hey chris liepe here with the isolated vocals for tool mainer james keenan schism
really really amazing stuff that you hear with the isolated vocals that you sense
with the full band and the full arrangement and mix but getting into the way the background vocals
the harmonies move together and i mean i i knew these parts were there but i didn't know exactly
what they were the whole time really really neat to to internalize these things and i think what
it also does is it helps explain the the wonderful vocal tone we hear in the full mix the fact that
it's multiple maynards but we don't necessarily hear it all the time as multiple maynards goes a
long way and our realization of that also i think helps helps me when i'm producing my own vocals
when i'm singing on things it background vocals are huge they are huge for the way the lead vocal
sounds so keep that in mind as we go through these there's a lot you could say about maynard and
we'll say a lot as we go through these but this song in terms of background vocals is just mint
now if you'd like more help with your vocals and your production
you like what i do here on youtube and you'd like a more personalized approach
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take it and use it in a way that is uniquely and expressively you oh and one more thing
i was at this neat sort of boutique record shop in the mountains a little bit ago and i happened
to pick this up and i like collecting vinyl uh even if it wasn't originally released on vinyl
but part of my draw to this album and tool in general is that the tactile nature
and of of what they do which is represented perfectly in a vinyl release where you've got
all the artwork and it looks different than the original release but when i think of of
tactile and visceral and engaged i think of maynard's voice there's so much nuance in it
and for some reason listening on vinyl if you ever get a chance take albums that you know
go pick up the vinyl and listen to it on vinyl with the artwork in your hands with
the with the the song listing or lyrics next to you with paper this it helps you notice
things just like listening with isolated vocals that you don't normally notice
so just wanted to put that in there i know the pieces fit cause i watched them fall away mildew
okay so he's got the the octave thing going on right first it's i know the pieces fit i know the
pieces fit he's got it up there but then i know i know and it's doubled it's doubled low let's see
if it's doubled high pieces it is i watch them fall away then that fifth comes in there we'll
talk about that more here in a little bit also listen to the placement we've got panned out lows
and center highs that helps you focus where they want you you've got the fullness with these lower
notes lower octaves and then it kind of builds this this mixed triangle with the vocals
pure intention juxtapose we'll set to love us souls and motion disintegrating
as it goes testing our communication
okay so you you hear this this intervallic thing
the parallel this almost like he's playing power chords with his voice at this point in the song
we've got all of these notes
so we've got this chord in there and then he's playing a fourth below that focus note
like this is the light to feel right but then we've got that in there
i think it's really helpful to look at harmonies sometimes
as guitar chords it helps me think about what's possible and also it helps me
move my voice in a more ordered way if i can visualize on the guitar
and even be inspired rhythmically by it and then build something with my voice
between us so we cannot see it's not movement
crippling our communication
crippling a communication
crippling our communication
that middle fourth or fifth depending on how you look at it being placed in that stack is so key
and the fact that it moves in tandem non-diatonic right like it's always that perfect fourth or
perfect fifth as it goes through these lines that's what gives it that really really neat
sound and also there's no pitch correction there's also imperfections in terms of when he closes um
on on these different parts and that's another part of what makes it feel so creamy and cool is
that he's closing closing the vowels at different parts different timings and his tone is slightly
different he's got this sort of childlike um innocent higher voice right here it's kind
we hear that that vocal that he that he does higher in a more naked way on songs like the pot
but here it's layered in with these creepy subdued lower harmonies
so neat i know the pieces fit cause i watched them tumble down no fault none to
blame it doesn't mean i don't desire to point the finger blame the other
watch the temple top all over to bring the pieces back together rediscover communication
that revolving delay is so awesome notice the different vocal posture he's got now communication
like the it's none to blame none to blame he's he's way over the top now he's compressed he's
in chest voice and then two that's how he would have sang it the previous stanza but here
he's the only thing that's changed is his lead vocal delivery everything else all those other
characters those those minions behind him are are in place so he's growing this arrangement
through the arc of his lead vocal performance really really cool the blue tree that's come
from the square roon of between and the circular is worth it beauty and that dissonance notice
the staccato here another thing that makes maynard so amazing is how many different ways
he can say stuff with his singing voice the poetry that's come from the squaring off that
come that come having that control and that compression and this this accuracy unintentional
accuracy from these very short staccato with the pitches that he's singing is very difficult
but it's something that we should practice and something that we should internalize
don't go for exactly what he's doing go for the groove in the essence
from the square rin of from the square rin off of a yourself go in and out of
of different placements so that you can get this sort of spontaneous sounding staccato
listen to how he does this from the square ran off i slide from the square ran off so it's that
stick there's there's this sense of staccato right before it let's jump that gum and then this stick
this uh chromatic walk-up square enough but notice how he breaks more and more as he goes up
off gets long square in off square and off that's really really cool even if he's not
really thinking about all these things the fact that there's so much dynamics in how
these notes are coming out it's ah there's so many amazing little quirks about each way
that maynard phrases each line that's why he's so fun to listen to and the circle is worth it
the dissonance right he's he's like loud whispering there
that's this is how he closes that circle
he does that so much where he closes things and lets things resonate
in a closed way there was a time that the pieces fit but i watched them fall away
mildewed and smolder ring strangled by our convention have done the math enough to know the
dangers of our second guessing doomed to crumble unless we grow our strength in our communications
yeah so notice how the breaths move with his his gang of maynards he's breathing at the
same time in every part and it helps it feel like one voice which is why i think in the uh
full mix you don't hear this you sense it more than you hear it but listen here communication
notice how the uh the density becomes less there
how the focus becomes more on that that particular note really neat and then it goes into that delay
throw and i've talked about delay throws and that revolving delay on other tool and certainly other
isolated vocal track analyses so be sure to check out some of my other tool
ones other maynard ones as well as the ones i've done on chino moreno from the deaf tones
to get more into the nitty gritty of effects i really wanted to focus for this video on the
harmonies in the arranging and the energy behind that without making it too long
cold silence
the dissonance
sense of compassion
you got those those different notes in there the sense of compassion
in there
lovers
sighing into an h very popular thing to do
so neat if done right if overused that can be irritating though manor doesn't overuse it
the audio quality of these isolated tracks isn't the greatest here
i know the pieces fit i know the pieces fit i know the pieces fit i know the pieces fit
i know the piece says that notice how he just he he gets more intense but the the way that the the
vocal arranging and placement from an engineering standpoint feeds into that i know the piece says
fit the piece says fit he's got this very he's not saying fit fit fit fit fit it's a very open
eye right but he's also um if you listen carefully i know you've got this this eq band limited thing
going on out here so it's very harsh and then you've got your very tube saturated pieces
fit in the center really really neat production going on here at the end as well
i know the piece says i hope you enjoyed this one i always love exploring anything
maynard leave your suggestions for more analyses in the comments below and if i
can get my hands on them or create them in terms of isolated vocals i certainly will
again if you want more personalized help with your own voice click that link below and join my free
course start with me there and hopefully we can work more closely together we'll see you for more