Mixing folk rock

[uniikmyx]

Hi, I'm tryin to mix a folk rock song for school project. Tracks include drums, electric bass, electric gtrs, vocals and back vocals. Any ideas how i shud approach the mix? any techniques I can try to make it sound folk rock?

[SANDS]

What kind of rooms do you have access to?

[imixrecords]

Go listen to a John Mayall album! Stay organic with it

[corey.schroeder]

Originally Posted by imixrecords

Go listen to a John Mayall album! Stay organic with it

Organic. That is the best possible way to put it.

With a mix like this, you shouldnt be trying to achieve that "large production" sound. Most of the older folk recordings you hear is just a guy in a room with one microphone singing and playing his acoustic guitar. That is the nostalgic "folk" sound that I think a lot of people relate to when it comes to folk music. Its very much about capturing the intimacy of the performance in the mix, not as much about making it "perfect".

Keep the overall mix pretty warm. You want to avoid making things too bright and sizzly as those give the illusion of being over-processed. Remember, as stated in the other post, you want to keep it organic..

Also, try experimenting with different reverbs. Tastefully layering reverb on the right tracks can give you mix more of a "live" feel.

[rockstar_josh]

Subtlety will do wonders. Obviously loud, mid-heavy guitars won't be necessary! Find a nice smooth reverb or two, keep it small, and use some short delays on the vocals and instruments. Delay is my best friend for creating space and ambience of all sizes. A little slapback or eighth note delay can help give your listener a nice intimate environment, especially in a situation like this where you might not want to use a huge reverb. Filter the highs on the delay to make the returns blend smoothly with the rest of the track.

[swafford]

Start the mix with the vocal, everything should support the song and lyric.

[uniikmyx]

thanks for your advice. Truly appreciate it