What Makes this Mix Great? Tame Impala: "The Less I Know The Better"
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- Опубликовано: 27 сен 2024
- What makes this mix great? Justin Colletti analyzes the mix, production and arrangement for Tame Impala's "The Less I Know The Better".
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Tame Impala's Kevin Parker has had a huge influence on indie pop and rock, and just how far sounds can be pushed toward their breaking point while still sounding impressive, musical and satisfying.
Take a deep dive into the sounds of "Currents" and "The Less I Know The Better" in this episode.
Big thanks to Soundtoys for making this episode possible.
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There's so much more I could have talked about here! The way the lowest notes in the bass riff are allowed to "blossom" compared to the upper notes... the way the vocal texture is created by layering multiple nearly identical takes... Parker's use of modulation effects... There are other thIngs I meant to mention, but didn't want to keep you for an hour! What else do you think I missed?
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I agree vocal sits in the B tier, because IDK about you but I had trouble understanding the lyrics. Reminded me of Fever the Ghost's "Source" (check this out if you are unfamiliar!!), except that track may even be C tier...
I think what helps the bass hit is the brightness, not only is it loud but I feel the upper end is way more pronounced than is typical. Plus, it *does* have some grungy distortion on it that just pops it right out.
The first time you played the Intro and asked to listen critically, I was like WHOA most parts are played SUPER quiet and blown up, which I never really noticed before (I've listened to this track since release). I also suspected the vocal might be recorded a bit from the mic, or with a condenser w/ room noise; it is so strangely distant that you almost are FORCED to seek it out. Its effect may have been achieved all in post, there's just SOMETHING so special about it.
What I wish you would have delved into is how he got all these searin' hot sounds to not crush the master, but I have to check out that compression video you suggested! I, too, find myself fearful of pushing comp hard on recorded 'analog' sounds (as I also do electronic styles that call for such mistreatment). IDK why I haven't noticed the sonic abuse on Mr Impala's tracks. I think because it's not smashed on the master, everything is still carefully balanced... Are there side chains? Sub busses? Really hard for me to tell the way-downstream mix elements like that.
Thanks for reminding me this song exists, it's insanely inspiring.
One of the first things that jumps out to me (more so than the compression) is the gating. Right from the intro you have these really abrupt decays, which contrast with the more sustained sounds, and the bass line, which has a bit of both damped & sustained notes.
This guy [Tame Impala] is just a genius who would make me want to quit if I were a young man...your analysis is really awesome and I hadn't considered a few things the way you did. Many years ago now I worked with an actual producer and it became clear to me at that point that I needed to be a LOT more involved in the mechanical process of making the recordings if I ever hoped to have any say over my own visions and so I have slowly, painfully, learned how to get decent sounds out of a project studio. And through the years I have occasionally managed to get my tunes on the semi-serious radioshows [not just college stations that anyone can get into]----now I dabble and dream about mastering too. Anywho, That's my way of saying thank you for sharing your professional insights [I guess I think it might be meaningful to have an approximation of where I might be coming from]. From an ex-semi-pro who has gone full time hobbyist for the love of the art, it is greatly appreciated!
The bass blossoms because the higher “bass” notes are actually from a guitar with a pedal pitch shifting the guitar an octave lower. Then that is layered with a real bass on the root notes
It seems almost like he's splitting the bass pattern into tracks with each separate note, or at least splitting the low and high bass notes into two tracks, and adding more compression/limiting to the tops.
If a mix is technically "bad" but it suits the genre, the mood and the idea of a certain song, it's not a bad mix
In fact, you are describing a good mix by definition.
Lol this describes my songs 🎵
100%. A good mix is one that serves the song and helps us recognize and focus on what makes it special.
-Justin
If it sounds good, it is good 🤷🏻♂️
If you are a mix engineer, I'd never listen to your music
That mid-rangey intro forces people in their cars to turn up the volume and then BAM!
As a person with a super loud sound system (400 watts on mids/ highs and 6,300+ watts on subwoofers), it throws me off every time lol.
I never understood how engineers / producers as they get more advanced and hone their craft fall into the "right and wrong mindset" because as I've grown my ears are so much more keen to the texture and sonic character of different records and have just grown to appreciate so many different subtles of how different genres sound. I find myself now gravitating to mixes that bring something new to the table regardless of how traditionally right or wrong it may be.
