Making Records with Eric Valentine - Production Deconstruction "Make Damn Sure"

[@gaviriaprimero]

48:32 mix bus 1:01:48 bass buss 1:03:15 sub thing 1:06:15 drum bus 1:16:57 kick 1:20:42 kick/snare mic 1:22:48 snare 1:27:00 snare trashier 1:29:37 snare low end 1:34:50 cymbals 1:38:06 toms 1:43:20 room 2:01:06 bass 2:06:48 distorted bass 2:14:22 guitars 2:18:29 pre chorus guitar 2:31:57 bridge guitar 2:36:09 phone message 2:43:47 vocals 2:46:29 vocals buss adam 2:50:27 vocals buss Fred

[@Jessupz]

Hey Eric I'm living in the microwave burrito stage of my life and I really appreciate you keeping this available for people like me who absolutely love your videos but simply can't afford to pay a subscription.

[@johnthecreative]

I've been there too. What worked for me was to finally give up and leave L.A. Sometimes you just have to throw in the towel on one or two of your dreams.

[@gabrielevion7055]

ayeeee shout out to you my bredren...bless.

[@deandouglas3855]

'The more the person on the outside matches the person on the inside, the easier everything gets' -Eric Valentine 2020 The most profound statement I've ever heard in a song deconstruction video.

[@revoxed93]

Love your videos Eric, if I may give some constructive feedback, I prefer the non ducking mic when you are bypassing the plug ins(a/b), it makes it harder to hear the differences for me, it's easy to see the bypass button on/off without the narration.... the other option would be to have text on/off, but would require more effort, so either way keep doing what you're doing and know we all super appreciate your time and knowledge!!!

[@mrwev]

I think you're right. I'm gonna shut up when I'm doing the A/Bing. it will be better. Thank you for the feedback :)

[@reggiebushjr619]

yeh, that ruined the video for me

[@reggiebushjr619]

do another taking back sunday song to make up for it!

[@jasonsneed3731]

@@mrwev Yes please :) Love the videos man!

[@gius_taakstudio]

yay +1 on this, the ducking when ON/OFF plugins keeps us from listening to the audio I'm so glad somebody else brought it up too :))

[@jacobsmith1877]

Man I always loved the tones on this album. The thuddy drums and the perfect guitar gain. Awesome album, and I really think the best thing they ever did.

[@kurdtjohn]

Hell yes. His drum sounds are particularly interesting.

[@dannysamanthaanticks2887]

Please get fred on the next one. Hes one of the biggest influences for me with everything he does and there's no doubt the 2 TBS records he did with them were the best. Awful that he ended up leaving cause imo he was the best thing that happened to this band.

[@EthanRom]

Adam or Fred aren't exactly in good terms so it's sad he could prolly only get one of them

[@kylewilliams640]

THIS

[@caleykelly]

I was very happy to send some compensation for the in depth and brilliant content you have taken your time to create. Thanks for the education and inspiration!

[@kurt1555]

“This next song that we are gonna play for you was, at one time, titled ‘You’re So Cool’. But in attendance this evening ladies and gentlemen - in this very building, ladies and gentlemen - is a man, maybe more of a man; quite possibly a myth, a stranger among us all - he hides in the shadows of Los Angeles, somewhere off of high land, in Hollywood - and his name, ladies and gentlemen is Eric Valentine. And Eric Valentine told me this, ladies and gentlemen, he said: ‘Adam’, which is me, he said: ‘Adam, that is quite possibly the most ridiculous song title I have ever heard in my life’. And then, ladies and gentlemen, AND THEN, Fred Mascherino, to my right, looked at Eric, he looked at me, he looked at Eric, he looked back at me and you know what he said? He said this, he looked at Eric and he said: ‘I agree’. But then do you know what he said? He said ‘How about we title it Makes Damn Sure’.”

