First mix posted in quite some time.

[The_Metallurgist]

I felt like a loud, four on the floor electro kick was giving the verse too much energy and not leaving enough room for the chorus.

by energy, do you mean volts and the subsequent loss of headroom relative to the needs of the chorus?

My vision was to sacrifice some of that low end energy in the verses so the chorus could expand vertically and have more impact. You're right, though, it could come up a bit.

expand vertically? you mean treble-wise (re. the 3-dimensions)? i think the kick could come up a lot more generally, but what i'm missing here and in everyone else's mix, is the bass guitar, or rather it's bassss. so, i pulled the multi and took a quick look, and it seems the bass is often higher up the register, making the low-end somewhat thin and weak'ish and a touch devoid of rhythm and pulse - the emphasis seems placed on the guitars as a consequence? as a side note, the heavy guitars are calling for some distortion on the bass so it can hang in there with the gang. i especially liked the character you'd mixed into the e-guitars.

also took a listen to the preview....which had the blazes sidechained out of it, rather interestingly. blimey, that gave the song some rhythm!! lol.

on the vertical dimension, the ramp up at ~2:16 sounded generous in treble? i'm wondering if less is more in this instance, it would benefit the vocal too, which sounds like she's struggling to keep her head up here. did you automate her upwards at this point? also on the vocal, i'd give her some width in the mix (but not a reverb) - note she's very present in mono...which suggests there's some scope. but the snare disappears here, so too the kick. still in this area, the RH cymbal appears somewhat overly present in the ear and it's fatiguing in my cans (i'm on the Ovations). i'm thinking that if the kit is somewhat in the depth field, so the cymbals can go pretty much mono perhaps with trebles rolled off a little, which would also work in your favour by reducing the spectral skew? i'm not sure i'd want the kit so far back as it appears in the illusion you've created though, but i guess also from the other elements, that you wanted some space in your vision? me thinks the song would benefit from less depth [overall], which would help the gear cut through the mix too. you mentioned about taking the mix vertically, which is a neat idea, and working the trebles accordingly...which also makes a song subjectively louder (and perceptively louder with increasing SPL, of course) and brings with it it's own form of energy, drive and emotion - treble is exciting. it's a good way to get some contrast....and to do so without having to push the levels up so much.....and guard that all important headroom while so doing. you could probably find the first two choruses could come down in amplitude without losing the vibe (the last paragraph briefly touches upon this subject).

occasionally the sibilance has moments where it's a little on the uncomfortable side, though when the song is banging and the cymbals are flying, it doesn't stick out because of the masking, but then i find the trebles difficult. what technique did you employ to de-ess, out of interest?

this is a mega dynamic mix...more akin to classical, i'd say. personally, i'd consider having a louder intro to get the listener's interest, then backing it off a little while relaxing into the first verse, then meddle with the levels on the way to the climax. the choruses, for example, all sound at the same level - while there aren't rules, it's generally the norm to have the final section/conclusion the loudest for emotional impact and we build on the way, with the verses structured to suit. so, this has me wondering where you start mixing first - i'd personally start at the loudest spot because this sets the headroom limit, then i know how much room i have left to wiggle the faders. note the song around 2:45 disappears in loudness relative to the song overall....then the chorus comes in with striking contrast a brief moment later (but not as wild as i went with Howlin, thankfully, LOL!). i'd recommend reducing the song's dynamics; while i didn't put the meter on it, judging by the output level on my gear in the back room, you're well above -14 LUFS. this is probably THE most dynamic mix i've ever come across in the forum. incredible. Mastering engineers dream of getting such clients!