Mixing Night with Ken Lewis - 03/17/2021

Live Q&A with Ken Lewis

Join Ken Lewis, who has credits on 103 Gold & Platinum records and 28+ years experience in the major label music industry. In his free live broadcasts, he answers a wide range of questions on music production, mixing, career development, demonstrates some cool techniques, shares insights and offers practical advice.

This episode covers:

0:00 – Intro
5:14 – How do you deal with pressure of high level sessions?
8:00 – Sprint Mix – “Cooler” by AJ Smith
20:44 – Any advice dealing with difficult clients?

22:27 – Where is the location of this storage locker that is holding the one and only copy of The Wu-Tang Clan’s double album, “Once Upon a Time in Shaolin”?
23:05 – I’m producing music in my semi-truck. I was wondering what are the best of my options, using a home theater receiver, or headphones, or got spend my next pay check on some studio reference speakers?
24:16 – What are your top three Brainworx tools from Plugin Alliance, and what do you use them for the most?
30:30 – How many projects do you mix on average each day, and do you take days off?
31:50 – Do you ever use the Mono-Maker by Brainworx plugins?
32:49 – How do you mix real instruments to make them sound consistent with virtual instruments when you mix?
34:22 – Introducing AJ Smith
39:10 – What inspired the song “Cooler”, and how long did take to record?
40:21 – AJ Smith plays “Drama” live
44:21 – Questions for AJ Smith starting with – What if any vocal train have you done, or are you just naturally bad ass?
45:38 – Who are some of your song writer influences?
46:21 – What are your top three guitar effects? Do you use pedals or what do you use?
46:45 – What pedals do you tour with though?
47:13 – And, do you perform with in ears (in-ear monitor)?
47:31 – When do you think you’ll be back to touring?
48:08 – And, what are your socials?
48:40 – Back to questions for Ken – How do you understand if samples from Splice(.com) have good sonic qualities or not? And, how do you layer them with other sounds?
50:49 – Crest factor can often be the difference between good and great. Is it something you think about conscientiously in your mixing work?

51:52 – During your mix sessions, how often do you take a break? And, how long should it be before you go back in to mix?
53:25 – How do you mix faster?
54:58 – A HUMONGOUS Shout Out to Mike Heebz and his JEDI Master Spotify playlist.
WOW!!!
57:25 – What separates a good mix from a great mix?
59:58 – What brand of coffee should I be drinking if I want to have 103 gold records?
1:00:46 – It looks like the RIAA has Elvis as having the most gold or higher certifications. You have passed this number. Have thought about reaching out too RIAA to give you the official title “Most Gold Records?”
1:01:22 – If and when do you use an expander?
1:01:44 – Clubhouse, the BTS ARMY, RM, the UN General Assembly, and the EP ‘Mono’ Backstory (video redacted)
1:05:21 – Rapid Fire Frequencies Ear Training
1:17:28 – Moment Of Silence In Honor Of Those We’ve Lost In The Past Year Of The Covid-19 Pandemic
1:18:48 – Marcus Manderson Mixing Night Man of Mystery – Vocal Tuning and Formant Processors
1:23:16 – Any tips on making you vocals stand out in a busy mix, especially in the mids?
1:24:19 – How do manage to step back from the mix process, know the mix is done and just listen to the song as a song?
1:25:44 – The Ken Lewis Beat Challenge
Results
1:36:47 – Do you have any tips for balancing relationships with the never ending grind of music, or is it just about finding that right understanding significant other?
1:38:04 – How do I take a potentially Grammy award winning demo, I wrote and produced, and get it into the hands of the right producer and artist that could make it a commercial success?
1:39:25 – Doesn’t adding more EFX or inserts on a channel strip create latency?
1:40:49 – How do I keep my snares snappy, warm, and full with out overcrowding the low mids and making it sound boxy? What’s an EQ strategy that you would suggest to work the boxiness out and get more life from the snare?
1:44:04 – Mix Breakdown of “Cooler” by AJ Smith
1:50:53 – Would you recommend using the same project file, or export the stems and mixing them in new project?
1:51:32 – Further Mix Breakdown of “Cooler” by AJ Smith
1:56:08 – Sprint Mix – “The Upside Down” by The Breakers
2:06:40 – Outro
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