[@enifyako]

I shared this during your intro. Favorited it when you were talking with the band. Then we got to the vinyl plugin on the drums, and I literally threw up my hands. That was insane. I just bought Saturn. I know what I'm trying during my next experiments. Eric Valentine, you're incredible.

[@cidicorp]

Make sure to use Saturn 2, not the first iteration. The first one had phasing issues that were fixed with Saturn 2

[@jordibarlow1307]

You're a true inspiration Eric. As a broke musician, thank you.

[@hoojamaflicks]

hi Eric, I'm only 8 minutes in so far but had to comment about your comment 'a tiny KZbin channel that doesn't really matter at all'. I disagree entirely. this KZbin channel is truly exceptional and unlike any other online source of information for music production. it's not even close. and I'm 100% certain that I am not the only one who feels that way. I always feel that other 'name' producer/engineers are somewhat guarded with their tutorials, in some way or another. not so at all here. total respect to you sir. it's a landmark channel.

[@TheSmokedKarma]

He is gonna keep growing on YT for sure. So cool that we get access to Eric's knowledge, he did so much great work.

[@cidicorp]

Check out the Jon Castelli talks on matthewrad‘s instagram. Great stuff! The only other truly remarkable source of mixing/production tips I know of. Eric goes somewhat deeper though with his full breakdowns, he is a legend

[@JonManness]

Holy crap this laptop remix with plugins sounds so good. Also cool to hear your use of the UAD 1084 and Kush comp.

[@gabrielevion7055]

Eric this made be besides the point, but I am really grateful that you did not go through the option of having ads in your videos, that world is totally out of control and is not doing humanity any favors, so you are one of the very few people in the world that would actually do this noble deed. bless.

[@mr_starbeast]

This is amazing, I remember hearing this song and liar and being blown away by the drum sounds!

[@julesborges7396]

It's a good night for watching the Space Station pass over. Eric, I can't thank you enough for making these videos. You're an excellent teacher.

[@mrwev]

Ooooo I'm on the East Coast right now. I'll check my sky guide for the ISS trajectory and see if we can catch it. We had an AMAZING viewing of Neowise with a telescope :)

[@julesborges7396]

@@mrwev That's why I mentioned it. We're a bit south of you in Groton, MA. and it's going to pass over us. Figured you'd be in it's path. Thanks again.

[@johnboyc5]

Watched this a couple years ago and barely understood anything and now coming back to it after much more experience is so refreshing

[@secondslate7158]

Three hours of Valentine. Finally!! Can't wait to watch this. New theme is SICK.

[@TheSmokedKarma]

Thanks for all the knowledge you share Eric.

[@DrewElder]

These videos have made such a transformative difference in my career. Thanks again.

[@drewepton]

It's 11:14AM here at work. I have to wait until my long commute home at 5PM to start watching. I've never been so excited to get stuck in some Atlanta traffic. Cheers and happy Friday to all!! Thanks to everyone involved with these. I hit 40 earlier this summer and there isn't too much that gets me excited (remember that just-discovered-an-unexpected-song/band feeling?) these days. A new EV video sure does the trick for me. For that, I am grateful. Thanks again.

[@cassio_zambotto]

This is the attitude that people with some sort of power should have! Thank you Eric, you're amazing!

[@jurajfajnor]

Hi Eric, great to have you back. Can't wait to see a new video content, including the studio construction bits as well. Thank you so much and I hope all goes well with the 'finishing touches' of the studio.

[@rtsmnghsueyheishcnvor]

You've no idea how valuable your knowledge, explanations and content is worth to so many of us here and those that are able to donate absolutely will. As long as you're uploading content, I'll be donating and watching, you are dramatically changing my career in music and your videos are incredible. Thank you so much, Eric, to go from listening to all of your productions and mixes over my life to being able to watch how you made it all is quite incredible. Thank you again, Eric.

[@stevedoesnt]

I stood up and clapped throughout the first ten minutes of this episode.

