A blog following the recording studio happenings of Chris Conway.
Who? www.chrisconway.org
One week later and I really think I have finished the mixing and mastering for the Govannen album - I listened through for the LAST time today and heard a track which needed fixing - remixed it and mastered it and…. I REALLY think that’s it.
Actually I haven’t been working on it exclusively this week as I parked it for a couple of days. I also had to remix and master the recent Re-Orient album as the label wanted a remix with no vocals on it - I thought I would be able to rattle that off but it took 2 days…
Then it was back to tweaking the mixes and mastering on the Govannen album. It really RALLY is done now…
5 days and many late nights have passed…
So I mixed all the tracks, and did a rough mastering job on them. Listened thru - decided all the tracks needed remixing to fix little things on each track.
I then started mastering in earnest - starting the job on new mastering software - I then started to hanker after my familiar old software I had on my old computer so I bought and downloaded it, only to find I was getting better results from some of the new software - so i used a mixture of both.
As I was mastering of course I had to fix the odd little thing on a track and remix it. Final job was getting the relative volumes of the tracks correct. Then at 2.30am on the 5th day I remixed one more track…
I did add some theremin in a little section on 1 track of the Govannen album, and on the new interlude piece I did with Mo the Harper. Well why not? :-)
Got down to quite a bit of mixing - perhaps not final ones but they are pretty detailed and thorough. I’ve reached a stage where it really is about what I take out of the mix. The percussion is the biggest job thinning-wise. the bodhran really has to be doing a job or feature - in amongst a full band sound it just clutters things.
Special guest Mo Coulson came into the studio to record some of her Celtic harp on the Govannen album - she added it on 4 tracks, including a new interlude track she and I got together for harp & kalimba and chimes.
She also gamely added her voice to the Govannen “choir” on 2 tracks.
So that’s it recordingwise - (unless I add some theremin) -
It’s a wrap!!!!
Let the mixing games begin!!!
Dan came into the studio and laid down bodhran and percussion for 11 tracks in 3 hours. So all the percusssion is now in place. Mixing in earnest can begin - balancing the cajon drum with the bodhran and the drum loops will be a big job and the solution will be different for each track.
All that needs to happen now is to get Dan back in to record some ambient vocals, plus I still hope to geta guest on the album. But with only Dan’s voice to add mixing can begin.
With only bodhran and background vocal to add from Dan I can pretty much get on with serious mixing. Adding the odd layer but it’s mostly about taking things out and thinning out the percussion. Blending real percussion with the virtual is delicate but the right result is greater than the sum of the parts.
Neil Rabjohn came back in for a 2nd session for the Govannen album and recorded 4 more tracks of cajon drum and added vocals to the Govannen “choir” on 7 tracks. That means he is done! - That’s 2 Govannen members done!
Just need Dan Britton to come in to do some bodhran and vocals next week plus I might get a guest in if there is room/time/money.
Quite chuffed to get Neil’s stuff doen in 2 afternoon sessions!
Getting there!
Celtic harper chum France Ellul asked me to add some Irish whistles to a track for his next album - I added some kalimba as well as low and tin whistles. When it’s mixed, the album will come to me to master it.
Kevin Hewick’s album All Were Numbered that I played electric piano on one track for recently has just been released on Hacienda Records.
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