Stop and Rise - SG

[SacredGroove]

I went for a harder rocking version of this song than a lot of the mixes I've heard.  I tried pushing the guitars more without being overwhelming.  I'm still having issues with consistent levels on the vocals and my drum mix is kinda bland.
Let me know what you think.  Thanks!
Scott

New mix added - Drums more present.  BG Vox slight bump in volume.

[mikej]

Hi,

Happened to give this a few listens earlier today on earbuds and wanted to check on monitors before posting my thoughts.

Overall it's a good mix. I especially like the intro. Quite atmospheric - nice reverb on the guitars there. I feel most of the issues you mention can be fixed with a little targeted eq, as I suspect the issue is more down to eq rather than balance by and large. Saying that, it's worth thinking about when you think the drummer should hit the snare a little harder, and when the guitarist and bass player might put a little more emphasis in, and subtly automate that in too.

My thoughts are that a little (as in 1db or less) 2-4k might enhance the vocal clarity. Similarly A little 200-400 will bring the vocal closer. It might also help dipping these frequencies a touch (also by a db or less) on the guitar bus too. Similar sort of thing on the drum bus - try a little bus eq to bring out kick, snare (target low and top), etc, perhaps a touch more.

To make the drums more exciting, aside from the eq tip mentioned above, it might be worth experimenting with different reverbs on the rooms and snare. I can't remember which drum parts were included with the session, but you can sometimes add the excitement playing about with eq on the the room channel too to get different things poking out around the mix.

Looking at the overall frequecy balance of your mix, it seems a bit scooped in the 300Hz-3k region. A small but wide boost here on the master bus for me brings back quite a lot of body and excitement. Similarly you might wish to add a touch more air on the mix too, depending on taste.

I might possibly give this track another try myself as I feel my mixing has moved on a little since I originally gave this one a go.

Anyway, just my thoughts. Maybe you'll find something worth thinking about there... or not!

Cheers!

[SacredGroove]

Hi Mike,

Thanks for the reply! I think much of your critique solutions is what I actually hear in my monitors, however, when I listen elsewhere, the mix is quite different - more bass, bland drums, scooped sound overall. I'm guessing I have a worse listening environment than I initially suspected. My monitors are 1st gen Mackie HR624. They have some dsp features that I can (hopefully) change to better suit my listening space.

I know I can get the vox under control. I just need to spend a little more time with them. The trouble track for me is the female lead. I was trying to avoid automating the volume level and just use a compressor/limiter combo. I'll try your suggestions and see how it goes, but either way, I'll post an updated version.

FWIW, I listened to your mix of this song. If you're going to have another try at it then I'll refrain from commenting on your original.

Thanks again!
Scott

[mikej]

Hi,

Yeah I feel you could be right there. If you find your mix isn't translating as you expect then you probably need to try and address that first. Especially if you didn't intend it to be that scooped, etc. I know some people do like things a bit scooped and more laid back. I suppose my preference is to have things a bit more upfront I guess.

I did notice that the bass was maybe a little elevated, but where it is might necessarily be a bad thing if the mids / upper mids are there to balance things out. I think you can clearly see the bass, mid scoop and high freq roll off on an analyser?

One thing that might help is to A/B your mix (level matched) with a selection of suitable commercial mixes and go from there.

I spent a couple of weeks a few years ago getting my head around the mix translation thing. During the process I actually binned off a couple of pairs of (actually quite decent and well respected) headphones that I found really weren't working for me at all and were actually throwing me off course quite badly, perception wise. The whole thing turned out to be quite a difficult and tough process - but was well worth the effort in the end.

If you think you need to dig in and automate the vocal, then I feel sometimes you just have to get on and do it really. It's well worth the effort if it gets you get the result you want.

Do feel free to leave a comment on my mix of this if you'd like. Although I mixed this a couple of years ago it would still be interesting to hear your thoughts on it. I know I always listen to people's mixes when reading their comments on my mixes, and I expect others to do the same. It's really that I feel my comments perhaps might make a bit more sense taken in context with my more recent mixes than those I did a couple of years ago.

Cheers!

[SacredGroove]

Updated original post and added new mix.

[mikej]

Updated original post and added new mix.

Yes, better [mix 4]. The drums do have a bit more weight which also has the effect of creating a kind of pocket, frequency wise, for the vocal. I feel perhaps the verse vocal could maybe come up a little more in volume... at the same time I do like it not being as loud as the chorus vocal as it gives the chorus a nice lift.

Cheers!