SOUND ON SOUND

[Mike Senior]

About six months ago I posted to let people know about an on-line library of free multitrack downloads I'd put together for people use for mixing practice. Since then, there've been quite a few developments, so I figured it might be time to post an update, so here's a quick summary of where things are:

• There are now more 50 projects listed, covering a wide range of musical styles -- including more than 20 of the songs I've remixed for the 'Mix Rescue' column.
• Almost all the projects are now provided in full-length versions -- previously most of the projects were only 30-second excerpts on account of web-space restrictions.
• All of the files are in uncompressed WAV format at 44.1kHz, without any mix processing or effects -- just the raw multitracks, in other words.
• There are MP3 previews provided alongside each listing so that you can get an idea of what to expect before downloading.
  

Here's the link: Library Of Free Multitrack Downloads

Many thanks again to everyone who's contributed to this resource. I'm continuing to add further projects on a rolling basis (so far about five a month), and further contributions/links are always welcome. Have fun with them!

[Mike Senior]

Just a quick heads-up to say that the raw multitracks for October 2011's Mix Rescue are now available if you fancy trying your hand at a remix of your own. Here's the link:

Young Griffo 'Facade' Multitracks

[Jamsci67]

Thanks heaps Mike, i'm new to this thread but my students love working with your stuff. Great work. Keep it up. :)

[Mike Senior]

Thanks heaps Mike, i'm new to this thread but my students love working with your stuff. Great work. Keep it up. :)

No problem. I always cursed the lack of such things when I did some teaching, so I'm glad to improve matters! :D

[MonkeySpank]

This hardly needs to be said but I'll say it anyway: this is a fantastic resource, Mike. Thank you so much.

I'm a not-so-gifted amateur, frequently asked to make silk purses out of sows' ears. Learning via these projects will help me no end.

Thanks again.

[Mike Senior]

Thought it was worth posting another update here, because there's been another big increase in the number of multitracks listed -- we're up to about 85 full-length multitrack projects now! These include:

• The November issue's Mix Rescue candidate, a song called 'Run Run Run' by the roots reggae band Arise.
  
• Another superheavy death-metal offering, this time from the band Cnoc An Tursa.
  
• An entire 15-song punk album from the band Out Of Tune.
  
• A selection of eight pop/rock songs from singer-songwriter Kevin Reeves' slickly-produced debut album.
  
• A selection of multitracks I discovered from the mic manufacturer Telefunken, including three acoustic country songs from Francis Dunnery, three full-band country/jazz instrumentals, a medley of three barbershop numbers from the all-male quartet Rounders, and a slice of Americana from Jackie Greene.
  
• A couple more alt/indie-rock multitracks from the Shaking Through project: Family Band's 'Again' and Creepoid's 'Old Tree'.
  

Should provide plenty to get your teeth into! :)

Also, if you want to stay up to date with continuing additions to the library, but don't fancy keeping your eye on this thread, I've also set up a dedicated mailing list for this purpose.

[DaleSmith]

Mike.

thanks for this. I'll post a link to another such resource, which is entirely Heavy Metal.

http://www.ultimatemetal.com/forum/production-tips/515941-list-raw-songs-our-mixing-practice.html

Hope this is OK and doesn't break any inter forum rules.



:D

[Mike Senior]

thanks for this. I'll post a link to another such resource, which is entirely Heavy Metal.
http://www.ultimatemetal.com/forum/production-tips/515941-list-raw-songs-our-mixing-practice.html
Hope this is OK and doesn't break any inter forum rules.

No rules broken, I don't think, and that whole forum is quite a good resource for multitracks -- www.mixoff.org is also a good one, and more genre-neutral. The main problem I have with surfing either of those forums for multitracks is that the download links so often seem to be broken or timed out, and even when they're live they're often hosted on sendspace or megaupload so the download takes ages. This is why I often approach people who post stuff for mixoffs about hosting their tracks more permanently on my site -- in fact, two of the metal multitracks in my listings were originally ultimate metal mixoffs. We're still a bit low on metal productions, so it might be time for me to do another trawl there! :)

[DaleSmith]

Mike.

your absolutely right regarding the reliability of the downloads. The guys on there try to encourage everyone to use Dropbox, but yeah, some of the older stuff can have dead links etc.

The other issue is the technical ability of the musicians. Some of the tracks realistically would need parts re-recording. The 2 you have uploaded here where very popular on the ultimate metal forum, and where good quality recordings.

Thanks again for putting this together. Its great for those of us that don't have bands to work with at the minute.

:)

[RegressiveRock]

Mike

This is fantastic. I'm gonna play in your sandbox as soon as I've finished the set up on my new iMac.

Thanks a ton.

Reg

[bernie33]

Is there also such a web site dedicated to electronic music?
especially ambient and lounge. I used to download it from mp3.com, but was ages ago.

[sthum]

.



Thank you so much for this Mike! Your hard work is very much appreciated!



Sthum......



.

[Mike Senior]

Another quick update to mention that there have been lots of new multitracks added to the library since last I posted -- there are now 100 different projects, including:

• The raw tracks for this issue's Bollywood-style Mix Rescue, a song called 'Kaathaadi' by Sambasevam Shanmugam.
  
  
• Some slick vocal-led electronic dance-pop, in the form of AM Contra's 'Heart Peripheral'.
  
  
• Two tracks from Brian Eno & David Byrne's early-80s milestone album My Life In The Bush Of Ghosts. (Although most legitimate 'free multitracks' I've encountered from well-known artists are actually submixed stems, incomplete 'remix packs', or data-compressed audio files, these two actually seem to be the real deal -- 24-bit WAVs taken direct from the original multitrack tapes.)
  
