how do you sing well?
 

I know I'm going to get answers like "to sing, just open up your mouth and sing", I know HOW to sing, but... I need to know how to figure out good things TO sing.. hmm.

In the many bands I've been in over the years, I've mainly adopted a yell, a shout, a Beefheart-ian rant, or something else, and while I occassionally hit different notes when I'm vocalizing, I've very rarely SANG. The reason for this isn't that I'm insecure about my voice, but more so that I can't clearly think of good notes to hit when I'm singing. I can't find good vocal melodies. I actually am pretty good at singing other people's songs and immitating their voices, so I must have a decent range, so that's not the problem....... So, I don't really know how to ask this properly.. but.. Should I just sit down and play guitar and come up with a cool riff and then just try to match my voice to the notes? Are there any good sites online about how to sing well? Etc.. I think my voice sounds cool, but I just don't know how to use it properly for something like this. So, if anyone does, lemme know! Thanks!

I wouldn't know.

I play Guitar Hero.

you must breath properly, and you must use yr diaphragm to evenly exhale as you sound out notes. my suggestion is find a popular singer whose voic eis in the same range as yours (for me it is Morrissey, ddly enough) and sing their shit, matching notes.

For me it's Wild Horses by the Stones. I can do both Keith's high part and Jagger's lead.

Either you're able to sing or you're not.
I guess you could always take lessons you know...

hahhahahahaahahaaha, ill have to rep this

i like to sing 'my way' in an off key russian folk singer accent and a lot other songs.

Thats what Thurston and Malkmus do. Not many people seem to enjoy that 'sing with the riff' thing though. Try writing another guitar part that goes in tune with that riff, and then sing those notes.

If that makes sense..

*POINTS AND LAUGHS*

Oh, that's not what I meant, I don't necassarily want to sing along to the notes I'm playing, a la Deerhoof or your examples.. I'm just saying, is that a good way of figuring out what notes are good to sing? Like, totally independant from the song I'm writing, just sitting there and thinking of cool vocal melodies, is that how a lot of people do it? (I guess most people would use a piano other than a guitar, but yeah)

MOZ!

I smoke because I'm hoping for an early death....

if you are concerned with singing to match a guitar melody then you have to harmonize with your guitar melody.

if the guitar is playing an E chord then any note on that E chord, whichever octave up or down, can b sung and it will sound cool. different dissonances make for different emotions though so you have to take that into account.

Hahah okay cool, I was just saying.. is that how people usually figure out good things to sing? By seeing how it sounds on an instrument and trying to match up with it? Stuff like that. Just trying to get tips on singing.

"You're the one for me, fatty."

I just play and let it all go, just sing random sentences and try to find something that fits it... You shouldn't think so hard about it, let it come to you.

trasher, that only works if you already have a good ear for melody and harmony and are inventive.

Figuring out what sounds good to you... I think that's a bit of a no brainer, surely? Try melodies without any backing, recorded on tape. Play it back, figure out if you like (it's a funny thing that, in spite of producing the sound, very few people can hear their own singing).

In terms of strengthening the voice, unfortunately it's a boring case of either getting lessons or playing a few inflections of a scale up and down and then moving up a semitone and doing the same, for hours and hours on end. And all that guff about breathing, eating well, not smoking (arf) and such.

Yeah, and it sucks, because I do recognize good melody in other bands, so as a listener it's hard to listen without saying, "Oh, I could do that!" Like Animal Collective. I can sing Leaf House pretty perfectly, so it's hard for me to come up with vocal melodies that don't ape them now. Which I don't want to do!

One of my favorite vocal harmonizing melodies is in "It Fit When I Was a Kid" by LIARS... at the end of the song... that part's amazing.

Yeah, glice, I guess you're right, it's obvious "What sounds good to you" but I guess I was asking more for any tips people use instead of just randomly putting notes together vocally, which you also covered, so thanks.

And indeed, when I sing or speak, it sounds TOTALLY different to me (of course) after I record it and listen to it. The human voice is weird...

I don't know, people tell me I'm a pretty good singer. I've just been singing along to shit ever since I've been a little kid.

I'd say listen to a bunch of Bowie and Queen.

And so, to completely derail my own thread, let's talk about this great song.
Deep
At the end of space,
Further than the Sun
Is a crowd of chairs.
Way out
On a crystal sea,
protecting you and me,
is a battleship.
I...
I raise my eyebrow
Into a question.
Who is this captain,
And where do his friends live?
We were walking in the snow
Down the street from your front door,
I jumped a neighbor's fence at dawn,
Danced my way across your lawn,
Used a diamond on the glass,
Slithered slowly through the dark,
Made my way up o'er your stairs,
Crystals flying everywhere.
I...
I...
We will
Drive you in the boot
Through the crooked past
To your resting place.
We will leave you in the woods,
Tell your friends you slipped,
Down the Lumen Tree.
If you're
Seen there,
Blooming
Inside
Each time I
Hope that
Talking
Improves
I will
remember
You...
You...
In June
Follow lonely crowds as clouds will come.
Follow lonely crowds as clouds...
Follow lonely crowds as clouds will come.
Follow lonely crowds as clouds will come.

Oh, and The Lumen Tree is an oil lamp shadow projector that will project the image from an acid-etched, stainless steel tree onto a wall when placed on a shelf or mantelpiece. Created by inventor and artist Adam Frank.

I practice my singing with guitar hero. It has helped me tremendously. Give it a whirl!

I've never been able to sing in front of anybody. Are you kidding--give me a break. At the same time, I think I have a fair voice and I'm not tone deaf.

I can sometimes play my guitar in front of people but I never sing when I do so.

I go back and forth between adequate and super-lame.
It's a total crapshoot.

Yeah, This is good advice. Rob has also given good advice.

Sing acapella into a recording device and listen back and go "this sucks" and work on it and find exactly how your voice operates. Then some form of structure and melody will flow pretty consistantly once your voice comes subconciously.

just use your own voice, dude. i do. maybe i got lucky and was somehow blessed with a decent singing voice.

I think he's more asking how to construct vocal melodies, vocal approach etc.

well i don't know, i just sing. my voice has an airy quality about it even when i sing loudly. and if it doesn't feel nice or right coming out of your throat/mouth you're probably not singing very well.

get someone to tickle yr ass with a feather for the high notes.

Rofl

In that case I'd say it comes in time. Maybe you have to have a bit of a pop sensibility, I'm not sure.

write a guitar melody then try harmonizing around that to find a new melody to which to sing, then lose the guitar melody

Pop sensibility is the key. Spot on.

I wish I knew. Someday (after I take singing and acting lessons) I'll be on Broadway...

Thank you..

I sing a lot and I love to sing. I am ok but no Diamanda Galas for sure. Some tips:


- Practice your singing along disparate stuff, from crooning to whatever other style you fancy practising along to. This will get your voice aquainted to different vocal approaches that might not even be what you're aiming at, plus it will boost your confidence. Record everything that you sing along to and don't be put off if you listen back to it and think that you sound like shite. The point is to find out what your vocal range is capable of and feels comfortable with, so it becomes all good experience.



- Stretch your vocal cords before you actually sing. This exercise helps relaxing you both physically and mentally and it also makes you less prone to just mess around with your singing. Focusing on what you are singing is just as important, whatever the style.


- Get a soul and off you go!

I sound really great after about 3 beers. My guitar playing vastly improves too.

I studied the records. What are they saying? How are they doing it? How do they make this music? What are they doing that excites me? - John Lennon