Yeah, so I'm really late to the party on this one. For some reason every time I've really tried to mix this track I always wanted something really powerful and the like. However, upon revisiting it (multiple times actually) I think I've managed to get something I rather like.
Relatively subtle mix overall mix. Some compressors here and there and a load of EQ. But really for the most part nothing special going on and I feel I got a good vibe going on. Anywho, WAV for those who don't like MP3s.
one of the things i really like about your mix is the retention of dynamic. you've not slaughtered it in the compressors, nor have you slammed it into the brickwall. and it really connects as a consequence.
i also like the spectral balance you've gone for....it's bright and airy which supports the concept very well. it's a little bright in the vocal, with some sharp sibilance on occasion, but your goal of a bright presentation is the right one, to my mind. the fact that you have a lot of treble in much of the instrumentation means it's going to stack up and there is a tendency for me to feel some fatigue from it in these headphones. something to watch out for, huh? perhaps there's some opportunity to pull out stock around the 4kHz mark, which can sound brash to the ear.
really powerful? i think "really effective" is a better goal to achieve with this material....getting the emotion across. sometimes power can get in the way. but what you have delivered here is really nice; i'm liking this rather a lot. i think the time you've spent in deliberating your vision has likely helped deliver the maturity in the mix....the sort one gets in a nice wine that's been hanging around the cellar for a while.
the intro has a build which sets the scene for the song, and i found it tasteful. the only thing i'd flag up on that part, and it's as small as a gnat's whisker, is the violin. i think the violin signals a minor climax in the original score, however, in your arrangement, it's climaxing a bit prematurely(!) perhaps? that is, the ramp-up is still progressing after the violin has done it's thing. i felt it was ambiguous, in other words. but don't stress, i'm being critical. still on the violin...i love where you've placed it in the depth field, great use of reverb; @2:50 is an example.
the mix gets quite busy; a good example is around the 2:00 minute zone. you've some nice things going on, but it's too much from my perspective. perhaps it's because i'm a simple soul, but i felt like i needed to hear less....but more of the less so i can engage with the super details in what is remaining? i tend to like my music that way, so i'd take that as something of a subjective nicety....like sometimes it's nice to have cream on the coffee, and sometimes it's nice to have a shot of whiskey with it. personal it may be, but i think a little more clarity and less sonic congestion (i don't like the word congestion, but it helps me explain what i mean!) would help it connect much more with that emotional buzz your soul is perhaps also hunting for....? in other words, you are delivering the emotional vibe, but i think you'd perhaps achieve more synergy with less. does this make sense?
many have succumbed to leaving the acoustic loop running for the full duration, or close to it. the thing does my head in, so it was a welcomed pleasure to hear your very subtle approach to it's delivery. rolling it off almost as if it's perceptively missing, unless we hunt for it? great idea. now if i can go back a paragraph and bring in the congestion thing? it's almost too lost, and the other stuff it's mingling with feels lost too. i'd like to hear "some" detail, something to feel. in smoothing out the sonic delivery in the mix, and mashing stuff up sonically into a "sea of mist", perhaps representing the concept in a creative way, you are denying me a chance to connect with something. yeah, that's what it is, connection......i can't find anything to focus on and it feels like you are making me work for it? i think i've explained it better now! but i am still engaging, and i am still enjoying, so these points i'm subjectively making are surely minimal in the scheme of things. you mentioned subtlety in your intro preamble, and i think you've achieved this.
nice work, and the time was well spent! what a shame this has been up since March and nobody has given any feedback. it deserves a thumbs up, so let me give you one now! better late than never...and that's where i came in at......
i will take it into the studio later and see how it sounds while moving some air!
Sorry, been incredibly busy the last few months. Work with some work coupled with even more work.
I actually agree with you on the sonic congestion, and is really part of the reason I still don't "love" my mix. I mean don't get me wrong I like a lot of the things I did with it especially considering some of my earlier attempts. The things that I'm noticing more and more with this mix as I've listened to it various times is that the track is really about subtleties in the mixing process because while the track gets a great groove going on it just doesn't have a lot of movement, if that makes any sense? I don't think I'm going to revisit this track for probably another 6 months or something, but one thing I think I'll focus more on is really playing on the idea of toying with layers of the mix as it were.
Those acoustic guitars for the record are pure evil. I've got all sorts of weird processing on them to make them not sound so straight up. Flangers, Phasers, Chorus, tons of EQ and a few other odd things in there for good measure. And the whole reason for that was to create a sound that was deeper and almost intriguing.
It felt wrong to really dull of the track. When you listen to just to the raw tracks you have to wonder to yourself how in the world is this all going to be pieced together sonically? I mean forget even extra stuff like muting certain instruments at certain times to make a more engaging listen. Really how the heck are you supposed to piece this together? There are like these 6 guitar tracks that are playing a loop that are quite bright compared to the 16 some odd other guitar tracks in the mix. Then you've got these vocals that are almost overly bright and these drums that are quite bright as well. In fact almost everything is "bright" as it were. But the one thing everything has in common is the detail it has. Everything has a certain detail to it and almost all of it lives with in those upper harmonics. So, I though that perhaps respecting that HF and really just seeing how much could be placed without going overboard. That really is what sparked most of the decision making in the mix itself. Sure it is bright, but I tried to keep subtly in it. This isn't a track you can squash unless you're willing to work very hard to give things their space. It just won't happen.
Thanks for the comments and listen. Sorry about the late response.
