We'll Talk About It All Tonight - HB Mix

[HbGuitar]

I somehow missed the harmonica track on this project and it wasn't until i was listening to everyone else's mix that I heard it.

Anyway i decided to leave it out as I had already taken up the space I would have needed to give it by using the glockenspiel and sleigh bells - and it would have killed the Christmassy vibe that i had going on in my head with the strings, bells and horns
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new version, mix_02 uploaded below

[pauli]

The spectral balance is pretty good, but I'm losing the glock quite a bit and the piano panned so hard to one side is a little distracting, especially since you've left so much low frequency content. The piano blends very well during the sections where the mix gets busy, good job with that. I'm "used" to hearing the harmonica, so those spots in the mix feel a little empty to me, but that probably wouldn't have been the case if it were my first listen.

my main concern is that the level of compression is pretty uncomfortable, particularly on the drums. the kick drum is pumping really hard, and that "sucking" sensation is a bit much, especially given that the kick is so busy. I'm not sure why, but the snare's attack get's pretty lost here and there, but I have a sneaking feeling it's related to the compression. The compression on the vocal is really audible, too.

It's hard to give suggestions not knowing what compression settings you're using... but in general, if you're compressing the entire mix, or even chunks of the mix like a drum bus, and the VU meter isn't return '0' every couple beats or so, you're using too much. The same applies to vocals and acoustic instruments for the most part, because we're used to hearing those things "naturally," so processing artifacts are more evident. Based on what I've heard, I'd suggest you take a look at how the kick drum is affecting the overall mix dynamics, especially if you're compressing the master bus, and definitely ease up on the vocal compression, too, and let it breathe.

having said all that, your EQ work sounds pretty good. It'll probably need a little tweaking if you choose to ease up on the compression, but not much. You're well on your way, though.. a fine work in progress!

[HbGuitar]

new version, mix_02

1) improve kick/snare definition
2) clean-up vocal
3) pan solo piano to centre

[Olli H]

Opening sound feels nice and open to me, but when the vocal appears it feels little shrinked. As if you have too much deep eq cuts or something. Try to listen with low volume, then the effect is more audible.

Instrument balances feel ok to me. And instrument sounds as such feel good to me. But you maybe have too much compression in overall sound. Your mix is not loud, but it still feels that you have compressed it too much.

I'm quite sure that you'll get excellent mix by
- lessening compression everywhere
- lessening processing of vocals

… and now I realize that Pauli gave you about same ideas, but with much better details.

While listening your mix I noticed there's a cymbal in the intro that I don't have at all. I must check that.

[HbGuitar]

@pauli, @Olli H - thx for your feedback guys. I made some changes based on your comments (see mix_02 above).

@Olli H I'm hoping that your feedback is for ver1 . I put up ver2 at the virtually the exact same time that you were posting your comments

[pauli]

the vocal could be a bit more up-front, although your other changes are improvements. try easing up the gain on the vocal until certain frequencies start popping out, and cut those frequencies as necessary, until the level is right.

[pauli]

further to that point... when you're EQing, try to use an EQ that has a gain adjustment available... so you can volume match your cuts with the unprocessed signal. that's the only way to know for sure if your EQing is fixing the balance or just making it sound different.

[sano]

Lovely sounding vocal and I love the sense of space you've created with your use of reverbs. I actually preferred the drums in your first mix as I think the kick is a little to forward now. Overall a great sounding mix !

[HbGuitar]

Lovely sounding vocal and I love the sense of space you've created with your use of reverbs. I actually preferred the drums in your first mix as I think the kick is a little to forward now. Overall a great sounding mix !

Hey Sano...thanks for your feedback and kind words..I'm glad you like the verb fx..

Interesting that you liked the drums in original mix...i quite liked the understated nature in them too...but once pauli drew my attention to them i did notice that the bass and kick were slightly out of time with each other......been messing about with some new compressor/saturation emulations on my drum buss...maybe a bit too much...2nd mix is more bog standard

[pauli]

Hey hb, good work on the revision. Less obvious compression makes it much easier to evaluate your mix as a whole. The overall tonality of the entire mix is nice for the most part, although there's some competition against the vocal in the upper mids. The backing instruments blend nicely when the vocal is absent, so perhaps some automated dips in the upper mids would allow more definition in the vocals and smooth out the overall tonality a bit more. This would have the added side effect of reducing any buss compressions reaction to those frequencies, allowing an even more transparent glueing effect with fewer tonal consequences. Not a big deal, but I think it'd be worth a try.

The kick for me is masking the bass too much. It's either a result of over-compression or reverb increasing the sustain, I think. In this mix I think you can get away with high passing the kick at 50, which would help in either case... Over-compression is an easy fix, and if reverb is the culprit, a simple high pass at 100 or higher would very easily confine the effect to the beater, which is all you really need for kick drum ambience anyhow.

Honestly I'm not a big fan of compressing individual kit components unless it's necessary for balance purposes, ie the drum sounds too thin or is to ally inconsistent. Most of the time you'll be able to get the desired blend with a combination of moderate buss compression and a reverb send, especially if you're substituting a sample or enhancing the existing component with a sample.

That was a bit wordy but these are very small tweaks to an otherwise lush and open mix. Excellent work in my opinion... This one was tricky!