New Music Forum: December 2006
Are you big enough for some Manc indie rock? This month’s song is In My Shoes by The Drainpipes. Listen and comment; what impresses you? What could be better?
Are you big enough for some Manc indie rock? This month’s song is In My Shoes by The Drainpipes. Listen and comment; what impresses you? What could be better?
December 9th, 2006 at 6:52 am
I didn,t like the sound of this initially as it reminded me too much of the arctic monkeys.After a few listens though,the chorus has really stuck in my head.I think the vocals are mixed too loud on this,although i suspect this was intentional to get the lyrical message across? I like the very last chord change on the chorus (very like The Jam!).Even though this ain’t usually my kind of thing,I wouldn’t mind hearing more from this lot.
December 11th, 2006 at 3:14 pm
Great vibe. I enjoyed this and would imagine a good night out would be had by anyone going to a Drainpipe gig ….. obviously part of what seems to be a growing anarchic movement in Manchester. Any comments that now follow are just suggestions for production tweeking As the previous caller suggested, the vocals sit strangely too much to the front of the mix for me too and could do with some additional presence …. sorry not really sure what it needs without access to how the song was recorded but maybe a microsopic length stereo room reverb to help give a slightly more enjoyable ambient quality (ie ambience NOT hall reverb?) ….. small touch of compression/eq? However, I realise there is a problem trying to make anything sit on top of the slightly over fuzzed guitar which might increase it’s apparent energy levels if de-fuzzed slighly. Just going for warp factor 11 on the Fuzz box doesn’t give as gritty a sound as if you recorded a cranked up amp at top volume with more natural distortion. We’re missing some bite from the attack of the chords which I’d prefer if sounding a little grittier ………. again sorry this may sound like nonsense if the band was recorded live in a room already. It’s not “how” it was recorded - but the result, Principally the guitar sound verus some vocal treatment is needed. Song structure works well in classic new wave/punk style. …. well done peeps. Get out there-!!
December 12th, 2006 at 10:55 pm
I think that the very existence of the Artic Monkeys will forever be a thorn in your side. I like the energy in this tune and sounds to me like a modern sex pistols remake. The northern twang in the raw vocal line however is stepping on the toes of the monkeys who have pretty much got that style of vocal delivery nailed and assigned to them and so you will always be compared to that bigger more successful band. Therefore I would look at finding a way of maybe altering the delivery so that it has a sound more unique to yourselves to stop you sounding like a tribute band. It sounds good but it’s been done and is no longer unique.
I really like the lyrics to this tune. In fact I can actually really relate to them and think that a lot of other people will too. The only thing I’d be wary of is that sometimes it can be a bit difficult to hear them on certain faster phrases which may be something you could keep in mind although it’s probably not a big deal considering the genre.
I think the chorus is catchy but feel that it needs a lift somehow to make it stand out from the rest of the tune, possibly a backing vocal or maybe change the drum pattern from the rest of the tune to give it some individuality so there is no danger in it sounding like an add on to the verse. It’s a good catchy vocal line and deserves to be singled out I think.
There are two things that I think you could improve on instrumentally.
Try and move the bass away from playing root notes every once in a while. Even if it’s simply putting in an arpeggiated riff on a fill or a change.
Finally I really can’t stress enough how bad that guitar sounds. It sounds like it’s being played through a distorsion pedal on full whack being driven through a bedroom practise amp, it truly is awful. You can make a guitar sound meaty and gritty without doing that to it. I suggest altering your playing style. Listen to some Hendrix and notice how he gets power from his guitar by using a lot of muted hits on the chords and doesn’t distort it to death, it’s almost clean on some tracks yet undeniably powerful. The guitar on this track is just a constant fuzzy drone in the background which I simply wish I could turn down. There’s no dynamic, no breaks, just a noise that’s so muddy I wouldn’t be able to tell if the guitarist is actually playing a chord or simply strumming random strings. I reckon if you sort that out then you will have a good tune on your hands. That’s the big one. Focus on that.
Good work. Hope to hear more from you guys.