17-02-2024, 07:11 AM
The most important thing for me was to capture the intent of the song. IMHO, the band's mix was a bit too pop; technically it was great, everything was clear and audible, but it was just too polite, and I wanted my mix to have a bit more of the aggressiveness and attitude that a song like this deserves, nay demands. Having said that, I would normally slam things a bit harder than I have, but I also wanted to maintain the general sound the band already has.
The other key goal was to highlight the vocals - what a rip-snorter of a performance!
Song sections:
Note that I lopped off 18 seconds from the start of the song, so add that to the timestamps above if you're referencing the band's mix. In that mix, it takes 29 seconds before the vocal comes in, which is just begging for the listener to hit Next in their playlist
One big thing I had to deal with was that the kick, bass and guitars were often hitting at the same time, which cause all kinds of problems in the low end. The culprit was mostly the guitar, so I scooped out a big chunk out at 130 Hz, and then adding some dynamic EQ to further control that area. I ended up automating the dynamic EQ to be on only when it was needed, to avoid messing up the tone when it wasn't.
There was also a bit of harshness in the tone, so I added another dynamic EQ at 3.2 kHz to tame that. I also boosted the transients a touch during the choruses, to give them more bite. Finally, I automated the panning of the 2 tracks, from between 50% left/right during the verses, to 100% during the choruses, to provide a contrasting tight vs. wide sound.
The chorus guitars were easy to mix in comparison, just a bit of compression and a small boost at 600 Hz to give it a bit of body, and scoops at 135 Hz and 2.5 kHz to make room for the kick, bass and snare. It's really important that the power chords hit hard, so I also boosted the transients, to give them more bite.
The guitar solo (break/outro) had resonances in the mid-range, so I add a bit of dynamic EQ at 1150 Hz and 3.2 kHz to tame those. I also extended the long held note at the very end, since it felt like it needed to float in the air for just a tad longer.
I liked the band's idea of phasing the guitar solo during the vamp and final chorus, so I did the same, automating it so that it starts off quietly, increasing to full effect by the start of the chorus.
I simplified the kick and bass lines during the first half of the verses, to make it a bit more laid-back, to provide contrast with the second half, which are a bit busier. I also thought the band's mix was too sparse at these times, with just the vocal, kick and snare, so I brought up the guitar a lot, to fill out the sound.
The main vocal was relatively easy to mix, a bit of compression and tape emulation, Vibe EQ to add air. Some phrases were a little dull, so I automated an EQ boost at 6 kHz and above, to bring them in line with the rest of the track. I also extended the scream leading into the vamp, since it cuts off quite abruptly.
I've started playing around with Revoice, so I created a double track for the vocal, to fatten up the sound a bit. I often fatten up a vocal by using an EQ to isolate the main body of the vocal, compressing it hard, and panning it out a bit left and right, with slightly different delays, but the Revoice'd version sounded slightly better (perhaps because it's also tweaking the pitch and timing as well).
I also added in some extra backing vocals during the vamp to add interest, since it seemed like the song wasn't going anywhere at that time. The song is absolutely thumping during that section, but it felt a bit like when you see a band play live, and they've forgotten the arrangement, so they groove along for a chorus while they figure out what to do next
The other key goal was to highlight the vocals - what a rip-snorter of a performance!
Song sections:
- 0:00 intro
- 0:29 verse 1
- 0:58 verse 2
- 1:27 chorus 1
- 1:49 break
- 2:08 verse 3
- 2:37 chorus 2
- 2:59 chorus 3
- 3:21 drop
- 3:31 vamp
- 3:50 chorus
- 2:59 outro
Note that I lopped off 18 seconds from the start of the song, so add that to the timestamps above if you're referencing the band's mix. In that mix, it takes 29 seconds before the vocal comes in, which is just begging for the listener to hit Next in their playlist
One big thing I had to deal with was that the kick, bass and guitars were often hitting at the same time, which cause all kinds of problems in the low end. The culprit was mostly the guitar, so I scooped out a big chunk out at 130 Hz, and then adding some dynamic EQ to further control that area. I ended up automating the dynamic EQ to be on only when it was needed, to avoid messing up the tone when it wasn't.
There was also a bit of harshness in the tone, so I added another dynamic EQ at 3.2 kHz to tame that. I also boosted the transients a touch during the choruses, to give them more bite. Finally, I automated the panning of the 2 tracks, from between 50% left/right during the verses, to 100% during the choruses, to provide a contrasting tight vs. wide sound.
The chorus guitars were easy to mix in comparison, just a bit of compression and a small boost at 600 Hz to give it a bit of body, and scoops at 135 Hz and 2.5 kHz to make room for the kick, bass and snare. It's really important that the power chords hit hard, so I also boosted the transients, to give them more bite.
The guitar solo (break/outro) had resonances in the mid-range, so I add a bit of dynamic EQ at 1150 Hz and 3.2 kHz to tame those. I also extended the long held note at the very end, since it felt like it needed to float in the air for just a tad longer.
I liked the band's idea of phasing the guitar solo during the vamp and final chorus, so I did the same, automating it so that it starts off quietly, increasing to full effect by the start of the chorus.
I simplified the kick and bass lines during the first half of the verses, to make it a bit more laid-back, to provide contrast with the second half, which are a bit busier. I also thought the band's mix was too sparse at these times, with just the vocal, kick and snare, so I brought up the guitar a lot, to fill out the sound.
The main vocal was relatively easy to mix, a bit of compression and tape emulation, Vibe EQ to add air. Some phrases were a little dull, so I automated an EQ boost at 6 kHz and above, to bring them in line with the rest of the track. I also extended the scream leading into the vamp, since it cuts off quite abruptly.
I've started playing around with Revoice, so I created a double track for the vocal, to fatten up the sound a bit. I often fatten up a vocal by using an EQ to isolate the main body of the vocal, compressing it hard, and panning it out a bit left and right, with slightly different delays, but the Revoice'd version sounded slightly better (perhaps because it's also tweaking the pitch and timing as well).
I also added in some extra backing vocals during the vamp to add interest, since it seemed like the song wasn't going anywhere at that time. The song is absolutely thumping during that section, but it felt a bit like when you see a band play live, and they've forgotten the arrangement, so they groove along for a chorus while they figure out what to do next
The point you make about it making the band sound small when they arrive is spot-on.