Blind listens by number - names mated up with reviews after the fact. My impressions only, and I am no expert by any stretch of the imagination.
0dbfs - Very ethereal vibe overall. Drum remnants in the intro are a distraction. Vocal treatment seems a little heavy-handed. It’s not necessary to beat people over the head with effects – a little goes a long way, even more so when subjected to the critical listening that an IMP submission receives. I like the stark ending.
Mkane – Solid. Nice snap in the snare. Drums are balanced and crisp. Tame that Rhodes a bit and this is a really coherent mix. Vocal effects are unobtrusive, which makes them an addition as opposed to a subtraction. Vocal level perhaps a bit hot overall, but that’s picking fly shit out of the pepper. Nicely done.
YZ – Solid bottom end. Drums are snappy and present. Rhodes is overdone to the point of distraction. Vocal effects are a tad overdone – when you entice the listener to concentrate on the effect, you are diverting attention from the song itself. (I learned this lesson the hard way in a previous IMP.) Too much guitar chinga chinga.
NelsonL – Straight-forward feel to this mix. Drums are crisp and perhaps a bit understated, or is it that the vocal is too up front? It’s a bit off-kilter, regardless. Rhodes track is featured here, and I heard it much more as flavoring. I like the uncluttered ending.
sstillwell – Too much Rhodes. Bass is solid and clear. Crisp drums, although I’d like more whomp in the kick and perhaps a little less overhead. Out-front vocal, well-treated. Reverb choice suits the vibe. Lose some Rhodes and add a little beef to that kick.
ICombs – Balanced and crisp. Drums snap, crackle, and pop. Can I have a bit more kick? Too much Rhodes for my taste, but that seems to be a common thread to most of these mixes and it’s not as overdone here as some of the others. Vocal sits nicely in the mix. I’m not a fan of ending with the Rhodes.
EHouston – Where’s the beef? Anemic bass. No punch in the kick. Nice pop in the snare. Vocal a tad out-front, and vocal treatment a little heavy-handed in places. I like the sparse ending.
Billybehdazz – Anemic kick. Crisp snare. Drums work much better after the bass guitar comes in. Too much Rhodes. I want more bottom here, more oomph. As a result, it feels crowded in upper-mids – like a stereo with the loudness button off.
Electric Warrior – Here we go – some drums with a little whomp to ‘em. Perhaps a bit too much overhead. Crisp snare, meaty kick. Vocal sits nicely – I like the verb. More subtle Rhodes treatment would be better, but it appears to be overdone in most of these so maybe it’s just me.
slash5969 – This is mine – I recognize the piano fade-in on the left. Meaty bottom. Nice punch. Crisp drums with lotsa snap. Perhaps a bit too much bass guitar in retrospect, although I like the way it punches, fo' sho'. I like the way that pesky Rhodes isn’t the featured track here. I like the faded-in piano in both places, and the sparse ending.
MG Audio – Oh yeah. Solid drums – crisp and punchy. This feels balanced and snappy. Perhaps a bit much cymbal shimmer, but I’m nitpicking. Vocal sits nicely. I like this mix a lot. Wait. The delay on the acoustic doesn’t work for me, and I don’t dig the Rhodes ending – but those are the only things I’d change.
DCombs – Yes! Solid and balanced, all-around. Drums are right on. Crisp and snappy and make my toes tap. Rhodes isn’t over-the-top. Bass is solid without overpowering. Too much cymbal. Vocals are perfect. Lose the Rhodes ending, tame the cymbal crashes a bit and this is the best mix I’ve heard so far. Nicely done!
T Mueller – Interesting edits, very creative. The very beginning didn’t work for me, but I like the drum stagger before the vocals start. Bass seems a bit underfed. Drums are crisp – nice snare pop. This feels a bit busy overall, but that may be a product of how different it is from the others and the fact that I’ve listened to this song entirely too many times at this point.
JCMastering – This is understated and a bit dry. It didn’t really work for me until the second time through, when I turned the volume up. Nicely balanced. Drums are punchy and solid. Bass grooves. Rhodes not overdone. Vocal feels sort of… plain. Not a fan of the Rhodes ending.
Adam Miller – Great drums – in an IMP where most all the drums have been good. I love this snare – crisp and alive. Nothing fancy here, but everything is balanced and clean. Rhodes is flavor, not meat. Vocal sits nicely in the mix. I don’t like the Rhodes ending, but this is one of the top two or three mixes I’ve heard. Well done!
martthie 08 - Well balanced and solid. Plenty of snap in the drums. Piano is perhaps a little domineering - a little automation would go a long way. Sparse use of the Rhodes tracks - and you know I like that. In fact, I like it all. Nice job!
HIssSound - More bass, please. Good drum sounds. Some pop in the snare - short reverb? Some meat in the kick. I like. Vocal lays in there nicely. A touch less Rhodes on the ending, a tad more bass overall and you're there, I think.
The Dan - Another well balanced mix. Good drums. Too much Rhodes - I didn't hear it as a lead instrument so much. Vocal is maybe a little dry - or is it merely overwhelmed by that Rhodes?
Firefly - Solid. Vocal more up front than most, but that's not neccessarily a bad thing. More bass, please? Less Rhodes through the rebuild while we're at it. I like the understated guitar usage - you don't have to club people over the head with stuff to make a point. *Makes mental note* Not a fan of the Rhodes ending.
J-Texas - Solid and crisp. Nice balanced feel. Snare is a little...immediate - like it's in a room all by itself. Is it a panning thing, or do I just want some reverb depth? I'm not a fan of the Rhodes through the end section.
Grant Richard - I like the punch and snap in the drums. The Rhodes is too prominent for me. I'd like more bass, please. I really like this vocal treatment, it's up front and clear. Shimmering reverb. Interesting use of guitar at the end, but I'm not big on the Rhodes as final statement.
Fiasco - Whaaaaaattt thissssss tuuuuuuuuune ssouuuuuuuundssss liiiiiiike aafterrrrr the quaaaaaaaaaaaalude kiiiiiicksssss iiiiiinnnnnnnn.
osumosan - Balanced and grooving. Crisp drum sounds, perhaps a tad cymbal-heavy in places but it does groove my shoes. Prominent Rhodes. Sparkling vocal - I love the placement you get here. Ack @ the Rhodes outro.
SingSing - Oh yeah - that's a great snare! Meaty kick too. Too much Rhodes for me. It's like a vanilla coke with too much vanilla in it. The heavily distorted guitar after the breakdown sort of misses too, but I like that it's different after a dozen or so times through this tune. I like the heartbeat ending.
Colin Larson - Nice pop in the snare. Rhodes stuff is...rounded off? What is that? It works better than the raw tracks, I think, but it's still spice masquerading as meat. I like this one anyway. Breath-y vocal - nice feel there. Piano might be a tad hot through the verses. I like the ending.
Jonah A Kort - What's that rattling in the bass? Too much Rhodes for me, and the abrubt editing doesn't work. Solid drum sounds for the most part. Delayed acoustic doesn't really work, either. There are too many distractions in this mix - anything that draws attention to the cleverness of the mix engineer by extension almost always detracts from the song.
Tricklecharge - Backwards and underwater. I know it's a sample-rate issue, but it's disconcerting. That said, I like the dynamics here. It doesn't pop and groove like I expect it to, and the vocal tuning is much more obvious. This is like playing an old 45 at 33 RPM. Strange distortion at the end passage, but a really cool ending! I would like to hear your mix at the normal sample rate.