You have got an impressive voice there mister Leon! sounds
like the vocals are a little clearer now then they were with
your old mic! I am not a sonic freak, so i am probably not the
one to ask, but it is my impression. This song has got an easygoing groove, I like the sound of your guitars! did you
record them with two Microphones? The last verse on the
song, really brings it up a notch. I am not sure,why, but you
probably added sometthing!? the only constructive thing i have
to say is that i werent that fond of the bass sound, but might
just be stupid me!A really cool tune from you Leon, and i will
be looking forward to hear some more!!

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Thanks, Magnus. This is not really as profound as any of your compositions :-) but I thought I needed something light and playful but still meaningful and artful, and explore the possibilities musically with my guitar and MIDI and loops. The bass turned up more than I expected. Maybe, you were listening with really good earphones that's why :-) The last verse seemed to lift the rhythm and volume but all I added was a conga loop to it and seemed to make the difference. Thanks for your time listening :-)

---
The lion roars, the eagle soars.

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As for the guitars, I double tracked it and panned them slightly apart with a little more towards the left. The plucked guitar was colored with some flanger so it is a littler more in the background but adds some volume and brightness to the strings altogether. I used only 1 mic but I hear most guitarists here do double mic to give it a more surround/stereo sound. I should try that next time.

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The lion roars, the eagle soars.

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that opening vocal is powerful! my speakers were up somewhat loud and it caught me off guard making me listen. like that. it actually has a country mixed with pop sound which is pretty cool. your voice is powerful in this song. a good track.

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Thanks, Chance. It is awesome to think that one makes a song that can appeal
to other people like you who is into Goth/Industrial sound. But truly, one's love
for music should not recognize genre boundaries.

---
The lion roars, the eagle soars.

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actually i'm really more into accoustic and emo, industrial and goth are my second fav.s but i truly listen to everything, music should know no bounds. i listen to tim mcgraw and then himsa which is seattle death metal. and a variety of macjammers. your voice is great, good music is good. plain and simple

---
Robert Smith lied, boys do cry

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Leon, brother man - you're a music-making machine, a natural talent if there ever was one. I was able to just sit down, surround myself with this wonderful tune, like a shawl, by a fireplace. It's good enough to sweep me away, and that's saying something. Great job!

You are a braver man than I singing, and your ability to express yourself tastefully, passionately and melodically is a gift to behold. This song is all about you selling it - and the energy and emotion really sizzle in this song - sexy, baby, sexy!

Now, I take a step back and get my wind after such a good listen and then look at it objectively (cause I came into this song your bitch, anyway,, love your stuff to the moon and back)

Two things - one, sometimes loops in packages suffer from little human realities that give fluctuation here and there, some loops are better rendered than others - so oftentimes, we'll run up against some loop combinations that stretch at the outside envelope of the rhythm pattern. There were a few of those in this arrangement, which makes for a "doppler effect", however so slight, in the layering of tracks. Something I've been doing to correct this is to slice the pertinent parts of a loop up and then reposition bits so that the composite works more smoothly.

The other thing is that towards the end of the song, which is longer than average, the dynamics are about the same, which is a comfortable level, throughout. But it remains thusly, and doesn't dip into much quieter breakdowns or surge into more impressive orchestrations as the song progresses. Your vocal performance really takes us from point A to point B, suggesting at first, then really selling the idea towards the end, and the music should match your fervor, I'm thinking. Some extra pads, or some backing chordal harmonies, would sound great.

I mention these things because of the mutual respect that we have - and these things are within your reach - this is a really, and I mean REALLY, really great song and performance. You're a singer-songwriter who can carry his own with the best of them.

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Wow, Bing...I am speechless... almost embarrassed Ha-ha! Your effusive
appreciation of this kind of music is heartwarming. But apart from your uplifting
comment, I treasure those little pointers you give me, which really helps me so
much in mastering my craft. With those recommendations, I have some lessons
learned everytime. You are an inspiration I can look up to for sure. Thanks so
much...this means a lot to me!

---
The lion roars, the eagle soars.

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Wow, Leon. You lay it out very nicely here. Unequivocal affection. No
mixed message here. Straight up. "Love me, woman, like I love you."
That's it. She knows now. Excellent production.

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This song may not be as controversial as your song Grease Monkey Spit (which I
really liked, by the way), but I was very careful not to go beyond the borders of
"sexy." It was sort of teasing without being overtly sensual. I am a Catholic boy,
you know (Do I hear people go "yeah, right!"). He-he! Again, Rich, thank you so
much for your encouraging feedback. As I've said before, you're one of those
guys whose vast musical experience gives your comments a lot of weight.

