I have a confession to make…
I’m one of those people who used to try and get the music I was working on sounding absolutely perfect and pristine. Now, looking back and even thinking about that statement is laughable because I feel I’ve so much left to learn on my musical journey.
While there’s nothing wrong with seeking perfection, trying to fix every little imperfection in your music is going to ruin it.
The main mistake I made when it came to that pursuit of perfection was trying to get everything in my mix sounding exactly 100% “on grid” and in time. I’d find the BPM of the track and then I’d make sure every element was adjusted and locked down to that BPM.
Luckily, I now know that’s one of the quickest ways to remove all the character from your mix and leave it sounding sterile, dull and lifeless. It might be perfectly in time but it’s not going to make the average listener appreciate it any more.
No one cares.
A lot of the time, you’d be much better off working with what you have. If you’ve got a live performance where the band are moving in and out of time together, then work with it. You don’t have to pick a set BPM for your mix and use a tool like Elastic Audio to make sure everything is snapped tight to the grid.
Now, to clarify, I’m not talking about obvious timing mistakes here. You should fix them, of course. What I’m talking about is the feel and vibe of the music.
You can work with what you’ve been given even if it’s a “loose recording“. Tempo drift is a very natural, human thing, so let’s work with the music rather than against it.
I’ve so much more to say and teach you about this topic, so the best thing you can do is check out the video to find out more!
Now, I’d love to know…
Have you ever tried to put a mix completely “on the grid”? What results did you get?
Leave a comment below!
professional sounding mix every time...
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