Chad Blake takes the stage for our debut series filmed at MWTM’s flagship studio in Paris! In this episode, the illustrious mixer continues to push sonic boundaries as he talks about the methods applied to his recent project, the 2022 single “I Know Who You Are” by Queen Kwong. Experimental indie rock suits Blake well, who left his signature sonic signature on the record and explains exactly how he did it, working completely “in the box”. Chad talks about the artist and the project, plays a pre-mix and explains his typical approach to any given session. He states that he is not afraid to follow his own vision, often straying far from a rough mix and then making adjustments later at the client’s request. He also highlights the difference he sees between AB comparison and reference, and why it is important to distinguish. In addition to discussing his overall workflow, Blake details creative processing, revealing how he adds presence with harmonics, enhances ambiance, enhances transients, and more!
Content
- Project background, improvisation, rough mix, arrangement, A-B vs. reference, panning, samples, resonance
- Toms, distortion, EQ, drum buss, compression, multi-band limiting, transient design, phase relationships
- Harmonic presence, colour coding, gating, de-essing, bass & electric guitars, filtering, modulation, reverb
- Synthesizer, stereo spreading, increasing ambiance, framing the vocal, cassette emulation, delays
- Vocal excitement, sibilance control, dynamics, mic & amp emulation, magnetic tape character, effects
- Workflow discussion, typical approach, pre-mix groundwork, experimenting, communication with artists
There are subtitles in Russian, English and Spanish.