The rock/pop band The Arrows from South Africa traveled to Paris to work with producer Fab Dupont from NYC to collaborate on "Words to Say" - taking it from from a home studio demo to mix-ready production on camera.
This tutorial will show you how to add color and life to basic productions and bring songs to life.
Fab gives his best tips and tricks for making tracks sound radio ready by using a mixture of live recording, synth layering, vocal tracking and detailed editing - all intermediate to advanced digital and analog techniques.
He strategically adds and subtracts from an already decent sounding home studio demo to create a hit sounding record over the course of a 2 day session in Paris.
This is how records get made, instrument by instrument, part by part. Sit in the session and see what it's like to build a track with professionals.
Part 2 - See how Fab mixed the final version of "Words to Say"
This tutorial was sponsored by Avid and produced, written and edited by pureMix
00:00:21 I've set up a little bit of gear to be
able to work on a song by The Arrows...
00:00:28 and, so I'm gonna show you!
Come this way...
00:00:32 We have here this amp, that I did not
know, but it's pretty amazing,
fairly new, and beautiful.
It has lots of different options.
00:00:40 I'm probably gonna use it for most things,
because I really love the way it sounds.
00:00:44 I also have an old Vox,
that's an old, old Vox, which I love.
00:00:47 And then a Twin Reverb over there.
00:00:49 So depending on what sounds we go for,
we have good choice.
00:00:52 FET 47, SM 57, so we're covered
for microphones.
00:00:55 A bunch of pedals... Lots of overdrives.
00:00:58 We won't be using the drums,
but they look pretty.
00:01:01 And then here, we have a bunch of synths.
00:01:05 A Juno-60, fantastic! An SH-2,
which sounds really, really gnarly.
00:01:10 A Moog Source...
And then a Little Phatty,
which is great and has lots of fun
features to make tones with.
00:01:18 Here, I have my Pro Tools HD Native rig,
with an OMNI interface,
so basically I have everything
all-in-one with the laptop,
inputs, mic pre's, everything I need...
00:01:27 And I put it here, so I could sit
with the musicians,
and we could interact
and make music in real-time.
00:01:34 And over there, I set up a mixing session
with an HDX rig, and an HD IO,
and a bunch of stuff. I'm probably
gonna track vocals here too,
so I have a choice of color
for the preamps for the vocal.
00:01:47 And that's about it! That's the setup.
00:01:50 The demo & lead synth
I love these old things!
- Do you have a session for me?
A demo session or something?
- Yes, I do.
00:02:00 Thank you! Great...
00:02:05 Let's see...
00:02:10 Et voilà! Shall we listen to it?
Ok, that's a great demo!
How did you get those drums?
We just had our drummer play it
on an electronic drum kit.
00:03:45 Oh, literally, record audio into it?
- Yeah, we just quickly did it like that.
00:03:48 Do you mind if I quantize them,
so we can listen to the song
without worrying about the... ok!
- Go ahead!
- So, quickly...
00:03:54 make it quantize.
I'm not gonna be too tight on it.
00:03:57 You know, let's see...
- Yeah.
00:04:00 This should do.
00:04:02 This will be easier to listen to.
And then, let's listen to some stuff.
00:04:05 This riff is awesome.
00:04:09 - Oh yeah, the bass riff!
- Yeah!
It's kind of meant to not sound
so much like a bass, but it...
00:04:15 - Right! Well, I think... I have ideas!
And then, I like this a lot.
What is this?
What is this?
- It's a keyboard.
- That's just a keyboard, straight in...
00:04:30 I tweaked a bit on the keyboard,
made it as dirty as I possibly could,
and that was it!
You definitely made it dirty.
So everything's played in here?
Yeah, everything's played.
- I'd like to discuss the structure.
00:04:40 I just want to make sure we all agree.
00:04:42 What's the idea behind the song?
I think we wanted to write something
very repetitive...
00:04:47 catchy, repetitive, and actually
try to use as few chords as possible.
00:04:51 We have a tendency to overuse chords.
00:04:53 So we were going for a more simple
structure, with more repeats.
00:04:56 Well, it's funny, because what you
came up with
is actually an unusual structure to me!
That tends to happen!
- That makes sense!
Ok! Because, I mean... I expect,
I hear, you know...
00:05:06 "Bo Be Dom, Bo Be Dom", the whole riff,
then you have one song structure
like a verse,
and then you go into a second one.
And then you have...
00:05:14 "And if I only knew",
and that's kind of a pre-chorus.
00:05:17 - Yeah!
- So everybody's waiting for the chorus,
except you don't go there,
and you go to a third verse.
00:05:23 An extra repeat.
- Yes. So you have a third verse
before you hit the chorus.
- Yeah.
00:05:27 I like it!
- Me too.
00:05:29 I mean, it's a great riff,
so we can leave it like this,
we can always cut it up later.
- Ok!
But I'd like to cut it
in the current structure.
00:05:37 - Yeah, me too.
- Also I had a question for you here...
00:05:40 which I'm assuming is the bridge...
00:05:53 This is like a semi-rap kind of thing.
- Yeah.
00:05:55 There's no drums. You just
didn't feel like playing drums?
I think we just didn't get around to it!
We knew we were coming to you,
so we thought...
00:06:03 let's just do what's important right now!
- He's got the idea now!
Alright, so... ok!
I have an idea for that too.
00:06:11 Before we do anything, I'd like
to import some markers in here,
so we know exactly the structure.
00:06:16 I have a template that I tend to use.
00:06:19 There you go...
Markers... Import.
00:06:22 There's usually an intro, a verse,
a pre-chorus, a chorus,
a verse, a pre-chorus, a chorus,
a bridge...
