I really need some mixing advice on the lovely uplifiting piece :)

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-- I really need some mixing advice on the lovely uplifiting piece :)

Posted by Takkra on Oct-17-2008 14:12:

I really need some mixing advice on the lovely uplifiting piece :)

Although it may not sound like it, the track has over nine instruments and 21 layers already, excluding the effects.

The idea is this; I wanted to make a nice clubby uplifting track with a modern feel, using some oldschool hooks. I've spent three days composing the lead sound from saws & peaks and believe me, i couldn't have made a better one. After that I spent another two days deciding on what kind of kick should be used, and when I finally had the RIGHT ONE, the levels went haywire. So I started with all the levels from the reset point, and I think it's balanced now.
But, this also created the problem.
Now i've heard it so many times I can't really judge if the mixing is still okay. A club track should have a nice deep warm and pounding kick imo, at least that's what people expect in the Netherlands.

eh I could go on for pages but here's the link to the YOUSENDIT: ( clicky )

Please leave some comments, pointers, criticism or even OMFGlikUSTOLE
hah. I'll do my very best to reply to your own work !

Posted by adi_hanson on Oct-17-2008 18:27:

i know this might dent a little but that main hook is good , BUT the rest should be geared to a good old chillout trance tune.

This obviously needs alot of work which after 3 days it would anyway
The breakbeat , im not sure , it sounds like one continous breakdown

But me being me would do this tune :-

intro - 4x4 beat n percs & rank1 airwave style effect and gradually filter in the lead and breakdown with some nice atmospheric pads - then bring in the breakbeat and cresendo into a full 4x4 beat line and then tail off

so other than that keep us posted

Posted by Gabriel Cazali on Oct-17-2008 19:24:

quote:
Originally posted by adi_hanson
i know this might dent a little but that main hook is good , BUT the rest should be geared to a good old chillout trance tune.

This obviously needs alot of work which after 3 days it would anyway
The breakbeat , im not sure , it sounds like one continous breakdown

But me being me would do this tune :-

intro - 4x4 beat n percs & rank1 airwave style effect and gradually filter in the lead and breakdown with some nice atmospheric pads - then bring in the breakbeat and cresendo into a full 4x4 beat line and then tail off

so other than that keep us posted

agree with the men with cow head lol

you got some nice elements, but more work its needed, rest your ear, listen to other music, even other kind of music, dont listen to your track in about 2 - 3 days, that would help =)

Posted by IDarkISwordI on Oct-17-2008 20:09:

This sounds interesting and decent.

Not a huge fan of the intro. Its a bit random at times, such as the previously mentioned broken kick rhythm.

If you are dead-set on a breakbeat pattern at that spot, definitely take a listen to the plethora of available break rhythms around. The pattern for the kick is usually rather minimal and the hats snare, and often times some other sound (like a tom or a block or some other random synthy sound) are used to create a smooth rolling breakbeat.

Personally, I would also ditch the sweeping sound at the very beginning. I like slow building smooth intros and this most definitely has really good potential for that.

As for the levels and overall mix of the elements, it gets a bit muddled. Try to tone down the use of reverb. Earlier productions of mine suffered greatly from over use of reverb. I know it sounds awesome and epic but in the end it just makes it difficult to hear all the elements in the song .

The kick is decent but after listening to it through some monitor headphones, it becomes obvious there is too much low end on it and not enough punch. You want your kick to stay between 72hz (a little higher around 100Hz-110Hz is good too depending on the thump you want, just cleans up the lower end more) and 400Hz with a punchy sound at those upper frequencies. Basicly avoid adding too much low end and add a lot more mid ranges to the kick.

Theres a few other minor level problems like hats being a little too loud but eh, those are very minor issues to take care of later. The best tip I can offer when setting levels: set your levels continually after adding anything. To do this, drop everything down to zero and bring it back up until they sound balanced. The sooner you do this, the less daunting it will feel later in the production. Trust me, I have a hell of a lot of older songs that are decent but to continue them, I need to reset all the levels and it just fucking sucks...

Cheers,
Zac

Posted by kitphillips on Oct-30-2008 11:46:

Yeah not so sure about the broken kick rythm and the other percs are too high, but the melody is good. You'll probably be able to add a fifth for the buildup too I think

Posted by music2dance2 on Nov-01-2008 16:01:

I like your ideas on this one. But what strikes me straight away is too much high and not enough bottom end. The kick needs way more punch. Good luck with it dude

Posted by Freesoup on Nov-01-2008 17:37:

I think its a good piece, one of the better produced I've heard on here. You should really thinking about adding maybe a hummy bass pad to give the lead a bit more depth, of course side chaining just a tad so it dips for the kick drum. I like the wood block hits but they are a little too clouded in reverb at the moment and would benefit from bringing the bass e.q up a tad.

Post a new longer sample when you can as I genuinly do like this.