I used the Fabfilter Pro MB, which allows you to compress one band in a narrow frequency range. I was going to automate it so it just kicked in on the notes in question, but then when I auditioned it going on the whole track, I realised it wasn’t negatively affecting any other vocal passages, so I left it on the whole time…
In fact, I suppose technically speaking, a multiband compressor already has side chains going, as each band is only being triggered by the frequencies within that band. When you solo the band on a multiband compressor, I suppose that is much like soloing the sidechain input on a full range compressor, only the multiband just compresses the frequencies it “hears”, whereas a full range compressor compresses all frequencies across the board in response to what it “hears” in the side chain signal.
Completely agree with this. Since adopting the Izotope plugs a while back, all of which include MB processing (compression but also other things as well), I haven’t even thought to reach for a MB comp, nor have I yet tried to explore sidechaining. Just not sure whether that technique is particularly applicable to more spare stuff? I’m an ignoramus on this subject.
TDR Nova is also a very good alternative to MB comps. Especially for vocal. It’s a dynamic EQ rather than a MB comp. It’s also free…
I can get more precise with it than c6 or reaXcomp. I know the fabfilter stuff is better. But I don’t have any of their stuff.
I can also get pretty aggressive with it and it still sounds natural.
I sometimes wish it had more bands. But if I really need it, I’ll pick the most needed band and render it at the item/waveform level and use the rest on the channel.
If you need to de-whistle or de-honk a track. Nova works really well
I agree rjwillow, an amazingly effective tool and unbelievable that it’s free. To me it seems much more intuitive and more precise than multiband comps.
Thanks for your comments and suggestions on this one. Here is the updated mix with the band’s changes and a few other mix tweaks you guys suggested. Have a listen and let me know what you think. Thanks again!
Friken AWESOME!!! Still the best I’ve heard in a while!
The only thing I would be looking for would be to ride the toms up in the fill after the stop into the ride out (at 2:24)
But really, you are done… print it
Hi I have a great review for you. Here it is. HOLY CRAP THAT WAS GOOD!!!
I didn’t read the rest of the reviews cuz I’m lazy. Most impressive to me was the dude singing. Just a perfect fit for this vibe the way he sung it. Everything else was amazing. I am also a non midi guitar player, so I am impressed. congrats
Excellent Andrew! Great song and performance, which is always a good start. Tasty sounds all around (love that clean guitar solo).
The only thing that I’m not too fond of is the wash of crash cymbals combined with the distorted guitar fizz. It gets a bit tiring after a while (to my old ears anyway! )
Not sure what the extra seconds of feedback adds to the song though, but I suppose the band likes it.
Still a great mix from you, clear and full and kept my interest all the way.
Top job again! :beerbang:
O! I live for the day when you’ll do a really bad one, that will make me believe you’re human after all!
I don’t think we’ll ever see the day! And that’s a great thing, because otherwise it could mean something really bad is happening in the world, like Armageddon or something???
Yeah, no kidding, something truly apocalyptic and civilization-ending, like, oh, I dunno… something completely crazy, like Donald Trump being US president!! Ha hahahahaha!
Thanks Pat - I appreciate the kind comments and compliments…
Yeah, the choruses are pretty full on. I don’t know if I would describe the guitars as “fizzy” though. They all pretty much have no content above around 4-5k… but yeah, that’s the nature of the beast in terms of the arrangement. The drummer is pretty much bashing open hats and crash cymbals all over the place. The conundrum is that if you turn the OH and hihat/ride mics down, it sounds smoother, but it also sounds too polite and unexciting.
Thanks Markeaux! The reference given to me by the band for the song was actually Radiohead’s “Creep”. It was helpful, but in the end the drummer wanted the verse drums to be a lot brighter than in “Creep” (Which I kind of suspected he would all along).
The Lit song sounds cool, but since tempo is always a vitally important factor in the way things are eq’d and compressed, I’d find that track too fast in tempo to work well as a comparison with this.
For my own personal reference, I used Green Day’s “Wake Me Up When September Ends” mainly for the way the chorus sounds.
Not sure what you mean by that, Moa - could you explain the question a little further?
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