If there are rules to break, it's because there are basic rules. Life is not anarchy
@@Fr3nchFrisethey should be called conventions
When I listen to Tame Impala’s “Currents” I hear an indie retro pop album that’s been produced like it’s EDM. That sounds all kinds of wrong on paper but I’m still blown away by it.
Exactly what I was thinking all the way through this
This is album is one of my favorite sounding albums of all time.
Kevin Parker plays everything on this album. He also recorded everything. He then mixed it. Pretty impressive. He is actually a great engineer.
A key thing here is this guy is playing every instrument and composing everything. So he is able to make absolutely every decision
His name is Kevin Parker and he’s from Perth, Australia :)
True facts!
-Justin
also known as "Mr. Impala" 🤣
You say in the first 10 seconds: "a great sounding track..." then at at 25 seconds: "it sounds terrible!"
I think this song is yet another example for people (us music "experts") to FINALLY accept that there is no one way that ART is to be (sound). NO RULES!!! FIGHT THE POWER!!! CREATE WHAT WE WANT!!! 🎶🕺
just my humble opinion 😊
Great video Justin.... keep 'em coming 🤘
Fr fr. As long as it sounds good
Some engineers forget that mixing is an art as much as it is a science.
When it sounds good, it is good.
This was super inspiring podcast! Really needed to hear this right now.
Awesome to hear! Thanks for tuning in.
“Make it more awesomer” put perfectly
Rule #1: Gain staging
Rule #2: What rules?
Great stuff, love the vid!
Subbed.
Awesome to hear! Glad to have you tuning in.
-Justin
Great Break down!! Tame Impala is Kevin Parker. Thanks for what you do.
Yup! Kevin is a real talent.
I called him "Mr. Impala" only because I thought it sounded funny that way :-)
(And to solicit comments, which help with the algorithm!)
-Justin
and Jay Watson, Dom Simper & Cameron Avery.
“Life on a Chain” by Pete York is a great example of the lo-fi intro trick. Thanks, Justin!
You nailed it !
Fridmann's finest work is with The Flaming Lips.Namely, The Soft Bulletin, Yoshimi and Clouds Taste Metallic.
The bass and general sounds of Impala are VERY reminiscent of Lips' Yoshimi phase.Lips had a genius run of those three albums.
My mom knows Kevin Parker. I haven’t stopped talking about him for ten years! I love Tame.
Devil Loc Deluxe is the best! The mix knob is crucial imo- it makes it so flexible for adding subtle flavor as well as extreme crushing.
I compress the vocal reverb with it side chained to th vocal so it’s larger in the gaps between the vocals and lower in level during the vocal. I know this is pretty normal but a good way to use larger reverbs but keep intelligibility in the vocals.
most informative, objective and comprehensive mixing podcast on RUclips. There are lots of great ones out there, but always get so many gems here! 🙏
Speaking of creative compression, I’d love to see a breakdown of a Jai Paul mix
Yes
+1 !! Jai Paul’s work is unreal
When something works, it just works, regardless of the standard or usual practice.
For sure!
-Justin
Love geeking out with you, Justin! Great stuff as always
LCD Soundsystem's "Dance Yrself Clean" and The Faint's "Posed to Death" are a couple of examples that popped in my head, of quite, mid-rangy intros. LCD's being very long before you blow out your speakers or ears.
Thank you for this in-depth analysis of the mix. Compressor and limiter after delay/reverb makes so much sense, it's interesting to try. Greetings from Ukraine!
I noticed the more technique I learned the more stale things became in my mix. I really needed this video. Basically rules are made to be broken.
Glad you looked at lonerism, best work of his imo
I love melodic bass lines! You do have to start with one before laying out the rest of the arrangement, I think. It takes guts to take bass out of center though! I was hoping you would show a mix that you had "tame impalized" in master (and how). That could have been revealing for some of us! Thanks for the great content, Justin.
I’d love to do that sometime! For now, I have almost certainly done it in the members only mix feedback sessions from time to time.
I learned not to follow always the rules but use my ears to make the sonics become well glued and sound enjoyable.
This is a perfect album
Amazing video! Learned a lot 🙏 Also I have been listening to this track a lot and found it interesting. Thank you for this and greetings from Finland 🇫🇮
Thanks for listening! So glad to hear.
