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Angels - I'm Alright - Redux 2
#1
Well...

This is my THIRD post on this song and apparently I am not the only mixer who has come back to this piece repeatedly. So the question is WHY?

What is it about this piece that keeps so many of us trying again and again to capture all of the character this song has to offer. There is no easy answer. This piece is chock full of opportunity to shine and fail. It appears to be an easy get, but obviously, at least for some, it has been a consternation and a battle.

The tempo, bounce, harmonic and melodic content, power and excitement of the parts all need extraordinary attention to fully state the potential of this song. It also has challenging instrumental choices. For instance the piano is a humdrum, a dirge with very little character and excitement. But try removing it, and there is an obvious hole. Then there are the acoustic guitars. These are vital aspects of the rhythmic, melodic and tonal content of the piece but can be very difficult to express wholly in the context of the powerful drums, electrics and vocals.

The song is a collection of hooks, tons of power and tumbled with a great bounce, a great melody and an unmistakable nod towards the familiar (say Santana for example). It is very singable and has from the very beginning had me humming my own hooks between phrases and in the little holes there; the mark of a very catchy tune. The trick is to create and maintain the cohesion between parts, phrases and sections of the song by stitching together all of the great hooks and fills from all of the instruments into a clear and positive statement. No easy task considering the number of threads in the cloth of this wonderful piece.

There are places where the toms take you from one phrase to the next and where the snare does the same. The snare was pretty easy to get. The toms were not. If the kick was given too much emphasis it ended up pushing everything else above it. Temperance was key for the kick, for me. Eventually I think I got a good blend between kick and bass. The overheads could get short and thin but the ride cymbal was vital for its tonal content and how it worked with the acoustic in places.

In a larger context the acoustic lead introduces a major hook and then supports the electric lead in other places in the song. Getting these phrases stated properly was a challenge for me.

The electric goes from a supporting rhythm part right to a lead part that needs to shine. This can get complicated by whatever panning choices you make with the rhythm parts. If you have panned the rhythm then pull the lead into the center it can create a hole. If you panned the rhythm guitar in the center to not shock the listener from a move the rhythm parts can step on the vocal. I think I found a solution to this in Mix 3 which also solved for the location of the piano.

The bass is another challenge. At times the playing is understated when you would want it more aggressive. I did a lot to the bass to get it where I wanted it. First I notched out a bunch of resonances I did not like, compressed it aggressively, re-amped it with a big slice of tube drive and another EQ. It is then placed in the drum room and has a delay added, both using sends. I liked the way the bass ends up and it has a lot of hooks to add to the song and gets a chance to shine when called upon.

Let's talk about the percussion. This could have an obnoxious and over-bearing presence if over used yet, if underused, you would lose a lot of counter-punctual excitement. Plus the scraped Guiro is absolutely vital in support of the rhythm acoustic in several places and the conga are a great addition during the bridge.

The vocals. They had their challenges mostly in tonal content due to the lyric and key of the song. At times the vocals could get honky if not dealt with carefully. The lead vocal was compressed and EQ'd aggressively and then de-essed and the vocal buss compressed again. The background vocals were treated similarly with an added flanger for some harmonic enhancements and movement.

Needless to say, there is a lot of automation throughout the arrangement to help properly state phrases, transitions and hooks. There is more automation in this song than I normally do.

Well that's it in a rather big nutshell. I am sure you all have your own stories on your approach to this piece. Thanks for taking the time to read and I hope listen to mine. I am presenting the three mixes which traversed the evolution of this iteration of my approach for this particular posting.

Comments and input are most welcome.

Thanks,
mITc

Angels in the Amplifiers - I'm Alright
This first mix may be my best in this lot. It does lack some of the nuance of the other two mixes but also has a freshness and openness the others may lack.

Angels in the Amplifiers - I'm Alright - Mix 2
Mostly there were mastering changes to this one with some minor tweaks of the mix.

Angels in the Amplifiers - I'm Alright - Mix 3
This mix introduces the change in position of the piano part. I struggled with this until I recognized the similarity between the piano part and the rhythm guitar part. As a result I panned the piano to the same location as the guitar. This did several things. It enhanced the tonal content of the guitar and piano and partially covered the hole in the mix when rhythm guitar became the lead guitar, panned center and created more space for the vocals.


.mp3    Angels in the Amplifiers - I\'m Alright.mp3 --  (Download: 6.95 MB)


.mp3    Angels in the Amplifiers - I\'m Alright - Mix 2.mp3 --  (Download: 6.95 MB)


.mp3    Angels in the Amplifiers - I\'m Alright - Mix 3.mp3 --  (Download: 6.95 MB)


PreSonus Studio One DAW
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#2
Yes, good post.

I agree with your thoughts and insight on this. I do really like the piano part though!

I think it’s tougher than it first appears to get good balance and panning for each section and also to get good dynamic contrast between the sections. The raw parts have pretty much the same energy level throughout the track so you have to craft the build ups and excitement with volume automation. I tried to build everything up to a peak at the 2 minute mark for my 2nd go at this.

If you listen through the reference mix, for me there somehow isn’t quite enough contrast or change in energy levels between the verse and chorus sections, although there really wants to be.

I feel the multi-tracks where you have the whole band playing together, the band tend to manage the dynamics and balance themselves playing off each other, so it’s a little easier to work out the mix (the musicians mix themselves basically). I am guessing this is a studio based track, with lots of overdubbed parts, and is a little more work for the mixer to craft the dynamics of the track with automation to get it to really gel, and really unlock the tracks full potential.

This track is packed with great moments and it’s a real challenge to get stuck in and piece it all together. I feel it is difficult to get the volume automation right to get all the parts to shine and hit with the right energy levels.
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#3
I’ve been listening to your mix3 - I hear what you are doing and aiming for with regards to getting each piece of the puzzle to shine, especially the bass. Interestingly I found I got a better 3D sense of the mix on headphones rather than monitors.

The mix is a bit harsh to my ears in the 1k, and 3.5-4k region (ear fatigue?). The guitars especially are a bit too bright I think. I also feel a bit more 200Hz would be beneficial also. I did a quick wide 4-5db cut at around 1k and 3.5k and a little 1-2db boost at 200Hz which I felt helped to hear the mix a bit better. I think the drums could be brought up more in the mix with respect to the guitars and vocal too, which I am thinking is the key to this track, along with a touch more snare and snare reverb/ambience.

Hope my thoughts are of some use. I’m interested to know what you think, maybe am I way off the mark? As you are aware I am trying to learn and find my way.

Needless to say this thread already prompted me to revisit my 2nd attempt at this...
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