[@cy2112cy]

“I don’t know who that was... but they were definitely having a bad night.” My favorite comment from you ever!! Seriously though thank you so much for doing these. I’m a drummer who wants to be a mixer and you inspire me to work and do it even though I know I’m never going to make a penny. Your videos truly make my life better.

[@spencerb2631]

Just donated and I hope others do too! The knowledge I've gained from your KZbin channel has been eye opening and inspiring to say the least and that you provide it all for free is super generous. I would love to see you tackle a mix from start to finish at some point, maybe you could do a series so no pressure to do it live like episode 1: getting a balance, episode 2: compression and eq, etc.. Also I wonder if you'd be down to critique some of our mixes you could do like a live stream once a month or something. Congrats on the move to VT by the way!

[@noiseinthebasement8139]

Thank you for walking though this stuff with us, Eric! Each one is such a learning experience.

[@cydrums3411]

Thanks for letting us into this master-piece !

[@orsi]

Eric, love these videos! Thank you so much for putting these out. I know I can read up on recording techniques, how to eq guitars, compression, etc., but it doesn't really click until I see it being applied in a realistic setting sometimes. Very much appreciated! One question: All these EQ moves, compression, saturation steps you are doing, are you predominately applying these while listening to the context of the song, or do you have a particular 'sound template' or direction you want the individual parts to have on their own in the first place? For instance, at 1:30:00, I imagine you already decided that this snare mic was going to be the bottom end and adjusted the other two snare parts to fit it, but I could be mistaken. Thanks again!

[@AnthonyNatoli]

I've had the pleasure recently of recording some drums for Mark and this is going to help so much. You're the man and thank you!

[@chris.bradshaw]

I have even more respect for you now. When my wedding related business is running again, after all this lockdown shit, I’ll be donating. I’ve learnt so much from you it’s the least I can do. Thanks man 👍🏻

[@AndrewMasters]

Oh man. I'm so excited about this! Thanks for doing this Eric!

[@johnthecreative]

I've thanked you before but I'll thank you again Eric. I've learned tons of awesome tricks from you and I really appreciate your help!

[@megano2000]

This is an amazing podcast. Thank you so much for inviting Adam and Mark over!

[@zach1113]

These videos are just the best for me. I tipped what I could. Thanks, man. I've appreciated all the interviews over the years as well

[@j.j.hoeffner3354]

i love the idea of a very unique production choice you didn't mention. that the song has that live energy because you gradually increase the tempo through the whole song just like a band would if they were playing without a click. Never thought to do that. so interesting. gonna try it on my next punk or rock song that needs that energy.

[@LeF11]

God damn masterclass. Thank you for explaining your thought process for all the moves you make! Really helps put things into context and be applicable to other people/situations.

[@WARMTAPES]

Thank you very much for these Eric. just found your videos on KZbin. been a big fan of your work for a long time. you're a legend.

[@RoyishGoodLooks]

Eric - you can set up a Patreon account to charge members only when you post videos, rather than monthly! You'd still be able to offer the videos "free" on KZbin AND be able to have some regular donors AND potentially offer the donors extra perks via Patreon if you wanted (QA's, polls, pictures, videos, other posts, etc.)

[@mrwev]

I'm gonna look into that. Thanks!

[@adamwattsmusic]

@@mrwev Yeah man, do it! There's so much value in you sharing your depth of experience/insights like this...you have a rare combination of generosity of spirit, good/mellow vibes (but never boring), technical knowledge, philosophical/conceptual depth and of course: artistry... it's refreshing in this KZbin space (or anywhere)... and your way of freely/humbly sharing it all releases us viewers (whether up and comers or pros) from feeling that little nag of dark-competitiveness or ego we might be tempted to feel, because you model the opposite. Keep em coming! Patreon has it's plusses and minuses, but the "set it and forget" part of it (for us viewers) is pretty nice and will probably lead to more income for you overall... And hey, maybe every time you reach an additional $25k or whatever, you can do a UTA gear giveaway or something... to keep us extra motivated to keep on giving. Anyways, thanks again dude.