---
The lion roars, the eagle soars.

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Excellent pop vocals Leon. Its interesting to note your recent start to
song writing - you have clearly learnt a lot in a short time! This is a
very slick song, performed very well - could do with more pronounced
bass, and on second listen, a more adventurous bass part, which would
drive the song along much better. Drums could perhaps have a bit
more drive also - the snare is really hard to locate. Guitar and keys are
very nicely done. I guess I'm not really that experienced playing in the
pop genre, but my rock background says "more rhythm section"!
I like it!
Neil

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Thanks, jiguma! I knew there was something missing, and when you pointed
out the snare and bass, I realized that was exactly it! I used to not include
bass at all, but Echoroom recommended that. I tried that on this song but I
don't know how to make it "adventurous" enough. Guess, I'll have to listen to
some of your rock songs and pay particular attention to your bass, drums and
snare. Thanks for your very helpful observations and motivating
appreciation!

As regards my quick progress, amazing as that may sound, I am very much in
awe of some of the guys here in Macjams who have no formal training in
anything ( or are experts in their own field, like say Psychology) and are
churning out songs that can put to shame most of the commercial ones
available.

---
The lion roars, the eagle soars.

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Dreadmon said it all. To summarize with my own spin, it's a great song
and it has great vocals. The drum loops are distracting when they go off
sync - I was trying to figure out what was bothering me about the drum
loops and then I read dreadmon's post and I said "A ha! That's what it is."
So yeah, that's the only thing in an otherwise great production that I'd
change. Great track!

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Thanks a lot, rmaclema. We all had the same observation actually. I was trying
to figure that out for a while and i thought it was an artifact brought about by
some latency in the recording of the guitars or some cancelling of the amplitude
because of some clash in the percussions/drums. Dreadmon was right... Leave
it to those musically trained to figure things out :-) Thanks so much for taking
time to listen, appreciate and critique the song!

---
The lion roars, the eagle soars.

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This does have a very latin pop feel. Your music is getting better and
better, and your new mic sounds good. I like how this almost feels layed
back yet is exciting. It is very islandish. I really liked it.

Ben

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Thanks, Ben! Listening to other people's compositions and music, like yours for
example, certainly helps me pick up really good pointers to improve my own
songs. I only wish I can even come close to your very bold approach in sound
production! I'm really trying...He-he!

---
The lion roars, the eagle soars.

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Your voice is really well recorded - you should be happy with your
purchase. Great singing and well produced. The arrangement is very
good.

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Thanks, Nolan! i miss your presence here at Macjams. your songs have been
my early favorites when I first joined here, and i totally envied your guitar
sounds and your great lyrics. I feel awesome to get a positive review from
someone i admire.

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The lion roars, the eagle soars.

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Leon, You really really sound spectacular. great love song. singing with
your heart. full of emotion. you sure have the vocal skills! great listen!
Downloaded!

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Thanks so much, Alley! That coming from you almost makes me feel like
winning some award. The admiration is mutual, and your comments makes me
feel very honored. I almost hugged my mic after reading your comment. haha!

---
The lion roars, the eagle soars.

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Awesome vocals Leon. Others mentioned some timing issues that I
noticed as well. Looking forward to more from you. I love a good pop
song

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In a strange way, remids me of Marc Anthony a little bit. I think it is
your voice. It's very expressive. Nice job!

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Wow, Emily, you are the consummate vocal artist. i've heard your rock and pop
and classical vocal renditions and they are uniformly outstanding. I'm a true fan.

Not sure what to make of your comparison of my voice to Marc Anthony's as I
am not much a fan of his, but I suppose that was a compliment, right? :-)
Actually, you're the third one to mention that to me, including my niece who
loves me so much, so it must be very good. Ha-ha! Thanks for taking time to
comment.

---
The lion roars, the eagle soars.

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Yes, please take it as a compliment!

---
I don't have a clever signature.

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The opening almost knocked my ears off (had the volume turned up from
a previous song). You already had a good sound using the Radio Shack
Special, the new mics add a level of cleanness and crispness. Very nice. As
for the rest, nice and solid pop. A catchy sound. Good rich
instrumentation mix. I might put a nice deep melodic bass line with it to
help bottom out the mix, but it certainly stands well as you have it.

