CURRENT CHALLENGE - GENERAL INFORMATION
Time Frame: Tuesday, 01st February 2022 to Monday, 21st February 2022 (21 days)
Challenge submission will end on 21-02-2022, 23:59 UTC+1/CET (Germany) - until further notice.
Want to find out if you're still within the deadline, please consult the following options:
The
Global Countdown on it's dedicated page or the countdown on the
home page. There will also be short reminders on Social Media.
Song Provider: The Buddy Blake Band (
@tmort1277 )
Song Name and Length: Time Capsule, 3:53 min
Song Information: 112 BPM (varying) / Signature: 4/4
File Format: WAV, 44kHz, 24bit
GENRE: (modern) Classic Rock
Preview of the Song (Demo Mix):
INFORMATION: This version is a demo and might sound different from the provided multi-tracks.
A word from the song provider:
Tom McMillan wrote:The Buddy Blake Band is a four piece rock band from Northwest Florida.
We write and record and occasionally play a party or corporate gig. We are Blake Bell - Vocals and rhythm guitar, Buddy Bolter - Lead Guitar, Bob Matteson - drums and Tom McMillan - bass.
Our recordings always start with the band live in the studio. We built a vocal booth inside the live room, but from the sounds of this, it is pre-vocal booth. This is the vocal track from the original tracking session so there is bleed, it is edited to eliminate as much as possible.
When we track, Buddy plays lead and rhythm just as he would when we play live. At mixdown we usually use two tracks of Buddy’s live performance, use clip gain (in ProTools), to create a rhythm only and a lead only track, which allows for some different treatments, it makes it more manageable, only a suggestion though.
We are lovers of the classic rock era and while we don’t try to sound like anyone, we can’t help our influences (The Who/Townshend, Led Zeppelin, Tom Petty, R.E.M., Southern Rock, etc). I can’t recommend any obvious references so feel free to infer. The (demo) mix is not mastered, but is printed loud without a limiter on the mix bus or master.
We are really eager to hear what fresh and different ears do with our material.
(more technical details in the Mix Pack bundled TXTs)
A few words by the Mix Challenge staff:
Mister Fox wrote:This production has a lot of character, as the focus was "feel", not being super tight on the click. So the track will definitely drift in terms of BPM.
Another thing to point out - the tracks are already "printed", technically even the bass (which comes out of a bass amp's DI output). One big challenge this month will definitely be to build upon what has been given to you. Though please note, the demo mixes are exactly that - demos. They have been enhanced with drum samples. However, our Song Provider(s) opted to go with the raw material, to see what you can do with your mixing skills.
Another thing of note, is to re-create the production (lead vs rhythm guitars) in a suitable manner that it makes sense, and is not overpowering each other. Please carefully read how the band usually handles this (see above).
There are no definite mix references this months. I can however recommend to take a dive at your go-to steaming platform, and listen to material from mid 1970s to late 1980s, maybe with a focus on the sound that came out of the United States. This is what the original mix aimed for. But please don't forget to add your own touch to this mix.
Enjoy mixing!
Please also consult the TXT files that are bundled in the source files package below. There you can find more information about the individual files and changes to the time signature.
Rule Summary / Add-On Rules:
- try to create a mix that complements this production (in your own style)
- the focus of this game is "mixing" - NO MASTERING. Edit/Mix in such a way, that barely any after-touches other than loudness adjustments and final limiting is needed in a possible follow-up mastering step.
- Clean / Alternative versions can be used if you need more flexibility over a certain sound (if present for this production)
- make the best out of the provided audio material (EQ, compression, transient tools, etc), no "drum sample triggering / replacement", neither any changes to the arrangement (copy/add/move/remove parts)!
- please only provide WAV files, files need to be accessible/downloadable from your preferred cloud storage space (no SoundCloud!)
- render the edited material in the same sampling rate and bitrate as originally provided (MC084 / February => 44/24)
- ADD-ON RULES - PRODUCTION RELATED:
- Filename Template: MC084__The_Buddy_Blake_Band __Time_Capsule__ForumUsername.wav
- re-create a similar lead/rhythm guitar interaction as presented in the original production, with your own spin on it (so that things makes sense), but without guitars overpowering each other (e.g. through volume automation)
- no (more) add-on rules specified
Please consult the official
Rules and Guidelines for a more detailed set of rules, including how to document your edits, maximum loudness values and delivery formats (see
Rule Book - Post #6).
Failing to adhere to the rules will result in disqualification. There will be no additional reminders given.
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Source Files:
Main Mix Package - full package (462,78 MB, LZMA compressed, zip)
IMPORTANT NOTE: download window might show a smaller file size, file unavailable after 21-FEB-2021
The provided files were packed as ZIP with LZMA compression.
File size extracted: 934,12 MB, packed 462,78 MB (ZIP, LZMA)
In order to extract the files, we can recommend these programs:
Macintosh:
The Unarchiver -
get it here
Keka (open source) -
get it here
Windows:
7zip -
Installation /
Portable
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Please
take note of the official rules - they can be found at the following thread:
Mix Challenge - Official Rules and Guidelines
Please address any OT question in the official Gossip thread:
Mix Challenge - Gossip and Discussion
If you like what the Mix Challenge (community) has been doing in recent months:
Please consider supporting us
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SPONSORS (Prizes):
Prizes for Mix Challenge participants:
Note: All licenses are NFR (Not-For-Resale), except where noted.
Changes to available prices on short notice may be possible and will be announced separately.
Acon Digital is kind enough give away a single plugin of winner's choice (exception: Verberate Immersive)
License will turn into NFR
More info on Acon Digital:
http://acondigital.com
Hornet Plugins is kind enough give away one license from the depicted tools (see image) to the winner
License will turn into NFR
More info on Hornet Plugins:
http://www.hornetplugins.com
IK Multimedia is kind enough give away one license of T-RackS ONE to the winner
License will turn into NFR
More info on IK Multimedia:
https://www.ikmultimedia.com
Metric Halo is kind enough to give away a single plugin of winner's choice
License will turn into NFR
More info about Metric Halo:
http://mhsecure.com/metric_halo/
NOS Audio is kind enough give away one license of NOS Roomer to the winner
License will turn into NFR
More info on NOS Audio:
http://www.nosaudio.com/
NUGEN Audio is kind enough give away one license from the depicted tools (see image) to the winner
License will turn into NFR
More info on NUGEN Audio:
https://nugenaudio.com/
Tone2 is kind enough to donate a license of
Ultraspace to the winner
License will turn into NFR
More info on Tone2:
https://tone2.com
THANKS FOR THE LICENSE DONATIONS!
And also a thank you to all former contributors as well.
If you want to sponsor content (please have a focus on mix plugins, bundles and the likes), please get in touch with the Mix Challenge staff.
Please spread the word of the challenge on social media.
For example with our dedicated
Twitter Account or
Facebook Page
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Good luck to all participants.
And most importantly, have fun!