Solaria on lead, with backing from Kevin and Natalie.
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Very cool 70’s art rock-vibes!
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I was thinking King Crimson when I was first putting the idea together, so I guess I was successful at least to some extent.
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To me, parts of it sounded like Kansas’ “The Spider” if it wasn’t instrumental - which is NOT a bad comparison to have! Good job!
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That’s a very cool piece. I never listened to much Kansas back in the day. Probably something I should go back and catch up on.
This is totally in the style of TaĂŻ Phong from the 70s! Brilliant ! For example, this song (1975) : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qXFbHETYNYk&list=OLAK5uy_lqGcDiZsW7-3baJlNPeVO73d7Z4MzEUeQ
Or this one : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_F0gEwqRguM&list=PLUD4JwWCV55mQaX6-EMDBxuegPHNOw2jy&index=9
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Wow, 70s prog rock that I’ve never even heard of! Very interesting, thanks for passing this along.
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This is a French band with Vietnamese influences, formed in the 1970s, which released three albums back then. Since 2000, the band has reissued some albums, but only one of the original founders is still involved. Interestingly, one of the members from the 1970s—unknown at the time—was none other than Jean-Jacques Goldman, who is now considered France’s most beloved public figure. Starting in 1981, he enjoyed an outstanding career as a singer and also as a songwriter for artists like Céline Dion and Johnny Hallyday. Just for fun, and in connection with your introduction, here’s a Goldman song from 1985: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j0EYWvlq78c&list=RDj0EYWvlq78c&start_radio=1
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My goodness. This is really quite spectacular, Mr.Parks. That transition at 6:12 is very cool. Strong concept brought to life through thoughtful lyrics. The choice of voice is great. With your melodies, it has a haunting quality that underscores the theme. What an enjoyable listen. Thank you.
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Thanks so much for those kind words! I’m happy to hear that you found it an interesting listen. I typically use Natalie, be she’s a bit mellow for this piece. Solaria was definitely a better fit.
Musically i immediately thought of james franks. 
Hmmm… can you point me to which James Franks you’re thinking of? A google search turns up multiple James Franks who seem to be musicians.
Are these real drums or something Superior (as it were)? I forgot to ask that in the Sylvia songs. All I have to say they’re just as much the star as the Synth V song divas in both songs. Man, you really put the neuances in the vocals. She sounds like some one famous from back in the day (I just can’t think of her name) and DUDE IS THAT YOU ON THE GUITAR???
Thanks for the nice feedback about the vocals (after all, this IS a SynthV forum.) They are all virtual instruments played via keyboard, with a lot of editing of the MIDI. The drums are Addictive Drums 2 by XLN Audio. The guitar is Shreddage Stratus, again a few bits “played” via keyboard, the rest MIDI editing.
James is a light jazz/contemporary musician in late 80s. i believe American. Really smooth light compositions
OK, found him. Usually referred to as Michael Franks.
Well. I own me a Superior Drums 3. And almost too many other virtual drums and drum machines. But those drums are amazing. I mean the whole arrangement is, and I’m blown away by the virtual guitars. But of course her vocals are the absolute shining light. You’ve been litterally been inspiring me to start going that extra mile and put as much nuance in the performances as I can. It’s just so amazing to hear old school genres of music using these voices and not the more modern electronic pop stuff or “epic” type symphonic-ish type songs ..which is great and I love hearing people produce those styles. But you’re all swinging hard with Latin Jazz and King crimson stylings!
Yeah, names slipp my mind. Cool did you hear what I was talking about as far as style though
I appreciate the kind comments. It’s gratifying to hear that someone sees things like the King Crimson inspiration in what I end up with.
I’m finding that SynthV version 2 interface is easier to reliably work out subtle variations in phrasing. The key for me (learned over the last couple years) is to not be stingy with the singing Mode adjustments. If you want a passage to sound soft, bump the Soft up to 150%, and drop everything else to zero. At least for short durations. I also manually adjust phoneme strength a lot to get words to pop through the music.
keith.parks,
Thank you for the review! Now your song: sounds prog to me (very good) instrumentally: reminds me of Yes, and Emerson Lake & Palmer for me. Since you mentioned King Crimson, I have collaborated on 3 songs with Jeremy Cubert: he played Chapman Stick (Tony Levin must be the most famous Stick player) on all 3 of those songs of ours. Jeremy collaborated with Jon Andersen (singer for Yes) on one song, and collaborated with Billy Sherwood (bassist/guitarist for Yes) on another song (I did not play on those 2 songs). Your song: Vocals sound very good, even if they sound less prog-y than the instrumental. Nice song and recording!
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