Maybe the robots like it.
I’ve noticed over the years doing sound that I have unique tastes. For one, I like songs better when they’re ALMOST finished, as opposed to complete. I think modern mixing chokes out a lot of nuance I enjoy. It almost sounds, dare I say, like a robot?
For one, the volume knob.
If you aren’t familiar, modern mixing includes things like pitch and tempo corrections. It also includes fancy tricks to make things the same volume, loud. In older recordings, you might notice stuff in the background. In newer fancy recordings, there is no background. Everything is the same volume, in your face.
Don’t get me started on drums.
And drums? Well.. I mean.. The snare is as loud as the vocal banging in your ear like a metronome. I don’t need that kind of guide for pop music. In fact, I wouldn’t mind measures taken to hide the beat. I don’t need it for regular time stuff. Make it elusive, for a change. I do not need training wheels.
Who do you “serve” as a mixer?
I’ve run into folks who mix without thinking much. They may think they are good thinkers too. It drives me bonkers. They might listen to what’s on the radio and mimic that. But they can’t listen to the artist they’re mixing and adjust accordingly, and that’s the kind of mixing I like. So, I wind up doing it myself sometimes because I can’t get my idea across.
It’s not a kitchen.
I’ve determined this is because I do not like “good” sound. I like grit, surprises, textures, subtlety, performance, and even errors sometimes. I tend to not get it perfect anymore, I just go for getting it right. They aren’t the same things. Perfect can choke or cook your mixes to unlistenable boredom. I’d personally like to avoid that.
(Speaking for myself, obviously.)
This is just me, by the way. I’m not trying to defend or put down anyone else. Steely Dan, for example, can spend three days on a BPM and the song turn out fine. I cannot do that. Finding the beat for me is as natural as playing and singing it where the words sound right. Done.
Micheal Jackson was also a perfectionist with something to prove. It worked out for him, or did it?
You see, making hits isn’t my priority. I have no aspirations for music by the time you hear it. My dreams have been realized by that point. I thought of it and I did it with Keri and bkbirge. You are listening to it. All I need.
An example of mixing I love..
We had a release recently. There’s no tricks to make it sound how we imagine folks want. We quit when it sounded like what we imagined we wanted. There’s mistakes, but it has vibe by the pound. My favorite thing I’ve done yet. A lot of that has to do with the mixing, or lack thereof.
You are not a jukebox if you are an artist.
Since I have been in music there’s been a tendency for musicians to try to provide something to folks they wanted. Like a server or jukebox. Your game is your game. My game is telling folks what they want by showing them what’s important to me. I kinda’ feel that’s what artists do. It’s not guess work. It’s not mind reading. It’s not the lottery. It’s a statement. It’s an inside job. It’s also craft. Capitalism has ruined that obvious trait of art. In trying to make a buck., many artists lose message.
I don’t blame folks trying to make a buck. But I don’t call them ‘artists’ either.
I don’t blame artists. I hope they snap out of it for their sake. We need messages of protest, hope, empathy, stuff artists are good at. We do not need to know how popular artists are or how many people they got to click play. Billionaires do that by the way. Since trickle down economics, they have figured out how to make money trickle up to them. They get a few dollars from every person. It adds up. They have convinced self-starters the key to financial success is that business model. So folks collect people, thinking it equals success. A very valid business model is making something folks didn’t know they needed. Charging them for something they can get for free anywhere doesn’t make sense. I always ask myself if I believe what I am saying. If the answer is yes, then I have something to say. It makes no difference what other folks say.
Get down with your bad-sounding selves.
So bad sound itself, for me, is a statement. It makes me think about the artist’s intentions. I think about the dynamics and what is emphasized. I think about interesting textures. I think about message. I don’t do any of that with overproduced robotic music. Maybe the robots get something out of it.
Food for thought.
This AI shit everywhere is a fad. It’s already called slop. Folks seeking organic sounds and real talent may wind up in your lap if you’re true to yourself. It’s a happy thought. Also, it’s realistic. So… there’s that.
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