Mixing

I’m at that stage in one project where I am mixing. Mixing is a very intense exercise. I prefer to mix alone, submit it for review (sounds great! hate it! somewhere in between) and revise it as needed.

I have invested hundreds of hours in editing this project as part of the mixdown. Technically, the tracks are in good shape. The productions for most of the songs are very dense. Some songs are running over 100 tracks. With productions this dense, it is not unusual to go through half a dozen mix attempts before a good sounding mix emerges.

Some projects have people that want to be there when the mix gets done. I have yet to see a team mixing session achieve much. It usually serves as a preamble for the exact same mixing process which is “cut another version” and “sounds great!” or “hate it!” or “somewhere in between”.

Only one person can mix. Others can and should provide feedback but at the end of the day, only one person can mix.

Commercial projects gate mixing activity because of budget. The old studio line is that recording projects never end. They just run out of money.