I don’t expect there to be many submissions to this topic, but I’m interested in hearing any songs that do this. Usually the bass guitar is underneath all the other layers in the song providing the foundation of the track. But sometimes the bass guitar is elevated up in the mix and you can hear it clearly in one ear. Post any tracks that feature this no matter how short.
Somewhere in the second verse between 0:56 to 1:10.
Not VK, and I’d have to double check, AND it isn’t just about bass, but I’m pretty sure some of the stereo mixes for tracks on Hendrix’s ‘Are You Experienced?’ had like, guitar and vocal on one side, drums and bass on the other, or vocals on one side and the entire band on the other. I think there’s some similar things with some of the early Beatles stereo mixes?
Because of how new stereo was at the time there wasn’t really a standardized way of panning elements yet, and many artists didn’t even care (The Beatles, again, famously didn’t attend the mixdown sessions for stereo pressings of early material), so engineers were in a bit of an experimental phase. Some were trying to emulate how different bands placed themselves on stage, trying to create the illusion for the home listener that they were at the show. This practice still survives mainly in orchestral releases, where placement of instrument families on the stage is still a consideration even for the composer. With rock and it’s associated genres, it’s fallen more out of favor, but there’s plenty of examples you could mine in classic releases from the time when stereo, not just mono, was beginning to actually be something the average consumer had access to!
Coincidentally with this topic, I’ve only just recently noticed that in KYOKUTOU GIRL FRIEND’s last live DVD the guitar is at least pretty much panned to the right. Can’t tell if the bass is really panned to the left, sounds a bit more centered or center-left. Anyway, they’re in pretty distinct spaces.
Do you have a preference for how drum panning should be handled?
I usually like when bands will pan the snare a bit to my left and ride my right, etc - maybe bc i know this is the closest i could ever get to being a drummer myself!
But i can imagine this being called a strange/difficult mix decision…
Ahhh, it really depends!!
I TEND to go kick and snare mostly down the middle, then pan out other elements based on how they sound in the overhead tracks. If a rack tom is only like 15% off to a side, I don’t tend to push it much further if at all. BUT, the overhead microphones and room microphones can often skew that just a tiny bit, putting the snare off to the left for example like you’re talking about. Which can itself, even if that panning effect is super subtle, help give a slightly wider feel to the mix.
As for which side I actually put stuff on, I go through phases a bit?
I’m pretty sure most if not all of the work I’ve done for you, I’ve sent the drums back panned drummer’s perspective, which is what I think you’re describing - panning the ride off to the right, high-hat to the left, etc… so it sounds like it’s mixed from where the drummer would be sitting.
But I’ve also had phases where I was obsessed with audience perspective mixes, and would would always pan drums as if I was at a concert watching the band. I’m not sure why I go in and out of the phases of each, but if I had to try and pin it on something I think it would have to do with the periods of time where I’m mostly listening to live albums!!
(also in some cases with double-kick drum parts, I’ll go through the trouble of making extra kick tracks for just the double-kick sections and pan them out juuuust a tik - this is a trick I stole from the engineer Machine - The weird trick to Chris Adler’s kick drum sound (a literal typewriter??) )