A Bit About Burro Music Mixing

Burro Music Mixing provides audio mixing services for the discerning musician from an accurately treated studio specializing in electronic, folk, blues and jazz recordings.

You may be asking why anyone would pay to have their music mixed. Can't I mix it myself and send it on to a mastering service?

• You certainly can if you are confident in the accuracy of your mixing environment, but please be cautious of corrective mastering which cannot give you the result that a properly mixed and mastered solution will bring.

• Continuing, many mastering engineers will ask that you go back and correct problems in your mix and would use corrective mastering as a last resort. Then there are those who will quickly churn out your master, warts and all, without giving you a chance to deal with the underlying issues in the mix, while gladly taking your cash.

• In other words, your focus should be toward getting the mix as good as it can be rather than relying on the mastering engineer to work a miracle with a flawed mixdown (this due to the effect of room modes from an untreated mixing environment as explained on GIK Acoustics' Room Acoustics Primer). 

• Further, see this article regarding mixing mistakes from Universal Audio referencing the same issues. Please pay special attention to the information on the common problem of excessive low-end in mixes done in small rooms with no acoustic treatment.

• I am offering a mixing service for those who feel they have already done a tremendous amount of work by writing, playing and recording their tracks and would like to hand off the mixing duties to capable hands for a superior result in an acoustically accurate environment.

Finally, you can expect a trustworthy, forthright experience from me. I will do all that I can to help your music sound its best and to prepare it properly for mastering, which is the final step after mixing. I will gladly refer you to someone more qualified if I cannot provide what is needed for your project and will never waste your time or money.

What services do you offer?

"Lumi" by Vladislav Delay

At bottom of this jittery, off balance gem - muffled and mangled through divers synthetic filters - lies a dense weight of sorrow beckoning the affected listener to drink deeply again and again by one Vladislav Delay:

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"Windshield Smasher" by Black Moth Super Rainbow

Open wide for a spoonful of bizarre, slightly-grotesque, grubby-yet-fetching, animated, breezy cultic fun by one Black Moth Super Rainbow:

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"Spiral" by Wye Oak

Hypnotic tune with a subtle darkness that nods and perhaps grins in the direction of Phil Collins, with a zesty dash of the Police and finally tied up nicely with grosgrain ribbon by the soulful, low murmur of Annie Lennox by one Wye Oak:

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"This Plane Is Going To Fall" by Minotaur Shock

Succinct yet stirring, expertly proportioned and might I simply say - beautiful - pop gem including free downloads for all you skinflints, from a favorite of ours, Minotaur Shock:

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"Zaharia Fărâmăs Protokoll in sechs Teilen" by Brannten Schnure

Atmospheric and extremely hypnotic, this sound conglomeration, meaning something akin to "protocol in six parts", meanders through corridors of creaking imaginings and then drones aplenty with mesmerizing melancholy memories by one Brannten Schnure. All credit to the relentless No Fear of Pop for the tip:

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"Darkside A1" by Darkside

Honestly, I forget how I learned of this duo, but Nicolas Jaar doesn't really need much of an introduction. To the crux, this joint starts with a nod to Pink Floyd atmosphere and proceeds to simmer and burn with a fierce, downtrodden groove by one Darkside:


 

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"King Night" by Salem

I would like to draw your attention to a track in the spirit (or phantasm if you will) of All Hallows' Eve found via stellar little blog Mu-sique. Sinister and almost despondent drama reigns supreme here with giant distorted synth leads and the ubiquitous stylings of the 808 chopping through soaring ghost-choir vocals like the cleaver dividing bone from marrow. All of this and more brought to you by Salem:


 

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Principle Participant Release

Ruminate on this choice, decidedly groove-centric release which is both primal and cerebral in its approach. May I present to you the pleasures of "Principles", a particularly danceable publication by Principal Participant:

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"Pale Ravine" Full-Length by Deaf Center

This is a work that demands to be ingested in its entirety (no hook-laden singles here my friend). Please prepare your psyche for a sometimes claustrophobic cloud of weighty, nightmarish audio that oozes and trickles forth a dense, brooding miasma by one Deaf Center:

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"Get Along" by Mikal Cronin

A rare pearl of gritty yet melodious garage fun tucked away amidst the usual bevy of electronic offerings. This is spot on execution of great songwriting and the venerable melody hook with lots of grease on the collar to boot by one Mikal Cronin:

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"Worms" by Datassette

The electrically driven endless chain conveyor within the heart of the assembly line has begun to churn and chisel out a strangely soulful yet entirely mechanical refrain while feeding its contents into the final assembly stage. Said assembly stage numbly joins the rarefied groove with ringing vulcanized exclamations whilst continuing with its tireless work. Mechanics brought to you by Datassette:

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"Children Playing with Lego" by Ochre

Another impeccable concoction ripe with thick synth melody, sub-bass and a heavy air of gravity and solemnity that silently and beautifully points toward the dirge. Please do yourself a favor and listen via some decent monitors to fully appreciate the clarity of the mix and meaty tones of the instruments, which by the way, underscores the possibilities for a tune whose mix has been carefully crafted. Brought to you by Ochre:

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"Euphorics 101" (Trip Into Mutant Bass Mix) by Lifecycle

In the never ending search for atmospheric nourishment I give you this bleak, haunting, acidic joint with a recurring motif that conjures an innocent elderly woman calling her lost feline in the darkness to no avail; while the audience senses some horrible, impending menace looming over the entire scene by one Lifecycle:

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"Islands" (My Panda Shall Fly Kool '88 Mix) by Secret Diaries

This subdued gem from My Panda Shall Fly smacks of a superbly faulty percolator in that it just simmers along with restrained activity rather than bursting forth in a bubbling bath of boiling broth. Original tune by Secret Diaries:

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