-Justin
This was fantastic! Love ALL your videos, man :)
Tchad Blake and Leon Michels are the vibiest, vibey, vibeyest? Mixers I’ve ever heard
Tchad Blake rules. When in doubt, try running something through a Sansamp!
So, Tame Impala basically mixes rock/pop records the same way an electronic producer would. I find it fascinating how vastly different mixing styles can be from genre to genre.
For sure. Definitely some similarities there. And definitely different norms in different genres. “An electronic approach with organic instruments” is a decent way to think of this style!
But even then it depends on subgenre. Most EDM in particular won’t have the bass this big.
But the vocal treatment can be somewhat similar in EDM that it can be brighter more heavily effected than other elements, it can take a bit if a back seat in size compared to other elements, and incidental ear candy elements may be allowed to over take it from time to time.
Of course, EDM isn’t the only electronic style, but it’s a good frame of reference.
-Justin
If you carefully look at how the peaks are clipped It's clearly visible that the left channel is slightly louder, and you're right it's just because of the drums!
I remember when studying audio we had to bring in a song we liked the sound off. I brought in a tame impala record. Other students hated it, stated how much pumping there was etc etc. All the stuff that's intentional they didn't like, my teacher was more understanding of the deliberate over compression (shure level lok)
An absolute iconic eighties song is “In a big country” by the band “Big Country” from their debut album “The Crossing “. Now when you talk a lot about compression and how to sometimes “over do it” I now understand why this song stands out, super compressed drums. Album was produced by Steve Lillywhite. Would be so interesting to listen to your analysis of it. I learn so much from your pedagogical way of explaining things. Thanks!
Wow this made my day
Its mixed like 90s boom bap hip hop with new techniques they call it lo-fi these days
This is excellent advice and it tracks with my experience. Nicely done.
Oh heck yea! Gonna watch this right now
Just found your channel, this is awesome, man. Love how you walk us through it all with your ears and help us viewers understand the nuance and context. Keep it up!
Welcome aboard! Thanks for tuning in and hope to see more of you around the channel.
-Justin
Iconic track. It’s great having your vision of it 👍. Great video. Thanks a lot.
Spot on 1,000%
I geek out on these videos. So happy I just found your channel!
Awesome discussion. Really insightful stuff here.
I imagine this is how people would feel when a new episode of GoT or Breaking Bad came out
This is my favorite comment of the month!
-Justin
I like the Miles Davis attitude that there are no mistakes. Maybe he said "no bad notes" and that the next note - the reaction to the 1st note in question - determines whether or not the 1st note sounds "wrong". My friend Jamal Moss aka Hieroglyphic Being made a name for himself making blown out "outsider" House music. Mixing is all about context, so to extrapolate from the Miles attitude about playing, mixing is about how you react and contextualize the elements you're mixing. Some of my favorite older tracks vary wildly in their comparitive levels and some are mixed really poorly (and now I can pick out the decisions that led to that) but they're still great tracks...although I have had to try and remaster a couple just to listen to them anymore because the mixing decisions become so glaring that's all I hear otherwise. That's the interesting thing - now we have all the tools to make everything sound "perfect" and sit along everything else and not sound "weird", but everything starts to have a sameness, so things that are considered "lofi" and weird become sought after.
💯
Superb content, sir. I really like this kind of analysis. It’s great to listen to people with an acute ear breaking down productions like this.
Liked and subscribed, from the across the pond. 🇬🇧
Suggestion of an awesome mix to dissect, «seventeen going under - Sam Fender». Would be cool to see a mastering engineers perspective. One of the best mixes ive ever heard
I'll check it our, thanks!
-Justin
This song proves that there shouldn't be "rules" in the first place. And as someone who's starting to get into recording and mixing, I'm glad I don't have any of those kinds of preconceptions about music or mixing. If it sounds good then it is good. Mixing is as much a part of the artistry as the instrumentation or writing
So happy I found your channel I love your take on mixing! 😍 thank you!
Awesome to hear Ariel, glad to have you tuning in!
