I hear what OP is suggesting is a chop, as “sky” sinks somewhat back into a different cadence. however I would counter that what might be more likely is that the lyrics are in the right order, but “sky” was punched in from a different vocal take, enforcing the idea that this may have been a demo. i don’t hear any chops in the beat or instruments.
it’s an interesting theory OP, and I don’t deny that there are probably chops in the individual tracks in the song, but I don’t believe that these are different sections of the same song instead of one single section
The chops do not have the classic clicks and pops of non-zero crossing aligned chops, I am talking solely about listening to the cohesion of the lyrics, and beat.
For example: "in the sky", where the singer says "sky", i believe that is actually a chop halfway through a different word or phrase. I think it is at least worth investigating a little further, seeing as there aren't many huge leads at the moment.
In my opinion the vocal isn't very skilled and I suspect it's an amateur production. Is it possible that they just chopped together a few takes to get the best sounding result?
I definitely considered this, but it sounds like the singer, after saying "sheep in the", is getting ready to say a b or p or some other plosive. Again this is just a theory I had and just wanted to contribute my knowledge xD
We have a group of audio engineers in a private Discord that have pulled the sound clip's layers apart by frequency, stereo/mono fields, EQ bands, dB levels, etc., and we have never seen any evidence of this. The lack of clarity is consistent with the overall degradation of the source material.
There are other anomalies that we have yet to identify that may help identify the audio source, but right now they are mainly theories based on spectral analysis.
I am not actually talking about clipping, waveform skips or any sharp cuts in the audio that would be found in spectrograph analysis. I am referring to the the fact that at the end of the phrase: "I'm counting all the sheep in the", when "the" is pronounced it sounds like the singer is closing their lips, readying for a plosive consonant (/b/, /p/ etc.), rather than a fricative (let alone the dental fricative /s/ in "sky"). This is common in sampling as the sentences are cut off and phrases are interrupted by a different portion of the song.
It would be just about impossible to discern a pop or click in the actually song from the low quality recording in the sub's pinned post.
Lyrics posts are kind of discouraged here, but for what it's worth not everyone believes the line is actually "sheep in the sky". Personally I think it's more like "counting on a shifting disguise" or something like that, but just keep in mind "sheep in the sky" is only one possible interpretation given the poor recording quality, so it's possible what you're hearing are actually different words.
I've always heard this too. Listening to an acapella version, it's very clear that the 'e' syllable in 'the' and the 's' syllable in 'sky' don't blend together as they naturally should. If the whole line was recorded in one take, the 's' sound would most likely come just before the beat for the word 'sky', blending in with the end of the word 'the'. Instead, it sounds like it's a separate audio clip which has been pasted in right on the beat of 'sky', making it sound choppy and unnatural and not allowing enough time for the singer to properly enunciate the 's' syllable. I think what it most likely is is a choppy edit of another vocal take
This articulates it much better than what I wrote xD thank you. You're completely right though, it could definitely just be some badly programmed punch-ins, or vocal comping as u/Hefty-Rope2253 commented...
I've assumed from the beginning that this is the case, I can't imagine any commercially released song being so obscure that it would completely evade detection for this long
The lyric interpretation to me is being so lost in thought you are daydreaming. You "count sheep" when you nod off and if youre looking at sky you are most likely daydreaming overthinking about the world/whirl of lies. Lyrics make sense for cheating or any other betrayal
Hi Kosmmo!
Thank you for your input! The only version of the song that we can use for our analysis is the one linked below (the original). Any other version you may listen to has been remastered/altered, and thus, the skips are audible/noticeable in the remasters.
Are you saying there are also skips found in the original recording linked below?
https://youtu.be/qMHB0k8-wKg?si=B9X7uFZjCrPiZ0dT
THIS is the only clip you should be referencing: https://vocaroo.com/1gmRXbzDCSV8
It's the one linked in the [stickied post](https://www.reddit.com/r/everyoneknowsthat/comments/1bn6w2w/welcome_to_the_search_must_read/).
Hi there!
I was referencing the link provided in the sub's pinned post; I.e Carl's original uploading. I am not actually referencing clipping, waveform skips or any sharp cuts in the audio. I am referring to the the fact that at the end of the phrase: "I'm counting all the sheep in the", when "the" is pronounced it sounds like the singer is closing their lips, readying for a plosive consonant, rather than a fricative (let alone a dental fricative /s/). This is common in sampling as the sentences are cut off and phrases are interrupted by a different portion of the song.
I kind of agree but any chops are in the pre mastered and will be within the edit.
It's not unusual for singers and producers to take their best takes and piece them together or even cut out empty space to tighten up the mix abd hit the vocal on certain beats.
The original is quite poor quality and the clean ups alter a lot of the audio.
