I mostly record my own music so I reference an album that I have previously recorded by a great engineer, mixer and mastering engineer. Very helpful. Thanks for all your wonderful videos.
I’ve always been fascinated with the Aerosmith ROCKS album. There’s something authentic about the mix. It’s not modern loud, but that’s okay. It was heavy for the period and well mixed.
Badman's song by by Tears for Fears for an open drums vibe and bold statements. It's one of those perfect mixes where every element is excellent while the overall mix sounds big and warm. Also it's one of the tightest tracks and yet everyone is in the pocket thanks to Manu Katche and Pino Palladino. Also Oleta Adams is sublime as always, backing vocals blend perfectly, the imaging is unreal, brass section just shines, dynamics, everything is perfect. :)
CLA mix and last was F**K You from Elle and the Fury band who won the CLA challenge. Great rock song with a lot of variations that could become a hit !
Very solid tips. Especially understanding that you wanna focus on what the artist is looking for, their vision. I feel like it's something simple to understand but is overlooked because a lot of us producers ARE musicians and may sometimes see our own vision.
Bought the course. Real helpful stuff! Two albums that I’m mixing right now are full of big arrangements, Queen/ABBA-like, lots of stuff going on. For those who feel like they’re struggling with large-amount-of-tracks-projects; this course may ease the process. Can’t wait to get back to my projects again after watching the whole thing. Thank you Marc 🙏
Marc always comes with great insight and knowledge. Great to see him back on the channel Sounds like an incredible track and is very well-engineered by Geoff. Thank you!
Damn...what I wouldn't give to sit in your studio, with Atticus, just for one mix. I'm an old fart who has been involved in the music industry for a hell of a long time, but I've only recently been able to really focus. Your videos are a constant source in improvemnt for my mixes. Don't stop. I promise...I'd sit there without making a sound, other than the noise of my petting your awesome dog. Thank you, sir, for your tutelage.
Now I need to buy that course 😐 I'd like to see and hear you two go through each others mixes(1 from each) and walkthrough/analyze the process and maybe in retrospect learn something from the past yourselves 😄
I think my mixes would be terrible without reference mixing. All i did when i started with dance music in 2007 was reference mix, trying to nail that similar feel to the only edm star we had in Sweden back then Basshunter, haha! Recently i've started doing some "dance" related music again and i noticed i had lost the feel for where to place the Kickdrum in the mix. I had to listen in headphones to notice it, my kick is low for this style of music!? Bring it up, ha! But these days many rock albums mix the kicks similar to EDM, i must say i don't like that, a certain famous son is guilty of doing that! I think that's what made my transition different i had gotten used to the kick not being as present in the mix, ha!
Obviously, reference tracks are personal and subjective by nature as to what REALLY sounds pleasing and "tickles the ears" of the mixer. My fav's for reference: Rumors - Fleetwood Mac Ramones - Ramones Meat Is Murder - The Smiths Individual Thought Patterns - Death XO - Elliot Smith Whincing The Night Away - The Shins
I've never heard the phrase 'fader up' used before. Can someone explain that to me please. 😎 P.S. Such a refreshing change to hear a song with some originality, superb! 🙂
Id like to give my songs to an engineer to mix and master but I tried a few times and they got it all wrong, they try to mute things they think wont work for the song instead of mixing that specific sounds into the mix, cause thats why Im the producer and writer. So I end up being my own mix master engineer, cause the only people on earth that can hold to the mixes I want cost from 5k to 20k
You should try to get Stu Mackenzie from King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard on here. As far as I know he learned everything he knows about mixing from experience, and the stuff he has mixed sounds very good.
Produce Like A Pro Academy has exclusive weekly Live Streams for production and mix feedback, Community of incredible like-minded engineers and mixers as well as lessons from mentors including Marc Daniel Nelson, Joe Carrell, Manny Nieto and more. Pro Mix Academy has full courses from many many awesome producers ranging in varying styles and genres.
An artist hires an engineer and producer to have their unique input and style to go into and characterize the sound of the mix. If someone wants the same recipe used by other engineers, its pointless to force the guy they hire to mix a certain way and override their creativity and style. I dislike the cookie cutter production style of most 90s pop and film sound (ie. The Bodyguard as well as most Whitney Houston's albums), as they lack uniqueness and identity, plus they forced brickwall limiting on us for the sake of loudness only to obtain more noticeable airplay. I miss the 70s and 80s engineering which preserved dynamic range and fidelity, letting the music breath and convey more emotion. If someone needs a reference mix to churn out a product, they aren't skilled enough to interpret the artists view. Thats why people like Bruce Swedien, Bill Schnee and Alan Parsons were so good at what they did. They let their style come through and complement the artist's talents. I've had people try to force a reference mix onto me, which prompted me to advise the employment of another engineer willing to sell their soul. As a guideline its ok to sight a reference of sorts, but not force it as a firm template for the final product.
Kings X shoes is one of my fav to reference. It sounds incredible and has a lot of dynamics in it. I use it to check every new system I listen through.
