JLSC INTRA-FORUM CONTEST #6
CRITIQUES OF EMILY 'S PERFORMANCE OF
EVERY ROSE HAS ITS THORN by POISON
|
JUDGE |
COMMENTS |
| Nigel | I like the folk setting for this song better than the glam rock original for sure! I also liked the subtle melody changes that you made. The only criticism that I have is that it sounds like you pitched the song a little low for your voice. Other than that, very nice. |
| Iggy | EDD: Every Rose I like your version
much better than the first. You were able to convey a much deeper meaning
than the original.
The recording, as I'm sure you are aware, was weak, however, listening to you get up walk over and press "stop" made the song that much more personal. I felt like you were in the room with me. At times I felt you weren't quite sure what note to sing. Perhaps it was the changed rendition or simply not a song suited for your pitch. Nothing noticeably wrong, just a vibe I got every now and then. Overall, nice change. |
| David T | I really like this song, and Emily does it justice. I have never heard an "acoustic" version, but it translates very well. Emily's guitar playing is top-notch, and she has a good voice too. The added keyboard was a nice touch also, and perfectly voiced. I enjoyed listening very much. |
| Christina | Emily, that's a very sweet song you've picked, which I, predictably, am not familiar with! It's like a ray of sunshine. The accordeon is a nice touch. I read in your Acdiplanet profile that you've only just started to share your music. About time, I'd say! I hope you're showering your kids with all this heart-felt music. They are so lucky! And maybe one day they'll join you in playing and singing together. There couldn't be a better parent-child bonding than this. Keep it up. |
| Kneena | Well, I give you alot of credit for even attempting this song. The music was beautiful and put together nicely.I'm not so sure that this was a good song choice for you. Maybe its just that some songs are more difficult to convert into a different genre. Overall,I thought you did a Great Job! |
| Tim W | Emily I really loved your arrangement. The accordian (keyboard?) was a very cool idea. I thought of a European sidewalk cafe listening to your tune. I'm unfamiliar with the original song, and your production hiss covers up the finer tonal images, but all in all a very satisfying performance |
| Nancy G | Great song to chose Emily..EED.
I have never listened to Poison before, so thanks for introducing me to
that group. You have such a nice touch with your vocals. You remind me a little of Nanci Griffith. I would like to play an octave mandolin with you on this song. I played along as I listened to your beautiful song.:-). I love heart music that is why I love your song here. Great job! |
| Todd | Bout halfway through my reviews, and this is the most original arrangement I've heard yet. Kind of like the Counting Crows and Mary Lou Lord doing Poison, if you can believe that. You should see if Adam Duritz is available for doing backups! The only negative i'd say is in the parts of the song when you hit the upper register, the vocal is a little off; Not sure what that is. You could try doubling the line, or maybe using a different reverb. It kind of sounds like a room thing... Nonetheless I enjoyed the listen. |
| James | haven't been able to wipe the grin off my face off my face after hearing this. Love the picking. Accordians rock. Thanks for the smile! |
| Kris S | My ears tell me you've got a banjo??? accordian and guitar working at the same time. At least I think I hear a banjo. Nice. But I noticed that you had a hard time singing this selection in certain sections. The reasons for that could be many, and I myself am far from perfect. Just keep playing and having fun....that's really all that matters. |
| Dave C | This one was a lot of fun and the accordion was a nice touch. I listened to it several times. A number of years ago I saw Garfunkel (no Simon) at (I think) Avery Fisher Hall with some top-notch musicians. That was the first and only accordion solo that Ive seen in a rock/folk-rock setting and the accordion player got a standing-O. |
| Hoaby | Emily, up here in ND, it seems like Accordians are big business! I love how it fits into your Poison song! Turning a Poison song into a folk song is a hard thing to do....and you did it well! It was wonderful hearing your voice.....you have a passion for singing....and I hope it takes you places! Good job! |
| Meikow | The sound was pretty bad on this, i don't know if its the lo-fi or what but I could hardly hear it. But I can hear a very sweet voice in there. Nice job. |
| Solpig | Poison....Ah...the 80's. I think i would have liked them better if they tracked it this way the first time.Sounds like the velvet underground,one of my Fav's.Bonus points for going live.Extra bonus points for accordion. good work....piggy |
| Markus | You really made your own version
of that song. I like the instrumentation, especially the accordion. It
delivers a very relaxing mood. Your voice sounds comfortable most time,
too. Though in the lowest and the higher registers it gets a little thin
and there it seems to me you're loosing the pitch sometimes. But overall
a very nice cover! I know we said not to make comments on the quality of recording, but as I have seen in the forum that you are looking for some new equipment, I want to give some hints: It is not only the price of a microphone which makes a good recording quality. Even with most expensive mics, you can get the hiss on your recording when the recording level is not set correctly. Also the distance to the mic is very important. The further you are away from it the more you are going to record the "room" you are in. It seems that your mic was realtively far away from you and your instruments in your recording so that you recorded a lot of the natural reverberation of your (living?) room. In studios (most times in home studios, too) you normally don't want to get the studio's room-reverberation into your recording. Therefore, you try to damp all wall reflexions and do your recordings in the near field of the mic (as close as possible). To get then a natural sound, you would then do some post processing by adding an artificial room signal. This is done by sending the clean signal through a reverb an then mixing the clean and the wet (reverb output) signal together. Only in natural good sounding rooms (like concert halls or churges) you would take advantage of the natural room reverberation and put your mic further away from your instruments. If you once have chosen the distance to your mic, you have to adjust the recording level so that you're high above the quantisation noise of your recording device and that the loudest sections will not blast the device. I hope this thoughts can help a little bit and I didn't sound too much like a teacher :) |
| Hazelglow | Hey this is really nice; delicate, ethereal. Pity the recording quality wasn't better; because I would've liked to hear it all more clearly. Yes I know we're not supposed to be assessing recording quality, but when things are muddy and hard to make out (especially the words), then you find as a listener you tend to drift and lose interest. Vocals are quite off-key a fair bit of the time, which kinda makes my left eye start twitching. [But hey, my own recording doesn't stand up to much scrutiny in that department either!] As a suggestion, perhaps the backing needs to build in intensity to create some interest/colour as the song progresses; or at least change in some way. I could tell the singer was trying to do this, but the instrumentalists weren't moving with her. |