Adelie Mixing
I was looking back on the Adélie album log today and realised how long it had been since an update – March to be exact! A lot has happened between now and then but essentially I decided to mix the album myself.
I had never done anything like this so it was a very steep learning curve! After a few false starts (and some despairing!) I finally began a couple of weeks ago. I had bought a short online course to help me along and it really helped me learn the basics and get to grips with the tracks.
Throughout the two weeks, I started to learn what things I liked (or didn’t) on each instrument and, because I obviously wanted a Folky sound, I tried not to fiddle (pun intended!) too much with EQ-ing, effects etc. (although I do really like reverb, so that features quite a bit!), prefering a raw sound for the album. There were several things that suprised me, including the very rich, bassy sound that the Chin-Cello was able to acheive on the tracks, the way some instruments sound very different when played solo VS in the mix with the rest of the instruments, and how you can use different takes of vocals of a line and combine them to make a very full-sounding main vocals!
I did what you are not supposed to do and used headphones to start the mixing off, later using studio monitors to help rebalance and make sure the tracks were going to sound right across other listening methods. The headphones meant that I was able to take the mixing with me into coffee shops, which really helped to give me some brain-space and a different working environment.
Mixing this album myself has been a really valuable experience for me and gives me complete creative control of how the tracks are going to sound. I really can’t wait to share Adélie with you all!