Tried out a new vocalist for my project - let's put him under the microscope!

[Erkan]

Yo!

Remember the thread I posted some month ago with a clip of the guy who was laying vox on my stuff? About half of you hated him and the other half thought he had potential but there weren't that many who felt like he was just plain good.

Now I have tried another vocalist and made a comparison between the two. I re-recorded Guy 1 with the newly bought Golden Age TC1 Tube Condenser microphone.

Guy 1: http://dl.dropbox.com/u/585020/BilOVE Gustaf TC1.mp3

Guy 2: http://dl.dropbox.com/u/585020/BilOVE Thomas Vox.mp3

The Golden Age TC1 mic I used worked well on Guy 2 but it distorted like shit on Guy 1 because he was screaming much louder than Guy 2. Please see this thread if you have any idea why it is distorting.

So once again, what do you think?

 

[Erkan]

BTW, Guy 2's vocals are not final it was just a quick test with some quickly scribbled down lyrics. Today was the first time I met him and also the first time we tried recording. Think he's pretty easy to work with.

We quickly tried some low and high vocals, hence the repetition of the parts.

 

[K Odell]

From the clip I much prefer guy 2. His stuff just seems to mesh better to my ears.

 

[Dalinkwent48@aim.com]

going by these mixes guy 2 sounds better...but like you said its 2 different setups so how are we able to give a fair comparison?...I still liked the other guy 1's vibe though

 

[Erkan]

Hmm, I'm trying to remain "objective" or not altered by the difference in sound but I'm afraid most of you will vote for guy 2 simply because the sound is soooo much less shittier than guy 1's Plus, I mixed guy 1 waaaay too low for this vocal test. Don't know what the hell I was thinking back then... probably too tired from all the shit.

 

[Erkan]

going by these mixes guy 2 sounds better...but like you said its 2 different setups so how are we able to give a fair comparison?...I still liked the other guy 1's vibe though

Exactly. I can tell everyone here that you'll have a hard time finding someone with as much energy and crazy vibe as guy 1 but the question is if it fits my music and to be honest, I'm kind of leaning to a "no", favoring guy 2.

It's so unfair that this test is this way but guy 1 doesn't want to come in and redo his part with the new mic so this is the way it'll have to be. Mixing-wise, guy 2 will be a lot easier to deal with because of his better controlled dynamics. As for the sound... I guess he sounds kind of alright both in lows and highs. He doesn't even know the song :O Pretty alright for a first try.

 

[Dalinkwent48@aim.com]

Exactly. I can tell everyone here that you'll have a hard time finding someone with as much energy and crazy vibe as guy 1 but the question is if it fits my music and to be honest, I'm kind of leaning to a "no", favoring guy 2.

It's so unfair that this test is this way but guy 1 doesn't want to come in and redo his part with the new mic so this is the way it'll have to be. Mixing-wise, guy 2 will be a lot easier to deal with because of his better controlled dynamics. As for the sound... I guess he sounds kind of alright both in lows and highs. He doesn't even know the song :O Pretty alright for a first try.

Agreed...guy 2 seems to have more control over his pipes but i see guy 1 (with a little bit of training) coming out phenomenal...I personally think guy 1 fit the music alot better...And if guy 1 doesnt want to retrack through the same gear to make it fair (more for himself then anything) then thats his loss...best of luck to you either way...dont just settle for something to get it over with, make sure you really put some thought into this process, as its pretty obvious that you already are.

 

[Mago]

Stylewise i think guy 2 is better, i also like his voice a lot more.
I'd go with him.
or maybe you do the parts with guy one if you think he fits better for those, and the other stuff with guy 2?
btw i think that the lows of guy 2 are better than the high ones, but i guess i just prefer depper vox over high ones in general

 

[K Odell]

For some reason guy 2's highs are reminding me of homeboy from The Refused and that slays!

 

[Deltones]

It's not exactly easy to make out the details of guy #1, but I prefer his delivery and pitch a lot better than guy #2. To me, guy #2's sound is common. I've heard him already on countless similar recordings.

 

[Erik Monsonis]

I like guy #2

 

[Jak3]

Guy 1 sounds like anthony kiedis

 

[professorlamp]

meh guy 2 is WAYYYY too common IMO
I dont like either to be honest but I'd opt for guy 1

 

[ahjteam]

I like both

 

[Erkan]

Hmm this is getting harder than I thought

Agreed, guy 2 sounds much more common but then again, my music isn't exactly uncommon so I don't think that would be a fatal setback.

Fuck, I just wish guy 1 would come in and do some more vox with the new mic, it's so unfair to him. Oh, about using guy 1 AND guy 2... I don't think guy 1 is too happy with that idea since he is not replying on any texts I've sent him after letting him know I'm trying one more vocalist I still haven't picked one though so there's no need to get cranky ... yet.

I am surprised by the mixed replies though as I thought most of the forum would prefer 2 over 1 because 1 is so "chaotic".

Sigh... I think I have to try to get a hold of 1 and make him try at least one part with the new mic to get a fair comparison. I'm not gonna be able to decide otherwise. If he doesn't want to do that he will force me to pick 2. Decisions... I hate 'em.

 

[bogchop]

If Guy 1 doesn't want to come in to re-do the vox, fuck him, he's not interested in becoming part of the solution.

Guy 2 wins. Fatality.

 

[updog]

gotta tell you man, I prefer the first one. He's much more interesting, and he's got a HUGE potential, he just needs to have more control in what he does with his voice. The parts where he's using his normal voice but isn't actually singing in a key, sound pretty damn gay, but otherwise I like him a lot.

It comes down to which direction you'll want to take the music. The first guy would make it a bit emo-esque if you know what I mean, but in a good way IMO. He sounds like he's more into it. He'll take the listener's attention, and some people will like him a lot and some will fucking hate him. There are some parts that I would make him do differently, but I think he obviously has the potential to sound spot-on.

The second guy would be a safe choice. He's not bad, but let me put it this way: I'd more likely listen to these tunes with the first guy. I like the edge he's giving. But if you choose him, you gotta take control on what he does and how he's doing it

 

[Felix Neumann]

I really dig guy 2. He sounds like he could die in cause of a pneumonia each moment, that is so SICK! Btw I like the music a lot.

 

[Sickan]

If I had to choose, I'd choose the first guy. The second guys vocals sound to forced and emotionless.

 

[Nuno Filipe]

the 2 seems to fit better. Dude I am really digging the chorus of this song.