[joelsparks]

Hey guys, I'm new here, and I just got a new name to make music with.
Here's my first song as Joel Sparks.
Thank You!

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/1q4xrfw1SkE4v2eN9OcV2C
Apple Music: http://apple.co/2jI9gux
SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/joel-sparks-533710167/look-back

Lyrics here:

Look Back - Joel Sparks

We’ve all dreamed for something
It could be ambition
Or you simply want your families smiling
And that keeps you fighting

We all have said something
Quietly to ourselves
Wanna be the reason that the world is changing
So you won’t stop working

But on your way to the wonderland
There’s always something that you can’t
Abandon and alter direction
You have to keep it in your heart

We’ve lost our destined pathway
So maybe sometimes just look back and say hey
At the start
What I wanted to make

If you think you don’t know where your feet
Is leading you then please look back and repeat
At first
Who you wanted to be
And move on for it

We all are the people
Who aren’t afraid of battles
We gave everything we have and then hope life
Could be lovely and gentle

But there are times when the troubles come
We do out bests try to confront
Despite what happens to the outcomes
Do not forget the rule of thumbs

We’ve lost our destined pathway
So maybe sometimes just look back and say hey
At the start
What I wanted to make

If you think you don’t know where your feet
Is leading you then please look back and repeat
At first
Who you wanted to be
And move on for it

Sometimes I feel
I don’t know where I’m going
Stare at the deals
They all look appealing
I won’t be appealed
I am always insisting

We’ve lost our destined pathway
So maybe sometimes just look back and say hey
At the start
What I wanted to make

If you think you don’t know where your feet
Is leading you then please look back and repeat
At first
Who you wanted to be
And move on for it

[Viva La Stereo]

Hey joel, welcome to the forum. I really enjoyed this song. I particularly liked how you built the song in parts, and each part was distinct and different but was always cohesive and fit together with the whole theme of the song. The lyrics are also great. I'm a huge fan of well written lyrics and you certainly delivered. Though, if I'm gonna nit-pick, the lines:

If you think you don’t know where your feet
Is leading you then please look back and repeat

Should be:

If you think you don’t know where your feet
ARE leading you then please look back and repeat

This is a great song and I enjoyed listening. What I am going to say next is not criticism at all so do not take it that way, it's just something I noticed which I thought I could help you out on.

I think you need to have more confidence in your voice. I sometimes got the feeling that there was something holding you back, and although that can work in certain contexts, I just wanted to hear you with more confidence. If you're worried about your voice, don't be, it sure works with the music that you make. My voice is by no means good, technically its a train wreck, but I try to give myself over to the song as much as possible, and I soon stopped caring about what other people thought of it. Maybe this advice is pretty useless, and you may have thought over this anyway to begin with, but I thought it was worth pointing out. But of course you don't need to listen to me, the only person you need to listen to is yourself, and if you are satisfied then that's all that matters. Anything else is a bonus.

Overall this was a very good song. I enjoyed it and I look forward to hearing more from you in the future.

[joelsparks]

Hey joel, welcome to the forum. I really enjoyed this song. I particularly liked how you built the song in parts, and each part was distinct and different but was always cohesive and fit together with the whole theme of the song. The lyrics are also great. I'm a huge fan of well written lyrics and you certainly delivered. Though, if I'm gonna nit-pick, the lines:

If you think you don’t know where your feet
Is leading you then please look back and repeat

Should be:

If you think you don’t know where your feet
ARE leading you then please look back and repeat

This is a great song and I enjoyed listening. What I am going to say next is not criticism at all so do not take it that way, it's just something I noticed which I thought I could help you out on.

I think you need to have more confidence in your voice. I sometimes got the feeling that there was something holding you back, and although that can work in certain contexts, I just wanted to hear you with more confidence. If you're worried about your voice, don't be, it sure works with the music that you make. My voice is by no means good, technically its a train wreck, but I try to give myself over to the song as much as possible, and I soon stopped caring about what other people thought of it. Maybe this advice is pretty useless, and you may have thought over this anyway to begin with, but I thought it was worth pointing out. But of course you don't need to listen to me, the only person you need to listen to is yourself, and if you are satisfied then that's all that matters. Anything else is a bonus.

Overall this was a very good song. I enjoyed it and I look forward to hearing more from you in the future.

First of all, a Huge THANK YOU!
Maybe it was because my mom was sleeping upstairs while I was recording so I don't wanna wake her up 😂, I don't know😂. I'll try to adjust the voice to be more "confident" for my next song. I really love to get all sorts of advices and try them out.
Again, thank you so much!

[Bill Saunders]

Hi Joel

I thoroughly enjoyed the melody running through the song, very pretty. Loads of potential. It was a great spot by Viva regarding the lack of confidence in your voice, and I totally, totally get why this has penetrated into the song if you were worried about your mum upstairs! Unless and until you are ultra confident, wait till the house is empty to record your vocals. May sound like strange advice, but I've been there myself and I know how much difference it makes. As musicians we agonise over every drum beat, guitar and keyboard sound, but to the casual listener, first impressions are everything and it's almost all about having a strong vocal!

You have a good voice Joel, let it shine.

Bill

[pompeyjazz]

This is very melodic Joel and I like your style. Reminded me of some of the stuff that Owl City were knocking out a few years ago. You've got some great synth sounds going on and obviously have thought a lot about production and arrangement. My only critique would be regarding the vocals as personally I would drop some of those FX and let your natural voice shine through as you've got a great voice. With all the technology these days it's very easy to get carried away with FX. I often go down that road myself. Well done and welcome to the forum. Enjoy listening to what else is on here

[joelsparks]

Hi Joel

I thoroughly enjoyed the melody running through the song, very pretty. Loads of potential. It was a great spot by Viva regarding the lack of confidence in your voice, and I totally, totally get why this has penetrated into the song if you were worried about your mum upstairs! Unless and until you are ultra confident, wait till the house is empty to record your vocals. May sound like strange advice, but I've been there myself and I know how much difference it makes. As musicians we agonise over every drum beat, guitar and keyboard sound, but to the casual listener, first impressions are everything and it's almost all about having a strong vocal!

You have a good voice Joel, let it shine.

Bill

Thank you so much! I'll try my best to improve and do the best that I can!

[joelsparks]

This is very melodic Joel and I like your style. Reminded me of some of the stuff that Owl City were knocking out a few years ago. You've got some great synth sounds going on and obviously have thought a lot about production and arrangement. My only critique would be regarding the vocals as personally I would drop some of those FX and let your natural voice shine through as you've got a great voice. With all the technology these days it's very easy to get carried away with FX. I often go down that road myself. Well done and welcome to the forum. Enjoy listening to what else is on here

Thank you! I'll try to go without FX next time and see the outcomes! Thanks a lot!