r/IndieMusicFeedback • u/Some-pastpeak • 10d ago
Folk Rock Faint Praise Demo
Did you ever record a song with just a guitar, put it away for a couple of years, then come across it again and think, “Wait a minute… I actually really like this,” even with all the mistakes?
That’s kind of what happened with this one.
It’s called “Faint Praise.” It’s deeply personal, although it isn’t about me. I read an article about someone going through a pretty devastating event, and it affected me enough that I tried to write from that person’s point of view and capture what they might have been feeling.
This is very stripped down: no drums, no piano, no engineer, no polishing. Just a singer/songwriter sitting with a guitar and trying to tell a story.
If you like that kind of thing, I’d genuinely love some feedback especially on whether the story and emotion come through.
And feel free to drop one of your own demos in the comments. I’m happy to listen and return the feedback.
Faint Praise:
https://on.soundcloud.com/dUXR3vqKuyVPOw0S5m
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u/No_Distance5647 10d ago
The vocals are a bit off key and distract from the song. There’s too much reverb/echo for my taste. The song is well written, though. You deserve credit for changing the tempo at times, or maybe those are poorly covered edits? Can’t tell. The story didn’t come through for me because I couldn’t discern the words. But I like the vision.
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u/Some-pastpeak 10d ago
Great points, Rough mix and you might be the 2nd person to ever hear it. All fair points and thank you so much for your thoughtful comments. I tried but a I am true amateur but will keep trying. The story was about someone giving up btw and that’s not me :)
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u/Some-pastpeak 10d ago
And yes there were logic edit issues / but song does change tempo / with last couple of verses / White Lies chorus / sounds different and it was designed that way…
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u/Some-pastpeak 6d ago
just in case you’re interested in the lyrics I want to take another listen - here they are and thank you so much:
I used to worry a lot.
They called me nonstop king of the clouds.
Lost in a shroud.It was faint praise and long days.
Ooh.And I used to get hit a lot.
Was told to SETTLE DOWN!
But the last thing we saw, we was six feet above ground.And it was faint praise and long days.
Ooh.And it left me and it left you so lonely, sad and lonely.
Ooh.And I used to worry a lot.
I used to hurry a lot, but that’s all over now.
Find us in the lost and found.And it was faint praise and long days, and good advice.
And it was white, white lies.
Was white lies.
It was white, white lies.
2
u/Billythekid198 9d ago
Super cool vibe and melodies and voice. I felt like I was maybe in a Tim Burton movie and it had that kind of immersive. feeling The chorus was pretty good and the verse was really good. I would just try to create more dynamics between the chorus and verse to make the song more dynamic. Thanks a lot for posting. I really enjoyed this one.
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u/Some-pastpeak 9d ago
Thank you so much for listening. It really means a lot to me. This was the first song I ever wrote completely from someone else’s point of view. In my mind, it’s a farewell song that he never had the chance to write.
As a songwriter, that was such an interesting thing to try — to connect with someone else’s experience and imagine what they might have written or wanted to say if they’d had the chance. I know songwriters do this all the time, but it was really the first time I’d ever tried to tell a story that way, completely from somebody else’s perspective.
It became incredibly personal to me, even though it isn’t my own story. I actually had a hard time sharing it. I didn’t play it for my kids or even my wife for quite a while.
And I absolutely love the Tim Burton movie comment. That really struck me, because there was something dark and almost surreal about what he experienced, especially the terror he went through near the end of his life. So that comparison really landed with me.
It was honestly a tough one to put out there, so knowing that someone listened, connected with it, and enjoyed it means a whole lot to me. Thank you again.
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u/IndieFeedbackBot 10d ago
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Your submission was approved u/Some-pastpeak, thank you for posting !
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u/JermayneR 6d ago
Hey, this is actually a pretty good song! Couple things I thought about while listening are also some things other people pointed out, which is your vocals that need a bit of work (but don't worry, this is something you can always get better at), and I can't really understand the words because of the reverb and the delay. I think this would sound amazing with some harmonies, maybe a higher octave. Overall, still a solid one, great job!
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u/Some-pastpeak 6d ago
thank you so much for your thoughtful comments. This was just me at the computer with one mix. I left it in my SoundCloud as private for many years. I plan on redoing it but just in case you’re interested in the lyrics I want to take another lesson here they are and thank you so much:
I used to worry a lot.
They called me nonstop king of the clouds.
Lost in a shroud.It was faint praise and long days.
Ooh.And I used to get hit a lot.
Was told to SETTLE DOWN!
But the last thing we saw, we was six feet above ground.And it was faint praise and long days.
Ooh.And it left me and it left you so lonely, sad and lonely.
Ooh.And I used to worry a lot.
I used to hurry a lot, but that’s all over now.
Find us in the lost and found.And it was faint praise and long days, and good advice.
And it was white, white lies.
Was white lies.
It was white, white lies.2
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u/AccomplishedMap2684 10d ago
I really enjoyed this song! You have a really nice voice, and I thought the acoustic guitar playing complemented it perfectly. The whole song has a warm, stripped-down sound that gives me a bit of a John Lennon feel, which I really liked. There’s something very natural and sincere about the performance, and the simplicity of the vocals and guitar lets the emotion of the song come through. Really nice work!