"Mixing To Standard"-New Mix Up

[hazineju]

Does anyone know what that means? On one of my critiques for an electronica song, the reviewer recommended mixing the song to standard before i resubmit. (he/she gave me an 8 for engineering and a 7 for production). The reviewer mentioned some pitch problems on the vocal, do you think that is what they are referring to, or does it mean i need to rework eqs, etc?

[mazz]

Did they say "standard levels" or just "standard"? There's general guidelines about levels for broadcast but it can be a pretty confusing subject. If your levels are too low, that can be an issue. If you're too close to digital zero that can pose issues as well.Regarding pitch problems, that's a biggie that you need to learn to deal with. Very little music these days has pitchy vocals. With all the tools available out there to correct pitch (for better or worse), pitchy vocals will be the kiss of death to your song.How about posting the song and the listing and critique? That way we can give a listen and maybe help shed some light on your question.cheers!Mazz

[milfus]

yeah, id post the link, itd be a lot easier to sort out what was meant, cause thats kind of subjective

[hazineju]

yeah i totally agree about vocals, and pitch isn't usually an issue for me. interestingly this song has gotten forwards before without any mention of pitch issues. some people have eagle ears though, and i respect that. listening back i can hear some off notes here and there that i plan to touch up. the melody does have some funky notes intentionally (like the first phrase "do you FEAR me,") to give it a bit of a creepy vibe, but i don't think that's what they were talking about. (?)looking forward to your opinion, especially about "mixing to standard." thanks so much for helping me out on this and giving it a listen! here goes:Listing:S080225ELA wide range of great ELECTRONICA/TRIP HOP SONGS & INSTRUMENTALS from up-tempo club-like tracks a la the Chemical Brothers, Daft Punk, and Fatboy Slim to mid- and slow-tempo tracks a la Tricky, Portishead, and Morcheeba are needed by a West Coast-based Music Publisher who typically supplies music to companies such as Muzak (tracks for retail shops, restaurants, malls, etc.). He's now expanding his repertoire and wants to find great material for the upcoming TV season, as he has numerous contacts in that world as well. Male or female vocals are OK. He's asked us to be extra selective in what we forward - he wants quality over quantity - so your vocal and instrumental performances must be excellent. And your tracks/songs also need to be of the highest qualityCritique:Music - 8Lyrics - 7Marketability - 7Arrangement - 7Production - 7Engineering - 8Musicianship - 7Lead Vocal - 7I thoroughly enjoyed the music track and emotion that this track carries. However, there are moments when the vocalist seemed to have had a few pitch recognition challenges throughout the song. The Style and approach taken was truly 'on target', andthe vocalist's tone was simply heavenly and the interpretation was perfect. However, there were notes in the harmony parts as well as the main vocal that might have made it difficult to enjoy this piece. (that's an ouch, baby ) - Consider applying autotune to each vocal track or rerecording the necessary parts by going back and simply 'punching in' the phases or words that are out of tune. -Consider mixing to standard before resubmissionHere is the link:http://www.taximusic.com/song.php?song_ ... 1&stream=1

[milfus]

im on an ear peice, so i cant speak for panning, but i can hear your rhythm section competing with the vocal, you might wanna drop it a few db, the bass line and the drums, or just drop the entire relative mix a few db to pull the vocal out, the lead is also just as loud at the vocal, might wanna kick that down about 1-2 db, you want the vocal to be the focus if shes singing the lead, cause people are disposed to latch on to the voice, its a really good static mix, but it sounds like you started with the vocal, and then had to kick the vocal down after the rest of the arrangement was done, just kinda picture a normal song, vocals take priority, then your lead, then rythm then ambients for this genre, generally, it is a nice song tho man, thats a really pretty voice, some real nice effects and creative mixing, like the modulated note on the be, i was digging that a lot

[allends]

I'm sure there is a more appropriate reference source within your genre, but I feel there is much to learn from Tom Aragon's track Shamaness. Although his drumming is different, Tom's percussion is effective and he features a fine female vocalist as you do. I like Tom's mix a lot. Try A/B'ing this mix to yours and let your ears help you to determine what it would take to compete with it. Like I said, there are other great tracks you can use for a critical comparison. I am betting you'll learn a lot if you take the time with a listening session like this. Just a thought.-Allen

[hazineju]

thanks for the advice you guys, i'm loving this forum so far. very helpful comments. i listened to shamaness, that's an awesome track, and i love the vocal!gonna start working on touch ups and levels tomorrow.

[allends]

Apr 27, 2008, 5:59pm, hazineju wrote:... i listened to shamaness, that's an awesome track, and i love the vocal!... I am glad to learn that the example I used was helpful to you. I thought maybe I was out of line because the two songs aren't similar in many ways.Last year I received a negative comment from a screener who said my tracks were not broadcast quality. Now I feel the need to help others by sharing what I have learned since then.Good Luck,Allen

[milfus]

yeah honestly, the smartest thing you can do right now, while you are studying up, is find a few songs in that genre, pick one, and steal the panning and balance of the mix, just use the same positions and levels, and then if it needs a little tweaking for your specific individual track, like keep the tweaks minimal but effective, and you will have a pretty solid mix 90% of the time, not including creative mixing, i mean just for throwin down your pans and balances and all that, its one of the easiest ways to learn them

[jeffabbey]

Mixing is an art within itself and should not be part of the Musicians critique.The critiquers of TAXI should be judging the song and musicianship only and should know that on all proffesional recordings that it is not the musician who does the mixing, but that this is hired out to a profesional in this feild.Jeff