[@lockstoffband]

MAKING RECORDS with ERIC VALENTINE please do! Love learning from you!

[@qwertyki9367]

@@adamwattsmusic im guessing you like studying alan watts?

[@buhlir]

@@mrwev I would join that in a heartbeat!

[@br0k3nf1ng3rmusic]

Hey I love this channel you have going on... I feel it’s totally worth it, I really appreciate that you see that people without money should benefit from your knowledge. I think it’s great that you can recognize that from a perspective where you have been there.. I have no money, broke musician.. I did just want to let you know how much I appreciate it in my own way. Thanks!

[@oceansiderecordingstudio]

I just hit like as soon as the intro starts. Thanks for the work you put into your channel. I never skip the.commercials during your videos. Cheers and stay safe.

[@sejuyz]

This channel has become my goto bible for music production. I’ve been studying/practicing my ass off in the studio after I found out about your videos. You’ve certainly raised the bar. Keep going, please.

[@joshuadawson6439]

Love these videos Eric. Thanks for putting your knowledge out there for us!

[@billyhughes9776]

I love this record. The songs are strong and everything sounds so good.

[@KyleGushue]

Appreciate you keeping payment optional, these episodes are a much appreciated escape.

[@freaksarise]

Sent a thank you. Thank you man! I watch all of your videos but each time you show a new song, I'm surprised you had worked on it. I guess I need to google you again haha. This current one is a major surprise. Love this album - big influence!

[@EthanRom]

I'm so glad I found this. I thought the album was a masterpiece and it had such a unique sound. I've never thought abut doing a seperate mix bus for just all the instruments

[@thundercrap]

You're wonderful.

[@kurdtjohn]

You just has a really signature sound on all the records you produced. I learned a lot just by watching your videos. Keep it up, man!

[@kikiimora]

Thank you for your work, Eric! Watching your videos feeling like finding gold⭐️

[@CameronEarlyMusic]

this was awesome

[@BuddaGuedes]

I’ve been learning so much with you,!!!! Thank you so much for all you’ve been sharing. The theme song is incredible.

[@punkemogeekrock]

Thanks for doing this Mr. Valentine! Hope to see some Third Eye Blind in the future! :)

[@PatFlanigan]

Wait, you produced that track?! Didn’t even know, that’s awesome! KZbin monetization is a pain in the ass, man. Some of the videos I make are breakdowns/reactions of famous drum performances and that stuff’s always claimed - can’t monetize. Makes sense ‘cause it’s not my music, but even with my original songs that used to be distributed by CD Baby, that stuff got claimed too and I would only get a small percentage of whatever momey was generated. YT ads are unreliable, so I’m gonna donate for sure. +1 for Patreon though. I’d join for sure. Your content is 100x times more worth it than all the other stuff out there à la “Masterclass”, etc. Also love the new intro. Also I would buy merch if you made it. Peace!

[@OrangutanTradeSalesmen]

What a sick tune. Mix has great separation. Well done thanks fellas

[@Sundaydrumday]

I tell you what Kush audio by UBK has some seriously fantastic plugins, not surprised to see Eric using his stuff. His compressors and EQ's are so damn tasty! You gotta try his Novatron compressor and the Clariphonic EQ. The compressor is super transparent, and you will love the top end of the Clariphonic, so hard to describe but just try it already! Great video Eric.

[@earypops8063]

If you ever come down to New Zealand. I'd be happy to show you around. There's a great star gazing spot around Lake Tekapo. Google that for your bucket list.

[@caltezza]

Wow! 🤯 so many amazing tips and still one of the best drum sounds I’ve ever heard!

[@JulianFernandez]

Man, that drum sound is massive! Thanks so much!

[@damienlott]

After hearing his kick drum sound for two seconds I have no longer doubts: I quit music.