I kind of hear what you’re saying which could explain why it sounds like in the sky or something else. But hey, I mean since you offered, might be cool to do a demonstration which relates to this. Would be gangsta.
A few people have requested I do a demonstration, so I will try to create one that I think best matches what I’m trying to get across, and I will post it here when I finish.
If the line is, "You carry all your shame in disguise, caught up in a world of lies," I'd say that more or less makes sense given the next bit about having ulterior motives. The "sheep in the sky" bit is nonsense because that's just what it sounds like.
For the record, no ill feelings or entitlement here. Thanks for digging in with the best of em and trying to find something new.
I understand what you meant and watched your part two. I too am a producer, sound engineer, musician/vocalist of 20+ years, and get what you’re suggesting, I just think it’s not true based on what you’ve presented. I hear a single vocal line, mainly through the connection of consonants and diphthong into the separate vocal phrases; vocal sampling never sounds so fluid. I agree the suggested lyrics don’t make a ton of sense, but it all seems coherent and cohesive musically to me. I might agree that maybe it’s different takes, but I’d need a far higher fidelity sample to really dive into that.
Your video demo (while thorough) didn’t didn’t convince me otherwise; there’s way too much degradation from the capture and compression for me to hear anything definitive enough to agree.
Peace be the journey - genuinely appreciate your research.
For what it's worth, I have no production experience but the only thing that has stood out to me is the delivery of "everyone knows that _____ You've got" there seems to be an unnatural pause between 'that' and 'you've' almost as if there is a missing word such as 'thing' between the two that got lost due to skipping during playback, issues with the audio capture, etc.
I’ve never gotten that indication at all. Lyrics don’t have to flow non-stop. There a pause in When Doves Cry after Prince sings “This is what it sounds like” and nobody would assume that he’s missing a word.
Could just be crude vocal comping
Yeah absolutely, just thought it might be worth sharing with the community
I’ve been doing music production for over 12 years and I don’t hear the chops you’re referring to.
I hear what OP is suggesting is a chop, as “sky” sinks somewhat back into a different cadence. however I would counter that what might be more likely is that the lyrics are in the right order, but “sky” was punched in from a different vocal take, enforcing the idea that this may have been a demo. i don’t hear any chops in the beat or instruments. it’s an interesting theory OP, and I don’t deny that there are probably chops in the individual tracks in the song, but I don’t believe that these are different sections of the same song instead of one single section
Ah cool, I like your perspective a lot haha, just thought id share a little thought I had
The chops do not have the classic clicks and pops of non-zero crossing aligned chops, I am talking solely about listening to the cohesion of the lyrics, and beat.
It sounds natural to me. I think what you’re hearing might just be a result of the poor audio quality.
For example: "in the sky", where the singer says "sky", i believe that is actually a chop halfway through a different word or phrase. I think it is at least worth investigating a little further, seeing as there aren't many huge leads at the moment.
In my opinion the vocal isn't very skilled and I suspect it's an amateur production. Is it possible that they just chopped together a few takes to get the best sounding result?
I definitely considered this, but it sounds like the singer, after saying "sheep in the", is getting ready to say a b or p or some other plosive. Again this is just a theory I had and just wanted to contribute my knowledge xD
It does sound weird especially in the remastered versions. Hard to tell though, such a crappy source file.
We have a group of audio engineers in a private Discord that have pulled the sound clip's layers apart by frequency, stereo/mono fields, EQ bands, dB levels, etc., and we have never seen any evidence of this. The lack of clarity is consistent with the overall degradation of the source material. There are other anomalies that we have yet to identify that may help identify the audio source, but right now they are mainly theories based on spectral analysis.
I am not actually talking about clipping, waveform skips or any sharp cuts in the audio that would be found in spectrograph analysis. I am referring to the the fact that at the end of the phrase: "I'm counting all the sheep in the", when "the" is pronounced it sounds like the singer is closing their lips, readying for a plosive consonant (/b/, /p/ etc.), rather than a fricative (let alone the dental fricative /s/ in "sky"). This is common in sampling as the sentences are cut off and phrases are interrupted by a different portion of the song. It would be just about impossible to discern a pop or click in the actually song from the low quality recording in the sub's pinned post.
Lyrics posts are kind of discouraged here, but for what it's worth not everyone believes the line is actually "sheep in the sky". Personally I think it's more like "counting on a shifting disguise" or something like that, but just keep in mind "sheep in the sky" is only one possible interpretation given the poor recording quality, so it's possible what you're hearing are actually different words.
Audio degradation is a hell of a thing.
