MPR6C001R~001 Coursework & Project Context TEMPLATE
Project Proposal
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Production Project Files (80%)
Progress and Management Records (20%)
For my final project, I created 7 track EP that explores the R&B genre. It is designed to highlight and celebrate the different sub-genres of R&B. To achieve this, I drew upon a diverse selection of influences. Some tracks pay homage to the 90’s, where artists like Avant and TLC helped establish the 90’s sound through vocal layering and distinct grooves. As the project transitions, the production shifts toward the atmospheric and experimental styles pioneered by SZA and Kehlani with their use of trap-oriented drumbeats and modern synths. The project then shifts towards more emotional ballads that use live instruments and more emotional singing then finally, explores the more indie side of R&B with characteristics such as ‘washy’ synth pads and minimalist production.
All the 7 tracks were done in FL Studio. This is the DAW I have been using for a long time which meant I could work efficiently and quickly. The only other DAW I had to use was when I used Logic to record in the studios at the conservatoire. In terms of equipment, I used electric guitar, electric bass which were recorded through my audio interface (Komplete Audio 2). For vocals, I did make use of the facilities at university such as the AKG C414 and the Neumann TLM 102. In the track ‘Too Late’ I recorded nylon guitar which I obtained through the university and recorded it with an AKG C414. I then ran these signals through the 1073 preamp and the Lynx Aurora audio interface.
The singer on all 7 tracks was someone I know from sixth form. Since they are from another university and was busy with their own work, we had to strictly plan when to record and how long for. They said it was best for me to have a chunk of finished music before they could record anything to make the most of their time when coming into the conservatoire to record vocals. Moreover, due to the singer’s packed schedule it left me to do the lyrics for all the songs, since I am not a songwriter this was a challenge as I had to allocate extra time to write lyrics for the songs. I think the lyrics turned out ok, but it could be a skill I could develop in the future just in case but not really a priority of mine
Timeline:
- October
- 20th – Came up with initial harmony/groove for first track: ‘Tell Me’
- 21st – recorded guitar, added bassline
- 24th – arranged track
- 25th – finishing touches, mixing
- January
- 26th – Came up with initial harmony/groove for second track: ‘Ain’t Nobody Else’
- 27th – recorded guitar and bass
- 28th – arranged track, wrote lyrics for first track and second track
- February
- 7th – did some independent listening/looking for inspiration for third track: ‘Too Late’
- 8th – Came up with initial harmony/groove for third track
- 9th – arranged track
- 11th – wrote lyrics for track three
- March
- 10th – found old guitar recording I did 2 years ago and used it as the base for fourth track: ‘Dismantle and Cleave’
- 11th – layered extra harmony using synths
- 14th – arranged track
- 19th – wrote the bridge
- 20th – finished writing lyrics for track 4
- 31st – Recorded vocals in the conservatoire for tracks 1 to 4 (See appendix 1)
- April
- 2nd – recorded nylon guitar in the conservatoire (See appendix 2)
- 5th – started working on track 6: ‘I’d Risk It All’, laid out harmony and groove
- 7th – recorded electric guitar and bass for track 6
- 8th – arranged song
- 10th – wrote lyrics
- 18th – laid out harmony and groove for track 5: ‘It’s You’
- 20th – Recorded guitar and added bassline
- 22nd – wrote bridge and arranged track
- 23rd – finished lyrics for track 5
- 25th – Recorded chord progression on guitar for track 7: ‘Summer’
- 26th – finished writing lyrics for track 7
- 27th – Recorded vocals in the conservatoire for tracks 5-7 (See appendix 3)
- May
- 1st -6th Mastered all songs throughout the week/finishing touches.
Appendix 1: Recording Vocals for Tracks 1-4
Appendix 2: Recording Nylon Guitar
Appendix 3: Recording Vocals for Tracks 5-7
Since all 7 tracks were different subgenres of R&B, I had to draw upon a diverse selection of tracks to use as inspiration for the music. The first track ‘Tell Me’ Was inspired by the bedroom, indie pop of R&B. A lot of songs from this sub genre uses ‘dead’ 70’s sounding drum samples. For example, the song ‘Ride’ by HYBS (2022) (See appendix 4), uses these drum sounds which inspired me to use similar sounding kicks and snares for my track. Track 3: ‘Too Late’, is heavily inspired by the song ‘No Scrubs’ by girl group TLC (1992) (See appendix 5). This song inspired the drum groove and instrumentation (guitar and strings). However, ‘No Scrubs’ uses midi guitar. I decided to record real nylon guitar because the lead parts I wrote did not sound good on midi guitar. Moreover, recording nylon guitar provided nuances of expression and timbre that is unique with recording live. For track 6: ‘I’d Risk It All’ I decided to go with an emotional ballad track. My main inspiration for track 6 was a song by indie R&B artist RINI (2018). Their track ‘Meet Me in Amsterdam’ captured that essential sound for R&B ballads (See appendix 6). This is achieved through organic textures such as live instruments and lack of synths’ Moreover, the use of 6/8 swung drums is an essential characteristic of R&B ballads which I incorporated into track 6.
