Tall Order with Nick and Dave

Robus

Well-known member
I've been doing remixes of all our songs for the album, to get them ready to master. You might have heard this last year. I could use some ears.

The main question is levels, vocals and bass especially. Thanks.

Latest mix:
Tall Order_Ray Taylor_Mix 10.mp3 - Google Drive

Tall Order
Word and Music by Ray Taylor, 2015

They’re the same old songs we’ve sung
That we’ve known so long
Whistled them in the schoolyard
Chanted them to our friends
Young dudes drinking on a summer night
Knowing life can never end

Same old love that’s all
There was a time when the madness called
You might have done better
Would they have done for you?
I might have done better
Won the lottery the same day too.

And then we’d have to set out for the border again
Running up a tall order and a righteous tab my friend

It’s the same old life that’s all
The skipping stone and the winters fall
It might have gone better
For cats like me and you
I might have done better
But you stood by me all through

Hey now let us head out for the border again
We’re running up a tall order and a righteous tab my friend

Have you got the answers?
Well let me know
Cause I don’t want live without you
And I ain’t ready to go
Put your finger to my lips
If I start talking about tomorrows
Grab another night or two
Drop another IOU
All things we wish are true tonight

And then we’d better haul out for the border again
We’re running up a tall order and a righteous tab my friend
Hey now we better set out for the border again
Running up a tall order and a monster tab my friend.
 
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One of my favorites here. In headphones, the L guitar is kinda twangy and distracting. Might just need a level cut is all. The "ah's" came off as hesitant, to me. The R guitars fit in much better than the L, I thought. Bass sounded good.
 
I agree with andrushkiwt. The left guitar is a bit distracting being so far to the left. I like the overall feel of the tune but I could hear more contrast when the tempo changes, something with some drive in the mids.
 
Nice jam. Very laid back vibe.

The thing that jumps out to me are the high hat/snare/toms. They feel more like they are on top of the mix rather than in the mix.
Other than that, you did a great job getting a dreamy feel to the mix. I dig it!
 
Okay, thanks. Yeah, I agree about that guitar on the left. Maybe it needs to be lower, maybe brought in a bit. I'm a fan of wide-panned, asymmetrical lead guitars but this one seems to be hanging a bit much. I'll need to look at the drum tracks and see how much control I have over the hat.

Also, I'm hearing a little of that hyped high-end on the lead vocal that TripleM pointed out on the last mix. It might be a compression issue rather than an EQ one. I should write lyrics with fewer esses...
 
Getting a nice Clear mix is definitely not a problem for you Robus. Guitar tones sound really good. agree on the extreme left and right pans, normally they would sound good but since they are playing contrasting parts I think they feel unconnected, It think bringing them into 60-70 pan would sound better. Great job!
 
New mix in the OP. Great performance on the vocal! Changes:

1. De-essing and EQ changes on the lead vocal. It should sound more natural and less hissy.

2. Significant work on the hats and cymbals in response to the consensus above. They should be sitting in the mix better.

3. Panned in the wide lead guitars, with some level tweaks.

4. Tweaks to the snare.

I also managed to boost the overall level a bit without additional compression. I feel this is getting pretty close. Let me know what you think. Thanks!
 
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So much better. The drums have some life to them now. Is it just reverb or did you compress them? The vocal, to my ear, still pokes out a bit too much. I'd dial it back a db or two, especially since you are going to have it mastered.
 
Thanks Nola. No changes to compression. I was able to lower the level of the hats, and more reverb on the overheads. I think it sounds more natural. Thanks for the feedback on vocal level. Lead vocal level is the single most critical thing in a mix, IMO, and one of the hardest to get right it seems.
 
Good work! I failed to mention the performances yesterday. Bass, guitars, keys, drums, vocals ALL excellent work.

Yesterday I was listening to everything pretty LOUD. Listened today at both loud and softer volumes. This is working at both levels very well.
 
Oh yeah, nice changes. Sounding really good now Ray. Great balance, all around. The vocal stays nicely in its space. Good work on the volume edits.
 
Listening to the latest mix. I dont' see anything that really sticks out that should be addressed. Love the bass in this song. I wouldn't mind if the overheads were up a bit, but that's a personal taste thing.

Good job guys. Performance, balance in the arrangement and mix. all work well.

Good song, thanks for sharing.
 
Thanks Chili. Always appreciate your comments. I've got a couple of others up right now that might be up your alley stylistically. They are all getting a final once over preparatory to mastering. With luck we will have the album finished this summer.
 
Mastering a Stereo track?
Since you've mentioned in the past that you avoid using any compression or limiters on your main bus....
You may want to send the ME an initial song so he/she can determine whether there are any glowing faults in the mix.
Why waste your time if there are things an ME are going to point out on a consistent basis.
Mastering Stems?
Same as the above but send the stems and get some feedback.
What does the ME expect for stems? Do they want any raw individual tracks?
Reverb/Chorus/Effects of any kind on the stereo track?
Mastered Volume?
ME's sometimes master to the maximum available level to match current radio songs.
Sending an initial sample and examining the results will assist you in determining where you want this cut off point.
 
Good points. I haven't really researched mastering engineers yet. I figure if I can create a solid mix that is balanced, sounds good, and has plenty of headroom, the mastering should be straightforward. I'd be surprised if there were glaring faults that would only be apparent to the ME. But then I don't know much about it.
 
Another nice mix, I only listened to the newest version on this one, but nothing sticks out to me at all. Really like the piano sound. Guitars sound great as always, everything sounds nice and balanced to me. Nice tasteful guitar fills throughout. This album seems to be coming along nicely, I'll definitely buy a copy when all is said and done.
 
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