00:06:27 So I can use the same template
on everything.
00:06:29 I just have to make sure it falls
on the right bars. What does this do?
Intro...
00:06:38 Verse 1...
00:06:42 This is not the first pre.
The first pre comes later,
because you have two verses in a row.
This is the first pre.
00:06:56 So this is a pre-chorus, which does not
go into a chorus, as we said before.
00:07:00 - Nope!
- You guys are sneaky...
00:07:03 Then, second pre-chorus.
00:07:06 And then the first chorus comes here.
00:07:09 Right here. This is tedious,
but it's important. Chorus...
00:07:14 I'm assuming the second chorus
is after the first chorus...
00:07:17 Ok, here we get into verse 3,
let's see what's going on here...
00:07:28 Alright, there's a little
purgatory bar here! Lovely!
So this is the second chorus.
00:07:39 Alright, then here is the bridge.
00:07:45 I can see there is two parts,
something comes in here.
00:07:54 That's cool. What happens after?
Ok! Maybe we should accent that,
make something out of it.
00:08:04 Otherwise, it's just like bridge and
back into the chorus, it's kind of boring.
00:08:07 Alright, so I'll make a note of that.
Now let's call it "Breakdown Chorus."
And then last chorus here.
00:08:16 And then the end. Alright!
So now, we can always have...
00:08:21 a good idea of the song structure
right here, so we can jump quickly.
00:08:26 I'm really intrigued by that riff.
00:08:30 And I think... (she sings)
Yeah, that.
00:08:32 I think it would be cool to have
a more... a gnarlier...
00:08:35 kind of like angrier sound.
- Absolutely!
And I saw you play with that guy.
- It's good.
00:08:41 - Yeah? I like it too. Why don't we
just start recording something,
just to see how we feel today.
00:08:52 Great. I'm gonna call it "New Riff."
And what I'm gonna do is I'm gonna
color it, say green,
so now we know everything that's grey
is the old stuff.
00:09:02 And then, we'll know what we can keep
and what we can get rid of
with the color.
00:09:08 Why don't you drive, and I'll play?
- Alright!
- I need to see what's going on there.
- Come on over.
00:09:15 Alright.
00:09:17 That's nice. Oscillator 1... Yeah!
It has a Sub too.
00:09:22 - That's cool!
- Nicely out of tune.
00:09:26 And then...
00:09:29 So...
00:09:33 A resonance...
00:09:35 That's the part with C, right?
- Yeah, C!
- That is awesome.
- Nice right?
We should probably tune this.
00:09:43 So if you want to bring
a tuning plug-in, that'd be awesome.
00:09:46 - Ok...
- Nice!
Cool! So let's see...
00:09:54 Wow!
Alright, that's good enough
for rock'n'roll!
That sounds amazing, that will really
work great with the bass.
00:10:07 And since we're gonna have a real
bass, this will give us some grit,
I think, plus it's fun!
It's a lot of fun!
- And then, for the...
00:10:15 There's something like this
at the end, right?
What we could do is give it a filter
thing with this, so that would go...
00:10:27 Do you like that?
- Yeah, it's great.
00:10:29 - Awesome! Can you give me a click?
- Yep!
- And, maybe mute the old bass,
because it's out of tune,
and we're replacing anyway.
And... here we go!
Ok. Dig it?
- Yeah!
- Dig it?
- Yeah, it sounds great.
00:11:24 This really makes me want to listen
to a bass under it,
to see how fat it can get.
00:11:29 Also, I want to record sample beats
on the chorus,
and a soft synth to double the part.
00:11:36 Watch all episodes
and download the tracks
00:00:00 The bass & soft synths
I just want a extra straight beat
on the chorus.
00:00:08 This is what we have right now...
00:00:17 I propose a really silly... straight...
00:00:19 - Cool.
- Just silly... So let's just...
00:00:22 let's just make a new track.
- Yeah, let's give it a try.
00:00:25 There's a plug-in, built-in,
called Boom...
00:00:29 which I like, because it's very simple.
Check it out.
00:00:34 It's just a beat box.
- Cool.
00:00:37 - It's like an old 808.
- Cool.
00:00:43 So, I'm thinking maybe...
a little heavier kick.
00:00:48 Yeah!
Yeah!
- Do you like?
It's a little grainy, that's nice.
- Yeah, it gives it a little bit of a...
00:01:11 And then, I'm thinking a silly
open hat like this...
00:01:24 Alright, super dance-y, yeah...
00:01:34 So it would go like this
with the chorus...
00:01:36 I'll just launch it,
and then if we like it, I'll print it.
00:01:45 Yeah!
It's great!
It's not exactly groundbreaking,
but it really works for the track.
00:01:57 - I think so, yeah!
- And it's gonna help us
have a better bass thing.
So I'm gonna plug in a keyboard,
and I'm gonna just print it.
00:02:07 Let's see...
00:02:46 Yeah?
- Yeah! Cool.
00:02:48 There's a nice push and pull
to that I think.
00:02:50 Yeah! And also, now, we have
something steady
and stronger for the chorus.
00:02:56 Yeah, everything was pushing
the same way, so...
00:02:58 - It's boring. This should make it
actually more fun.
00:03:02 Now you have something that's
a little more steady,
that you can maybe create excitement
on the bass,
without feeling like you have to hold
the whole beat together.
00:03:11 Ok, let's do some bass!
Do you have sound?
I do yeah.
- Awesome.
00:03:27 How's this level?
It's good.
- Do you want more?
You can actually probably bring
it down a touch, if anything.
00:03:37 I'm feeling that...
