Lingua Funqa "Just One Minute"

[Dangerous]

Nothing like a couple of rainy days to force one into studio mode.
55 tracks , and it all comes down to one. The Bass track! This is a killer part that carries the song from the beginning to the end. It's basic groove, variation and at times almost improvised sounding melody lines are just wonderful.

Thanks to all parties. Thanks for listening.

Update 28-05-18, Mix #2 added. with some alterations based on Monks critique. I have tried to add emphasis to the chorus sections, introducing added hi hat and bass track envelope shaping for variation. I think it has helped. I have also tidied things up sonically through out. This includes the bridge section starting at 2:50 which is a bit of a mess in mix #1.

[thedon]

Hi Dave,
You nailed it first time ,Sounds great on my monitors the deep bass sounds great on my sub !
Nice one

[Cudjoe]

Hi Dave well what can i say man! love it.

[Dangerous]

Thanks for the comments guys, it made my day.

[kapu]

Simply awesome! ^_^

[essex]

Great mix!

[Monk]

Thanks for dropping by my thread, returning the listen herewith. I think I still owe you so here's a two-in-one plus extras.

The sticking point in your record is above 1kHz; there's so much that it's difficult to listen and critique. The tracks were pretty hazardous in their spectral generosity which can lead to fatigue and loss of perspective; I hope it's nothing more ominous.

To respect audio quality, set your brick wall to -1 and not 0.0dBFS otherwise you force the lossy codec into distortion which makes unpleasant listening for those with good ears and gear but benefits those who don't.

The abundant and busy stock contributes to fatigue. The point at 3m is a case. I sense you had a good go at it, but the only solution I found was to cut it out entirely for the benefit of the song and the listener. Commercially, that's a phone call first!

I think finding some contrast between verse and chorus (not just amplitude or pushing into the limiter) would help engagement. The verses seem to blend and transition into the choruses in a nonchalant,almost unnoticeable manner. We have lots of choices here but leaving as-is would be unwise.

Perception of space is confused by the lushness of the strings and their generous and bright long decay, v the congas with their early reflections, for example, so some ambiance clashes to resolve.

Some odd things happen in the mono downmix. However, the vocal appears to hold up well, despite it's rich early reflections in the tracking, and folds without him appearing to perform in a tight space; I personally found this quite difficult to do.

Don't under estimate the hi hat in any dance related genre. You need to make some space for it though (nothing should be masking it this far up in the spectrum). I found that gating out the snare from it's track helped greatly with deployment. Automate it too; fader down for the verse, fader up for the chorus.

This should keep you busy and out of mischief on the next rainy day or so. Over to you

[Dangerous]

Simply awesome! ^_^

Thanks Kapu,

Very much appreciated!

[Dangerous]

Great mix!

Thank you, essex!

Dave

[Dangerous]

Thanks for dropping by my thread, returning the listen herewith. I think I still owe you so here's a two-in-one plus extras.

The sticking point in your record is above 1kHz; there's so much that it's difficult to listen and critique. The tracks were pretty hazardous in their spectral generosity which can lead to fatigue and loss of perspective; I hope it's nothing more ominous.

To respect audio quality, set your brick wall to -1 and not 0.0dBFS otherwise you force the lossy codec into distortion which makes unpleasant listening for those with good ears and gear but benefits those who don't.

The abundant and busy stock contributes to fatigue. The point at 3m is a case. I sense you had a good go at it, but the only solution I found was to cut it out entirely for the benefit of the song and the listener. Commercially, that's a phone call first!

I think finding some contrast between verse and chorus (not just amplitude or pushing into the limiter) would help engagement. The verses seem to blend and transition into the choruses in a nonchalant,almost unnoticeable manner. We have lots of choices here but leaving as-is would be unwise.

Perception of space is confused by the lushness of the strings and their generous and bright long decay, v the congas with their early reflections, for example, so some ambiance clashes to resolve.

Some odd things happen in the mono downmix. However, the vocal appears to hold up well, despite it's rich early reflections in the tracking, and folds without him appearing to perform in a tight space; I personally found this quite difficult to do.

Don't under estimate the hi hat in any dance related genre. You need to make some space for it though (nothing should be masking it this far up in the spectrum). I found that gating out the snare from it's track helped greatly with deployment. Automate it too; fader down for the verse, fader up for the chorus.

This should keep you busy and out of mischief on the next rainy day or so. Over to you

WOW! You've gone above and beyond here. Very helpful comments Monk!

The verse/chorus transition was something I struggled with. I think with my focus on the bass track through out the song, I found it difficult to find reinforcement as the song moved into the chorus parts. I do like your idea in relation to the use of the hi hat through these chorus passages. It makes a lot of sense. I think I probably need to work on the bass track and make it dance a bit more through these parts also.

As you've pointed out, this is a busy mix with a lot going on. I must admit that I found this overwhelming at times. I know there are tracks within that I have just glazed over and not put much thought into their sonic place in the song. I like the arrangement and I think it's well thought out, so I guess it's a case of musically shaping them to fit.

As I said Monk, very helpful comments indeed. I really thought I was done this this mix, but you have given me some direction for improvement and for that I'm thankful.

Lifting the hi hat through the chorus! That could so work..... brilliant!!!

Dave