Mixing is fucking hard

[Ermz]

I know we take the process for granted here, since so many of us do it on a regular basis but.... seriously, mixing to a world class standard is freakin HAAAARD. Not only do you rely on stellar performances, recorded tones and possibly even some tight editing, but you also need to be 100% tuned in the whole way through the mix. A 0.5dB bump at 150Hz on the bass guitar can make or flush your overall record sound. An extra half dB comp on the snare can be the difference between punching you in the face and getting lost in the back.

Not only this, but the way the levels and tracks interact with each other is amazing. It's like a microcosmic society inhabited by frequencies that you're trying to micromanage. You need to be on top of everything from the punch of the drums, to the EQ curve, decay of the rooms, room samples, various verbs, delays etc. How the guitars fill out the mid-range of the record, where to cut them for the bass growl to come through, where to cut them for the vocals to sound clear and crisp, how much high mids to add to the vox in order for them to sound crisp and in your face. How much vocal comp is the difference between constantly being up-front, and constantly being drowned out and lifeless. Kick/bass interaction (arguably THE thing that sorts out the men from the boys) above all is one that bends me over and takes it home almost each and every mix I do.

Seriously, this job is only for the masochists among us... No wonder our little corner of the industry is so niche.

Btw, I'll have an alternative/industrial rock thing to show you guys soon

 

[HandsOfDespair]

I agree with you, but I still wanna add:

Mixing is fucking fun



I think it's one of the most addictive things in life. Whenever I start a mix, I just can't stop because I just have so much fun.

 

[Ola Englund]

Not only do you rely on stellar performances, recorded tones and possibly even some tight editing, but you also need to be 100% tuned in the whole way through the mix.

This is the most important part of the whole process. No matter what you do with a badly performed recording. It will always sound bad no matter how good sound you get.

Hang in there dude!

 

[Superdatasatan]

I couldn't agree more with you. Definetly fun but every now and then can make you fucking cry and wanna crawl into a hole and die.. I wonder does CLA feel this way too..

 

[vespiz]

Don't you just love it, when after several hours you've finally gotten the mix to work somehow, and the band starts to ask for changes?

It's still good fun, though.

 

[GarethSE]

my name is gareth edwards and i approve of this thread.

 

[Ermz]

@Ola: You're completely right. In the back of my mind that idea is always playing, but for some reason I still beat myself up trying to get the very best from a project. You're only as good as your last work, and unfortunately I don't deal with major label tracking sessions to make mixing life easy!

@SDS: I think CLA is too busy counting his money to care. The sort of tracks he gets from the top producers and studios in the world would ensure repeatability for him. Just run it into that outboard he has pre-set, sculp the sounds to work with each other and bang. The assistants do all his editing/bussing and shit anyway, so he just does the fun stuff.

 

[Jevil]

All my experience is only 11 records... 10 for my bands and 1 for another band.
It is not my way of life nor my daily job, just a hobby, so I enjoy mixing. The album I did for another band was a hell. So I guess if I would work doing albums for other people, then it would be harder and probably wouldn't like.

 

[Superdatasatan]

@SDS: I think CLA is too busy counting his money to care. The sort of tracks he gets from the top producers and studios in the world would ensure repeatability for him. Just run it into that outboard he has pre-set, sculp the sounds to work with each other and bang. The assistants do all his editing/bussing and shit anyway, so he just does the fun stuff.

Yep. I've heard some not so good mixes from CLA too and often the production on those have been on much smaller budgets than the big guns. But anyway. I just finished mixing our third album and could write a book of all the mixed feelings during that period. But the fun part is that you can ALWAYS improve and atleast I personally seem to learn and figure out something new every freakin' day, and that's the beauty of it..!

 

[Harry Hughes]

Even though I'm a "Hobbyist" at this point in time, it's thread like these that make me scared of ever wanting to venture much further forward into the realm of doing this stuff for a living
I must say I've been listening to Stabbing the Drama and Brand New Eyes obsessively, more so for the production than anything (even though I do enjoy the music of both albums).
Even though I hear a great production going on, it just astounds me each time I listen how insane it must be to have gotten to that point and how I can't even comprehend the sheer level of skill and knowledge it requires to get to that point.
Only a few months ago, I was judging productions mainly from an individual elements point of view. You know, just "Fuck, listen to these guitar tones from End of Heartache/This Godless Endeavor (insert other production with a guitar tone many would die for".

And now, I've been listening to Stabbing the Drama and Brand New Eyes and really focused on what you said a while ago, just to listen to the big picture a lot more.
And it's scary how, for instance, Brand New Eyes make Paramore's debut album, All We Know is Falling, sound like a demo in comparison (and mind you AWKIF is hardly a bad production at all) and how Stabbing the Drama seems to just have this push and shove to the whole proceedings that would make so many other metal albums cower in fear.
Again, as I said, only a few months ago, maybe 4-5 months ago, it would just never had struck like it has it now.