00:03:40 It feels a little bland.
00:03:42 This is a guitar pedal, but why don't
you try that thing on the right there?
What does it do?
The red thing...
00:03:52 Let's just see.
00:03:59 Ok.
00:04:01 Do you mind if I tweak
a little bit for you?
- Yeah, please.
00:04:07 Let's see...
00:04:08 Can you play the chorus part?
Yeah? A little more...
00:04:43 And what if you played
a more active part?
Instead of being the same thing,
since we have these straight drums,
how about you did a more disco thing
like... (he sings)
Ok!
- And also, do octaves on the...
00:04:54 if you can, on the upline?
- Ok, sure.
00:05:00 Hold on. I'm gonna add a little more...
Here.
00:05:03 That sounds good!
Something like that?
- Ok, yeah! That's great.
00:05:14 Do you want to try with the beat?
- That sounds cool!
- Yeah, I like it.
- I really like the gritty sound,
the graininess, it's like grungy.
00:05:21 However, because it got more
on the gritty side,
I don't know how much fat
I'm gonna be able to get,
so maybe I'd like you to double,
or add a part with a synth...
00:05:32 If you don't mind!
- Yeah, let's do that!
Ok! So, how about you...
Here... This is yours.
00:05:38 - Ok.
- I'm gonna find a sound.
00:05:41 Let's see... The bass is here...
00:05:44 Let me add a Instrument track.
00:05:48 And then, I'm gonna use Xpand.
00:05:53 A lot of people don't even think of
using Xpand, because it's built-in.
00:05:57 I use it all the time.
00:05:58 So let's see if we find something.
00:06:01 No...
00:06:03 No...
00:06:05 Mmh... Like... what's the part?
And what if you did "Pom Pom...",
something like that?
Ok... Wait. Wrong sound.
00:06:34 Ah! I dig that!
- That's cool, let's see.
00:06:37 Let's try that...
1... 2... 3 and 4 and...
00:06:50 Yeah!
Ok, let's try that with the music.
- That's cool!
- Just a couple bars of the chorus.
Here we go.
00:07:31 I like it!
I think it's fierce, because it really
fills the low-mids
and also it makes... I don't know,
it just adds forward motion,
and it completes the bass very nicely.
00:07:41 We lose a little bit of the bottom of
the bass, but this adds... that's nice.
00:07:45 Yeah, I like the rhythmic play
between the two as well,
it works really well.
- Yeah, I love it.
00:07:51 Good idea you had there, Miss.
00:07:53 So what I propose you guys do is
you play the whole song,
because we need that part on the verse,
then you come in on the chorus,
which is gonna help him when you play
together, it's nicer. Yeah?
Yeah!
- How's your cue, are you fine?
Yeah I'm fine. Everything's good.
- Are you fine too?
For you guys to do that,
I need to copy what I've done...
00:08:15 on the chorus on all the choruses.
Here's one...
00:08:18 - Oh yeah, that's gonna help.
- You know?
Ok. Ready?
-Yep!
- Here we go!
I put a click,
so you have the downbeat.
00:10:18 Well, that was great.
- Yeah!
So I propose we just stop it,
it's a good day's work.
00:10:24 Also...
00:10:26 I think it's time to see what you can
come up with for guitars.
00:10:31 Yeah, I'm excited for that!
- We're too tired to set up guitars now.
00:10:33 Yes, absolutely!
- Guitars tomorrow...
00:10:35 Also, I have an idea for an arpeggiator
on the chorus.
00:10:38 Cool!
- And more MIDI layers, with you,
see how you can make it feel better,
maybe a piano or something,
so it sounds a little bit
like the rest of the record.
00:10:47 Yeah, that's cool.
00:10:49 - That sounds great, yeah.
- See you tomorrow!
Watch all episodes
and download the tracks
00:00:00 Guitar & soft synths
Hi!
- Good morning!
- Good morning!
- How are you doing?
- Good!
- Grab a chair.
00:00:11 I've been listening to the session.
- Cool!
And I think we did good. However...
there's a few things we need to adjust.
00:00:19 I think that on the drum pattern,
I think we need dirtier drums.
00:00:25 And so I have some samples
that I like,
that I use often, so we'll do that.
Check out this stuff.
00:00:54 The chorus feels a lot better.
- Yeah!
And the old drums are still
a little fuzzy,
so it doesn't groove right,
but we can fix that.
00:01:01 We will fix that.
- Yes we will! Let's just add samples
on the chorus.
I'm gonna use Battery.
00:01:09 It's a very good and simple
sample player.
00:01:15 Here you go.
00:01:16 And I have my sample library here.
00:01:19 So... There you go.
Where are my DMX samples? Here!
So I have a kick.
I use this a lot, I like it.
00:01:27 A snare...
00:01:31 A hat...
00:01:32 These are samples from an actual DMX?
From my DMX beat box, yes.
- That's awesome.
00:01:37 - It's just a lot...
- Old school!
Yeah, it's a lot easier
to travel with...
00:01:42 with the samples than to travel with
a big box that will break anyway!
Do we have... Yeah!
Just do a couple bars
of our super intellectual pattern.
00:01:54 And... call it a day.
00:01:58 Here we go!
Great.
- Yeah!
I'm gonna real-time quantize it,
and then make it a little... loop.
00:02:15 Just copy it quickly.
00:02:17 See if it gels nice with Boom...
00:02:24 The snare's really working,
the hi-hat's...
00:02:26 - Not working...
But this is gonna work!
Yeah!
So this was just Boom...
00:02:35 Just the DMX...
00:02:38 The two of them...
00:02:40 - Yeah!
- I think it works better.