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I did notice the brightness of the vocals and less s's of my vocals with these
new mics. Thanks for your push to a pro-level mic. Certainly. I'm happy with
my purchase. I will follow your advise to add a more elaborate bass-line in the
background. My bass here is kinda disjointed but it was a good start. i used to
not put a bass at all and I experimented on this one. Thanks for your
encouraging comments, JG!

---
The lion roars, the eagle soars.

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both are strong!!! whoa - that's some piece of projection!! both are sweet!!! lovely song - i'm drinking everything in. thank you for sharing xx

if i could spell sinuses - i would wish yours better!!! x

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Thanks, Mae West..er, Caroline. (You get me confused sometimes:-) Thanks for
that analogy of your awesome coffee and my song ecstasy.... Ever put some in
it? LOL. You are wonderful to chat with... and yeah those sinuses are clearing
up, ma'am. Just about ready to sing on my next song...

---
The lion roars, the eagle soars.

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Leon - this is a really lovely song.

Firstly, the vocal is great, really yearning and impassioned.
I think the instrumentation works well - it's maybe a little understated in parts, but then the voice is so strong, that it works - the bass and drums groove along to a lovely Latin beat. The structure is good, with a really strong verse/ refrain chorus.

You could maybe use a little instrumental break (a short latin guitar riff/ solo maybe), and I think the ending needs some work, because the song kinda just dies away - I think the fade out needs to be stronger, and come to a climax.

Man - this should be getting airplay - you've really got a great song here.

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Thanks, Steve... I had to look up what "stonking" means, haha! You are right on
about the things you recommended. i was planning to put a Latin kind of riff
somewhere in the middle , but I flinched from the challenge. That will require
some awesome guitar playing skills... and if ever, I'll need to rehearse quite a bit
to have any decent results (grin). i could need some collab with the great
guitarists around here for that to match the quality of the rest of the song. The
ending part was a dilemma for me.... I wanted a grander finish, that's true, but
the flow of the song was like "sailing away"....I did give your recommendations
very serious thought. Thanks a lot, Steve. You are an awesome musician, so
this means a lot!

---
The lion roars, the eagle soars.

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Hey, I'm kinda new to this site! Anyway, this is pretty good stuff!
Sounds great! Like your voice. Brilliant mix to! Keep it up!

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Leon
I agree with all the comments here. you certainly have a great pop voice and I think the song is well written. I agree with the comments about timing but don't worry about that too much.

In terms of constructive criticism, I would like to hear a few more textural changes. perhaps changes in the drums in the chorus, drop the bass out during the verse, that type of thing.

The most important thing tho is to have a good song and you've certainly done that. Well done!

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Leon
I agree with all the comments here. you certainly have a great pop voice and I think the song is well written. I agree with the comments about timing but don't worry about that too much.

In terms of constructive criticism, I would like to hear a few more textural changes. perhaps changes in the drums in the chorus, drop the bass out during the verse, that type of thing.

The most important thing tho is to have a good song and you've certainly done that. Well done!

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Thanks, man, for taking the time to listen. Those pointers you gave are very
important in polishing up a song. I will employ those tips in my future songs. I
really did not know what to do with the bass, so thanks for the advice.

---
The lion roars, the eagle soars.

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That was great Leon! Your music flows like the sea, sensuous, warm and
spirited...This was definitely a download for me, thank you....High Marks
from me...The ante should be upped on this song....Peace and Light,
Norman

[ Reply to This ]

That was great Leon! Your music flows like the sea, sensuous, warm and
spirited...This was definitely a download for me, thank you....High Marks
from me...The ante should be upped on this song....Peace and Light,
Norman

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Thanks, Norman. I am glad to have shared some happiness through this little
song of mine. You have, in return, given me a great measure of encouragement
in my musical hobby and to me, that is priceless. The pleasure is mine as much
as yours.

---
The lion roars, the eagle soars.

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you have craft. and its sooo hard to write a well written accesible tune
such as this. i am envious...instrumentals are OK but a lyrically catchy
tune such as this is what gets people to listen more than once. AND,
you do harmonies! no kidding i think thats what pushes it over the top
for me. envious well done

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you have craft. and its sooo hard to write a well written accesible tune
such as this. i am envious...instrumentals are OK but a lyrically catchy
tune such as this is what gets people to listen more than once. AND,
you do harmonies! no kidding i think thats what pushes it over the top
for me. envious well done

[ Reply to This ]