[The file quality I normally use was too big to upload. Went with a somewhat lower quality instead. Should still be acceptable.]
So here's my take. Mixed and mastered.
It can really be tough to work on a long multi-track like this, especially one that has lots of parts coming and going. With the length and the changes, I found it really difficult to get a decent picture of what they mix ought to be. In some ways, it really is five separate mixes. I found that I got the guitars or bass balanced and sounding good on one section only to realize that I had upset another. That left me to doing a lot of my basic level adjustments via fader automation. By far, I think that was the biggest challenge, just the sheer scope.
Vocals... Okay, these were... a good deal of work. I usually try to avoid doing much of a high pass on female vocals because they thin out really quickly. That left me trying to figure out how to keep them from being masked by the instruments. Also, I spent a fair amount of time in Melodyne working on these. Were I the recording engineer, I would have gone with a dry, solo playback on these. Helps to better expose problematic areas. There are a few points where a redo might have been the better option. Between the doubles and the chorus, there were also a good number of timing issues. When working with a singer, my observation from the mixes I have done is that it is worth spending time with them to work on enunciation and attack/release. If these vary too much, especially on a double track and more especially at the front of a note, it can be very hard to get them to sound unified when you mix. (eg, "ssssshoould you, wwwwwon't you" vs "should you, wonnn't youuuu-hhhhhh".) Had to nudge a lot of things around and adjust formants and attack duration. These variations in performance also tend to lead to things such as inconsistent drift (like one pass falling off the end of a long note or lifting up at the start of another while the other is steady or even rising a tad in anticipation) and that can make it hard for two parts to sound in proper tune. Over correct and you get Cher instead of Adele.
Most of what I did I think was successful here.
Frequency separation was a challenge, as it always is when multiple synth parts are involved. Not really happy with the job I did there but at the least, if I muted something, I noticed that it went away.
For the guitars, I chose to use blended mics. Some got two, some got three, some got all four. Mostly it was mic #2 and #3. I then bussed each guitar part to its own aux fader and put the compressors and etc over there. Largely, I didn't touch the faders on these tracks once I had the rough mix set. (Largest count of aux faders I've ever had!)
Next problem was getting good bass tone and consistent low end. I tried to over drive it a bit to generate some mid tones but didn't like the sound. In the end, I put it through an amp plugin, compressed it, then ran it through lowender which is always a dodgy proposition. Great plugin, but small changes make a BIG difference. I admit that I never really got this settled until I went to the mastering stage and found I had to stick a multi-band compressor on the main bus specifically to try to tame low and low-mids.
Lastly was the drum overheads. The mics seemed to be positioned higher than I would have preferred. That meant MUCH room tone and the sound didn't fit where I saw this mix wanting to go. For me, with a rock or metal mix the overheads are really cymbal mics and I otherwise build my kit from the bottom up. To get enough cymbals and hat here, I had to catch more of the room sound than I wanted and couldn't really find a way to dry out the sound so I could put my own reverb on the kit. In the end, I think I finally found a good compromise but it wasn't easy. Also struggled with the kick.
Anyway, after about 25 hours, here's my version. Wish I had Mike's level of experience. This tune has good potential but it's above my skill to get it there.
Oh, and a reminder to save early and save often! My DAW locked up my PC at least four times while I was working on this. Oddly, it never just crashes, it always takes the entire system with it as it cries out in pain...
So here's my take. Mixed and mastered.
It can really be tough to work on a long multi-track like this, especially one that has lots of parts coming and going. With the length and the changes, I found it really difficult to get a decent picture of what they mix ought to be. In some ways, it really is five separate mixes. I found that I got the guitars or bass balanced and sounding good on one section only to realize that I had upset another. That left me to doing a lot of my basic level adjustments via fader automation. By far, I think that was the biggest challenge, just the sheer scope.
Vocals... Okay, these were... a good deal of work. I usually try to avoid doing much of a high pass on female vocals because they thin out really quickly. That left me trying to figure out how to keep them from being masked by the instruments. Also, I spent a fair amount of time in Melodyne working on these. Were I the recording engineer, I would have gone with a dry, solo playback on these. Helps to better expose problematic areas. There are a few points where a redo might have been the better option. Between the doubles and the chorus, there were also a good number of timing issues. When working with a singer, my observation from the mixes I have done is that it is worth spending time with them to work on enunciation and attack/release. If these vary too much, especially on a double track and more especially at the front of a note, it can be very hard to get them to sound unified when you mix. (eg, "ssssshoould you, wwwwwon't you" vs "should you, wonnn't youuuu-hhhhhh".) Had to nudge a lot of things around and adjust formants and attack duration. These variations in performance also tend to lead to things such as inconsistent drift (like one pass falling off the end of a long note or lifting up at the start of another while the other is steady or even rising a tad in anticipation) and that can make it hard for two parts to sound in proper tune. Over correct and you get Cher instead of Adele.
Most of what I did I think was successful here.Frequency separation was a challenge, as it always is when multiple synth parts are involved. Not really happy with the job I did there but at the least, if I muted something, I noticed that it went away.
For the guitars, I chose to use blended mics. Some got two, some got three, some got all four. Mostly it was mic #2 and #3. I then bussed each guitar part to its own aux fader and put the compressors and etc over there. Largely, I didn't touch the faders on these tracks once I had the rough mix set. (Largest count of aux faders I've ever had!)
Next problem was getting good bass tone and consistent low end. I tried to over drive it a bit to generate some mid tones but didn't like the sound. In the end, I put it through an amp plugin, compressed it, then ran it through lowender which is always a dodgy proposition. Great plugin, but small changes make a BIG difference. I admit that I never really got this settled until I went to the mastering stage and found I had to stick a multi-band compressor on the main bus specifically to try to tame low and low-mids.
Lastly was the drum overheads. The mics seemed to be positioned higher than I would have preferred. That meant MUCH room tone and the sound didn't fit where I saw this mix wanting to go. For me, with a rock or metal mix the overheads are really cymbal mics and I otherwise build my kit from the bottom up. To get enough cymbals and hat here, I had to catch more of the room sound than I wanted and couldn't really find a way to dry out the sound so I could put my own reverb on the kit. In the end, I think I finally found a good compromise but it wasn't easy. Also struggled with the kick.
Anyway, after about 25 hours, here's my version. Wish I had Mike's level of experience. This tune has good potential but it's above my skill to get it there.
Oh, and a reminder to save early and save often! My DAW locked up my PC at least four times while I was working on this. Oddly, it never just crashes, it always takes the entire system with it as it cries out in pain...
Old West Audio
