:: How to Remix ::
Posted: Thu Oct 21, 2004 10:20 amDJ and production advice from the heart of the industry. Jon Cutler explains how he approaches doing a remix...
Author: Jon Cutler
Published: May 2003
IDJ magazine issue 36
Okay, first things first: some remix jobs you just shouldn’t take on. Take a record like Jamie Lewis feat Michelle Weeks’ ‘The Light’ – the new mixes were good but you can’t really top the original mix. The way Jamie did it is the way it is and the way it should be. I got asked to do a remix of ‘Earth Is The Place’ by Nathan Haines and that really stressed me out, because Phil Asher and Nathan Haines are friends of mine, and Phil’s mix really is and always will be the mix that people freak out on.
I just tried to do something of good quality but basically some things are best just left alone! I know I’ve turned down a few and people have said I was crazy, but it’s not all about the money – sometimes I just hear something and think, if I try and revamp this, no matter what I do it’s not going to work.
But once you’ve decided to take the job on, I think there are three basic approaches. One is to ditch everything but the acapella and basically make it your own track. At the other extreme, if it’s a really good record to begin with, you’re just adding a bit of polish. And then there’s the middle ground, where you think “they’ve used really good parts but the beats are wrong – I can rework thisâ€
Author: Jon Cutler
Published: May 2003
IDJ magazine issue 36
Okay, first things first: some remix jobs you just shouldn’t take on. Take a record like Jamie Lewis feat Michelle Weeks’ ‘The Light’ – the new mixes were good but you can’t really top the original mix. The way Jamie did it is the way it is and the way it should be. I got asked to do a remix of ‘Earth Is The Place’ by Nathan Haines and that really stressed me out, because Phil Asher and Nathan Haines are friends of mine, and Phil’s mix really is and always will be the mix that people freak out on.
I just tried to do something of good quality but basically some things are best just left alone! I know I’ve turned down a few and people have said I was crazy, but it’s not all about the money – sometimes I just hear something and think, if I try and revamp this, no matter what I do it’s not going to work.
But once you’ve decided to take the job on, I think there are three basic approaches. One is to ditch everything but the acapella and basically make it your own track. At the other extreme, if it’s a really good record to begin with, you’re just adding a bit of polish. And then there’s the middle ground, where you think “they’ve used really good parts but the beats are wrong – I can rework thisâ€