The Smiley Smile Message Board

Hey all,

Just in case you think I flaked out on ya, here is the second track from the project.

I need help with it, mind - I can't seem to get the mix/arrangement 'satisfactory' to these ears, so would appreciate feedback. The vocals will be replaced, so not so much criticism for them please!

http://soundcloud.com/samblack-1/the-night-is-still-so-young
Hope you like, anyway.

I really like this tune. It reminds me a bit of the best kind of 80s pop.

My suggestion would be to center the vocals, it will make the double tracking pop and sound more natural. Then, pan some of the instruments left and right (I like hard panning, but that's just me). And maybe put some reverb on your vocal - I haven't been able to find a reverb plug in that I like yet, but maybe you have one.

This is dope! Love the soulful chord changes. The key change in the bridge is great and unexpected - winning combination for sure.

Just a few thoughts:

I think the drums could sound a little bigger. One thing I'd try to do is inject some 250hz into the snare. Waves RBass works great for this.

Maybe add some subtle distortion on the overall drum track to give it some extra grit.

I know you said to stay away from the vocals, but some stuff I'm hearing for when you do lay down the final vox:

Compress the vocals just a bit. Try a very subtle short delay + a bit of verb on the verses, and a long delay / more verb on the bridge (again, just a mix idea, understanding this is a guide track)

Keep up the good work!

I don't have any comments regarding the mix but I do really like this song, its probably my favorite of those you have posted.  Thanks for sharing it with us.

Thank you for the advice! Will get on it.

Hey Hypehat

I'm pretty late to this but just wanted to say that I absolutely love this song. I agree with mypetsounds that this is the best we've heard from you yet. The bridge is great.

I'd also make the drums stand out more.

Have you thought about coming up with some background vocals to smooth it out during the choruses? I think the song would benefit quite a lot from that.

Aw, thank you man!

Have done some work on it, but am currently trying to sort out when my friend can come up and record her proper vocals so will 'finish' it then.

Other mixing is kicking my ass atm. Just have to keep trying to record and it'll come together eventually.....

Well, give us a heads-up when you have a more finished version. Would love to hear what you come up with.  :)