The Deepest End - alternative rock

andrushkiwt

Well-known member
Hey guys, another remix of an older song. I don't have a chance to do vocals for new stuff for a bit, so I've been reworking some of last years tunes. Here's the latest attempt to put things I've picked up to (hopefully) good use.

Did the whole mix from scratch since I had the stems this time. So, that means new amp sims and settings. However, I didn't have the MIDI drum file - this song was written back before I knew to turn the bleed off in Superior Drummer, so there was a little bit of room sound I couldn't take out.

The master bus' compressor is now set to peak instead of RMS, and I turned the release way up to catch peaks, on the first compressor. I think this works better and seems smoother. A second compressor is on the master with slower attack and release.

I think I finally got the bass right. :) Listening to some older tunes, after working on this one for a week, I can clearly hear too much bass in the recent tracks. This one, though, sounds pretty good in the car. I'd love to hear everyone's thoughts. Thanks a lot!



As far as I can tell,
there's a patience here.
I can't explain so well,
and things are so unclear.

This ship is sinking in the water's deepest end.

Never thought you'd feel like this anymore.
Every time I lose my mind, I'm sore.
I have bruised my bones behind this door.
They said, "hold on and wait forever".
You're all alone and wanting so much more.

You saved a place for me
but I have turned against you
and all your company,
so tell me what can I do?

I feel it burning in beneath my guilty skin.

I broke my back I stumbled in.
You said this fear would never end.
I saw your eyes, you tore out mine,
and now we're back where we began.
 
Great mix, covering the spectrum well, smooth...I'm hearing the drums lagging a bit in the early part of the song, maybe it's just a matter of being ahead of the beat/behind, seems like they should be ahead of the beat but they sound behind. Other than that nit this sounds pretty perfecto. I like the mastering job better than the previous tunes ive heard, it's loud but it doesn't sound strained to me. Great job.
 
Great mix, covering the spectrum well, smooth...I'm hearing the drums lagging a bit in the early part of the song, maybe it's just a matter of being ahead of the beat/behind, seems like they should be ahead of the beat but they sound behind. Other than that nit this sounds pretty perfecto. I like the mastering job better than the previous tunes ive heard, it's loud but it doesn't sound strained to me. Great job.

I know what you mean about the timing. The drums are good (to be technical), it's the guitars that are ahead. I actually did budge them back in time a bit, but I guess it could have used another few ms's. I don't know what happened, really. Either I nudged the drums or guitar wavs at some point, but yeah I had to fit those in a little better. Not sure what originally happened.

Thanks for the listen and comment Strat. :listeningmusic:
 
I'll give a listen this evening. Sometimes I'll notice an entire take will be off by a consistent amount, usually behind the beat. Some kind of latency obviously. When the error is consistent, it's easy to fix by sliding the clip.
 
I'm digging the bass/crunch guitar on the verses. They sound good together.

Are these drums panned wider than you normally do? The cymbals seem to be really far out.

On the third line: "I can't explain so well", there seems to be some kind of effect - like a mid-pass or phaser or something. Is that a tracking artifact where you just weren't square to the mic or an intentional effect? If the latter, I'd recommend turning up the effect a little bit; if the former, I'd recommend adding a phaser to make it sound intentional. :D
 
Really good, man. I like the song. Mixwise, the bass is what stands out for me. It's really present and fat without making your mix blubbery. I think the levels are good to go. I like where you have the guitars. They're powerful but don't sound really loud. Funny but true that guitars get more powerful in a mix as you turn them down. Good pocket between the panned guitars for the vocal.

I can hear the room you mention on the drums. But if you don't have the midi file, there's nothing you can do. I wouldn't worry about it.
 
Good pocket between the panned guitars for the vocal.

Thanks Ray. That's also the result of hours of gain adjustment on the wav file; down to the individual words. Had to make sure I also highlighted the stereo chorus track to keep it consistent across both. Also using a quick release on the vocal compressor to let those harder sounds pop through - a little more aggressive and up front. Thanks for the bass comment - that was the first thing I noticed when I played it in the car too.
 
Tracking artifact that I couldn't resolve with Melodyne. :facepalm: nice ears :)
Lol. It happens.

Yeah, I'd try putting some FX on it to mask it and see how that turns out. Kind of like that digital stutter in the first verse of Linkin Park's "in the end". I always assumed they were trying to cover up an error there.
 
Lol. It happens.

Yeah, I'd try putting some FX on it to mask it and see how that turns out. Kind of like that digital stutter in the first verse of Linkin Park's "in the end". I always assumed they were trying to cover up an error there.

I noticed that, too. There's also what sounds like a stray ride cymbal hit at the 2:03 mark.

I think this is a very solid mix. The only issue I hear is the vocal artifact, stray cymbal, and in general the cymbals have that thin/swishy sound to them. Maybe if that's due to compression or limiting try putting the cymbals on a separate track.
 
I noticed that, too. There's also what sounds like a stray ride cymbal hit at the 2:03 mark.

I think this is a very solid mix. The only issue I hear is the vocal artifact, stray cymbal, and in general the cymbals have that thin/swishy sound to them. Maybe if that's due to compression or limiting try putting the cymbals on a separate track.

yeah i'm not hearing that stray cymbal. listened to that part several times and they're all on a distinct beat, and coinciding with the kick.

didn't think that artifact was so obvious. guess i got used to it. :facepalm:
 
The mix is sounding really solid and polished to me man. Other than that vocal flub on the third line, nothing stands out to me at all as needing tweaking.

Some nice textural stuff going on lower in the mix, like whatever that long oscillating drone that comes in at 1.18 is.

Sorry, I never feel like I'm much help on your threads. Good work :)
 
Some nice textural stuff going on lower in the mix, like whatever that long oscillating drone that comes in at 1.18 is.

hey thanks. nice ears. i almost always throw in a synth of some sort, even if it's really low in the mix. to my ears, it seems to fill up the soundscape pretty well and helps alleviate otherwise "dead spots" in the song/arrangement. plus, it's another chance to throw some harmonies in.

thanks for the listen and comment Rob
 
Man, I think it's great. The song, the performance, the mix...all of it.
You getting fantastic results. That doesn't come easily. ..I know you have worked your ass off to achieve results like this.
My hats off to you bro.. you've inspired me to hang in there longer and work harder on my next mix!
rock on!
 
Man, I think it's great. The song, the performance, the mix...all of it.
You getting fantastic results. That doesn't come easily. ..I know you have worked your ass off to achieve results like this.
My hats off to you bro.. you've inspired me to hang in there longer and work harder on my next mix!
rock on!

thanks jimi, much appreciated. that means a lot dude. it is good to hear that all these insane hours on music is somewhat paying off... thanks again
 
Yeah, this sounds very polished indeed.

If there are issues, it is beyond my reach to identify them. You seem to have this shit pretty well sorted out, so keep it up.
 
Great pop sound. Guitars sound quite cool. Balance on things is just about perfect if you ask me. Performances are excellent.

Not much I can offer to improve upon. Cymbals are a little swirly, but just about sure it's SC's fault.

Nice job.
 
On cans. Sorry I didn't read through, I'm late to the party...

Man, this is amazing. Guitar tones are fantastic. Voice is perfect for the song...and you've nailed the mix between the two. Love the subtle echo on the vocal (If it's supposed to ping pong, it's a bit too subtle. Only heard one line come through on the right.)
That bass really adds to the guitars.
Listen to all the EXTRAS going on. Good synth & guitars filling the spaces.
If I didn't know the drums were programmed, I wouldn't be able to tell. Very human.

Sorry I don't have any advice at all except, leave it! It's done.
 
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