11-07-2014, 08:49 PM
sharing some thoughts, my vision was to ensure the steels, especially because of their inherent fret buzzing and repeated copy/paste notation (hence they had more than a degree of repetitiveness including buzziness which tended to overstay their welcome on my part), were stepped back somewhat in the mix. also, rhythm doesn't need to be fighting with the melody, eh? this would give the electric and the nylon more of the spotlight. by prioritizing the electric and nylon in this way, it enabled them to form the main focus for the listener without the steels butting in all the time and fighting for the "mind" space. and because they were set back a touch, the levels dropped and it also meant i could roll off the highs and at the same time help minimise the fret buzzing and harsh brittleness which came with the tracking - the main cause of fatigue and a source of irritation, at least on my part.
note at 2:00, when everything is jolling along - 2 steels, each doing their individual thing, the nylon and the electric too - there's 5 guitars working if you include the bass? for me, this puts my head in a spin because i have no idea what to focus on, so in the end i focus instead on the skip button, not so much out of desperation, but more for the need of some relief to stop the dizziness. i was forced to mute some stuff especially at this juncture; i felt the arrangement needed some clarity, focus and direction if it was to engage me more.
i think you did an admirable job in the circumstances, but i'm not sure about your vision. i'm wondering perhaps, if being a guitarist is causing you to battle a bit with the priorities, and by prioritizing everything, nothing really ends up getting the priority? i'm also not comfortable with the nylon's top end here. nylon guitars come in a plethora of string tensions, string windings/materials, wood materials and body sizes that you could get away with anything to remove the rattles here and help smooth it up and mellow-out the delivery. this is a song about Tears in the Rain.....mellow was my vision and tone is key to the delivery of emotion? a self-imposed criteria, was not to have a bright mix which could impart a different and perhaps somewhat ambiguous message, at least subconsciously?
a quick mention of the drums....i thought you had them in quite a big space and somewhat distanced to the rest of the stuff. the toms stuck out a bit in my cans.
there's also a loss of flow around the 0:39 area on the way into the key change which isn't quite working here; it gets a bit bumpy and sounds disjointed?
HEY!! WHERE'S THE TAMBOURINE? hahhahahhah
well, at least it's one potential source of fatigue eloquently dispatched.
my use of reverb was planned to support the mellow vibe i was seeking. soft furnishings, lots of absorbing material....curtains galore, sofas, carpets, an audience (fantastic absorbers!!), whatever i could indulge in. i wasn't after an impression of a large space, but a small one - small is intimate...i'm thinking about the emotional thing again and how i can add to it. rolling off the top end of the reverbs was crucially important in helping to reduce the brightness of the steels as well as minimise the impact of fret buzz which reverbs can over-emphasize, drawing/distracting the listener unintentionally.
anyway, we all have a different perspective on things, and that's the stuff that makes mixes individual. but i greatly respect your stubbornness and willingness to put up such a good effort here though. i think you managed to shave off the fatigue, but there are still parts of the steel which pinch me on occasion in my revealing headphones, once past the intro (0:30's). but it's so nearly there!
note at 2:00, when everything is jolling along - 2 steels, each doing their individual thing, the nylon and the electric too - there's 5 guitars working if you include the bass? for me, this puts my head in a spin because i have no idea what to focus on, so in the end i focus instead on the skip button, not so much out of desperation, but more for the need of some relief to stop the dizziness. i was forced to mute some stuff especially at this juncture; i felt the arrangement needed some clarity, focus and direction if it was to engage me more.
i think you did an admirable job in the circumstances, but i'm not sure about your vision. i'm wondering perhaps, if being a guitarist is causing you to battle a bit with the priorities, and by prioritizing everything, nothing really ends up getting the priority? i'm also not comfortable with the nylon's top end here. nylon guitars come in a plethora of string tensions, string windings/materials, wood materials and body sizes that you could get away with anything to remove the rattles here and help smooth it up and mellow-out the delivery. this is a song about Tears in the Rain.....mellow was my vision and tone is key to the delivery of emotion? a self-imposed criteria, was not to have a bright mix which could impart a different and perhaps somewhat ambiguous message, at least subconsciously?
a quick mention of the drums....i thought you had them in quite a big space and somewhat distanced to the rest of the stuff. the toms stuck out a bit in my cans.
there's also a loss of flow around the 0:39 area on the way into the key change which isn't quite working here; it gets a bit bumpy and sounds disjointed?
HEY!! WHERE'S THE TAMBOURINE? hahhahahhah
well, at least it's one potential source of fatigue eloquently dispatched. my use of reverb was planned to support the mellow vibe i was seeking. soft furnishings, lots of absorbing material....curtains galore, sofas, carpets, an audience (fantastic absorbers!!), whatever i could indulge in. i wasn't after an impression of a large space, but a small one - small is intimate...i'm thinking about the emotional thing again and how i can add to it. rolling off the top end of the reverbs was crucially important in helping to reduce the brightness of the steels as well as minimise the impact of fret buzz which reverbs can over-emphasize, drawing/distracting the listener unintentionally.
anyway, we all have a different perspective on things, and that's the stuff that makes mixes individual. but i greatly respect your stubbornness and willingness to put up such a good effort here though. i think you managed to shave off the fatigue, but there are still parts of the steel which pinch me on occasion in my revealing headphones, once past the intro (0:30's). but it's so nearly there!
Beware...........Cognitive Dissonance!