Southern Gospel Fun.

[paul999]

I finished this mix yesterday and had a ton of fun with it. I have not mastered it yet.

The client is writing original material and making an album for family and friends. There is no pressure for radio or commercial sensibilities so we are free to do anything we want. She sang and played rhythm guitar(still a work in progress but coming along nicely). She brought in her sister and brother in law to help with vocal duties in the chorus.

This song was the type of song were a lot of it gets written as you mix. I literally had all the elements happening for the whole song and pulled things out to build the dynamic. When I recorded a quartet a while back the violinist stayed after and recorded a bunch of other string parts. This is one that he layered so bits in.

Anyway it was fun and I thought I'd share it.

Cheers

[garageband]

The contralto part on the intro is a little overbearing. Poor violinist. Sounds like he's being made to stand far away as the rest of the group performs. Did he fart or something? The rest is your usual top-quality goods.

[paul999]

[QUOTE]

The contralto part on the intro is a little overbearing.

This is were I seem to air on the side intense. I do like that it makes a statement and isn't remotely shy. I do get your point though.

Poor violinist. Sounds like he's being made to stand far away as the rest of the group performs. Did he fart or something?

LOL. I totally laughed when I read that. Only GB could come up with that. There is so much happening that I wanted the strings(3 layers of violin) to be more of an ambient layer. The violin fills were meant to drift in and out as opposed to being strong fills. Are you thinking that was a bad call?

The rest is your usual top-quality goods.

Thanks!

[garageband]

he violin fills were meant to drift in and out as opposed to being strong fills. Are you thinking that was a bad call?

I don't love it. Everyone else gets the full treatment except that guy. It's noticeable and feels awkward.

[EnSkorSang]

Love this shape-note kind of music...well the harmonies aren't toooo shape-note like, but it's along those lines. I pretty much steal all the time from shape-note and appalachian stuff :S

Got to say, the sound of the acoustic guitar at the start didnt appeal to me. It sounded great when mixed in with all the other instruments. Perhaps it just that it's not the best strumming ever.
Agree with GB about the violin. It's like someone is tormenting a cat at the back of the studio...In terms of doing anything you want, I guess it's more to do with the artist, but that is pretty much EXACTLY what I would expect if I tuned into some american-folk station

Love the reverb on the opening harmonies - care to say what you did?

This song cries out for.....Mountain Dulcimer!!!

[kakeux]

Hi,

Good Job! as usual I should say...

Things that bother me a bit...

- the reverb use on the choir seems a bit too unreal or not fitting...It's like the reflected sound is too present, or too close to the original sound (timing wise)....Hope this makes sense.
- the clapping seem a bit constricted in the center...I would prefer it a bit more spread over the complete stereo field.

Really good job!

Cheers!

[paul999]

Got to say, the sound of the acoustic guitar at the start didnt appeal to me. It sounded great when mixed in with all the other instruments. Perhaps it just that it's not the best strumming ever.

Yeah this is were performance matters. It should be nice thick clear acoustic. That just wasn't possible here.

Love the reverb on the opening harmonies - care to say what you did?

I used the vocal magic preset on my lexicon PCM90 for the high reverb and my PCM70 on the Rich plate setting for lower reverb tones. There was also a little bit of evintide chorus to smooth the reverbs. Other then that I used the maximum that I thought I could get away with Those 2 reverb box have really helped bring my mixes into a different league IMO.

This song cries out for.....Mountain Dulcimer!!!

That would be awesome!

[paul999]

[QUOTE]

- the reverb use on the choir seems a bit too unreal or not fitting...It's like the reflected sound is too present, or too close to the original sound (timing wise)....Hope this makes sense.
- the clapping seem a bit constricted in the center...I would prefer it a bit more spread over the complete stereo field.

Thanks for that. I get what you are saying about the clapping. I really wanted to keep the snare/clap/tamborine accent close together to create "one unit" This also helped give the perspective of the vocals being wider. I really is a taste decision I think.

Reverb- I have been thinking of getting further into my lexicon boxes. Early reflections seems to be a great place to start.

Thanks.

[Emma]

Love the full richness of the choral sound... I'm thinking that this is what makes the solo vocal and guitar/violin at the beginning feel thinner/rawer by contrast. The opening part is SO deep rich full and resonant that the soloists in the first verse feel a little thinner and exposed to me. I think GB has created an enduring mental image of the violinist that is colouring my interpretation..

The first chorus is very tasty, smooth sliding guitar and the violin cruises around nicely. I did find the percussion a little 'staid' rather than the spontaneous hallelujah type gospel but it fitted in well with the BIG choral sound. I'm very interested in your lexcion verb effects as I have shopping ideas at the moment.
What a lovely thing for the client to be doing - I'm guessing she is delighted with what you've done!

[bozmillar]

cool. That acoustic guitar felt really thin when it came in. Like skor said, it sounded better once everything else kicked in, but felt pretty awkward to me when it was strumming along with the voice.

[kakeux]

Thanks for that. I get what you are saying about the clapping. I really wanted to keep the snare/clap/tamborine accent close together to create "one unit" This also helped give the perspective of the vocals being wider. I really is a taste decision I think.

I was thinking the choir was doing the clapping, so it was for me normal that the stereo panning should be around the same. Then it's for sure taste related, and I can definitely live with it as is.

[DanTheMan]

As a guitarist, the guitar in the beginning bothers the hell out of me. It requires a stronger performance (IMO). Other than that it sounds good to me. That guitar just kills me though. There's just no confidence in the playing and it's a simple part. Okay, I'm off it, but please fix that.

Dan

[paul999]

The first chorus is very tasty, smooth sliding guitar and the violin cruises around nicely. I did find the percussion a little 'staid' rather than the spontaneous hallelujah type gospel but it fitted in well with the BIG choral sound. I'm very interested in your lexcion verb effects as I have shopping ideas at the moment.
What a lovely thing for the client to be doing - I'm guessing she is delighted with what you've done!

The lexicon reverbs, IMO, are some of the best investments I've made over the years. from a mix standpoint that add a gloss and polish that nothing else can. If I could only have on reverb unit it would be the PCM 90 with the vocal magic setting. I really like having two verbs for different flavors and use different balances of each on various sources. The cool thing is that when I sometimes use daw verb it sits far better because it is doing a small portion rather then all the heavy lifting. It isn't cheap but it is hugely effective.

The client has been really happy. She is delightful to work with.

[paul999]

As a guitarist, the guitar in the beginning bothers the hell out of me. It requires a stronger performance (IMO). Other than that it sounds good to me. That guitar just kills me though. There's just no confidence in the playing and it's a simple part. Okay, I'm off it, but please fix that.

Dan

I totally get that about the guitar. If had been me playing guitar it would have some in robust and thick sounding however she is not a hugely experienced player and thus things get muddy quickly in the low end. It ties my hands as to what I can do because the point is to showcase the client not me. The client hearing her original songs, voice and guitar playing in context of a pro atmosphere has been hugely instructive. The goal wasn't to prop her up but to have her stand on her own two feet.

[fHumble fHingaz]

I won't comment on any of the performance issues, as that has been well & truly covered. Mix-wise, the main issue that stuck out to me was the overly heavy use of the de-esser on the vocals - the thoundths like thehe'th lithping.