I imagine that herding cats is a difficult profession.
Chaos. Claws. Unorganized fur.
Last week I commented on Edison’s numerous failed attempts at improving the filament in a light bulb. I wonder if, in between fresh ideas, he ever tried a faulty filament in a different bulb.
Perhaps.
With the new record, I’ve been trying a discrete mixing method, which is, essentially, a way to give individual tracks (within a bundled, virtual group) more freedom in mix down. On the first group of songs, it was an abysmal mess.
Although, on yesterday’s mix session, discrete mixing sounded fantastic.
Why? I have no idea. There are subtle differences with the types of microphones used and in how things were recorded. But, empirically, the sources are the same.
The aim of a good mix is to have a balanced, evocative sound. Interestingly, the more scientific and exacting one gets with a mix, the more boring it becomes. Not only is mixing a technical creation, it’s also an artistic one. Perfect mixes sound really, really weird. There needs to be a little rough in the play.
Mix adjustments are quirky. If one element is changed in an intricate balance, ten others are affected. Pulling a low frequency on a drum can make everything sound harsh. Dumping a harsh frequency on a guitar can make everything sound dull. Compressing a mix makes it sound smaller and bigger at the same time. Strange, isn’t it?
Mixing is like herding cats.
Meow.
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mikegarriganmusic posted this
