Strother Bullins is a North Carolina-based freelance writer specializing in the professional audio, music and entertainment industries.
“Say This Sooner” | The Almost
Single: “Say This Sooner”
Album: Southern Weather (Tooth & Nail)
Dates Mixed: December 2006 at the House of Loud, a private studio in northern New Jersey
Single Producer: Aaron Sprinkle
Additional Production: David Bendeth
Single Engineers: Aaron Sprinkle, John Bender and Zach Hodges
Single Assistant Engineers: Matt Geyer and Melissa Sabo
Single Mixer: David Bendeth
Mastering: Ted Jensen at Sterling Sound in New York City
Other Projects: Bendeth has worked in numerous capacities for artists including Bruce Hornsby, Elvis Presley, Vertical Horizon, Antigone Rising, Breaking Benjamin and Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, among others.
Single Songwriter: Aaron Gillespie
Mix Console: Solid State Logic 4056 G Series with Ultimation
Mix platform: Steinberg Nuendo at 24 bit/96 kHz (audio files transferred from Pro Tools|HD)
Monitors: Yamaha NS-10 and Tannoy System 1000 monitors with Bryston SST C-Series amplification
David Bendeth, mixer of the two first singles from Southern Weather by The Almost, readily explains that stretching the boundaries of his client base is a top priority … even more so than guaranteeing his standard mix or production rate. As a matter of fact, this philosophy has allowed him to work with a variety of emerging rock artists on their fledgling releases rather than waiting until the budgets are “there.” This is how he has remained a vital and prolific industry professional, he insists.
When prolific producer/engineer Aaron Sprinkle and major-indie Tooth & Nail Records contacted Bendeth to partially re-mix and consult on Southern Weather — essentially a solo release almost entirely performed by Aaron Gillespie, the drummer and co-vocalist of metalcore band Underoath — Bendeth gladly accepted. “I immediately recognized ‘Say This Sooner’ as a radio single, but I wanted Aaron [Gillespie] to come in to re-record a few particular elements. I knew that the song would be great regardless, but I wanted to make it the best it could possibly be.”
Upon receiving all Pro Tools|HD files for “Say This Sooner” and title track “Southern Weather” from producer/engineer Aaron Sprinkle, Bendeth promptly imported them to Steinberg Nuendo at his private studio, the House of Loud. “Nuendo just sounds better,” states Bendeth plainly.
David Bendeth
Bendeth re-recorded key vocal parts for “Say This Sooner” — in particular, screamed vocals that Bendeth felt would prevent its add to some radio playlists — while the re-mix was made “wider and larger,” as the first mix “was rather straight up the middle.” For the mix Bendeth relied on a RØDE NTK microphone, one of his personal favorites, as well as a Universal Audio LA-2A for limiting. The single coil pickup guitars recorded by Gillespie also “required some additional treatment in order to beef things up a bit,” Bendeth notes.
Following the immense success of “Say This Sooner,” Bendeth inked a deal with Tooth & Nail in which he has already agreed to mix 50 songs. He is clearly stoked about his future with the artists of this increasingly vital record label. “The Almost record was done on a tight budget,” he explains. “But now, it’s nearly at 200,000 copies sold with the success of its first single.”
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