Mixing / Production

Once again, Mix Rescue finds that the arrangement and harmonic structure of the song makes it difficult to mix. But we get by... with a little help from our online friends!

• Ke$ha 'We R Who We R' • Tinie Tempah 'Wonderman' • Alexis Jordan 'Good Girl' • Chris Brown 'Beautiful People'

Audio files to accompany the article.

Transforming Peter Gabriel’s Scratch My Back into an impressive live experience required an orchestra, a team of top engineers and just the right selection of gear.

Vintage synths are perfect for sampling, and modern multisampling software makes the process easy and creatively rewarding. We show you how it’s done in our in‑depth guide.

Sound design isn’t just for special effects in the movies: it’s perfect for giving your music a unique twist.

Audio files to accompany the article.

Bass trapping can go a long way towards solving low-frequency problems in small rooms — but so, too, can monitor placement, as we find out in this month’s Studio SOS...

We discuss the sort of studio setup you need for voice-over work, and how you can start promoting and selling your services. • Read Part 1

The Foo Fighters could have gone to any studio on the planet to record their eagerly awaited album Wasting Light. They chose their frontman Dave Grohl’s garage...

The Strokes’ comeback single was the product of three years of songwriting, 18 months of recording — and 30 minutes of mixing!

If you’re the musician and the engineer, it’s easy to focus too closely on your own instrument, and not enough on the mix...

These audio files accompany the Mix Rescue article that featured in SOS June 2011.

• Chase & Status 'Blind Faith' • Jessie J 'Price Tag' • David Guetta 'Who's That Chick'

Bruno Mars is the year’s hottest pop star, and one‑third of ace production team the Smeezingtons. Fellow Smeezington Ari Levine reveals how they created his hit album in a modest LA studio.

It’s amazing how far studio software has come on in the last decade, as this month’s Studio SOS candidate found out when he upgraded his ageing Logic‑based PC system...

Even once you’ve got to grips with your camera and today’s easy‑to‑use software editors, there’s still the small matter of creating an edit that truly fits the song...

Mercury Prize winners the xx were a band whose mimimalism tempted producers to do too much. By remaining faithful to the band’s own sound, Rodaidh McDonald succeeded where others had failed.

These audio files accompany the Producing Professional Voiceovers At Home feature that appeared in SOS June 2012.

To achieve success as a self‑producing voiceover artist, you need to be much more than a good recording engineer... 

With a little help from producer/engineer Tucker Martine, the Decemberists' latest album went from barn to barnstormer...