The Importance of Being Loud
01 Jan 2012 1 Comment
To say that Kate Bush is one of my favorite music artists is an understatement. She is a major musical influence for my musical endeavors and I have devoured every piece of music she’s ever written and released. And do I ever wish that she had released even more music! I love the worlds that she creates within her songs and the textures that she uses to bring her point across to the listener. Sometimes this worlds are a little strange and dissonant, like all the songs on her Dreaming album from 1983. Her music isn’t mainstream pop music by any means. But that’s part of why I like her. She demands your attention. You’re not just a passive listener when it comes to her music.
About a year ago for fun, I recorded and mixed my own cover of one of her b-sides, a self-penned song in French called Ne t’enfuis pas, meaning Don’t Fly Away in French. Despite the dated production, I enjoy the melody and the mysterious lyrics of the song. Yesterday afternoon I went hunting for more Kate Bush song that I hadn’t heard before when I found a fan-made video for the “original mix” of Ne t’enfuis pas.”
For once, something of Kate’s that I HADN’T heard before!
This original mix made its way onto her single There Goes a Tenner back in the early 80s and apparently was remixed with new vocals a few years later. That new vocal version is the one I’m most familiar with.
All I can say is that it’s no wonder this original mix was later redone. You can barely hear her main vocal!! Were the producers and engineers on this song deaf? Did Kate, the notorious perfectionist, let that flaw slip through so that she could meet the record company’s deadline for releasing a single and she couldn’t spend more time on it?
Take a listen here. This video has embedding disabled so you have to click the link to watch it on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n2qN9HmPo-E
And for comparison purposes, here’s the remixed version with supposed new vocals:
She still sounds a little forced vocally like she’s trying too hard (the vibrato is a bit much in places) but at least you can hear her in this one! I’m surprised that Kate would’ve let that first version through.
Just hearing that Kate Bush song reminded me of how important volume is to a song. Being able to hear the star of the show over the background music. Having everything balanced so that one instrument doesn’t overwhelm the main vocals and everything else.
Earlier yesterday I played around with a new song I’m recording. I finally turned the vocal tracks down to a nice volume so that it would blend with the music, only to have my husband, who listen to everything I do to give me feedback, tell me the vocals were still too loud and my voice was overwhelming the music.
This wasn’t the first time this has happened. Truth is that I’m not the best judge of hearing. I never have been.
That’s because I only hear 40% in my left ear.
I was diagnosed as hard of hearing while I was in elementary school and as soon as the audiologists discovered my deficiency, it came as a relief to my teachers and my parents. It explained why I didn’t pay attention in class (because I couldn’t hear the teacher) and perhaps why I was a bit socially maladjusted (because I couldn’t hear social cues). Though I was probably socially awkward more because of my attitude that I would act however I wanted to like wearing biker shorts, which got me a lot of flack from the other kids because I wasn’t wearing what was “cool,” and listening to classical music instead, than by poor hearing. But I digress.
I never let my poor hearing stop me though. If anything, it made me work harder. I took French all through high school and aced every listening activity that was required of me, much to my counselor’s dismay. She repeatedly told me I shouldn’t take French because it requires listening activities and therefore I wouldn’t do well with it.
Guess which was my favorite subject in school though. French all around. Listening activities never bothered me and I always did well. I was determined to do well because of what my counselor has said. I wanted to show her that I COULD do it.
I suppose then that it’s strange for someone like me to thus enjoy recording and writing music. After all, my lack of hearing no doubt distorts the way I hear sound. I have mixed some songs that I thought sounded balanced and great, only to have my husband tell me that my vocal was too loud or everything is out of balance. That’s why I consider my husband my second set of ears when it comes to mixing my music. In fact, as I type this, my husband is equalizing the mix for a new song.
So why do I record songs if I have such bad hearing?
Because sitting up there in my little home studio creating a song from scratch and fragments of ideas makes me feel happy and accomplished.
Because I constantly get new ideas for my writing, from conversations, from listening to favorite artists, from movies, and I can’t just keep it all inside. I was the kind of kid who was perfectly happy sitting at her computer for hours typing stories into Ami Pro (Ami Pro, boy does that date me!). If I got bored in class, I’d write a poem. If I heard an interesting turn of phrase in a conversation, I’d scramble for a piece of paper to write it down to use for later (nowadays, I reach for my phone instead). And I’d write a poem after something major happened to me so I could get out my feelings.
Because I am a creative soul.
Everyone has their strengths. Mine is in creating.
And most of all, because I don’t let my hearing get me down and stop me from doing what I love. Everything else about me works. I’m perfectly healthy in so many ways. So what if one thing doesn’t really work the way it should?
So I’ve just learned to accept that’s how I am and have compensated for it. I can’t do anything to change it (though it would be nice!), so I have learned to live with my poor hearing. I make sure friends and family tap me on the shoulder when we’re in a crowded room and they need my attention. I always walk on people’s left sides so I can hear them through my good (right) ear. I hold the phone to my right ear instead. I’ve learned to sing well through years of practice and hours of voice lessons and feedback from teachers. As for making songs, I have my husband to help me with mixing and equalizing and he doesn’t mind at all helping me achieve my creative goals. And I do the same for him.
This year promises to be a great one for creating. I have half an album completed with new songs constantly being written every day. I’m a creator, it’s what I do.
Speaking of new years, Happy New Year 2012!
And I’m off now to go work on part of a song that I started last night. Always creating!
One Comment (+add yours?)