Need Advice on this Metal Mix!

[obelix5150]

So I've been trying to work on this mix for one of my band's upcoming self-releases and I just can't get it to sound good. It's not ugly or harsh (imo) but just sounds lifeless, characterless, and has no punch. could someone have a listen and give me some tips as to how to make this recording come to life (and sound a bit more professional in the process)?

Thanks so much!

Recording:
https://soundcloud.com/user823269752/trial-mix-1

 

[Folkrav]

Guitars are somewhat buried, even though they are really loud. They have no high-end at all, they are muffled. Drums are extremely dry and lack body, like they only have their attack left. Overall balance is a bit off, but I feel it's more about giving everything its own space to let the mix breathe than adjusting levels...

 

[obelix5150]

Hey Folkrav, thanks for the input.. where would you recommend I try boosting for the guitars? I'm trying to stay away from any sort of harshness in the rhythms, but i feel like otherwise it just sounds bland like it does now..

Right now I have guitars hipassed at around 100hz, a gentle scoop at 150hz, another scoop at 700 ish, and a slight boost around 3.5khz..

The drums are the Superior Drummer stock sounds (which evidently is what they revert to when you export each drum file as a separate wav).. I've of course done EQ/compression and whatnot and bussed them to an aux channel with reverb. But I guess i'm having trouble giving them more depth and spaciousness even with the reverb

 

[obelix5150]

Okay, here's a new mix I made today.. I think I fixed the over-bassiness of the overall mix but I still feel unconvinced by the liveliness of the overall picture.. and I also don't like the snare sound.. feel like there's an overkill amount of attack and not enough body/sustain, but no matter what I do with the compressor it seems to have that character, or drops out of the mix entirely..

Also I didn't do anything much with the orchestrations and stuff at the end yet lol
https://soundcloud.com/user823269752/trial-mix-2

And here's a screenshot of my eq/filter settings for rhythm guitar and bass:

 

[Folkrav]

A lot better! Try blending more room sound for the drums. It sounds like you're using some slight reverb, but it gets lost during busy parts of the song. Try sticking more to room if available. If you don't have a room mic available, try some trick like this to "create" a fake room mic. Room mics helps a ton making drums stick out. Cymbals are a bit harsh, but nothing major. Good job, great improvement since the first mix!

Which samples are used on the drums? The toms bother me a lot. They sound just too much like the kick drums... They share the same high-mid peak.

 

[obelix5150]

Thanks man! The tom samples are the default samples from Superior Drummer.. It's probably just the way I have them EQed. Any suggestions?

I don't have any room mics available but I'll try a trick like the one you linked.. and I'll take a stab at making the cymbals less harsh too.

This is where I am so far:
https://soundcloud.com/user823269752/trial-mix-3

Also here's another song from the album that i've been working on:
https://soundcloud.com/user823269752/song2-trial-mix-1

 

[obelix5150]

Okay here's my (tentatively) finished mixes (no mastering) for the full album, for those who are curious.. I did the best I could with my limited experience and tools haha. Thanks Folkrav for your helpful advice!
https://soundcloud.com/user823269752/sets/album

 

[obelix5150]

You guys can check out the final version of the album here! Not too displeased with how it came out.
https://officialmeridian.bandcamp.com/