It can be very difficult to sit on a mix. Not only are you beyond excited to share it with your audience, but you're also worried about losing your momentum as an artist. Especially because in today’s market you simply cannot afford to fall behind. Staying relevant and in the public eye is critical. As an artist, the balancing act of recording and releasing music has always been a challenge for me. Because music is an art it is very difficult to view it objectively. Even more so when you wrote it yourself. You are filled with excitement and pride about your project. Each new song is a new opportunity to “make it”. What often ends up happening is that artists will release their music too soon. As a result, the song may be unrefined and lacking the necessary spark needed. On the other end of the spectrum, artists may wait too long and over perfect their mix until it sounds like an autotuned garage band. So how do you maintain the raw magic of your sound whilst creating something commercially successful? Here is one thing you can do.
Everyone has at least one person in their life that has solid musical taste. Someone who can honestly tell you when something is good or bad. These people are invaluable to your music! Keep them close, run ideas by them and most importantly, listen to what they have to say! I have certain people in my life that keep me grounded to my sound. When I am in the process of finishing up a mix, I will run the tracks by them for their feedback and advice. This then helps me figure out the right direction to go in. Most of the time it is a matter of adding more or taking more from a song. These people in my life also have a diverse and eclectic taste of music new and old. This in turn provides a variety of opinions. All of this information comes together as another tool to help finalize the song. Next time you are about to release a song, run it by a friend and see what they think. It may be exactly what the song needs.
Yours truly,
Aaron Wylder
@aaron_wylder
Photo : Zak Cohen
@therealzakcohen