Vocal help - "harsh cleans" ?

[JayB]

I guess you call them harsh cleans? I am pretty good at both screaming and clean singing individually, but I am having a hard time doing the slightly distorted cleans that singers such as Corey Taylor (Slipknot, Stone Sour) use frequently. Anyone hear have any useful tips? If I try to introduce some harshness into my cleans, it will usually just completely cut into screaming and lose all pitch. I'm trying to do Stone Sour's Say You'll Haunt Me , for instance , and I have it down good but it's just not the same without the rasp on certain words.

 

[-JohanFrisk-]

same basic technique, less saturation...
http://www.ultimatemetal.com/forum/andy-sneap/611028-need-help-getting-scream-right.html
EDIT: maybe... it should be pretty straightforward if you know how to "singscream" (as opposed to just growling)

 

[JayB]

Thanks for the reply... that dude seems to want to know how to scream like Chester though. That dude posted a vid though , I'm looking for what he does at :22-:24 , an actual note with some "fry" to it.



Like someone said in that thread , it's much easier to scream without a note under it because your only using false cords

Also this is the Stone Sour song I'm talking about , especially at like :50 is what I mean , that whole prechorus he has a bit of fry in there, very subtle but without it , it doesn't sound the same.



but yeah Johan , in the other thread you mentioned "heat" , that's exactly what I'm talking about. I have Zen of Screaming 1 and 2 and they really don't show you how to do this.

 

[JayB]

Dude , amazingly enough after reading all your posts on the other thread , I just randomly finally nailed this tech. Thanks for posting all that info !

 

[iHate]

Try to impersonate an old man with a thick southern accent / hick voice. "YA'LL YOUNGIN'S DON'T KNOW NUTHIN NO MORE!" You will probably sound stupid at first, but it's just to help you find what is actually happening when you do these types of things.

Actually, impersonate any voice that you find interesting or funny. And exaggerate the voices. This really helps you learn control over your voice and what you can do with it.

 

[JayB]

Try to impersonate an old man with a thick southern accent / hick voice. "YA'LL YOUNGIN'S DON'T KNOW NUTHIN NO MORE!" You will probably sound stupid at first, but it's just to help you find what is actually happening when you do these types of things.

Actually, impersonate any voice that you find interesting or funny. And exaggerate the voices. This really helps you learn control over your voice and what you can do with it.

Haha yeah I remember one thing that helped me get screaming was in Zen of Screaming when she says to do the Marge Simpson voice. Practicing that somehow made me really get it down.

 

[-JohanFrisk-]

...I just randomly finally nailed this tech...

Congrats, man!

As far as I know, there are 2 kinds of 'good' vocal distortion

• Vocal cord distortion (= fry), the distortion for the falsetto register
• False cord distortion, the thick sounding dist for growls in the modal register

I'm pretty sure these 2 cannot be produced simultaneously (correct me if i'm wrong) but can be combined with a clean yell to create a pitched scream. the fry noise on its own sounds like complete shit and has to be added to a falsetto yell to sound like decent high-pitched scream

not sure which one of these you were experimenting with (?). what's the point of doing the Marge Simpson exercise with fry (like melissa does in ZoS1, IIRC) if you're trying to learn the false cord scream? just saying

 

[Line666]

I've never had much luck with the actual false chord one, every time I try it there's a trip to total vocal blowout.

 

[-JohanFrisk-]

I've never had much luck with the actual false chord one, every time I try it there's a trip to total vocal blowout.

do you mean trying to "singscream" with the false cord scream?
ok, it took me forever to nail it but it's always been very easy on my cords. it actually feels great, like having a throat massage

extreme fry screaming on the other hand fucks me up sometimes (but I'm not really used to it yet)

(edit: ...or were you just kidding / made fun of me -_- )

 

[Line666]

I'd quite like to learn either to be honest, but it just fucks my voice up, I keep trying to get it but I cant really find the mechanics of any of it and nah, I wasnt fucking with you or anything, genuinely interested.

 

[JayB]

not sure which one of these you were experimenting with

I do both

 

[-JohanFrisk-]

oh sorry, i thought you (Öwen) were being sarcastic
well I guess I'll have to make a short "audio lesson" or whatever as soon as i have access to my recording equipment since this has been asked a few times now...
I might not have the prettiest voice but i don't think it would hurt anyone to listen to