Mix feedback for Punk Protest

[billhewett]

WARNING: This is a leftist political punk song I wrote in December 2016. As a rule I keep politics out of the forums, but this is what the listing requested so I figured it was worth submitting. I don't want to get anybody upset and or start any kind of nasty flame war, so if the politics will get you more riled up than the mix (no matter whether you lean left or right) then this topic probably isn't for you.

In case anybody has a few minutes to spare between Road Rally Prequel Classes, I could use some fresh ears to help me decide if this mix is ready to send in. Thanks in advance!

Here's my profile and the track is We've Got No Choice But Revolution.

Original Listing:

ORIGINAL PUNK ROCK PROTEST SONGS from ANY ERA with Male or Female Vocals are needed by the Publishing division of a well-known Label for Film and TV placements.

They’re looking for original Songs in All Tempos that could be found on a playlist with the following references (which we got from the client):

WARNING: The references may include graphic and explicit lyrics. Listener discretion is advised.

"Anarchy in the U.K." by Sex Pistols

"American Idiot" by Green Day

"You Are (The Government)" by Bad Religion

"We Called It America" by NOFX

"Police & Thieves" by The Clash

NOTE: This client is willing to hear music from any era, as long as sound quality is reasonably good.

Give them solid Punk Songs that could work in upcoming TV shows and films based on recent events. No matter which era you decide to submit, your submissions should stick to typical Punk-band instrumentation: gritty guitars, driving bass, and crash-y drums. Defiant, well-performed vocals with a heaping amount of Punk attitude could help you seal the deal! More lo-fi production could work for this pitch – just be sure that your arrangements and production add to the punky, in-your-face vibe of your tracks and don't detract from it!

Universal lyrics that avoid references to specific names, dates, times, and brands would be optimal, but we (and the company requesting music) realize that for this type of song you might need to include some specifics. The Label also stated that they do NOT want to hear any lyrics that contain profanity. Do NOT copy the referenced artists or songs in any way, shape, or form. Use them only as a general guide for tempo, tone, and overall vibe.

If you're submitting vintage recordings, the sound quality is not expected to be on par with today’s broadcast quality! Era-appropriate Broadcast Quality will work just fine. The deal points will be negotiated directly with the Publisher on a song-by-song basis.

[lesmac]

Sounds cool Bill.

If it were mine I'd bring the vocal forward. The mix seems a little bright and could be more compressed.

Just my 2c.

[billhewett]

Thanks, Les! I've been torn about the vocal... I've got it buried a bit like a Sex Pistols track, but the rest of the production is probably closer to Green Day and needs a more vocal forward mix.

I'll see what I can do to make it less bright. As far as compression goes I'm not sure I could add any more, as I've got just about everything compressed way more than I'm usually comfortable :)

[lesmac]

I'll see what I can do to make it less bright. As far as compression goes I'm not sure I could add any more, as I've got just about everything compressed way more than I'm usually comfortable

Yeah I can see by the waveform. Might be that the guitars in the refs sound pretty compressed.

Toning down the brightness would be worth a try.

[billhewett]

Thanks again, Les! I uploaded an updated version... this time the waveform is more or less a rectangle, but there is also serious compression on the guitars, bass, drums, vocals, and tambourine before the even get to the master bus :)

I think the vocals sit better now, and I tried to take the edge off the high end and give it a little more boost in the low end... I think it sounds much better, thanks to your advice.

[lesmac]

Better Bill, but I couldn't get the words in the first verse. The guitars in the sides are taking attention away from the vocals.

[billhewett]

Gotcha... I'll tweak some more :)

[billhewett]

OK, the file is updated and I used a mix engineers best tool to fix the verse vocals... I muted the second rhythm guitar :)

Thanks again for all of your advice on this, Les. I'm pretty sure this is as good as it's going to get and it's due tonight, so hopefully the screeners will be on board!

[cosmicdolphin]

I like your song but it's a very thin and scratchy mix to my ears

[billhewett]

Thanks, CosmicDolphin! I think you are spot on that I went over the top in trying to control the low end.

New mix uploaded, hopefully with a bit more oomph :)