Self-written, self-recorded and self-mixed shit! RATE OR DIE

Backe

Backe

Space Cowboy
Mar 7, 2010
573
1
18
Borlänge, Sweden
Hi guys! Got an SM7B for christmas and I decided to finish off and record what is going to be the last song on my bands upcoming full-length (we're called Among the Debris, check us out: www.myspace.com/amongthedebris). But this is all me though, and only a demo, so don't give the fellas shit for this, haha.

https://dl.dropbox.com/u/10612702/Among/Oceans_firstmix.mp3

A quick mix really, just S2.0, some slates, LE456 and GearBox (POD) bass. But it's got lots of neat stuff like saturation, multiband-comp, FUCKING OZONE and automation, so it's not all shit. You may also rate my songwriting and singing, that'd be helpful for me to evolve.

Happy new years!
 
I like the ambient parts, they work really well. Cool song.

The main problem I can pick from this mix is that the heavy guitars are too upfront. If they are louder to create a dynamic against the quieter parts I would suggest making some of the other instruments louder. They just sound too dry in comparison to everything else in the mix, so you need to find a way to make them sound more saturated (by that I mean processed) so they fit with everything else. They sound almost scratchy in some parts. I guess some EQ could go a long way.

Apart from the guitars I can't really think of anything too drastic. The snare doesn't suit my taste but you can't do much about that with programmed drums.

EDIT: Some of the background/spacey/ambient screams are too soft. I can just notice them and they sound like they are a main part of the vocal, so I think just a little more volume would do nicely.
 
great job on the mix! i honestly don't hear anything wrong w the mix, the snare sounds great. What type of head did you use for the guitars? teach me your recording secrets and equipment :D
 
Josh M. said:
The main problem I can pick from this mix is that the heavy guitars are too upfront. If they are louder to create a dynamic against the quieter parts I would suggest making some of the other instruments louder. They just sound too dry in comparison to everything else in the mix, so you need to find a way to make them sound more saturated (by that I mean processed) so they fit with everything else. They sound almost scratchy in some parts. I guess some EQ could go a long way.

EDIT: Some of the background/spacey/ambient screams are too soft. I can just notice them and they sound like they are a main part of the vocal, so I think just a little more volume would do nicely.
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Thanks dude! This is the kind of criticism I'm looking for at this forum. Listening again, you're right. The guitars sound like your ear is 2 inches from the cab and the rest of the shit is in outer space, haha. But I could lower them in volume and perhaps automate som cool fade-in/fade-out reverb and delay, to make them flow more. Also work the EQ to make them more "dull" and more suitable for the mix. I'll look into that, thanks again man.
 
XxSicRokerxX said:
great job on the mix! i honestly don't hear anything wrong w the mix, the snare sounds great. What type of head did you use for the guitars? teach me your recording secrets and equipment :D
Click to expand...

Well, my studio is nothing fancy. I use a Line6 TonePort UX2, KRK RP5's, my guitar is an LTD EC500 with EMG 81/60, my bass is just your average 100$ used crap with broken nut, the most remarkable about my setup's gotta be the Shure SM7B which I recieved just a couple of days ago. IT'S A BLESSING! Seriously, best mic ever, very easy to mix.

The rest's just VST.
Guitar chain is: C1 comp-gate, TSS, LePou's LE456, Voxengo Pristine Space running the ASEM Recto V30 L2 something-impulse.


Drums are Superior 2.0: DW Collector Series-toms, can't remember what snare but I blended it with the Sneap-snare at like 50% or so, kick is 100% Slate kick 10. Mixwise, all the toms are eq'd, compressed and gated on individual tracks, then I send them to a bus where they get more compression, Send-reverb and some more EQ.

Hope it helps!
 
reminds me of breaking benjamin, hope thats no offense ;-)
everything gets lost under those rhythmguitars, especially vocals.
drums sound tiny... overall maybe reference you favorite bands more,
to learn more about relative levels.
i see potential there, so dont take my words as an offense ;-)=!
music seems cool, but it will shine way more with the right mix!
 
dcb said:
reminds me of breaking benjamin, hope thats no offense ;-)
everything gets lost under those rhythmguitars, especially vocals.
drums sound tiny... overall maybe reference you favorite bands more,
to learn more about relative levels.
i see potential there, so dont take my words as an offense ;-)=!
music seems cool, but it will shine way more with the right mix!
Click to expand...

listned alot to their 'Phobia'-album back in the days, love 'em, so you might be right :)

how can I make the drums sound huge in your opinion? more verb on snare & toms? 'cause with this mix I tried to keep things "tight" and "snappy".
 
man i'm really loving the clean vocals and that kick! good stuff man. i honestly don't know what you can improve on!
 
Honestly I think it sounds great , maybe could be tweaked a bit , maybe low pass the high frequencies on the rhythm guitars so the rest of the mix , especially the vocals , can breathe. But other than that , great job !
 
Backe said:
listned alot to their 'Phobia'-album back in the days, love 'em, so you might be right :)

how can I make the drums sound huge in your opinion? more verb on snare & toms? 'cause with this mix I tried to keep things "tight" and "snappy".
Click to expand...

That's really a matter a preference , I like the drums the way they are here, maybe just a bit more verb on the snare if you wanted.
 
JayB said:
By the way at the end it sounds like my sleep machine with the water and birds lol
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haha, awesome! that was kinda the feeling i was projecting with this whole song. if you listen closely just before the last little "outburst" you can hear a shotgun pump and a shot fired. so it's mainly about just letting go and moving on, even though feelings will linger. the end lyrics are:
when we're broken and alone, and we're feeling far from home
when we're tired and we're old, i will think of you, will you think of me?
 
Hi! Everything is really impressive and fascinating - melody, mixing, playing, vocals. I'd also play a bit with eq on heavy guitars, to make it perfect. How did you pan guitars tracks? is it 100% left + 100% right? I'd also experiment with moving them a bit off the edges, or lower their volume, but maybe its just my headphones... Good luck with your band!
 
Hypocrazy said:
Hi! Everything is really impressive and fascinating - melody, mixing, playing, vocals. I'd also play a bit with eq on heavy guitars, to make it perfect. How did you pan guitars tracks? is it 100% left + 100% right? I'd also experiment with moving them a bit off the edges, or lower their volume, but maybe its just my headphones... Good luck with your band!
Click to expand...

thanks alot man! yeah, i tend to cut alot around 4khz (JUST BECAUSE I HEARD STURGIS DO IT, SUE ME!) and i've noticed that's the freq range that usually hurt your ears, but i shouldn't care so much about how other people do it, i used to be a wizard at guitar tones, but now i fucked up, haha.
 
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