SlipLive

Hey freaks, I am in a recording/production class and have to do a mix analysis on a song. I chose Suffocation Keep off of Eisenhower. Anyhow, admitedly I have not yet honed my skills of being able to identify the key/tempo/meter etetera as I am not at all musically trained in that regards. Anyhow, any anyone could tell me those items listed above for the song I would appreciate it. Also, any pro-insight as to what was done with the sound of the song, eq, verb, etc is appreciated, though I have that end pretty well covered I think. Thanks all,

Eric

Sound like fun. Someone did this same deal with (I think) 74 from Aliveacoustic. Sorry I do not have time to chip in. Damn these 14 hour shifts 6 days a week!!

Anyone know any good free/cheap programs that do this on a mac, I know they are out there. Also what about program that can tell me % of pans and such.....

Yeah Clinton I feel ya there, my schedule is nuts as well (which is why I am doing this night before it is due). And yeah, it is fun, though really makes me wish I knew a bit mroe about musical theory n such. Anyhow, I love ragin this song full volume, so much going on in it.

i suggest CNET.com
if you havent looked yet, its a very good site for program downloads. best of luck!

Anyone know any good free/cheap programs that do this on a mac, I know they are out there. Also what about program that can tell me % of pans and such.....

I don't know that any exist. There are spectral analysis types of software. Probably stuff that detect a beat but nothing that can break down what was done to make a final mix as specific as you need. You need to use your ears a bit for that.

Yeah I dig Clinton, and thats what I am doing, but my prof had put up a sample and it had %'s for pans and such, I thought that he had mentioned the program, anyhow, doesnt matter, I think I am wrappin it up here, I gotta get some other stuff done still tonight and this guy basically will give an A if its turned in. Suffocation Keep off Eisenhower is just so friggin lovely, I am glad I have spent the past few hours listening to it

fourthaye wrote:Yeah I dig Clinton, and thats what I am doing, but my prof had put up a sample and it had %'s for pans and such, I thought that he had mentioned the program, anyhow, doesnt matter, I think I am wrappin it up here, I gotta get some other stuff done still tonight and this guy basically will give an A if its turned in. Suffocation Keep off Eisenhower is just so friggin lovely, I am glad I have spent the past few hours listening to it

Realizing that by now you've finished:

I don't know of any software that will analyze an existing track for things like pan position. Was he maybe showing you a mixer window for a program in which he was working on a tune? Pro Tools and other apps have things like beat maping that can give you rhythmic/tempo info. if I was better at counting stuff than I am, I could give you some advice, but I'd only screw you up. (If you don't believe me, see my trainwreck of a thread on Airplane/ Primitive )

Rather than worry about panning percentages, just draw yourself a long, wide upside down smile on a piece of paper. The top of the "frown" is the center of the soundstage. Now, set yourself up in between a pair of stereo speakers and listen to the piece with your eyes closed, picking out one instrument and placing it on that soundstage in your mind. Is it all the way on your left? Is it partway to the right? Does it move? Then mark on your paper where you're hearing it.

Do that for each element you can identify in the mix, including delays (echoes) of instruments that show up in places other than right where the original instrument appears. (Example: You might hear a chord from Brad's guitar in the right channel and then quickly hear the same sound repeated in the left channel. The sound that appears on the left could be labeled "rhythm guitar delay.")

When you're done, you'll have a picture of the mix. Or at least the soundstage.

A diagram like that will tell him more about how you're learning to use your ears than a bunch of percentages.

There's an interesting book by a guy who devised a graphic way to represent all facets of a mix: position, volume, amount of verb, frequency content, etc. You can check it out here:

http://www.amazon.com/Art-Mixing-Record ... F8&s=books

Bottom line: Cleantone is right. It's all about your ears and learning to hear things differently. It takes time and practice. But that's a subject for another post.

hoby

so what did you come up with?

as someone who teaches/plays music i can't see giving you your answers! not that i'm against cheating! i just wonder... haven't they taught you how to figure that stuff out?

i'm curious.

ps where do you go to school?