-Justin
i could listen to og sound engineers talk about the art of sonically sculpting songs all day😌
Great Video! 🙏
I’m a fan on Tame Impala for sure. Thanks for this!I’m surprised you didn’t mention his use of Phasers which is really interesting. On Lonerism Kevin took more control of the process and some of the mixing, but still passed through Dave Friedman. Kevin’s mixes are not always technically perfect, but have a lot of character and sounds like him. Dave Pensado was once quoted as saying all he hears is a bunch of mistakes when listening to Tame Impala. Shawn Everett in the same convo said he thought Kevin was one of the best mixers around which tells you a lot of their approach to mixing.
Parker uses a lot of modulation effects for sure. They weren't the most prominent things to talk about in the sections we were listening to, but he definitely has mixes and moments where they are REALLY prominent.
-Justin
Kevin uses his mixing techniques to his own advantage or for his own songs. He's also mixed a Pond album or two, who have a similar approach. what would be interesting would be hearing Kevin mix another artist / band who is more conventional.
Great!
+1 for Devil Loc... one of a kind plugin
Love your content! As an artist who's making a return after 8 years away & is planning to self produce & mix my first few releases, your content is invaluable. I'd LOVE to hear you speak on Blink 182's new record ONE MORE TIME as the mix has been a HUGE topic of discussion. I know pop punk probably isn't your go-to genre to review, but I would love to at least hear your thoughts on the production/mix!
thanks for your videos
Just came across this channel, was hoping to see tons of videos like this.
We will have a lot more like this coming, including one tomorrow.
I hope to do at least one of these a month, probably more.
It’s a new series, but we have almost a half dozen already.
-Justin
It would be cool to see you break down an MGMT track, as they also work with Dave Fridmann a lot. Maybe something like Alien Days, where the mix is super pushed and fuzzed out and bonkers.
They are on the list for sure! I haven’t decided which track yet.
-Justin
One other thought 😅......
Perhaps the ability for anyone to create music at home, with an almost unlimited access to gear / plugins (free!!!), and FREE from the constraints of "the right way" to do things ('cause we're mostly self-taught) has created an environment where lots of us are making cool, unusual sounding tracks.
Me? I'm loving this time in music / recording history 🤸♂️
12:33 Kevin Parker
Kevin was doing his best Dungen impression ;) He knocked it out of the park btw! But all the weird panning- the influence is all over his stuff
Btw, his interview on Rick Rubin’s podcast gives some good insights into his thought process
I’ll have to check out that interview!
-Justin
Ahhh yess, this plus the other comment about retro pop produced like EDM are totally unlocking this band for me, had lots of friends into them but it never really clicked with me before. Dungen rules
awesome insights, really good analysis
Mr. Impala is Kevin Parker
Oh this is interesting. There is so much to learn!!! )
Thanks Justin! Great breakdown. To me it sounds like two bass tracks, one consistent and one for the hooks. Interesting with the cocept of tiers, you could almost say that the vocal is always A tier, no matter how quiet it is, our ears are drawn to the vocal first in a way. I feel like the vocal here is part of the synth layer, reverbs and the synth/pad sounds are melt together. You talk about the amount of compression and the level of the tune. can that be done without a clipper?
I definitely prefer lonerism to currents sound . Everyone’s different!!. Backgrounds etc. this is some of the first music I ever listened to to be honest. Big shock haha
Great breakdown. To sound like Impala, it probably helps to be stoned as well when mixing 🙂and listen to early Pink Floyd.
Tama impala i love them 🤘
Great video! Great song which reminds me of the nostalgia of adolescence.
You said something interesting at the end regarding the bass…if you are trying to make it sound out front like Tame Impala and have tried mixing it in a similar way, and it isn’t working, maybe it’s your bass part itself that isn’t working.
Then, thinking of my own writing, maybe it’s how the bass sits compositionally against other instruments/vox. Maybe for the bass to sound like you want, everything but the bass needs to change for example.
Then to really go on a tangent, I’ve been learning about the golden ratio which was used in classic art…and applying it to distances between elements in my compositions as a whole. Music, in one key aspect, is about distances. Scales, for example, are distances between notes, that essentially give us access to different flavors, or moods, that are now like languages infused into hundreds of years of our cultures. A visual representation of all this, to some degree, can be attributed to these distances between notes…or to get even further down, the selection of a group of frequency wavelengths. SOUND ITSELF IS AMAZING.