00:02:43 - Yeah, it sounds great.
00:02:52 Great! And that's good support
for the real drums we'll do later.
00:02:56 Ok.
00:02:58 What I'm gonna do is I'm gonna make it,
this is a cool thing,
we can make it one block,
turn all these little sequences into
one sequence,
and then I'm gonna copy that
to every chorus.
00:03:08 That way, we're good to go... Done!
Ok, we're good.
00:03:14 I'd like to listen to the guitars
we had, and then probably...
00:03:17 we'll decide if we keep them,
or make new ones.
00:03:20 So here we have... this guitar.
00:03:30 I think we'll get a better sound
just going through a real amp.
00:03:34 - Yes! And then, this...
00:03:56 It's hectic.
- Yeah, it's too much.
00:03:58 Everything is arpeggiating
at the same time.
00:04:00 It's a little too pretty,
it's just a different thing right now.
00:04:03 I don't think it supports
the melody well...
00:04:05 So maybe we should look for
a different part on the chorus.
00:04:09 I mean, we can keep this, but I have
a feeling that it's too much.
00:04:13 - I say chuck it!
- Chuck it? Ok!
Especially now since we changed
the bass as well.
00:04:18 - So why don't you tune up a guitar?
Let's find a sound to replace...
Let's think about the verse first.
00:04:25 And then, see if you can find a part
on the chorus.
00:04:28 - Ok!
- Alright. I'm gonna make a track.
00:04:41 Why did you pick this guitar?
I like... I tend to go for a Tele,
out of a lineup of...
00:04:47 any number of guitars.
I like the single coil,
I like the way it bites, and it
responds nicely to the way I play.
00:04:52 And, plus this one's...
signed by Mick Jagger, so...
00:04:56 That's pretty cool!
- I like that! Ok.
00:04:59 Let's try and get the amp to distort.
00:05:03 So I just jack it up. Try it!.
00:05:06 Mmh...
00:05:08 It's okay.
00:05:09 It's nice, but it's not quite enough.
00:05:15 That's...
00:05:16 There's another channel, one second.
What's this?
Ha ha!
Yeah.
- I like that.
00:05:25 Yeah, that's working better.
00:05:28 More bass...
00:05:34 It's a bit much... Back up a little...
Go ahead. Do the...
00:05:40 Yeah. It sounds better.
- Ok, let's see...
00:05:46 I like!
- And the "Bom Be Dom"?
Ok! It sounds great.
Let me see how it sounds over here.
00:05:54 Let's leave the first verse
with just the synth and the bass.
00:05:58 And then, you could come
on the second verse, right?
It sounds good!
You were playing chords
on the pre-chorus before...
00:06:07 It's your call.
I'll give you one bar before.
00:06:10 Ok. I'll put them in. If we don't
use them, we don't use them.
00:06:13 Yes, we can get rid of them...
00:06:16 Rock'n'Roll!
- Yes! Let's just see that.
00:06:20 It sounds good. Here we go!
You're a machine... You are a machine!
Alright, cool!
It's aggressive, I love that!
- Yeah, it's nice.
00:07:47 Why dont we do a quick punch
of that last note?
Cool.
- Yeah? Just do a punch of that.
00:07:53 And then...
00:07:56 You want it to ring out?
- No, I want because he...
00:07:58 - I missed a note likely.
- He missed one note!
- In the whole thing?
- Yes!
Thank you, thank you very much.
00:08:13 Is there a way to make it feel more
electronic, or much more dance-y...
00:08:18 - Yeah!
- It's got a attitude, it's grungy,
but maybe more electro-y...
00:08:23 Ok, let's do that. So why don't
we just ditch the amp,
and then go straight into the OMNI.
00:08:28 I think maybe what we should do is...
Were you thinking about doubling
this part as well that we just did
on something a little bit heavier?
Yes! The lady wants something
electronic.
00:08:40 She wants something electronic,
we want something heavy,
so we should... where do we start?
- Alright! Here we go!
Start with the electronic,
then we'll make the heavy.
- Ok!
We're gonna make
what you just did brown...
00:08:55 ish...
00:09:00 - Ok!
- Rock on!
I'd like to use this guy...
00:09:07 because it gives you some fake
pedal options... that are fun.
00:09:12 Since we're looking for
something thick,
maybe an octaver will do the trick.
- Ooh yeah!
Let's see. How does this sound?
Nice! And the other part?
Ok!
- Yeah, that's great!
- I like that, yeah.
And then, give it grit with Eleven.
00:09:38 Wow!
- How about this one instead?
Ok!
And maybe a different mic... Try it.
00:09:49 No...
00:09:50 No...
00:09:52 Too much...
00:09:55 This is nice.
00:09:56 Let's hear it with the other guy.
00:09:59 Just the two of them.
00:10:02 So we can see how they marry...
00:10:14 There's a big smile on this side!
- That's great, yeah.
00:10:16 So let's just record it... one verse,
and then I'll fly it,
since it's the same everywhere.
- Ok.
00:10:42 Cool. You're happy with this take?
- Yeah, that sounds good.
00:10:45 So... Second verse...
00:10:48 And... that's it.
00:10:50 On the bridge, the other part
opens up a little bit.
00:10:53 I do the whole palm muting thing,
but it opens up on the bridge,
so maybe I should do something
like it with this sound as well.
00:11:00 Ok, here we go. Ready?
- Ok.
00:11:38 That's fantastic!
- Yeah, I like it! Great!
We need...
00:11:45 some sauce.
- Ok.
00:11:49 - Because I feel that it's very choppy,
which is what we wanted...
00:11:53 I don't think that the existing synth
is gonna work,
because it's too much, right?
