ghosty999
Well-known member
I know this is a guitar based forum.... but here is my 2nd "80s Syntwave pop rock AOR" album
I hope you guys enjoy!
https://open.spotify.com/album/1YXKDbAx ... -mfxjEtc9A
https://artaxuk.bandcamp.com/album/ep2
Rigs used!
ADA MP-1 into EL84 20/20 mic'd with a SM57 on a 2x12 V12
Gallien Kreuger 250 ML mic'd with a SM57
1. Dreamspace - this track was inspired by the big analogue synthesiser sounds of Blade Runner before moving into melodic synthwave. The Oberheim OBX vst and Roland JV1080 was used heavily on this track. Slowly building into the final drop with drums played live then sampled. Piano sounds came from ReFx Nexus which I tend to overuse because it always thickens up a melody. The track is meant to provide dark melancholy before moving into an uplifting melody by contrast.
2. Look Around - This track again is made up of two movements, firstly an 80s pop style track with normal verse and bridge however before a chorus is introduced I move the track into a much darker synthwave section. Like track 1, this track doesn't follow traditional song structure. Hardware on this track features a GK 250ML mic'd with an SM57, Roland JV1080 and various VSTs. The final arpeggio segment features two different baselines for the same melody. This track also has vocals following a theme of self doubt and breaking the cycle.
3. Echo Park - I took a more traditional approach with this track using verses and choruses. This track again uses the GK and live guitar. Drums are also played lived and sampled. I felt the song lacked "feel" as the only remaining instrument no played live was the bass. So I asked my buddy Axel from TangoDown US to play bass. The song was actually built from a previous AOR song I wrote for my old band which was never used. Interestingly some of the vocals are from the old track and some are new, meaning vocal parts can be up to 3 years apart. The clean guitars was done using a Boss GT100 and plenty compression. Finally the vocals attempt to push my range using falsetto, the vocal chain makes use of the Waves vocal rider to clean up my dynamics.
4. Neon Wasteland - This track is a return to classic electro/synthwave with sidechained reverse bass and glitch stuttering. The synthesized guitar was mixed with real guitar for the main melody and synths range from Oberheim VST to DX7 VST. Percussion varies from modern samples to old Alesis D5 samples. This track is meant to be a departure from the slower synthwave in favour of a more aggressive vibe. This is also the fastest track on the album.
5. Melancholia - The final track of the album returns to the feel of the opening track with big euphoric breaks and uplifting melodies. Again this track does not feature traditional song structure however. The instrumental features the usual reverb drenched drums and synths but also some very simple parts with only 2 instruments at once played live
I hope you guys enjoy!
https://open.spotify.com/album/1YXKDbAx ... -mfxjEtc9A
https://artaxuk.bandcamp.com/album/ep2
Rigs used!
ADA MP-1 into EL84 20/20 mic'd with a SM57 on a 2x12 V12
Gallien Kreuger 250 ML mic'd with a SM57
1. Dreamspace - this track was inspired by the big analogue synthesiser sounds of Blade Runner before moving into melodic synthwave. The Oberheim OBX vst and Roland JV1080 was used heavily on this track. Slowly building into the final drop with drums played live then sampled. Piano sounds came from ReFx Nexus which I tend to overuse because it always thickens up a melody. The track is meant to provide dark melancholy before moving into an uplifting melody by contrast.
2. Look Around - This track again is made up of two movements, firstly an 80s pop style track with normal verse and bridge however before a chorus is introduced I move the track into a much darker synthwave section. Like track 1, this track doesn't follow traditional song structure. Hardware on this track features a GK 250ML mic'd with an SM57, Roland JV1080 and various VSTs. The final arpeggio segment features two different baselines for the same melody. This track also has vocals following a theme of self doubt and breaking the cycle.
3. Echo Park - I took a more traditional approach with this track using verses and choruses. This track again uses the GK and live guitar. Drums are also played lived and sampled. I felt the song lacked "feel" as the only remaining instrument no played live was the bass. So I asked my buddy Axel from TangoDown US to play bass. The song was actually built from a previous AOR song I wrote for my old band which was never used. Interestingly some of the vocals are from the old track and some are new, meaning vocal parts can be up to 3 years apart. The clean guitars was done using a Boss GT100 and plenty compression. Finally the vocals attempt to push my range using falsetto, the vocal chain makes use of the Waves vocal rider to clean up my dynamics.
4. Neon Wasteland - This track is a return to classic electro/synthwave with sidechained reverse bass and glitch stuttering. The synthesized guitar was mixed with real guitar for the main melody and synths range from Oberheim VST to DX7 VST. Percussion varies from modern samples to old Alesis D5 samples. This track is meant to be a departure from the slower synthwave in favour of a more aggressive vibe. This is also the fastest track on the album.
5. Melancholia - The final track of the album returns to the feel of the opening track with big euphoric breaks and uplifting melodies. Again this track does not feature traditional song structure however. The instrumental features the usual reverb drenched drums and synths but also some very simple parts with only 2 instruments at once played live