  
• A powerful Muse-flavoured indie rock production from The Doppler Shift.
  
  
• Another sample-based film cue, this time desert-themed suspense from New York-based media composer Mike Skalandunas.
  
  
• A great acoustic song by Will Knox, multitracked live in front of an audience at Sweetwater's GearFest 2011 expo.
  
  
• A wistful acoustic number with a French cafe vibe: 'If You Say' by James May.
  
  
• The final multitrack from Season Two of the Shaking Through project (which has just achieved its funding target for a third season -- hurrah!): Snowmine's 'Curfews'.
  
  
• Two multitrack sessions in support of instructional videos from Methods & Applications Laboratory: Swinging Steaks country-rock 'Lost My Way' and Jamie Walker's acoustic country 'Love Can Be'.

Also, some readers of 'Mix Rescue' may also be interested to know that I've uploaded a couple of my complete Reaper remix projects so that users of that DAW can have a look at all the exact settings I used. These projects can also be downloaded from the library here:

• We Fell From The Sky: 'Not You' (Mix Rescue May 2011)
  
  
• Arise: 'Run Run Run' (Mix Rescue November 2011)
  

More uploads incoming -- you can get monthly updates via my mailing list.

[Mike Senior]

It's been a while since I last updated this thread, so here are the latest uploads since the last post:

• The raw tracks for this issue's Mix Rescue, an indie rock song from Jokers, Jacks & Kings called 'Sea Of Leaves'.
  
  
• ''Black Out Betty' is a slice of sunny alt-pop/rock from New York band Banned From The Zoo.
  
  
• A couple of heavy emo rock numbers: 'Ambitions' by All Hands Lost, and 'All The Same' by North To Alaska -- the latter featured in Mix Rescue December 2009.
  
  
• Three new indie/alternative productions from Brian McTear's Shaking Through project: Filthybird's 'I'd Like To Know', Strand Of Oaks's 'Spacestation', and Face On Film's 'Waiting For GA'.
  
  
• A fresh batch of four uploads from mic manufacturer Telefunken: a folk pop duo between Andrew Cole and Chantel Upshaw on the former's song 'Dead Roses'; driving rock with prog leanings from The Brew's 'What I Want'; an A-list Nashville session in the form of Uncle Dad's 'Who I Am'; and a frankly jaw-dropping live performance of the song 'Glorious', featuring the singer-songwriter Jonny Rodgers accompanying himself on water-filled wineglasses -- you've got to see it to believe it!
  
  
• An unusual and evocative classical/electronica production from Giselle's debut album 'Turning Circles': 'You'.
  
  
• Three tracks from David Youngs's wonderful debut solo acoustic guitar album 'Transience': 'Dust, You & Me', 'Technomantra', and 'Long Overdue'. Although they aren't 'multitracks' as such, they're still excellent mixing practice because of the incredibly wide range of playing techniques David uses, including some frighteningly complex rhythmic tapping techniques.
  
  
• A good, solid, funk-rock tune from the Louis Cressy Band, called 'Good Time'.
  

I've also added a few more complete project files for recent Mix Rescue remixes (including this month's) so anyone who's interested can have a closer look at the settings -- I've included screenshots of all the third-party plug-ins too, in case you don't have access to those. These projects can also be downloaded from the library here:

• Blue Lit Moon: 'Dad's Glad' (Mix Rescue June 2011) (in Reaper)
  
  
• YoungGriffo: 'Facade' (Mix Rescue October 2011) (in Reaper)
  
  
• Jokers, Jacks & Kings: 'Sea Of Leaves' (Mix Rescue April 2012) (in Cubase)
  

Lots more uploads in the works -- if you have anything you'd like to contribute yourself, do please get in touch with me via SOS or through my site.

[RAWNUM83RZ]

Hello Mike,
Just a quick question? once we've uploaded the multitrack and attempt a mix is there a forum or somewhere where we can send it back to get feedback on how we did with the mix or any tips or tricks we should use for that particular mix?

[Mike Senior]

Hello Mike,
Just a quick question? once we've uploaded the multitrack and attempt a mix is there a forum or somewhere where we can send it back to get feedback on how we did with the mix or any tips or tricks we should use for that particular mix?

Well, people round here always seem pretty happy to provide feedback on mixes if you post them... :)

[somu1991]

Hello mike.. thanks for your info...

(spam sig removed)

[Athanasios C. Paschalis]

Hello Mike,
Just a quick question? once we've uploaded the multitrack and attempt a mix is there a forum or somewhere where we can send it back to get feedback on how we did with the mix or any tips or tricks we should use for that particular mix?

Well, people round here always seem pretty happy to provide feedback on mixes if you post them... :)

I just stumbled upon your post... Fantastic job and a great initiative! Well done!

[Reverend_Chaos]

Allright!

This is just brilliant, Mr. Senior! I've just landed a project mixing a demo for a Black Metal band as a first "real" gig mix-wise (after having mixed my own stuff for some years) so I'm downloading one of the Death Metal projects from your page as we speak so I can practice a bit more before I receive the files I shall work on.

Any tips on how to achieve a gritty, garage-y but still powerful extreme metal mix are welcome, allthough I suspect that is a topic for another thread somewhere else on this forum :headbang:

Anyhow, thanks for all tips, mix rescues, masterclasses, inspiring articles and generous libraries with training projects. You're doing a great job!

[Sibelius19]

I know I may just get shot down here but, what is multitrack?