[@uzefulidiot]

I know the feeling, I was 95% done with a group of mixes when one of the first videos came out, I think it was Greg Holden - Hold On Tight w/ Greg Wells, and I seriousy considered just scrapping the mixes and starting over. Then the follow up video dropped about Mixing Drums from the same song... and that was it... I scrapped the mixes and started over from scratch, lol.

[@tomlebeau7921]

His drums sound so real and evil. You hear the depth of the drum so much that it has an honest and real sound to it that I really enjoy.

[@jacklongman4610]

😂😂😂

[@CamiloVelandia]

Man! This stuff is amazing. I'm an experienced guitarist with years of sessions and touring, but trying to learn more about mixing, and this is school right here. Heading over to leave you some $$. Thanks again, and these videos help more than you think!!!

[@bradleycordaro]

felt great to "thank you" Eric, your attitude and vibe is really appreciated and inspiring, cheers man!

[@Andycannonmusic]

This is one of my fave albums production wise. Drums and vocal sound. Everything to be fair. Also a great album in general. Still blast it!

[@mckevrock]

Agreed. Great reference material.

[@trevorscott4063]

I discovered you on Warren Huart’s channel. Thank you so much for offering these sessions/insights. I appreciate this so much 🙌🏻

[@uzefulidiot]

Me too, actually. I paused that video and bought oeksound Soothe plugin on the spot, lol.

[@ibuiltthesky]

This is so incredibly interesting, thank you so much for sharing 🙏

[@JJ-mm5nk]

Thank you SOO MUCH for this! What a truly generous wealth of info. I would LOVE to hear you breakdown some of Astro Lounge. Sonically the album is amazing and you captured such a true retro vibe with it. You’re a legend Eric - thank you!

[@blairmichaelhogan4502]

Another fantastic episode. I have one of those 90’s Jet reissues too...great little amps!

[@juliussaidro9060]

Please include Fred next time! I'm sure he would appreciate it. Esp w/ Ghost & Spin

[@dougweier1]

You are awesome. Thank you for these videos.

[@aleksigodard9067]

Incredible video, thank you for doing these!!!

[@Robangledorf]

This is a truly incredible video

[@NoEBITDuh]

Thanks so much for your hard work on these. So helpful!

[@adambrown7893]

Totally forgot about Louder Now. Its like finding a lost love! What an epic record. Its sooo Eric

[@mrcoatsworth429]

Damn, that Kick sounds so awesome!

[@TheDwarfInvasion]

The bass and guitars are incredibly tight on all the downbeats and palm mutes. They sound edited, but if not, pretty incredibly tight band performance.

[@dannychristie5628]

THANK YOU! These videos are amazing!!

[@BoboRenthlei]

Always loved your drum tone since GC’s YATH! 🙌🏻

[@johannasmundsson1543]

Thank you very much for the amazing content that you have put out so far. Really useful stuff. Pay Pal is a good idea and I will use that for future episodes. All the best from Iceland.

[@producerdanieldennis]

One of my favorite mixes ever (and drum sounds), thank you for sharing your process! Just sent a Venmo Thank You 🙏🏻

[@davestanley357]

yep I'm donating $9 an episode from now on which after currency conversion from Australia and fees ends up a bit more than $5 US. Find it very useful.

[@sourcefor]

Alot of respect for you..you really know your stuff..thanks for these vids very inspiring and I love the sound of the SLASH album!

[@alwaysforget911]

YES YES YES. This right here is what ive been waiting for since i first subscribed. Thank you thank you thank you!!

[@DMKahn]

Speaking of 1084, you should check out the Lindell 80 by Brainworx. It has the Neve preamp, 1073 and 1084 selectable EQ, the comp, the gate. The saturation is the bizness!

[@adamnewcomb130]

PayPal'ed you immediately! So grateful for your content Eric

[@34RI0T]

Thank you so much for doing this

[@henrygentles1894]

Genius! Very few PPL at your level!!

