Referring to an actual mix note from Allen Stone, Brian tackles the request to make both a lead vocal and a Wurlitzer piano "crunchier". Soundtoys Devil-Loc, Soundtoys Decapitator, Massey TapeHead, iZotope Nectar, and Waves SSL Channel are featured.
- [Narrator] So I want to read a note that I received from Allen Stone for this medley of tunes. There was one segment of the medley, this was recorded live, where he wanted to make the Rhodes and the vocal crunchier. So, I wanted to come up with a way to have them blend together and be different than the songs that come before and after it. That was the only one he wanted to affect and that's kind of tricky with a live recording because you're looking for consistency. But he hadn't given me too many notes on this so I wanted to accommodate.
And, so, let's listen to a snippet of the song that came before "Naturally", which is the name of this tune that we are going to work on today in the medley. (plays "Naturally") So here's how the vocal sounded. You can hear the bleed from the other instruments. I'm going to go back a little bit to play the piano. It's a Wurlitzer. Pure and clean, nothing too...
Crazy with that. And so, the request was... On the transition between this song and the next one that the vocals suddenly get crunchier and also the Wurlitzer gets crunchier. More distorted is the other way I would read crunchy. So remember, the word crunchy when given to you or when you want to say something like that means distorted, over-driven, those kind of descriptors.
So, you can see this is the automation line. You'll see that these three devices come into play as the song changes from one to the next. I'm going to solo the Rhodes here. (solos Rhodes piano) Not an unusual sound for a Wurlitzer to have.
I keep switching back between Rhodes and Wurlitzer, I think this is a Wurlitzer piano. I didn't think those same devices were going to be good for the vocals, so I gave him drive with tape-head here which made him sound a little more distorted than prior. And this was a processor I had had on his voice for the entire mix. So, the only thing that really changed was the amount of saturation distortion on the output.
And then, on Decapitator, here I even named it "tough vocal start". Let's see what it sounds like. (solos vocal track) Another way to describe that is, maybe you'd say it put a little hair on the voice, a little rattle, a little rub. Just enough to make an attitude adjustment in the vocal, to make him sound like he's singing a little harder. And that went along nicely with what we did to the Wurlitzer to make them both kind of fit in the same space, separate and apart from the three songs before and the one song after it.
I call that an attitude adjustment, sonically.
Author
Released
3/30/2017Join multiplatinum producer, engineer, and mixer Brian Malouf as he covers the many terms that musicians and non-musicians use to describe music. Brian explains the meaning behind the comments and also demonstrates techniques that can be applied to a mix in response to the notes. He covers lo-fi mix techniques, EQ techniques, changes to levels, adapting the ambience, making vibe and energy adjustments, working with compression options, and revising the placement location of elements in the sonic sphere.
- Lo-fi glossary
- Volume glossary
- Ambience glossary
- Location glossary
- Attitude adjustment glossary
- Compression glossary
Skill Level Beginner
Duration
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Introduction
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Welcome1m 8s
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1. Lo-Fi Mix Techniques
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Lo-fi glossary1m 7s
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Make it lo-fi6m 42s
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Make it distorted4m 29s
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Add some grit5m 15s
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Add more saturation2m 55s
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Overdrive it7m 20s
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Drum destruction2m 19s
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2. EQ Mix Techniques
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EQ glossary6m 6s
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Brightening something6m 18s
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Add more presence5m 40s
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Darken the bass guitar5m 40s
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Make it warmer4m 23s
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Make it more edgy3m 54s
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The vocal is too harsh4m 10s
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Add body to the snare drum3m 46s
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3. Volume/Level Mix Techniques
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Volume glossary1m 58s
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Faders and pan pots3m 55s
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Specific frequency EQ boost2m 55s
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4. Ambience Mix Techniques
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Make it wider11m 36s
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Give it more space4m 26s
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5. Location Mix Techniques
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Location glossary1m 49s
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6. Vibe/Attitude/Energy Adjustment Mix Techniques
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Make the vocal crunchier3m 33s
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Augmenting the production3m 50s
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7. Compression Mix Techniques
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Compression glossary5m 55s
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8. Other General Mix Requests
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Relating to transients5m 38s
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Other terms you should know9m 37s
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Conclusion
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Next steps37s
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Video: Make the vocal crunchier