Mixdown Practicing & Learning

Magghy Ji

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Magghy Ji
Feb 13, 2024
🔔 MIXDOWN TRAINING ROOM - New MIX for the WEEK!! (Read the instructions! ⬇️)

👋 Good morning everybody!
The New Mix for This Week is a Blues/Rock song from Cambridge site, with a touch of 70’s feeling.. Hands on the faders! 🎛️ 🎸🎙

📌 Here is the link:
Voelund – “Comfort Lives in Belief”
https://cambridge-mt.com/ms/mtk/#Voelund

⌛ Posting date is any time on this coming SUNDAY February 18th
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How to participate:
✔️Download the Full Multitrack session
✔️Post your link here in Mixdown Training Room
✔️ If you use Soundcloud set the link to “Private”
✔️ Don't forget to share your ideas or workflow!
✔️ Don’t be shy, leave comments and feedback! Active listening is fundamental when it comes to improve our mixing skillset!
✔️ Upload your song here if you want to take part in the video comparison!
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1ieJrF_WPsMRCqOOlZNf_muoqFnGO7wTZ?usp=share_link


🔃 If you can’t manage to post your mix on Sunday, don’t worry you can do it on Wednesday under the Revison’s Day post where we share the last version of our mixes, revised according to the feedback received from the other partecipants ;P
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Let’s GO!!! 🎵🎛️
POST your MIX anytime on SUNDAY February 18th.
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Magghy Ji (author)
Feb 13, 2024
REFERENCE AND COMPARISONS
Here are some reference tracks:
https://previews.cambridge-mt.com/ComfortLivesInBelief_Full_Preview.mp3
https://open.spotify.com/intl-it/track/01Txvu3dNthhldq8oR0Pae?si=f97a7d43a90b4480
https://open.spotify.com/intl-it/track/7FwBtcecmlpc1sLySPXeGE?si=3f2b15a5b133407f
https://open.spotify.com/intl-it/track/7e89621JPkKaeDSTQ3avtg?si=600e9a1f582d460a

P.S. Everyone can choose the reference tracks he/she wants to mix the song but in order to have a same starting point to evaluate and compare our mixes, for the video, we’ll need to use the given references and rough mix so actually we do not judge each other but we compare our versions to songs that were professionally treated.

P.P.S. Please, consider doing additional researches regarding the reference tracks, using also different platforms, what I do it’s just give general suggestions ;P
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Jason Cardin
Feb 13, 2024
I'm hoping folks are going to really explore the space on this one

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Tyson Arp
Feb 13, 2024
Wow, that's a whole lot of... Everything!
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Camilo Rodriguez
Feb 13, 2024
Hey! @Magghy Ji hope everything is going well.

I'm brand new to mixing and i already downloaded the stems and uploaded them on and Ableton session but i'm already having issues setting the starting point of the song and the bpm of the session lol. if you have any tips or video tutorials that can share with me i would truly appreciate it.

thanks a lot!
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Enric Granollers
Feb 13, 2024
Starting to mix, I'm struggling with the drums, too bad it's not acoustic. Suddenly I remembered the great Robben Ford. I suggest this reference in case anyone needs it

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Aart dB
Feb 13, 2024
Maybe I'll throw four or five instruments in the bin and end up with a strong line up. Reminds me of Sympathy for the Devil, by the Rolling Stones. That'll be my reference.
Jason, I'm curious which reference you recommended, since the video is not available.
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Jason Cardin
Feb 13, 2024
Dang! It was the old SNL more cowbell skit :D

On a serious note, guy's voice reminds me a bit of Warren Zevon
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Magghy Ji (author)
Feb 14, 2024
Hey @Camilo Rodriguez, I use Ableton and I'm not having problems with these audio files, they all start at the same point (I press ctrl/cmd to import them into the session one on top of each other at the same time).. for the bpm you can find it in the read me.txt included into the folder along with the stems ;P
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Ziggy Shpakovsky
Feb 14, 2024
Jason
and slightly Mark Knopfler and Iggy Pop )))
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Ziggy Shpakovsky
Feb 14, 2024
how non sinchronized
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Tyson Arp
Feb 14, 2024
Not gonna lie, after setting up the project and spending 90 minutes working on setting up a basic mix, I almost just put this project in the recycle bin cause it just didn't seem worth the effort. In the end, despite the poor rhythmic performances from the musicians, it's a great project for working on conflicting elements! Not saying I'm in love with the song, but I did find some music in there after all! I did replace the kick and snare samples with more realistic ones that better suit the genre. And I'm sorry Hammond Organ, you're just gonna have to sit way at the back of the stage for most of the song next to the Piano!
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Tyson Arp
Feb 14, 2024
Also, did they intend a couple of those dissonant background vocal chords or was that a mistake? I took license to revoice a couple that seemed out of place with notes just a half step apart.
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Nate Morgan
Feb 14, 2024
Do you suppose those Electric guitar and ALT take tracks are supposed to all play together? Or just pick one?
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Aart dB
Feb 15, 2024
@Nathaniel, I think you need just one of them. ALT stands for alternative, so that explains it. Your musical ear will probably have told you that one is enough. As for me, that also goes for the choice of keyboards, one is (more than) enough, if you also want to use the acoustic guitar.
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Enric Granollers
Feb 15, 2024
Nathaniel , I'm choosing the riffs that interest me
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Aart dB
Feb 16, 2024
This song has come together with such a low standard of performance. It's like the artist is taking the pis...
You can scrub and polish a pig, and put it in a dress and give it a diamond ring, .... but it's still a pig!

I have done my share of mixing the pig, seeing how I could improve tonality, choosing which parts to keep and fit them in the image, but the bad performance is so dominant that it's not worth the time to take it any further. So I won't be posting my work this week.
The reason is simply because if an artist or a band would come to me with such a result, I would send them straight back to the recording studio. If it were my own performance, I definitely wouldn't give it a try to make it sound better. I'd rerecord the whole lot.

I rather spend my time practicing my skills on projects that are viable, that have any promise to sound great with some time and effort. This one is nice for a gig on a farm, where everybody is stoned or drunk, and not paying attention to the band.
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Enric Granollers
Feb 17, 2024
I agree with you Aart, but sometimes pigs make good hams.
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Aart dB
Feb 18, 2024
I was a little curious if anyone of us all could perform miracles, so I had a quick listen to some of the mix results, but unfortunately... no miracles. Some may succeed to turn the pig into a nice ham, but it still isn't music.
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Jesai V
Feb 18, 2024
@Aart dB no miracles.. Yes... The performance are bad but... For me there is something interestings... The first time I heard the drums I said WTF? that sucks but after some time I realized that it made sense for the song. Yes... The performance are bad but... Sometimes it happens that you receive poorly recorded tracks. Knowing how to manage this thing is important in my opinion. Or you refuse the job but... I'm poor🤣
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J T
Feb 19, 2024
Thanks all that was a very enjoyable read! Aart you really have a way with words!