[@bassplayer7777]

You're a good bloke Eric..

[@gorantovic1473]

Eric, thank you for the amazing trick with NS10 with enclosure! If you remember, did you use it as a normal box (with the tweeter connected inside the box) or you used only the woofer connected to the crossover? Thanks again!

[@mrwev]

Yes I leave the tweeter in the box and connected. It doesn't have to be connected because it ultimately doesn't add anything to the sound. As you would expect, Taking the tweeter out would change the frequency response of the low end. The NS-10 was designed to have no port for the tuning of the lows. Good Question!!

[@gorantovic1473]

@@mrwev Thank you Eric! You solved the ethernal mystery of this speaker mic and its range. Layering those two is a brilliant idea. All the best!

[@mrwev]

Also, I forgot to mention that I always reverse the phase of one of them. Which one depends on how it is blending with the rest of the mics but it will sound like what you in this video if one of the two is flipped. That’s important :)

[@gorantovic1473]

Thanks Eric! That is interesting, because those two are exposed totally different to the air pressure. Do you think that, whatever of those two has to be flipped, we need to keep a positive polarity of the impact? That the listening speaker "push" the sound when the impact is happening? All in all, that 80Hz punch from the closed NS10 is perfect. Thank you again!

[@mjespo125]

So excited for this!

[@nicolaskurelic]

Thank You Eric..

[@Kroldor]

I'll Let You Live is criminally underrated

[@cornerliston]

Nice to see Eric. The laptop mix sounds more interesting to me. Better tamed frequencies. It seems as the sound signature has changed quite a lot if we compare songs in different genres and decades. More bass added on modern mixed music is one thing that comes to my mind. Probably has a lot to do with both gear, listening sources and media music is played on? For instance I always think-although probably completely wrong-that the speakers used in studios in the 70s and 80s had so much bass that the mix, in modern perspective, sounds a bit thinner than if it would be mixed today. Since you've been mixing for many years back to the 90s you probably have an opinion about this.

[@littleskeets]

ERIC PLEASE DO A THIRD EYE BLIND VIDEO!!!

[@jackfalcon5352]

It was cool to see you mention the Waves Vinyl plugin, I found it useful for the same thing! Turn off all the fake clicks and such, and just use it for that high freq distortion.

[@TheSmokedKarma]

Eric thank your for all your videos, you are a Solid Dude. As other sad Patron is a great option, also you could also do A spring T Store and sell merch (like the streamers do, its drop shipping so you don't have to do anyhting) The community could even create the designs for you.

[@thejamman555]

These videos are a gold mine of information and inspiration, have sent some $$$, hope this works out better for than ad revenue.

[@rowegardner9673]

Mannnnn you’re the best, Eric! Been waiting for this one. Since you like the AR-1, I’d definitely check out Kush’s Omega TWK. Super cheap but an absolutely amazing saturation box. Does beautiful things to drums.

[@thiagohbgarcia]

Thanks Eric. You're the best. I couldn't wait for this episode to come out haha You're the best

[@Piedscooter1]

THANKS for this !

[@LesonDeson]

I'm currently watching it and I'm at the moment where you show the C4 on the mix buss to tighten up the lows and low mids, have you tried Gullfoss in that scenario? I've found it very impressive.

[@mrwev]

I'll check it out!! Thanks!

[@LesonDeson]

@@mrwev Than you so much for that episode, I've used that track as a reference when mixing rock bands so many times! There's very little use of compression on your ITB mix, was it cause you compressed on the way in (despite drums)? And there's no FX on vocals despite that one send on adam? Thank you again!

[@uzefulidiot]

@@mrwev Eric please check out Gullfoss and there are other interesting "smart/AI" tools that are starting to come out and are surprisingly good in the right hands/ears. As a scrub, surprisingly useful. Your embrace of Soothe makes me think you would appreciate at least checking it out and keeping tabs on this genre of plugin.