Amber Skye - Howlin (thelongestyear)

[thelongestyear]

Awesome song. Really enjoyed working on it even though I'm not into Pop myself.
So, what do you guys think?

[HbGuitar]

With so many tracks on offer, this is one of those songs that can literally go anywhere and everyone has a different take on it - which is fun to listen to.

Overall I really like what you've done. The balance fits the direction you've taken the mix. The bottom end combo of kick and bass during the choruses is confident yet controlled so it drives the song but never feels like its about to max out the speakers.

The vox on occasion sounds a little boxy and a bit strained/constrained - almost like a telephone effect. Nothing necessarily wrong with it - in fact the more I listen to it, the more i like it and it seems to fit the mix.

The other thing maybe worth mentioning is that the stereo image is relatively narrow, especially given the number of tracks on offer, and the opportunity to pan FX returns to create space. It means that the little top-end details of the mix aren't really shining through and it doesn't breath quite as much as it could.

That said....I think this is a really nice mix. Good job

[thelongestyear]

Overall I really like what you've done. The balance fits the direction you've taken the mix. The bottom end combo of kick and bass during the choruses is confident yet controlled so it drives the song but never feels like its about to max out the speakers.

Over time I start to think I took it to a more common 'your typical pop sound' direction which is not that good considering that the song should be more 'not like others' (anyway, that's how I feel now).
The choruses were one of my biggest concerns so I tried to taylor in these kicks and the bass synth.

The vox on occasion sounds a little boxy and a bit strained/constrained - almost like a telephone effect. Nothing necessarily wrong with it - in fact the more I listen to it, the more i like it and it seems to fit the mix.

That's true, I didn't do much to the vox and left it sounding 'telephony' in some places. The only place I hear it being constrained though is the second verse (it has some nasal quality to it).

The other thing maybe worth mentioning is that the stereo image is relatively narrow, especially given the number of tracks on offer, and the opportunity to pan FX returns to create space. It means that the little top-end details of the mix aren't really shining through and it doesn't breath quite as much as it could.

That's true also. But again, I'm not a big fan of wide stereo panning, it sounds unnatural to me at times. So, I would rather narrow the mix and taylor something with EQ in order to avoid 'dissipation'. It's totally a choice.

That said....I think this is a really nice mix. Good job

Thank you so much, HbGuitar, you've confirmed some of my concerns.

[pauli]

Hey thelongestyear,

The main concern I have is that the overall tonality of the mix seems quite harsh... it sounds to me like you might be pushing it with high mid EQ boosts on several instruments-- to me, the electric guitars are the main problem spots, there, but it also sounds like you've removed a lot from the low mids to mids in the vocal, which is making it sound a bit brittle to me. From what I'm hearing it almost sounds like you mixed yourself into a corner in the 2000 to 4000 octave, boosting several instruments in that range in search of clarity?

I think you can definitely lose a good chunk of real estate hovering around 3000 or so in the electric guitars.... electric guitars don't naturally produce very much tone in that range, so the printed distortion is really just enhancing the noise in that area. Also, based on the printed reverb, I suspect the artist/producer recorded those parts with a backing role in mind, so why fight it?

The one other thing that really stands out for me is the bridge vocal ensemble... this could be just taste, but I think you've emphasized a harmony vocal over the melody there. I say that because the vocal you've used as backing resolves on the root note, and the voice you've brought forward sounds like it's resolving on a fifth(?)... rather than intellectualizing that too much and diving into music theory, it's best put as "it sounds funny to me." And I might just be crazy... wouldn't be the first time

Bold choices, though, and big sounds. Lots of courage and confidence on display.. keep it up!