Not that the goal should be for perfect adherence to some geometric rule- punk rock and blues for example explore the places in between in some sense in my speculative mind. Then I think about the relationship between order and chaos applied to music…just all of these concepts are fascinating to me.
Of course for me, to find something beautiful, my favorite method is Marco Polo…getting hotter or getting colder. Which requires being in tune with your inner world, your emotions…trying to see if you can provoke them in some way that you find exciting.
I’m finding it fun right now to do both- turn my left brain on enough to operate strictly within a mode, then start noodling while I introspect on whether there is something in it that moves me. One thing I can say for sure, is that there are so many flavors I never knew about. Never would have tasted.
Ah I love coffee. Go write/mix /master something beautiful!
Great video. One of my mums favourite music artists is Tame Impala 🤘 haha
Haha, that’s awesome
The vocal remind me of the song House of cards by Radiohead that would be a great one to do
My biggest takeyaway: the family fiesta 20pc bucket combo
Drums go right when u flip it
Tame Impala is not a band… it’s just one guy 😊
its a band put together by kevin parker
Only a band on tour
You don’t actually explain why it’s great. You just describe things endlessly.
Good and bad are subjective. There are no rules to break. Rules do not exist with mixing.
Awesome. Love Tame Impala. yes I agree that this mix is sort of bad in a way but also good in another way 😂
So "wrong", but oh so right.
-Justin
@@SonicScoop 😅👍🙌
Thanks for yet another awesome and informative video, Justin!
11:00 - I know by 'rules' you mean norms in contemporary music but this is nothing compared to the 60s and late 50s. Between any Phil Spector production and something by The Flamingos where the vocals were so incredibly drenched in reverb, this is lightly swimming in reverb/delay in comparison. I may be in the minority but I absolutely LOOOVE swampy verbed out vocals
Kevin parker
Awesome
haha "let me know if you have a hip mom in the comment section down below" - sonic scoop making moves
22:56 Steady on..
Do u want to hear creative, out of the box mixes listen to DeepChord / Rod Modell, I guarantee you’ve never heard anything like this, but it’s electronic music / dubtechno !
Are there rules to music tho?
So what I'm not getting is *why* he panned those two tracks that way. Like, what did it add to the song? What do people think?
But music is art and mixing is also art I guess there are no rules to break
As a producer/engineer I find it difficult sometimes to let go of my critical ear and listen to just 'the song'.
The Red Hot Chilli Peppers' Californication, to me, is SO BAD that it is unlistenable. It's distorted and smashed flat to hell. I can't do it..
But, people like the songs, so they shine through. But honestly, I just can't get past the sound of it.
One of my favourite albums with some SUPER off panning is Marilyn Manson's Antichrist Superstar. The distortion is amazing, it's dry... you can hear every element is mono and just panned across the sound stage in a really weird way.. but it just works. It was recorded and mixed by Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails. He had a vision and totally pulled it off with that album.
You don't have to like that genre of music, but from a mix point of view - it's pretty mindblowing.
Whats a “mistake” ? It either sounds pleasing/ representative of the artist’s vision or it doesn’t… As an artist, the question I would ask, as opposed to using the word “mistake” would be: “did the revisions made by an outside entity live up to your standards/ capture the final acoustic aesthetic/ vision you had intended?” To me there really aren’t any “mistakes” in art, being subjective, so imo it really just boils down to taste and self imposed “standards.” What those words mean are up to the artist to determine….
Mixing is a completely subjective art form. Learn this a soon as possible and you will benefit greatly.
37:41 Dude's saying it sounds different than usual when tame impala literally has a Hofner bass, vintage drums, and took the hard compression style from Flaming Lips... Great music is made when you stop overthinking and just have fun!
I'm kind of new to this, but what I'm looking at is the instrument's doubled and the vocals doubled?
There is DEFINITELY vocal doubling going on here. Possibly more than just doubling. But each take is nearly identical.
-Justin
Thank you
20:10 what's the deal with producers and bass? Is this a thing😂😂
Best mixing advice: Listen to your ears
When the hell has mixing ever had rules?
Nice video congrats… but just be careful when saying how long it takes for the song to get to a scene change…in the example the riff has nothing more to say after 10secs but a more elaborate piece can and will hold a longer intro.
Super hot video