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The Way hanibal mixed animal style
#11
Hi there,
Just focusing on the intro and those critical 30 seconds....first I can hear the noise-floor. The guitar noodling will be too quiet for most domestic environments, and impossible in a car for example. Then the bass comes in....the disparity between the lead and bass seems excessive and this disparity is messing with my subjective assessment and perspective of their depth to each other and hence placement overall. Faced with this, i'd turn the lead up a fistful (engage me!), and the bass down a touch (do you play bass??). As the intro progresses, you could automate the lead down when the vocal starts, then give the bass it's role perhaps....even adding a touch of distortion at this juncture, for interest.

The difference between the intro guitar and the loudest part of the mix (see EBU R128 for guidance), based on momentary loudness, is a whacking 24dB!

The kick seems to me to be majorly detached from the kit..and the band. On that basis you need to place it in the depth field which can be challenging. The kit generally though is mixed dry (apart from the room ambiance captured by the OH's). perhaps seek some consistency here? Things sound 2-dimensional, not 3D overall which limits the potential of where you can take the mix....and the interest you can bring. The consequence of 2D, on me anyway, is that the vocalist is behind all the gear; the FX she has compared to the dryness of everything else is hampering placement, unless this was your vision? Interesting effects you put on her though, nice exploration – great courage!! If you want the kick so up-front, then perhaps automate it in places, for example when the song backs off, back the kick off too, it's a distraction away from the vocal otherwise. Loud seeks attention to whatever it is that's loud. It's the voice that's important here...not the kick (drummers would argue! lol). If there was a strong groove that needed the kick to support and drive this, then great. But it's banging all the time. Boring. Variety is the spice of life Big Grin

The OH's are hazardous, suggesting a low ceiling in the tracking room (and/or China mics)? Anyway, they are used rather intensively throughout the song (and to me, lose their benefit as a consequence – change is good), not only for signalling transitions but for general drum support (looks like i'm going in further than 30 seconds now, lol) and it doesn't take long before they start to fatigue and prove troublesome....and I want to click and get out of here. I struggled with this problem during my mix but got somewhat creative with solutions, but whatever we do, it's going to be a compromise in the circumstances. Part of the problem is the fact that they hang out around 4kHz, right in the ear's most sensitive region. You need to fix this as best you can, and try and do so while avoiding the Habituation Effect. One trick I tried was to mix some pink noise into them and change their spectral content a little. However, pushing the mix into the limiter isn't going to help address the problem, but will worsen it by making stuff even more brittle....The mix is clipping and suffering from hyper compression – the momentary loudness was about 6LU's, which is not cool.

Yes, some would say that fatigue is a taste thing and based on personal preference, lol.

One thing the band gave us, which i'm highly respectful of, is dynamics...generally. However, everyone seems to want to take the listener back to 1878 in Edison's time when dynamics were limited but more available back then than they are today! You've made it loud, but if I turn this down by 8dB, compared to a dynamic mix (simulating iTunes SoundCheck) it sucks....lifeless, dead, boring even. This can be improved by backing off your compressors (why are you using them...is it habit? Easily done), or getting some speakers with decent headroom that don't compress as badly - all speakers compress...but low budget ones are mighty troublesome. If we dial in too much compression before the speaker begins to tell us what's happening, overcooking will be the order of the day.

Another gift the band gave us opportunity wise, was “musical” dynamic within the arrangement. This song has moments where things can cool off, relax one minute, then crank the next. Actually, this can take some managing, but it's a good problem to have. Because of the processing on your master buss coupled within the mix, much of these dynamics have been removed making things sound level and all at one loudness, offering little in the way of contrast. Listeners, apparently, like and need contrast, it helps them connect and engage.....and hopefully spend their money to own it! This is a longggg song, and if you don't take the listener on a trip of variety and entertainment, they will never come back........

…......If you want loud, there has to be some quiet or the loud will end up being simply “normal”.

Now, downmix to mono, and put the output through one speaker only. Forward the mix to 2:00 and see if those guitars want to take you emotionally to planet Joy. If they don't connect in mono it's a message that there's a problem in stereo too. But simply listening in stereo won't warn of the issues because the speakers/cans are working independently (not strictly true..stuff merges in a room and we don't all sit in the sweet spot during consumption).

Anyway, I hope at least some of this helps. I'm not in the forum much these days, so discussion might be a problem unless you're patient Wink

Laters,,,
BigDave
Beware...........Cognitive Dissonance!
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