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Rays of Relief – Production Advice
Hey MP!
This time I’m coming to you for production advice. This song – Rays of Relief – is pretty early on, and roughly mixed. I’m looking for ideas to make the song have more impact, development, yet still keep it intimate.
By the way, the chorus vocal is recorded with a vintage Shure bullet microphone – from somewhere in the forties. It sounds great, but maybe too different from the verse. what do you think?
Feel free to comment on anything – verse, chorus, instruments you imagine might fit, or maybe you think it’s best to leave it as is. I’m all ears.
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6 Replies
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Hey Bar! Lookin fwd to listening when back in the studio this week!
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Bar, I’m glad to hear you back with your soft and mysterious sounding songs. The distorted vocal is subtle, captures my attention, and is way cool to my ear. Subtle but interesting support from a bassist who isn’t concerned about holding down the “One” and playing straight changes coupled with a light-touched percussionist would take this song closer to a Joni Mitchell / Larry Klein collab.
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Thanks Paul. Good to hear from you. It’s true that the bass on the course is very simple, might be a good idea to experiment with some tasty licks that have a surprising time and rhythm, it could give it a deeper dimension. I’ll try that, thanks.
I’m still struggling to decide what percussion (or mellow drums?) could fit in the chorus. I’ll upload an experimental version soon.
It’s very reassuring that you like the sound of the vocals in the chorus. I was afraid that it might sound detached from the verse.
On another note, the mix is very raw and I haven’t decided whats the overall sound of the mix I aiming for, I know I need to do something with the mix, but I don’t know what. In general, I’m trying to stay away from modern loud mixes.
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Hey Bar! 👋 Here are some thoughts while listening to your amazing new song…
Your track kicks in immediately—which is cool, but I actually restarted the playback a few times thinking I missed something! Might be worth experimenting with a short intro or ambient lead-in to help set the stage before the verse begins.
The tones are gorgeous. Guitars, vocals, that synth pad—so lush and satisfying. LOVE the guitar solo moment—it really rips through in the best way after all the softness. Super effective and exciting.
The bass playing is 🔥—those sustained notes are sitting nicely, but I think you could sneak up the volume just a touch on those tasty little fills. Would love to hear those poke through more!
That minor-iv chord on “rays of relief”… YES. So tasty.
One idea to explore: some reverb “throws” on key words—like “meeee” at 2:53 and maybe a few other lyrical moments that could use that extra emotional bloom.
At 3:12 I think I caught a little edit—could be smoothed slightly?
Also, the ending leaves me curious. The bass cuts out right before “get me out of here,” and I wonder what it might feel like if the bass lingered under that last vocal. Or maybe give “HERE” a big reverb throw to leave a haunting echo. Or play with some background noise—tape hiss, a distant loop, something subtle that extends the moment before fading out. Just riffing here!
As always, your work is beautiful and captivating right from the jump. So well done! 👏👏👏
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Thank you, Dana! I was thinking the same thing about the bass notes. I haven’t automated the bass yet, but I will surely kick those nice licks up in volume.
Definitely going to work on a cool intro to set the stage, and fix that editing glitch.
Also, I totally get you regarding opening reverb in strategies points in the vocals – great advice. New version on the way 🙂
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Really great work, Bar, and always fun hearing what you’re cookin’ up! Thanks for sharing!
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