New track for your review

[Andrew Robinson]

Hi Tom

Looks like I didn't get the original mail for some reason. Anyway, here's
my feedback:

I like the track a lot, the fx bits at the end in particular are great.
Mix-wise I'm agreement with Joost on pretty much everything. I do like the
high pitched line, but I'd hold back a bit longer before introducing it,
and I'd make it a little spookier and less harsh by cutting the decay a bit
and adding more reverb. I'd also try adding a really low sub-oscillator
below the bassline, playing the same notes, to give the bass a little more
authority, and perhaps subtly automate the filter up a bit over the whole
duration of the song, so the bass very gradually gets more intense. I'd
also back the vocals off by about 3db, I think they are just a bit too
dominant at the moment when playing the track loud.

Overall, there's not a lot of stereo width (pan the percussion out more, or
try some ping-pong delays? Kilohearts Faturator wouldbe my go-to here), and
the mix could be more agressive. Nothing is clipping, saturating or
distorting, which makes the whole thing a bit polite for this genre. I'd
try dirtying-up the percussion (my secret sauce here is a bit of sample
rate and bit depth reduction, but treating the left and right channels
independently with different settings. This results in less 'ringing' and
more stereo presence than simple stereo bit-crushing). I agree with Joost
on the kick, perhaps adding a low/crunchy/distorted/low bandwidth snare on
2s and 4s might be the answer to this and the politeness? My solution to
the lack of 'air' would be a tiny bit of Valhalla Plate on the whole track.
My go-to is the default preset but very, very dry (after any other
mastering you're doing). I find that if you gradually back it off until you
can't hear that it's there (which seems to happen at about 97% dry), you'll
hit a spot where the music just sounds 'worse' if you bypass it and
'better' if you don't. If this doesn't work first time, high-pass the
reverb return and try again.

Andy_R


On Tue, 14 Mar 2023 at 14:49, Tom Adam <tom.adam at thebigear.be> wrote:

> Thanks Joost, like your comments. Especially on the kick. This is
> something I can’t check with my headphones.
>
> Btw the high pitched sound is what some other listeners really like… 🤔
> Tom
>
> Sent from my iPhone
>
> On Mar 13, 2023, at 6:45 PM, Joost Schuttelaar <joost at joostschuttelaar.nl>
> wrote:
>
> Quick raw feedback! I find the high pitched synth sound a bit annoying -
> it’s simply too frequent, dominant and predictable. The linndrum-style kick
> is very dry, but also weak. It’s probably not part of the aesthetic you’re
> going for, but I’d turn that into a bit more of an oomphie techno kick,
> include a rumble/gate reverb (low pass 200hz) and also sidechain compress
> with the main bass & synth sound. Perhaps I’d also introduce some air by
> adding some long high passed reverb, don’t know on which tracks though.
>
> Good luck :)
>
> --
>
> Joost Schuttelaar
> The Hague, NL
>
> On 12 Mar 2023, at 23:09, Tom Adam <tom.adam at thebigear.be> wrote:
>
> thebigear.be <https://thebigear.be/2023/NB%20SL%203-v2.wav>
> <https://thebigear.be/2023/NB%20SL%203-v2.wav>
> <https://thebigear.be/2023/NB%20SL%203-v2.wav>
>
> Hi Guys,
> As I’m not entirely setup in the US yet, may I ask you to listen to this
> track and give me some feedback on mixing?
> I can only listen trough headphones because still in an apartment.
>
> This track is made for a EBM/New beat compilation for the Side Line label.
> I need to send it to them end of next week...
>
> Thanks!
>
> Tom Adam
> tom.adam at thebigear.be
> www.thebigear.be
>
>
>
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