- Yeah, it's too busy.
00:11:58 And it doesn't support the melody
the same way.
00:12:01 So I think... Why don't I...
00:12:04 Obviously this sound is just
a raw DI sound...
00:12:07 and it's not gonna work,
but how about we don't let the sound
influence the part,
and then you just look for a part
that we feel feels good?
So we're thinking something a little
funky, but simple... melodically?
I think the keyword is...
- Electro!
Electro! The keyword today is electro.
00:12:23 Which means there's electricity
going through it at one point!
Alright, so... I'm just gonna play it
and then you do your thing.
00:12:31 I put you on Input, so you can play
and hear yourself,
but I'm not recording.
00:13:15 Although I'm always game for anything
that sounds like Nile Rodgers,
or Earth, Wind and Fire,
because you know...
00:13:22 It's just a little too funky for this!
Yeah, I think no...
00:13:27 But that thing at the end was great,
and the fact that you doubled the...
00:13:30 Yeah, doubling on the bass line...
- Yeah. I'd like more...
00:13:33 - I like the consistency of that part.
00:13:35 It's the same note the whole way.
00:13:37 However, I'd like it to have
a little more movement...
00:13:41 - Sound-wise.
- Sound-wise, yeah!
So... maybe a Wah or something.
- Ok.
00:13:48 Or maybe... Or maybe I have an idea!
That happens!
- Sometimes...
00:13:55 So why don't...
00:13:57 I have this right here, and it's being
looking at me funny,
so I would like to use it.
00:14:03 It has an audio input on...
- Oh, that kind of an idea?
That kind of an idea!
Ok. So...
00:14:11 I turn it back on...
00:14:13 Wow!
- Oh! That's on!
That hurt!
If you play the steady note, and
I play with the filter while you play,
then we'll be able to give
some movement to it,
and it's gonna sound a little odd,
and...
00:14:25 - Electro-y!
- Yes! Can you play?
So, I have you here.
And so now, if I go to Cutoff...
00:14:34 Play... Play the part.
00:14:39 Ooh, that's awesome!
- You know? It's fun!
Let's see a little Resonance...
Go for it.
00:14:57 Maybe I can close the filter,
and then you can play the part,
and I'll start really close the filter
on the pre-chorus,
and that's gonna help us open up
on the chorus.
00:15:05 So I'll give you a little pre-roll...
00:15:09 Would you be kind enough to...
hit Record, that'd be awesome?
You're ready? C'est parti!
Best thing so far!
- Ok!
I'm glad you like it!
Watch all episodes
and download the tracks
00:00:00 Arpeggiator & piano
So, we have three guitars. We're cool.
00:00:10 I had an arpeggiator idea
for the chorus,
so I'd like to do that now, and then
we'll see if we need more guitars.
00:00:16 I'd like you to play, because you know
the song better than me.
00:00:19 And so... I'm gonna use Reason
in ReWire mode,
because the arpeggiator is really
easy to use.
00:00:28 The idea is for you to make some
like airy melody on top...
00:00:33 of the existing stuff,
that's not in the way of the vocal.
00:00:36 Like a little glitchy sounding?
- Yeah.
00:00:38 The arpeggiator will do the glitch.
00:00:40 If you play something lyrical,
the arpeggiator will give it
enough texture that is worthy for us.
00:00:45 So... Reason... here.
00:00:48 Usually, I like Malström.
Ok, you should have it.
00:00:53 Not that sound!
- Please, no!
- Unless you want that sound?
- No!
- No, he doesn't want that sound!
- Different song, different band!
- Maybe with a metal song...
- Different year... Let's try.
00:01:13 Ok?
- Yeah.
- Ok!
So now, what I'm gonna do is I'm gonna
just add the arpeggiator on top,
say this one...
00:01:22 Like this! And now when you hold it...
00:01:25 - Cool!
- Magie!
So, let me give you the track,
so you can practice to it.
00:01:32 Chorus only.
00:01:33 And look for some sort of a part.
- Ok. Do you want long notes?
Yeah!
We'll come up with something, but right
now, I'm looking for something airy,
and, you know, kind of nice floaty...
00:01:42 And I'm gonna help you
and give you a little delay here.
00:01:49 Maybe do little things as an answer.
- Yeah!
Yeah! I love that!
Using a bit of attack.
- Yeah.
00:02:00 No, it's because it's an arpeggiator,
you're not playing with the beat.
00:02:03 But once the beat is on,
it'll be perfect.
00:02:05 This is great. Just do a take...
00:02:07 and, you know, with the beat,
it'll inspire you,
and then we'll fix it, maybe we'll do
another one. Ready?
Here we go.
00:02:46 I should have done the guitar part.
00:02:48 Ok, that's fine! I can fix that.
00:02:50 Just go here... and...
00:02:52 First, I didn't need that last note.
- Yeah.
00:02:57 - That's gone...
00:02:59 Quantize it for real... Ok, great!
I'm gonna solo it, and then you tell me
what you'd like to change, ok?
Here we go.
00:03:10 I'm hearing clicks, which means that...
00:03:14 the synth can't keep up with what
we're trying to ask it for,
and the envelope is a little tight.
00:03:20 So I'm gonna lengthen the Release,
plus it'll be cooler. Check it out.
00:03:26 What I was thinking is it'd be more fun
if it was shorter.
00:03:55 So, reduce to the same length...
There you go.
00:04:06 Same problem here right?
- Mmh mmh...
00:04:11 And here too...
- Yeah, definitely.
00:04:14 Then it would go...
(she sings) Yeah!
Definitely not. So that's also a G.
- It's the same as guitar.
