Hi Everybody,
Today we’re trying something completely different – a reaction video.
Watch Matthew Weiss (notable mix/mastering engineer – Ronnie Spector, Arrested Development) react to Joe Carrell’s mix of “The Sisterhood”, a Mackenzie Johnson original, and give us his insight and perspective on the sonic choices made in the mix.
See Joe Carrell’s best-selling mix course – priced at only $27 – featuring Mackenzie’s song.
Here are some of the notable elements Matthew highlights in his, real-time, review of the track:
- Vocals
- Very clear, not overly treated.
- Great low-end presence – something Matthew feels is often overlooked with female vocals.
- Effective tricks like reverse breath noises and different reverb templates between sections.
- Guitars
- A “Sea of guitar playing”, with clear notation, that doesn’t distract from the arrangement or vocals.
- Transient definition
- Nice and sharp/defined.
- Not covered by reverb.
- Kick and bass
- Great balance between the two.
- The relationship and roles played by both, don’t disrupt the vibe of the song.
- Bass
- Driving the rhythm.
- Acting like the kick would, with the actual kick supporting it.
- Snare
- A great spread across the stereo image.
- The reverb is perfectly timed to the whole song, to keep the “breathing” of the track.
Matt talks about Joe’s management of specific frequencies as they relate to specific instrumentation like a shaker – how it can often be too bright, and throw off the high-end of a mix. He says that in this mix, “all the brightness is coming from the string of guitar…”, pointing out that Joe’s approach to balance is holistic rather than anchoring on a single element.
On the background vocals, he feels they’re being “rode in like a string section” – a comparison I agree with.
Matt is even so impressed with the BGV treatment that he, admittedly, wants to steal the technique for his next mix!
This is a testament to our friend Joe, and why we love working with and learning from him, in so many of our videos.
Speaking of: we’d like to remind you that we have a fantastic master class coming up on June 19th, in Austin,TX, at Warm Studios and there are still spots available if you’re able to attend.
Also to note: on that Saturday (6/22) we’ll be joined by a special guest, producer, and mix engineer Kyle Crushman (Edie Brickell, Paul Simon).
One thing I like about watching Matthew review a mix is that he helps us learn how to articulate why certain things work in a mix, inadvertently giving us listening tools as he goes.
I hope you experience the same takeaways from this video.
As ever, please share your thoughts and reactions in the video comments section, and have a marvellous time recording, mixing, and mastering.
Many Thanks,
Warren
