Month: January 2020

Broadjam Artist: Greg Johnson
Song: Nov. 2, 2017

Reviewer: Patrick E. Muth/Catnip Pat

Positive Comments: good story line and recorded right great lead and background vocals

Constructive Comments: Another one from the powerful arsenal this artist is holding! My son and I were at that exact location 10 days before. It really makes you stop and think!Keep On Shinng! Catnip

Broadjam Artist: C.J. Miller
Song: Christmas in town

Reviewer: Patrick E. Muth/Catnip Pat

Positive Comments: Love the easy swagger this song has. Nice organization and dreamy fiddle. Love this clean mix as well. Surprize chord change! Well Done!

Constructive Comments: You ought to do good with this one either film or TVLet me know when its going to be aired please!Keep on Shining! Catnip

Broadjam Artist: C.J. Miller
Song: Hogjaw & Willie

Reviewer: Patrick E. Muth/Catnip Pat

Positive Comments: nice job overall real tasty steel solid country dittie

Constructive Comments: You shouldnt have a hard time placing this one. it could go for film or TV easily!Keep On Shining! Catnip

Broadjam Artist: Trenadawn
Song: Freely Love

Reviewer: Randall Mark

Positive Comments: The vocal style fits the music and tempo of the song nicely. It’s a nice steady feel good song. Instruments used were well played and song well written

Constructive Comments: I had a tough time hearing the lyrics clearly. Maybe the production or recording could be better. Maybe a change of some sort part way through the song would be a benefit, maybe a bridge or if not, adding in some different instruments so the song had more variety.

Broadjam Artist: Dave Haddad (CenterPeace)
Song: Generations

Reviewer: rob colley

Positive Comments: A very nice, warm sound here. The balance of the recording is great, but it has a lot of liveness to it also. The vocalist is striking. …really centred on her notes with a depth of vibrato and tone which express the emotions. Sound like this group know each other very well and get on well, and respect each other’s talents.All the performances are professional and complement one another, and combine to make the whole project successful. Some nice chords… reminiscent of Maze perhaps?

Constructive Comments: I think this would be great in a live context, but it maybe just needs trimming a bit for a studio mix? or maybe it just needs more of a narrative in the mixing, with more highs and lows to show how the story builds. But it is certainly enjoyable and the sound draws you in. Very nice guitar soloist too, with a tone which blends very well into the aesthetic. Thanks for this. I really enjoyed it.Rob

Broadjam Artist: Randy Calligan
Song: The Procession

Reviewer: rob colley

Positive Comments: The string sounds are excellent, and beautifully shaped, and I like the spaces in the arrangement which let the music breathe. It was a pleasant surprise when the piano came in, although I think the sound could be improved, maybe with a more spacious reverb or some subtle EQ. This would clearly make an excellent bed for film or television, and could work with dialogue over as there is plenty of space in the arrangement.

Constructive Comments: As a stand-alone piece, I think it could benefit from a more organic structure perhaps, as there is little development of the (very nice) ideas which are presented, first by the strings and then by the piano. Is it a section of a piano concerto perhaps? If so it could be nicely extended, and have some more harmonic and textural development too. As an underscore it would work very well, and I suspect this was what it was meant for. A sincere and emotional piece though, with good intensity and honey. I did enjoy listening. Thanks for letting me hear it, and good luck with all your musical ventures.Rob

Broadjam Artist: N.Jones, Protilius Productions
Song: Ave Maria (Bach Acoustic Cover, 2018)

Reviewer: rob colley

Positive Comments: This is a nice arrangement, and it works very well with violin and cello. I think this is done on very good samples rather than real instruments, but the fact that it is hard to say shows that they are indeed good. I wonder if there could be a little more variety in the arrangement? In the original, the vocal sound cuts through Bach’s keyboard figuration, but here the timbres of the two instruments are quite close, so it might be nice to provide a little contrast by letting the cello have the melody for some of the time. Also there could perhaps be a little more dynamic contrast I feel…. most of it sits in the middle of the dynamic range, and yet there is room for some nice crescendi and sudden softs too.

Constructive Comments: I think the lower notes on the cello part could benefit from some subtle EQ as they are a little boomy at times. Also the quantisation of the parts is quite tight, and freeing it up a bit might improve the phrasing, and could in particular improve the expression of the cello part. Perhaps, if the cello isn’t getting the tune, the violin could be set slightly higher in the mix too, and maybe the whole lot could have a bit more reverb on, to create a more celestial ambience.Nevertheless, I did enjoy it, and it would be an excellent introduction to this sort of music for a wider audience.ThanksRob

Broadjam Artist: Patrick E. Muth/Catnip Pat
Song: TRAIN ON THE TRACK

Reviewer: rob colley

Positive Comments: Despite some pretty obvious flaws in the co-ordination and ensemble at times, this has real atmosphere, and it gets into your ear and stays there. I think it would be brilliant to hear this live and I am sure you guys perform live a lot. The drums create the sound of the rail -road, and even when a bit clunky with the other instruments, they are evocative. The vocal has the gritty energy needed, and the harmonica wailing keeps the atmosphere throughout. It really is quite haunting.I love it, and it has bags of personality which shines through.

Constructive Comments: The recording just needs to be a bit tighter at times, I’d say, without losing the obvious and enchanting raw energy. Maybe a bit more time in the studio getting the rhythm section to sit more consistently, before adding the other parts. Or another live recording with a slightly better balance between the parts.The rail road is definitely portrayed very well, and the monotonous wailing of the background instruments against the baleful vocal is very memorable.Thanks for this, and good luck with you music.Best wishesRob

Broadjam Artist: Jay Gross
Song: How the Sea Made Us Fall in Love

Reviewer: rob colley

Positive Comments: Great sound, nice harmony, warm arrangement, heartfelt lead vocal…. a great combo, and supported by some high end playing on the saxophone, guitar and keys. Rings of Whitney and Anita Baker, and takes me back to nice years of my life. Nice concept too, of the sea making people fall in love. Well balanced recording too, with each instrument and the vocal sitting coherently in balance.

Constructive Comments: Regarding the lyrics, I only wonder if there could be a little more of the back story of when the couple met perhaps… obviously with the sea as a major player… perhaps a pre-verse describing the wonder of their special first night together…. this might make the chorus shine even brighter when it refers back to that time? Just a thought… maybe less is more, but you never know.Obviously a great musical outfit here, and in a nice genre … lots of commercial potential I should say. Thanks for this, I really enjoyed listening to your work, and I wish you all the best with your music.Rob

Broadjam Artist: Greg Johnson
Song: I’ll Leave the Light on

Reviewer: rob colley

Positive Comments: I think this is a lovely song, which deserves to be heard by a wide audience, and would, I suggest, have wide appeal. The vocal delivery is fresh, honest and communicative. It sounds sincere and heartfelt. The diction and articulation of the lyrics are fine, and the melody suits the emotional framework of the song precisely. The use of the major mode for what is, I think, an essentially sad song…. is she really coming back, I wonder?….is clever and effective.

Constructive Comments: I think the song could be made even more effective by a slightly more adventurous arrangement perhaps, as the current one, whilst effective, is perhaps a little reserved and four-square. I could hear a solo perhaps by a woodwind instrument… the Cor Anglais or Oboe maybe?…. just as an interlude possibly. Don’t get me wrong… I don’t think there is anything wrong with the arrangement as it stands, but if it just could have a little more sparkle that would take this lovely song to an even higher level perhaps.I really enjoyed listening to this, and I wish you every success with it. You have a great voice and you deliver the song with real feeling and expression. Thanks.Rob