This is how I go forward with my music - the real story from November 2017 and towards the album release but it took Volume 2 to get the whole way there. Creating, editing and mixing music is a complicated effort but loads of fun.
For all you who wa...
It is Oct 2nd 2018 and I don't know where time is going, really. I was on the phone (Messenger) with a good friend from Western Canada and she asked for some tracks to see how I've come along since I last sent something to her a year ago. So, I 'm waiting for a response there.
A lot has happened since then. More than I can take time to tell her or explain here. But I did show her my work station in a recent project and explained all the parameters etc. She started yawning and I quit explaining....I guess I am an audio nerd. I am telling you, I could talk about this all day. But what she commented is so true of most folks. She said,
"I had no idea that making music was so complex, so complicated. Don't you just do it?"
Yeah right "just do it". (Nike?) Oh, I had no idea building a house was so complex when I just bought one......don't the just pop outta nowhere? Making this album (for me) is just like building a house from scratch when I've never lifted a hammer before. It took time to learn mixing and I never will know everything about it ever. That's the fun of it - always learning, always finding new tools and tricks.
Split Processing
So here is today's trick for you indie music nerds out there, courtesy of Rob Mayzes from Musician on a Mission. See the above video in its entirety.
Here is the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7tbK-jr0tA
I maybe mentioned this before, but here is a great trick to get the drums, kick, bass to stand out in a mix. Instead of slapping on high and low pass filters and treating the whole track the same, why not split it into two tracks and treat the low and high frequencies differently? Do as he says and listen to the song rise.
I applied this to the song The Vine Today. Wow.
Other things I'm doing
Wunderlist: Every new day I listen to the track(s) I'm working on, find problems, write them down in my Wunderlist and attack them one by one. The list for The Vine is getting smaller every day - a good sign. On the top of the list is fixing phase issues today.
Mono Checking: I have some phase issues going on- I think it is the synths. These issues aren't noticeable when playing in stereo. There are many tips on the Internet on how to address this. Some, I have already mentioned in earlier chapters.
If I don't fix them, I risk the song not sounding good on cheaper speakers. It is prio 1!
Instagram Matrix
https://www.instagram.com/ekitzing/?hl=en
Yesterday, I downloaded an app called Coolgram (android) and made a 12 part matrix (12 pictures of which 6 are shown below) Each picture is a post on Instagram and when someone looks into it each song has an explanation and a link to soundcloud. Now, my music isn't mastered yet so this is a little stupid to give people teasers and premixes to listen to, but I just wanted to test to see if I could do this matrix and which kind of response I would get. It gave a good response - 16 more followers within two hours and a few encouraging comments, too.
The background is simply a bunch of unfiltered autumn leaves but the effect is cool.
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I was inspired by Crowder's matrix:
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Simply gorgeous. I love his music and I have to admit he is killing it on social media too. If you are an indie musician and need inspiration, check Crowder out. Here's the link: https://www.instagram.com/crowdermusic/?hl=en He is an avid user of bots and he is refreshingly unique. A lot to learn there!
Well, I want to get back to mixing and I guess you also have stuff to do, so we'll call it a day. :-)
Check out my homepage: www.featherheadmedia.com for more info.