 

[Seizure.]

I fucking hate mixing at times.. i nearly hit my head in a wall yesterday.....
That was some else his recording though.. i don't do alot of mixing if it my own stuff, more edits and automation then.

And CLA has people to do stuff for him, he only has to think his fricking edits and automation and its done.. not nearly as frustrating as if you do it all by yourself haha

 

[Ermz]

You're at a cool point, Harry. It's like a whole new world opens up. You begin to hear more than just the music and individual elements on a CD. The beauty is always in the whole. The best sounding CDs usually have some of the most mediocre sounding individual elements.

What I always had in the back of my mind about The End of Heartache is how cool the guitars were, but what a shame it was that the clarity of the midrange of the entire record suffered as a consequence. The guitars on STD are absolute shit. In fact so are the drums, but you bring it all together and WHAM: The artistry of Bergstrand brought to bear on your unsuspecting ear drums.

@SDS: Listening to some of the songs on your myspace, it definitely seems like you picked up a thing or two over time. Very cool sounding stuff, and very well mixed.

The irony of listening to records like that is you hear it and since it slots together so well you think to yourself 'yeah that must've been easy to put together', yet it's anything but. The artistry is in making it sound so 'right', and usually days of sweat and pain go into getting a record to that point.

 

[Soundlurker]

I agree mixing is fun but can turn into a nightmare.

The irony of listening to records like that is you hear it and since it slots together so well you think to yourself 'yeah that must've been easy to put together', yet it's anything but.

We don't know for sure. There's a good chance that those people don't have a hard time putting things together like that at all, because they've had a few decades of mixing experience that lets them immediately know what needs to be done.

 

[crillemannen]

I have had some sort of turning point in the last couple of months, and with that i mean i really trust my ears, and i really have faith in what i do. If you have enough experience and you know what you want to achieve and how to get there it is just allot of fun.

I think i have reached the "cd" standard, achiving good mixes that i can call professional without have to excuse myself. what do you think of my latest work?? ermz and others??

www.studiohaga.net/dwarf.mp3

Cheers

 

[joeymusicguy]

i find my self most happy, most up beat, and most at peace when i am mixing

everything leading up to that point makes me want to shoot my self

 

[Ermz]

I understand that you build your tracks during the early stages to make the mix come together virtually by itself Joey. Unfortunately I get a lot of external mix projects where I don't have that much control of takes and sounds, so the mix becomes something else. Imagine all the other processes amalgamated into the mix process, and then you have the experience I'm talking about.

@crilemmanen: That's a good mix, though the music of course..... something else. I think you definitely got a leg up on everyone by interning with Nordstrom. You should hang around and share some techniques at some point (unless you have already and I've missed it). I feel I'm at a similar phase, though I still struggle to meet my references. It's never good enough for me to just release a project 'as is', I need to be CONVINCED it stands up alongside the references, and at times you just get projects where it isn't all that possible.

 

[Sacha]

Damn straight it's fucking hard! Alas like anything else worth doing well. I alternate pretty much daily between having fun / like what i've done to sweating, swearing and tearing my hair out.

One thing that seems to have helped me lately is not referencing constantly and just trusting my ear / gut a little more.

Good call on tracking too, it sure helps when I can trust my own performances or ones that i've tracked as opposed to otherwise.

 

[FarBeyondMetal]

i find my self most happy, most up beat, and most at peace when i am mixing

everything leading up to that point makes me want to shoot my self

I agree with joey hole-heartedly. There's nothing worse than tracking a bunch of fuckwads that can't play their instrument. Actually there is... it's editing those fuckwads' tracks for insane amounts of time because nobody in the band knows how to count to 4. By the time mix time comes around I can curse the fuckers in private and think to myself "I can't mix these tracks any worse than they played them so I can do no wrong" and atleast I can hone my skills and experiment with things. I guess my opinion is kind of moot considering I don't do this professionally as of now, and I haven't really ever had a good recording experience because I feel I haven't even had the opportunity to record a band that i would consider "okay". I have only recorded other bands for free at my school, but I have the feeling that a lot of the guys doing this at the entry-professional level are experiencing the same thing. Gotta get CLA status then this shit won't be a problem

 

[Jind]

This is the most important part of the whole process. No matter what you do with a badly performed recording. It will always sound bad no matter how good sound you get.

Hang in there dude!

I love mixing, but unfortunately I only mix my own music so if the performance is a piece of crap I only have myself to blame.

You should see the seething emails I send myself telling me to practice, practice, practice - and don't come back till your good enough to play the part. Just kidding - however my perfectionism is counter intuitive to productive song writing. I get so wrapped around the axle on over analyzing my own work before I even have the complete idea down that it causes me great frustration. But I persist.

 

[slashvanyoung]

That's one of the biggest downsides about being passionate about your art, no matter on which side of the console you're sitting, it means torment.