00:04:27 - G...
- And then, F.
00:04:33 Alright.
- Right? So we got a part!
I really like the melody you played.
00:04:37 On the second half,
where it moves over to thirds,
I feel like we could do better than
the E flat/G quick passing section.
00:04:49 - Oh, that short one?
- Yeah.
00:04:52 Maybe if we do like a F...
00:04:56 F/D/E flat...
00:04:59 I just think it would suit the motion
a little bit better.
00:05:01 I think you're right.
00:05:04 So we want a F...
00:05:07 - F/D/E flat, that's what we were singing.
- Right!
F...
00:05:12 D...
00:05:14 And up to here, E flat.
00:05:20 Yeah!
Yeah?
- Yeah, that's it.
00:05:26 - It's good.
00:05:33 You dig it?
- Yeah, that's nice.
00:05:35 Cool!
So, doing this, I was kind of hearing
a piano part.
00:05:41 Or something in the piano style,
maybe a piano is too literal,
but something that has
that kind of density.
00:05:47 And so...
00:05:49 - Yeah, that sounds good.
- Yeah? You want to do that?
- Yeah.
- Alright, let's make a try.
00:05:53 Can we get a little more legroom though?
- What do you mean?
You mean eight keys is not enough
for you to play a chord?
I'll see what I can do!
Give me one second.
00:06:03 - If we can!
- Ok! If you don't like it,
give it back to me, I love it.
It makes me feel powerful.
00:06:08 Thank you. Alright.
00:06:09 Let me get you a real keyboard
for a real woman. Here we go.
00:06:15 Let's use the built-in piano.
00:06:28 That's nice.
- Yeah! I like that.
00:06:31 Can you add a little melody...
00:06:35 On the turnaround?
- Yes.
00:06:44 Better.
- Yeah.
00:06:55 Fantastic! Alright.
00:06:56 Do you like it?
- Yeah!
- I'm gonna mute a couple other things,
so it's not so thick right now,
since it's not mixed,
so you have space to think.
00:07:04 - Thank you!
- My pleasure... Here we go!
Great!
- You don't want the... at the end?
- The last chord?
No, I like the section effect.
00:07:48 I like the part, I like the turnaround,
I think it's the right texture,
but I think it's taking us away
from the electro vibe.
00:07:54 - Yeah.
- So maybe we could just be...
00:08:00 So... use some filter, or something.
00:08:05 Like this. This guy is cool.
00:08:12 I like that!
Maybe open it a little bit?
It's beautiful... That's beautiful!
And with the track...
00:08:41 Wow!
Yeah, that's cool.
00:08:48 Yeah.
00:08:55 You dig?
- Amazing!
- Very nice!
- Better and better!
Well that's the idea!
It's a great vibe,
and I think it supports the vocal,
which we'll redo obviously,
but this is nice.
00:09:08 Yeah, I think we've come
a really long way.
00:09:10 It's a perfect combination
of organic and electric,
which is what we were really
hoping for with this album.
00:09:15 Did we hit the keyword?
- Electro-y!
There's one thing that does bother me
greatly, it's these drums.
00:09:21 They fake acoustic drums there.
00:09:24 I'm not happening,
as far as I'm concerned.
00:09:26 Since your band has not one,
but two drummers,
maybe it'd be a good idea to replace
the fake drums
by a real drum.
- Yeah! Absolutely.
00:09:35 I propose we call Durban,
and get some real drums from them.
00:09:38 - Perfect!
- Alright? That sounds great!
Let me save this and share it with them.
Here we go!
Watch all episodes
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00:00:20 Ah!
- And also I got the drums from Durban.
00:00:25 And they sound great,
they did a good job.
00:00:30 It's already in the session.
00:00:38 Yeah, that sounds great!
On the pre-choruses, he went like this.
00:00:45 And on the choruses...
00:00:49 It's really great.
- It's gonna work really well with...
00:00:52 - With the beats, yeah! I love what
he did on the bridge, check it out.
00:01:00 Ah, that's awesome!
It's a good recording.
This is the inside bass drum.
00:01:11 Cool.
00:01:13 Outside...
00:01:17 And then they did a sub
with a little bit of compression.
00:01:23 I like that... Snare...
00:01:28 Hi-hat...
00:01:30 Which doesn't do much here,
but you hear it here.
00:01:36 It's really nice. I like that.
There's a mono kit.
00:01:41 I don't know if I'll use that,
it's a little too cardboardy...
00:01:46 That's a great overhead.
- Mmh, very nice!
And then, close cymbal mics,
this is like 1984, 1800 microphones
on the drums, it's awesome.
00:01:56 So if we have a cymbal,
we'll have lots of cymbal.
00:02:02 Awesome!
- Cool!
That's great, and then
there's a drum room!
This is endless. I love it!
And so, the way I do it usually
in this stuff is I do Beat Detective.
00:02:17 I've captured a selection, so that
Pro Tools knows where I'm working.
00:02:21 I analyse the thing...
00:02:24 And then I try and not be too crazy
about separation.
00:02:28 This looks about right.
You can see the transients here.
00:02:32 If that's good, then I separate
into regions.
00:02:35 Then I'm gonna conform it. But instead
of conforming at full quality,
like tight, I'm just gonna
bring it closer,
which is gonna make it tighter,
but not kill the feel.
00:02:46 And then I conform...
00:02:48 And then I can smooth here.
00:02:51 And then it sounds like this...
00:02:58 Here for the pre-chorus...
00:03:13 Yeah, I can do it here too.
00:03:15 I'm gonna leave the pre-chorus like this.
- The pre-chorus sounds good, yeah.