I am a total newb when it comes to this shit really....which is why I was lookin for a few pointers, not trying to have my paper written for me by any means. I dont have to have tempo/meter/key, but the more info the better, and I would be curious to know anyways, which is why I was reaching out. Anyway, I am just learning to train my ears for this kind of stuff, and have only done so much myself, so its a process, but I'm learning, slowly but surely. Anyway, here is what I got done, definatly not by best work or writing, but hey, it is what it is. Oh, and I am a student at Ohio Stae University, creating a degree with a kind of interdisciplinary program here, mixing buis. marketing with communications and music.

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Classification – lullaby-like ballad with an indy/Brit Rock feel

Key: ? Length: 5’21” Tempo: ? Meter: ?

Form: Intro/V1/Inst1/V2/C1/VocSolo/V3/C2/Inst2>Inst3/V1

Hook: (cello) (guitar rhythm/clarity&presence) (vocal melody) (dubs)

Lyric: straight ahead words (somewhat abstract)
Melody:
Harmony: ?

Rhythm: ?

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Parts

Cello –low, soft – yet rich warm blue tonality, small reverb

Cello 2 – enters in harmony with first cello, then continues a little higher up in register

Airy “Snap” – sounds a bit like sound of a drummer turning on their snare, though may just be a click/snap created by a guitar string and pick or something of the sort, really nearly inaudible, soft and distant, but marks end intro and start of guitar in song

Guitar 1- acoustic. Gorgeous production picking up on every subtlety of the playing, just plucking, simplistic rhythm. Can hear the squeaks from his fingers running along the strings & fret board. Has a incredible presence, EQ brings out the high tin/metal string sound. Panned further to right of center.

Guitar 2 – acoustic, just plucking, simplistic rhythm in syncopation with 1, lower octave – EQ helps bring out, but still hear subtleties of strings. Great presence. At times more squeak than tone, other times less, hear finger movement, etcetera. Notes hang with a ever so slight reverb. Panned further left of center.

Vocal 1 – male voice, soft and warm, lullaby-like, clean - yet with a raspy quality to it

Vocal 2 – male voice, doubled Vocal 1 to harmonize with and thicken Vocal 1

Whistle/high pitch tone – you can never quite tell where the sounds are coming from with these boys, they have all sorts of toys to tinker with, it may well be a guitar/bass through some effect, though I believe it may be an EQ’d recording of one of those plastic tube toys that whistle when you swing them around (part of the drummers equip)

Snare 1 –short punchy accentuations hit with a hard attack and barely any reverb, EQ for more of punch, perhaps some higher freq taken down

Bass 1 – a bit buried, some warmth usually present in his tone is not present here leaving a bit more emphasis on the low end where it is most present in the mix, probably EQ’d in similar respects, with some warmth and brightness on higher end taken down

Snare 2 – same short punch hits but with slightly more reverb on the snare, perhaps some EQ bumped the high end up a little

Vocal 2 – female voice, soft and flowing melodies, no words – just notes, definite reverb with a larger hall kind of feel to it

Glockenspiel 1 – upper octave, varied pans that pop up here and there b/t R&L

Rain-stick/Shaker 1 – slight pan upon entrance, has a distanced whimsical sound to it, maybe a slight verb is partly responsible. Panned to the right.

Kick 1 – low in mix, EQ with high ends of it taken out, more of a punchy underlying thud to it, melts well into the Bass 1

Banjo 1 – very clean sound, not much verb, just clean banjo plucking, maybe a little compression on it, interesting contrast to acoustic guitar work. Panned slightly right.

Bass 2 – effected, octave is modified, EQ middles, so tone is warmer and brighter than Bass 1, a moaning/sliding sound to it, moderate amount of verb, panned near-center but with equal spread b/t L&R.

Shaker 2 – underlying in mix, panned right

Wood Block - EQ here to bring out bright tone of block from the rest of mix, panned towards the right

Chimes – panned evenly, maybe slightly to right, soft/light, sparse

Cello 3 – Similar tone to Cello 2 - part of outro – faded out slightly before guitar 3 fades

Guitar 3 - Responsible for last lines of song, reverb, or perhaps a small delay, which is then faded out, even pan