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[Josh McArdle]

Andy is the man for sure! Took your advice and checked out some of Bob Clearmountain's stuff. I wasn't surprised to find I'd actually heard loads of it before without knowing who was behind it. Man that guy has class! His mixes are enormous but they're not forced down your throat by gobs of compression. It's just so easy on the ears. I absolutely love the Crowded House stuff, my parents used to play it all the time when I was a kid!

[j.hall]

BC's reverbs are to die for.  he's an extremely talented, amazing mixer!

[Jonah A. Kort]

Josh McArdle wrote on Fri, 30 October 2009 16:51

I just find it funny that Bendeth/CLA/Wallace etc. are being paid so much for these mixes knowing full well that it'll end up coming out of a 13 year old's laptop speakers at 128kbps Sometimes it makes you wonder what the point is!

Really?  You wonder why those engineers mixes sound amazing on any system or while being played on any radio station!

That's the point, i believe!

I was listening to a couple of the (low quality) samples on Rich Costey's allmusic, they sounds pretty much the same anywhere else i've heard them including the lowend....

Makes me want to work harder everyday...

[rankus]

Yes, getting that low end punch on small crappy speakers is the holy grail for me as well..

Any ideas or tricks that the forum folks cares to share?  (perhaps a great new topic for a thread J?)

[j.hall]

a masterful use of compression.

[rankus]

j.hall wrote on Wed, 04 November 2009 16:51

a masterful use of compression.

I suppose that is a big part of the equation J.  These fellows are all known to have rooms full of outboard comps eh

[j.hall]

Andy used less and less outboard gear as he went.  i read and interview with him where he said he was pretty much down to only using the onboard comps on the SSL.  he said it was 1 part he liked what they did and 1 part laziness since the console can be recalled, outboard requires notes.

but yeah, to obtain those results, you have to use loads of compression.

[Josh McArdle]

Jonah A. Kort wrote on Wed, 04 November 2009 07:30

Josh McArdle wrote on Fri, 30 October 2009 16:51 I just find it funny that Bendeth/CLA/Wallace etc. are being paid so much for these mixes knowing full well that it'll end up coming out of a 13 year old's laptop speakers at 128kbps Sometimes it makes you wonder what the point is! Really?  You wonder why those engineers mixes sound amazing on any system or while being played on any radio station! That's the point, i believe! I was listening to a couple of the (low quality) samples on Rich Costey's allmusic, they sounds pretty much the same anywhere else i've heard them including the lowend.... Makes me want to work harder everyday...

Twas merely a joke So right though. I heard something about a Bjork album being mixed on laptop speakers! Could well be exaggerated folklore but it's an interesting idea

[j.hall]

bjork does some strange things (just ask terry manning), and her results, i would imagine (i don't know her) generally yield what she is after.  which might easily be the most eccentric, unconventional stylings in the music biz today.  that being said, if it was mixed on auratones or even laptop speakers, i imagine it was ref'd on studio monitors as well.  her records sound pretty stunning.

[bradwood]

Great thread!


Best- Brad

[bradwood]

I've been thinking about the Mutt Lange comments & while a fan of so much that he's done, I no longer find his new productions to be satisfying to listen to. I assume that he participates in writing lyrics & that is a problem- he seems stuck on double entendres & corny sex references. That tongue-in-cheek style worked well for AC/DC & Def Leppard (mostly), but it steals a lot of the danger that rock is supposed to have. I'm no fan of Nickleback, but there was an undeniable rough blue collar Canuck appeal to the band that is stripped away on the new record, leaving a pretty generic shell of a band in its place. Ease up the guitar tones on the chorus & add a mandolin or fiddle & you have a Shania single. As for the drums, oy. When Def Leppard's drummer lost an arm, I cut the band some slack for going with a more drum machine-like sound. Little did I know that Mutt would make every drummer sound one-armed from then on. His snare fills are so lacking in dynamics that its become part of his signature sound, and that's not good. The exception would be Shania's records, but when the rock appears, Mutt has an aesthetic that is unrecognizable from his earlier work & for me is really unappealing. His vocal style remains a wonderment & is the gold standard for hyped yet intimate presence. So- except for a few Shania cuts, I really don't listen to Mutt's work post-1987 & no longer aspire to compete on that level (as if I ever could anyway). I find myself listening to more natural-sounding rock that requires me to reach for the volume knob occasionally. Take care!

Best- Brad

[grantis]

I like his work.  I'm too lazy to reach for the volume knob.

[rankus]

I'm just reviewing Paramore's Riot! Album here at the studio and I can hear some fairly obvious flamming between the snare and the snare sample... Probably the reason we were panning the snare sound earlier in the thread!

[j.hall]

just wrapped a record with a band that spent a few days with him to see if they wanted to do this record with him.  many, many first hand stories i found rather fascinating.

my favorite is:

supposed to be doing a co-write with him, band is rehearsing for hours, no producer.  he finally shows, tells them he'll teach them how to really play.  says he'll show them things they never thought possible, i.e. "i'll show you that there really is one note past G, it's H and i'll teach you".  they commence working on the song, he wants to change the chorus, they discuss and mildly disagree, he gets enraged, and says, "let me go talk to my gold records about this"  leaves the room and never returns.

[rankus]

Wow,  That's some crazy shit!  But hey, you got a gig out of it

Sometimes you really have to wonder how some of these guys get to where they are ... jeeez

Listen to the snare on Riot when it hits in a open spot: the flamming is ridiculous.  Can't believe no one called them on it!