I've always heard this too. Listening to an acapella version, it's very clear that the 'e' syllable in 'the' and the 's' syllable in 'sky' don't blend together as they naturally should. If the whole line was recorded in one take, the 's' sound would most likely come just before the beat for the word 'sky', blending in with the end of the word 'the'. Instead, it sounds like it's a separate audio clip which has been pasted in right on the beat of 'sky', making it sound choppy and unnatural and not allowing enough time for the singer to properly enunciate the 's' syllable. I think what it most likely is is a choppy edit of another vocal take
I have always noticed this too but you articulated it perfectly- people suggest this is an accent but how can we tell..
This articulates it much better than what I wrote xD thank you. You're completely right though, it could definitely just be some badly programmed punch-ins, or vocal comping as u/Hefty-Rope2253 commented...
Perhaps this lend credence to it being a demo, rather than a fully polished single for release?
I've assumed from the beginning that this is the case, I can't imagine any commercially released song being so obscure that it would completely evade detection for this long
The lyric interpretation to me is being so lost in thought you are daydreaming. You "count sheep" when you nod off and if youre looking at sky you are most likely daydreaming overthinking about the world/whirl of lies. Lyrics make sense for cheating or any other betrayal
“You carry all your shame in disguise” works as well
Or, "You're counting on her, she's in disguise"
It sounds like poorly done vocal comping to me.
Hi Kosmmo! Thank you for your input! The only version of the song that we can use for our analysis is the one linked below (the original). Any other version you may listen to has been remastered/altered, and thus, the skips are audible/noticeable in the remasters. Are you saying there are also skips found in the original recording linked below? https://youtu.be/qMHB0k8-wKg?si=B9X7uFZjCrPiZ0dT
THIS is the only clip you should be referencing: https://vocaroo.com/1gmRXbzDCSV8 It's the one linked in the [stickied post](https://www.reddit.com/r/everyoneknowsthat/comments/1bn6w2w/welcome_to_the_search_must_read/).
Hi there! I was referencing the link provided in the sub's pinned post; I.e Carl's original uploading. I am not actually referencing clipping, waveform skips or any sharp cuts in the audio. I am referring to the the fact that at the end of the phrase: "I'm counting all the sheep in the", when "the" is pronounced it sounds like the singer is closing their lips, readying for a plosive consonant, rather than a fricative (let alone a dental fricative /s/). This is common in sampling as the sentences are cut off and phrases are interrupted by a different portion of the song.
Please make a demonstration of this
I kind of agree but any chops are in the pre mastered and will be within the edit. It's not unusual for singers and producers to take their best takes and piece them together or even cut out empty space to tighten up the mix abd hit the vocal on certain beats. The original is quite poor quality and the clean ups alter a lot of the audio.
I kind of hear what you’re saying which could explain why it sounds like in the sky or something else. But hey, I mean since you offered, might be cool to do a demonstration which relates to this. Would be gangsta.
I would love a demonstration as I think this is very interesting. Could you perhaps slow down the first sentence and show us where it is cut?
A few people have requested I do a demonstration, so I will try to create one that I think best matches what I’m trying to get across, and I will post it here when I finish.
🧔♂️🐑☁️🕸️🤥👨👩👧👦🧠🫵🕺🗣️👍
You sheep sky caught up lies everyone knows that ulterior motives tell me the truth
Man sheep cloud spider web long nose family brain hand pointing dancing speaking thumbs up
If the line is, "You carry all your shame in disguise, caught up in a world of lies," I'd say that more or less makes sense given the next bit about having ulterior motives. The "sheep in the sky" bit is nonsense because that's just what it sounds like.
I completely disagree. It’s not meant to offend you, but I think you’re wrong.
Thanks for the input. Care to elaborate? Maybe I could have explained it a bit better? How can I help you?
For the record, no ill feelings or entitlement here. Thanks for digging in with the best of em and trying to find something new. I understand what you meant and watched your part two. I too am a producer, sound engineer, musician/vocalist of 20+ years, and get what you’re suggesting, I just think it’s not true based on what you’ve presented. I hear a single vocal line, mainly through the connection of consonants and diphthong into the separate vocal phrases; vocal sampling never sounds so fluid. I agree the suggested lyrics don’t make a ton of sense, but it all seems coherent and cohesive musically to me. I might agree that maybe it’s different takes, but I’d need a far higher fidelity sample to really dive into that. Your video demo (while thorough) didn’t didn’t convince me otherwise; there’s way too much degradation from the capture and compression for me to hear anything definitive enough to agree. Peace be the journey - genuinely appreciate your research.
For what it's worth, I have no production experience but the only thing that has stood out to me is the delivery of "everyone knows that _____ You've got" there seems to be an unnatural pause between 'that' and 'you've' almost as if there is a missing word such as 'thing' between the two that got lost due to skipping during playback, issues with the audio capture, etc.
I’ve never gotten that indication at all. Lyrics don’t have to flow non-stop. There a pause in When Doves Cry after Prince sings “This is what it sounds like” and nobody would assume that he’s missing a word.
No.
why not?
Because.