice. And if you covers, do them in your genre. Some are going to say, don't change a song too much when you are covering it. Well, that is because you have committed the sin of being unknown. There are a number of covers that are totally different melody and arrangement-wise from the original and people like it.

I would say to sing what you want, just sing it the way that you did these two songs and continue to expect crossover contamination from the other thread, where you were pitchy, out of time, and took melody lines in other places (talking bout my bad girl ...)

[Xamedhi]

Hey! I listened to your 4 covers and I liked them quite a bit. The most noticeable problems were already talked about, timing, some pitchy places, phrasing...
I think it can have a lot to do with you singing with earplugs. It happens to me sometimes that I can't listen to the music when I'm recording because the volume is too low, so I end up a bit off rythm and have to start again haha.
 
  Now, to me, the biggest issue is the embelishments you use. Its nice in some places, it adds caracter and to your personal interpretation, but done too much, in too many places can become boring or even "annoying".
I, for example, don't like when singers do "H"s when the words don't have a "H" in there. Yes, you can do it a couiple of times and it can sound cool, but too many times ...hmmm, my ear starts picking that up instantly. Just like when you end your phrases with an "unanchoring" and you drop in pitch.  I actually like when singers "hammer" the pitch sometimes, more so in a stylish way, but when done TOO much, then its all we  pay attention to hahah

I think you'd have to work a lot on taste, balance, musicianship, like Robert said in the other topic. You sing very well, I like your singing, and it would be great if you trained your voice and took it to the next level  

[KillerKu]

I really, really liked At Last. It sounded gleeful, eager, anticipating, earnest and yearning. The Coldplay song was pretty good, but your voice sounds a bit bigger than that song to me and fits more in a jazzier place to my ears. I've said before a big Sinatra fan, and a big Beatles fan, but Frank often sounded a bit 'confined' when covering Beatles songs. . 

I admire your desire to have a unique vocal style. I'm exactly the same way and the singers that engage me most have strong identity and unique characteristics. I've had a preference for strong character singers over vanilla traditional singing from a very early age. But none of them rolled out of bed at 3 years old into these characters, it is developed over a life time. 

I do have a question though, what kind of microphone are you using and what sort of recording setup are you using? There is a mid range boost that sounds a bit karaoke to me. Your diction is not particularly pronounced but certain compressors can eat consonants  and certain mics can lack articulation. I'd suggest a condenser mic of some kind for recording. A lot of singers I like have mushy diction (Thom Yorke, Joe Strummer). It can be a stylistic choice, but getting any technological barriers out of the way could help you hear best what you sound like when developing your style. You're more than good enough at singing at this point to justify getting an accurate representation of what you sound like. It's not just for our ears, but for yours.

[Rosa]

@emme207 I've been listening to versions of "At Last". Beyoncé has one, Cristina Aguilera another. I can see that it is a very difficult song that you make look easy.  I am appreciating more and more the style in which you sing it. It's lighter and sweeter. Different! 

Do you know Sarah Vaughan? You might like her songs.

 

[emme207]

On 2/28/2016 at 4:58 PM, KillerKu said:

I really, really liked At Last. It sounded gleeful, eager, anticipating, earnest and yearning. The Coldplay song was pretty good, but your voice sounds a bit bigger than that song to me and fits more in a jazzier place to my ears. I've said before a big Sinatra fan, and a big Beatles fan, but Frank often sounded a bit 'confined' when covering Beatles songs. . 

I admire your desire to have a unique vocal style. I'm exactly the same way and the singers that engage me most have strong identity and unique characteristics. I've had a preference for strong character singers over vanilla traditional singing from a very early age. But none of them rolled out of bed at 3 years old into these characters, it is developed over a life time. 

I do have a question though, what kind of microphone are you using and what sort of recording setup are you using? There is a mid range boost that sounds a bit karaoke to me. Your diction is not particularly pronounced but certain compressors can eat consonants  and certain mics can lack articulation. I'd suggest a condenser mic of some kind for recording. A lot of singers I like have mushy diction (Thom Yorke, Joe Strummer). It can be a stylistic choice, but getting any technological barriers out of the way could help you hear best what you sound like when developing your style. You're more than good enough at singing at this point to justify getting an accurate representation of what you sound like. It's not just for our ears, but for yours.

Thank you, KillerKu! Your post was very encouraging for me to read! I am about to purchase a nice condensor mic, but currently I do not have any real recording equipment. I know it would sound a whole lot better if I got decent equipment, which is why I'm saving up. I'm a college student and money is tight right now. I will definitely repost a song when I get my mic, which will be very soon!

[emme207]

2 hours ago, Rosa said:

@emme207 I've been listening to versions of "At Last". Beyoncé has one, Cristina Aguilera another. I can see that it is a very difficult song that you make look easy.  I am appreciating more and more the style in which you sing it. It's lighter and sweeter. Different! 

Do you know Sarah Vaughan? You might like her songs.

 

Rosa, I have never heard of her but you better believe that I am heading straight to Spotify to check her music out now!