[Music] Need advice from someone who knows a thing or two about singing

[Kalyyn]

So I've been practicing singing power metal a good bit these last several weeks (don't ask >.<), but there is a specific area in which I'm struggling a lot. You see, power metal vocals tend to frequently get up into an octave that I have a lot of trouble with. I can technically reach it, but I almost entirely lose pitch control while I'm up there and it sounds very bad.

So my question is, can I fix this through practice? Or is my voice just not compatible with that sort of singing? And if I can improve it, is there any way to train that which you find effective?

Anyone who wants to make fun of me for asking this here, I really don't blame you. So poke away.

[Deleted]

How about a Soundcloud example.

[Deleted]

In power metal I've found that you need to find a "sound" and stick to it.

Hitting high notes isn't always necessary. (Dragonforce's latest album is a good example of high notes being hit, especially in a live setting, but Pathfinder and to a lesser extent Blind Guardian rarely hit high notes)

Stick to the octave you can do right, and that sounds the best. You'll enjoy yourself more, it'll sound better, and you won't fuck up your cordes.

Having a voice coach may help you even out the octaves you can reach, but have trouble with, but it turn you into a different singer by "unlocking" elements you absolutely couldn't reach before.

Good luck with it all in any case.

[Kalyyn]

Great answers, both of you! Now I have another question.

A big part of my practice every day is repeatedly singing to a couple of songs which have a lot of really high notes in them, and just going continuously until it hurts to even talk. I've been viewing it with the same philosophy as weightlifting: go until you fail, and pain is good. I figured if I just keep going like that, eventually it'd get easier.

But after what Firebane said, now I'm wondering if pain isn't good? I guess it hadn't really dawned on me until just now that vocal chords probably don't work the same way muscles do. So, is it actually good to force myself past my "limit", or should I stop doing that?