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SpedeMix
#1
Hello. Wanted to share a mix of this track. No arrangement overhaul,
more just a "Mix" Big Grin

I felt this was a very weird song altogether; the verses had this "bluesy AOR"
kind of feeling coupled with slightly "smartass" lyrics but the rest of the
material is more ethereal and serious alternative pop. So I guess the
challenge was to get these two worlds to shake hands. Also one big thing
was to get the last chorus more powerful than the previous part (with the
tom comping). I've never thought about doing something like this but the
last chorus here is literally louder than the other ones.


.m4a    Stitch_Up_MixOff.m4a --  (Download: 3.32 MB)


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#2
Hi Spede,

thanks for sharing the mix, and especially for sharing your perspective on this song! I'd scratch my head a bit as well, but even without a clear idea of what to wish for, I have some strong first impressions.

What I like is the overall guitar texture. I believe I hear a Strat that did not catch my attention in the other versions. And I like Strats! What I also like is the fluffy snare. Two highlights literally make me grin. The first is the pan sweep at 2:06. The second is how well the rhythmic interplay shows, best heard in the three bars starting at 0:31. If you ever work again on this song, please keep that intact!

On the other hand, I was a bit disappointed when I expected the "now or never" background vocal to hit -- and it hid instead. Generally, I perceive the vocals as a bit weak; somewhere between your and uzilevi's level would be right for me. I'd wish for the 2 kHz range to be a bit softer, and the attack of the kick sticks out too much for my taste.

Overall, I think the mix makes good sense of this song. I like it!

Marc
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#3
A nice alternative vision compared with my Mix Rescue version, certainly. It's interesting to hear a more hi-fi sound like this, and with such a lovely open sound you've created for the drums. The ride in particular is a thing of beauty. The mix coherence is really good too, but on the downside I do wonder if the reverb overall is making itself a bit too consciously audible. I'd probably increase the HF damping in particular, because it feels like that's washing things out slightly.

Going for a rich bass tone like this is also a sensible solution to the thinness of the chorus guitars on the multitrack, so I'm with you there. I like the 'garagey' slapback-style effects for the solo guitar too -- they really work well for me. (Although the mix does then feel like it's slightly missing something when they disappear. Maybe that's just because I like them so much!) Good idea with the reverse fill into chorus two at 2:07 as well. The clarity of the high guitar on the left at 2:39 is also something I'm fond of.

I agree with ThePhonk that the "now or never" entry disappoints, though, even trying to mentally compensate for my familiarity with this particular project. The little background ad-libs also seem to have fallen between two stools too, in that they're loud enough to be a little distracting, but without being loud enough that I can really hear what they're saying. That might be intentional (and defensible artistically), but it didn't win me over personally. Thought your master-fader ride for the final chorus worked, though.

Overall this is a very appealing mix which I enjoyed listening to. Thanks for posting!
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