00:03:22 Let's listen to it.
00:03:32 I love it!
That kick drum is flamming a little bit.
00:03:53 He killed it though, but I really
want it to be super tight,
so I have a really fat bottom.
00:03:58 So I'm just gonna Beat Detective that
and make it really tight.
00:04:02 The other thing I'm gonna do also,
because he probably...
00:04:05 since he's human...
00:04:08 He doesn't play exactly, exactly
the same intensity.
00:04:14 So I'm gonna work on one chorus,
and then fly it,
so I have consistency on the choruses.
00:04:19 I like a little looseness
on the verses, maybe the bridge,
but on the chorus,
since everything is so tight,
and there's a real big...
- The beat is really strong.
00:04:28 - Yeah, I'd rather be too much.
Ok, this should work.
00:04:32 Great. Conform...
00:04:49 I love this.
00:04:50 So I just can take all those sequencies
and make them one big sequence,
and just fly it over here
to the first chorus.
00:04:57 Let's see how it feels in context.
00:05:18 I'm just gonna keep going until Pam
shows up, and then we'll do the vocals.
00:05:24 You can get into this... It's fun!
Yeah!
Watch all episodes
and download the tracks
00:00:00 Voice recording & editing
Hi guys!
Hello!
- How's it going?
Fantastic!
- Yeah, it's going good.
00:00:12 So, we're done with the framework,
and you can sing...
00:00:17 Yes!
- Just in time!
So let me adjust this for you.
00:00:25 Come closer. There you go.
00:00:28 It works better plugged in!
I'm gonna use the Neve here.
- Ok.
00:00:34 And then... Because I know that works.
00:00:38 And I have a track somewhere here...
00:00:41 Checking one, two!
Are you there?
- One, two, one, two!
Well, ok...
- One, two, one, two.
00:00:48 One, two, one, two, one, two.
00:00:50 That sounds good.
- One, one, two, one, two.
00:00:52 Ok, I dig.
00:00:53 What I'm gonna do is I'm gonna make
a cue for you
that's exactly the same as me.
00:00:58 Your cue is in A 5-6,
if I remember well...
00:01:02 and I'm gonna make it pre.
00:01:05 Make a copy of the mix... Automation...
You're on Aux E.
00:01:10 This is just a quick test, two bars.
- Ok!
One, two, one, two.
The music's a little bit loud.
00:01:20 It's actually the drums.
00:01:22 Come again?
- The drums are killing me a little.
00:01:25 Ok, no problem.
00:01:27 You know what? I'm gonna give you
a little bit of compression,
to give you a little... just a little
more comfort, that you can sing louder.
00:01:35 I have lots of headroom,
so I'm not worried about it.
00:01:38 This is just for monitoring, ok?
How about we give you some headphones,
so that you don't get bored to tears?
That'd be nice!
- Another pair of headphones for the man.
00:01:46 It may take more than headphones...
Just saying!
Shall we do it now?
Can you explain to me the difference
between "now", "just now", "now, now",
"right now", and "then now?"
- The South African difference?
Well, "now" is now...
like it's immediate.
00:02:07 - It's now!
- Yeah...
00:02:09 - Yeah.
- It's about ten minutes.
00:02:11 Now is ten minutes! Love it!
- "Now" is about ten minutes.
00:02:15 "Now, now" can be two extremes.
"Now, now" can be two minutes,
or half an hour.
- Ok! What else do you have?
"Just now!"
- Oh, "just now!"
"Just now"... two hours!
Ok, let's do it "now, now!"
- "Now, now!"
Here we go!
And I'm giving you a full intro.
So you can, you know...
00:02:43 Here we go!
- Let's just pick it up!
- I also said a wrong word in the chorus
but in my brain, it's starting to...
- Don't worry about it!
Shall we just punch the chorus,
or do you want to go verse 3?
- Yeah, I've said a wrong word.
- Alright! 1, 2, 3, 4... 1, 2, 3, 4!
I think that was mostly great.
00:04:59 Thanks, me too.
There's a few patches though.
00:05:02 Yeah, of course, of course,
but I like your first takes,
they're always... great!
Let me make a new playlist...
00:05:09 and we can do a second take.
In between the two of them,
I'm sure we have the fastest vocal
session in the history of the universe.
00:05:17 Alright! You're ready?
And you surprised me a little bit
with the level on the chorus,
I'm gonna bring it down now.
- Oh, ok!
Here we go! Ready?
Ok, I like that. I'd like one more
thing, just one more thing.
00:05:39 Could you sing that bridge again,
the rap-ish bridge?
- Yeah!
- Ok, but just...
00:05:45 think of it as like
a very percussive thing.
00:05:47 Right now, you're singing too much
on that.
00:05:49 It needs to be a little less classy.
00:05:52 Just more percussive,
and it'll do the trick. That's all.
00:05:55 And the rest, between the two takes,
I think I have the song.
00:05:58 But that bridge is key.
So if you want to...
00:06:01 - Yeah!
- If you can give me...
00:06:03 "Uh! Uh! Uh!", you know... Just like...
make it percussive.
00:06:07 And I'm gonna help you
a little bit here.
00:06:09 I'm gonna open... I'm gonna slow down
the attack on the compresser,
so that will force you to hear it
a little more percussive.
00:06:16 - If I can have a little bit more snare
then as well?
- Yeah, I was just going to say.
That drum thing is a bit far away
for you to feel it.
- Negotiable!
I'm just gonna raise it in your phones
so that we can hear your voice...
00:06:27 Here... yeah! Ready?
Set... Rock'n'Roll!
That's it!
- It was better.
00:06:56 That was better! One last one?