Appendix 4: ‘Ride’ by HYBS
Appendix 5: ‘No Scrubs’ by TLC
Appendix 6: ‘Meet Me in Amsterdam’ by RINI
The process of creating the tracks would usually be starting with the harmony along with selecting the sounds that certain chord progressions would play. After that, it would involve finding sounds for drums, creating a drum groove then creating a bassline using midi like in tracks such as ‘Too Late, Tell Me’ Or recording real bass in tracks like ‘Ain’t Nobody Else’ and ‘I’d Risk It All’. Then I would write and record guitar parts that would help compliment the harmony. Finally, I would then arrange the track or write bridges, since bridges are a key part of the R&B genre. ‘Bridges are challenging to execute, but they elevate a song to the next level when done successfully’ (A-Side/B-Side, 2020). Plugins that helped during sound selection was Serum for the rhodes piano preset used on tracks 1 and 2, Purity for the 90’s-2000’s synths, synth bass and drums used on tracks 3 and 5. SPLICE INSTRUMENT was used for the soft piano preset which is present in tacks 1 and 6.
When it came to mixing, I used some stock plugins for some quick EQ, plate reverbs and limiters. For most of the mixing I did use plugins from the Waves Ultimate subscription. Especially for the vocal chain (see appendix 7). The vocal chain usually included Waves Tune Real-Time for pitch correction, Wave Sibilance for de-essing, CLA-76, for taming transients, Rvox as it was a very transparent industry standard compressor. Leslie Brathwaite, who is a Mix Engineer/Producer and worked with Beyoncé, Jay-Z, Pharaell Williams, advocates for Rvox as it is ‘usually’ part of his vocal bus and lets him ‘shape presence and dominance in the lead vocal.’ (Waves, 2022). I would also use Waves Doubler, especially for background vocals since I did not have time to record lots of takes. Then I would use Puigtech EQ which is Waves’ plugin equivalent to the famous Pultech EQ, I used it for the analog colour and warmth. For mix buses I kept it simple using SSL compressor plugin to ‘glue’ the instruments and vocals together. Since it was my first time properly mastering, I wanted to practice getting tracks ready for commercial release, making sure it is at a competitive loudness level. For mastering I used the Abbey Roads Mastering plugin from Waves for its all-inclusive limiter, EQ and stereo spread. I also used it for the analog flavour and paired this with an SSL compressor and Puigtech EQ. Finally, I used WLM meter to check LUFs and made sure I was hitting the right levels.
Appendix 7: Vocal Chain
Overall, I think the final project came out good. However, there was a lot of struggles and things I would like to change but did not get the chance to. For example, track 1 there is some clicking during the verse, this was because I was using Logic for the first time to record vocals. When I exported the files, I did not know I exported the verse section with the metronome, so I had to use Waves’ AI plugin ‘Clarity Vx’, to remove the metronome since I had limited time with the singer. Further complications arose during the recording of Tracks 5–6. Due to Studio 116 being fully booked, I was forced to use Room 108a. This room suffered from significant mechanical noise from the air handling system; despite using the provided foam covers as suggested by reception, the noise persisted. Time constraints and studio availability necessitated moving forward with these recordings regardless of the environment, this unfortunately led to vocals sounding weird or glitchy (See appendix 8). Another issue was that R&B was not the singer’s preferred genre of singing. This led to timing issues, nuances in singing style and pitch. The singer’s preferred genres are musical theatre and jazz. Moreover, the singer was also very busy with her own studies which led to her not having enough time to go over and practice the songs properly. My last issue was mastering. Since I was juggling my time with the other modules, I could not spare enough time to practice mastering which led to me doing it on the fly and hoping for the best. If I could change anything about this project, I would have liked to have more time for this module and more practice of certain skills as well as choosing another room to record tracks 5-8.
Appendix 8: Vocals before AI and after
Bibliography
A-Side/B-Side (2020) Burning Bridges in R&B. Substack.com. Available online: https://asidebside.substack.com/p/burning-bridges-in-r-and-b.
HYBS (2022) Ride. James Alyn Wee, Kasidej Hongladaromp. Available online: https://open.spotify.com/track/37HhnXqIRFSSJXWsysl6B7?si=cb45bc226ef1485b.
RINI (2018) Meet Me in Amsterdam. RINI, Aldwin Cajili. Available online: https://open.spotify.com/track/3LRbalLzZcuvSR6jVnqclh?si=6ff08035f04b4996.
TLC (1992) No Scrubs. Kevin Briggs. Available online: https://open.spotify.com/track/1KGi9sZVMeszgZOWivFpxs?si=f42002e0958f4ba1.
Waves (2022) Renaissance Vox. waves.com. Available online: https://www.waves.com/plugins/renaissance-vox.
