Sometimes you record tracks badly.​​​​​​​

You think it's good when you're tracking.

Turns out it's not so great during mixing.

It sucks. It really does.

It's happened to me all the time.

"Oh yeah, this round kick drum sound is really nice"

Turns out round is just another word for thump without any attack or bite.

So it gets buried in the mix unless you go overboard with your mix processors.

There are multiple ways to "fix things."

• Replace the drums (I use Drumagog 5 and it's been working really well).
• EQ the shit out of the drums. We're talking curves I wouldn't show anybody...
• Use sub-bass or exciters to add artificial low-end thump or high-end harmonics.

And the worst case scenario is of course, re-record it. I try to avoid that at all costs, especially drums.

The only time I do that is that if I absolutely can't do anything with the recorded tracks. Sometimes they just don't have anything to offer and you have to accept it.

However, I recommend fighting it at all costs if you can.

There's no reason to get the drummer back into the studio and spend another day setting up and tracking if you can fix it in the mix.

Mind you, this is if you completely failed at getting it right at the source.

Failure happens all the time. That's how you learn from mistakes.

Strive to succeed but accept failure and try to fix it if you can.

When I know I can EQ stuff back into the tracks I'll do that. I've got a good guide that can help you in the Ultimate Guide to EQ.

But when I need to add artificial highs or lows I also do that, something I show you in my Quick Mixing series.

But if you can't fix the track and you can't re-record it either it's time to switch your mixing approach.

If the kick drum is the problem maybe you'll need to add more emphasis on other parts of the mix.

It'll just be a kick-light mix. Maybe more of an overhead drum sound than a thumpy kick drum sound.

Maybe you'll emphasize the groove of the bass instead.

There are multiple ways to fix a mix if you've made mistakes during tracking.

Look for solutions. Don't despair if you failed. Move forward and fight it.

That's my advice for you this week if you're doing any mixes.

Me? I'm working on a killer punk rock track with call-and-response vocals as well as two hardcore metal songs, both clients that came to us over at the Icelandic Embassy Studios.

Lots of fun we're having over there. If you need any mixing help don't hesitate to send us a message.

Björgvin