Especially this part...
00:07:01 "You only listen with your eyes,
I show you every time,
I have to show you every ti-ime!"
Oh, that one?
- Use that!
Give it... you know, don't get soft
on that...
00:07:13 just get... keep it gnarly. Here we go!
I'll punch the second part. Here we go!
- That was better.
- Yeah! Let's comp!
- Yes!
Let's look at what we have here.
00:08:01 Alright, so these are your four takes,
which I really kind of like two takes
with a couple add-ons.
00:08:07 So we really love the first one, right?
- Yeah, most of that was cool for me.
00:08:11 - Alright! So I'll just grab... this.
00:08:16 And it sounds like this, ok.
00:08:46 I'm wondering if we have a better one.
Let's see...
00:08:54 "Slumber" is a little higher,
can I use that one?
- Yeah.
- Ok. So I'll take that.
00:08:58 This... I shoot it up...
Ok, great! Second verse...
00:09:10 The "again" was weird.
00:09:12 - We're gonna see if we like the other
"again" better.
00:09:16 Pardon...
00:09:21 That's better right?
- Mmh mmh...
00:09:22 So I'll just shoot that up.
00:09:25 Here we go!
Ok! So, first chorus...
00:09:41 Let's see...
00:09:56 Fierce! While I have you with me,
I' d like to do background vocals.
00:10:01 And I just want to double the chorus.
That's it.
00:10:04 Because this is so much stuff,
and then the mix is a little messy,
I have to fix that, but...
if you could just do two doubles,
that would make me very happy.
- Ok!
Just two doubles, just the choruses.
You don't have to push, just very simple.
00:10:16 I'm making two tracks...
00:10:18 You don't get those notes
without pushing.
00:10:22 I'm gonna change the preamp,
and also I'm gonna change
your position to the mic,
so that it sounds slightly different,
so I don't have phase problems.
00:11:07 Ok, great! Insane!
Faster would be painful!
We have to take a photo of this!
- Ok!
You get in there?
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Once logged in, you will be able to read all the transcripts jump around in the video.
Fab Dupont is an award-winning NYC based record producer, mixing/mastering engineer and co-founder of pureMix.net.
Fab has been playing, writing, producing and mixing music both live and in studios all over the world. He's worked in cities like Paris, Boston, Brussels, Stockholm, London and New York just to name a few.
He has his own studio called FLUX Studios in the East Village of New York City.
Fab has received many accolades around the world, including wins at the Victoires de la Musique, South African Music awards, Pan African Music Awards, US independent music awards. He also has received Latin Grammy nominations and has worked on many Latin Grammy and Grammy-nominated albums.
Great to see how quickly Fab was thinking of musical ideas while making production decisions, to bring the demo PT session up to the level of a fully produced track. Thanks!
ludwigmack
2020 Mar 22
Loved this!!
beau.s
2018 Nov 26
I'm working with artists more like this and I really loved how well you set the tone and mood of the room, making the artists feel respected and heard. This is so important because it makes giving suggestions and ideas received in a positive way. Great video.
erdincbashan
2017 Jun 30
More production videos please!
RyanHarvey
2017 Mar 05
I'm literally shocked! This was amazing work. When I compare what I'm trying to do with singing and editing my own work and how I make stuff, I don't even come close to what I witnessed in this video. This was like something of GOD. Fab killed this. He is so smart and creative. Like how do I even go try and make music after watching this? I'm not even in his realm of epic ness.
viccieleaks
2016 Dec 08
More start to finish please fab :D Amazing to take part in stuff like this for us that dont have clients.
Sara Carter
2016 Apr 10
Great tune and insight into production, thank you. Trying to buy the tune in the UK is proving difficult. Not on iTunes and Nimbit is weird
allal
2016 Mar 17
awesome. I love it.
thx for the audio files.
Chris Wyatt
2016 Feb 27
I saw these guys at Splashy Fen music festival ages ago, respect for how far you've come!
sixtyanman
2016 Feb 09
sixtyanman:
Always an INSPIRATION to me!! It's great fun and so entertaining to watch you and your guests create Music together 5 Stars+
dstronach
2016 Jan 27
South African people are some of the most beautiful people in the world...great things will come from this country in years to come.
soundcitybg
2016 Jan 25
Thank you man!Great stuff !
ddaudiosolution
2016 Jan 21
Ok, i see now that the video is not in a linear time line, i must see the video for chapters.
THanks, and sorry
ddaudiosolution
2016 Jan 21
The video should during 1:06:36 but only has 11 min of time....how can i see the full video of the part 1?
thanks
Gary Ambrosino
2016 Jan 20
Thank you for packaging this up like this for us. Fab, could you comment on the stems approach - they were stems of ____________ tracks and it was stemmed this way because _______________________ / Also could you tell about how you did the final mix - did you mix from this stem set or did you mix it directly without stems.
Nicola Pulvirenti
2016 Jan 17
you're insane fab, great video
Pdhand
2016 Jan 14
Fantastic insight. Really helpful with my use of Pro Tools for music production. Good luck The Arrows. Great song.
Thanks Fab.
syphamusic
2016 Jan 12
Thank you very much for this. Not only was it educational and entertaining, most of all I felt like I was there with you : A spider on the wall.....an intern attentively learning.......an aspiring engineer/producer being shown that it can be a reality. Great stuff, Im looking forward to watching a few more like these, 'just now'.
sethyamamoto
2016 Jan 12
Great series Fab! Very interesting to see how you work this process from start to finish. I just tried extracting the wav files and ran into Data Errors on Backgrounds Dirty Choir and Robot-ey stems. Thanks for your wonderful tutorials!
