The crazy similarities between good food and making killer mixes

Published: Tue, 05/09/17

I'm reading this really fun book on cooking called Cooking for Geeks.

It's a nerdy, scientific take on how to cook, filled with really interesting tidbits about food from a science perspective.

The book makes a lot of sense because cooking is really a combination of art and science.

The reason I like it is because the same thing goes for music production.

The music is all about the art of the song, while the production is all about the science of engineering.

Put them together and you get this great balance of art and science that we love so much.

I realized the similarities between cooking and music production when I came across this passage:

"Good cooking is very much about balance. One of the most important corrections you can make is to adjust the balance of tastes and smells to where you think the dish tastes ideal. Lean in and smell the dish. Take a taste. Then ask yourself: what would make this dish better? Does it need more salt? If it's dull or flat, would adding a sour note (lemon or lime juice) add some brightness?"

If the similarities don't click for you yet, let me rewrite the paragraph from a music production perspective:

"Mixing is very much about balance. One of the most important corrections you can make is to adjust the balance of tracks using EQ to where you think the mix sounds ideal. Listen to the mix. Try it on different monitors. Then ask yourself: what would make this mix better? Does it need more effects? If it's dull or flat, would adding an EQ boosts (high-mid presence boost or high-shelving air increase) add some brightness?"

That's almost the same paragraph but the topic has changed completely!

Just like there are essential skills to cooking, there are essential skills to make great mixes. You don't have to know everything about cooking to be a great chef, nor do you have to use every single plug-in they sell on the internet to make great mixes.

All you need is the five plug-ins you already have in your DAW, which is why Mixing With 5 Plug-ins is your best investment in your music production skills. It'll teach you the 20% you need to know to get killer sounding mixes in no time.

Best of all, I've changed the course so now you can take it in only five days instead of five weeks. That way you'll get my $10,000, 12-month audio education in only five days. Whether that's the next five days or not doesn't matter. You'll have access to it whenever you have the time.

Check it out here: