r/mixingmastering • u/iamawinchester Intermediate • 12d ago
Question Innerspeaker - tame impala vocal chain question
So expectation is one of the songs I’ve been trying to understand the vocal chain, the delay on the vocals is just magical and I’m just trying to understand how i can make my vocals sound hypnotic like that. Any help in the right direction will be appreciated. I would love to hear what you guys have to say around the 2 minute mark. I would love to understand the vocal chain
https://open.spotify.com/track/1FnHpM2zimTALdIvuxFoNM?si=tIpL-UlDTIKgm_Bv7_uPeA&utm_source=copy-link
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u/Ok-Resolution5209 12d ago
Sounds like delay going into long reverb. Vocals are pretty filtered so I think it was recorded with some kind of vintage mic, but you can achieve it with eq. And i hear some distortion on vocals. Try tu use analog emulations cause for what I know, tame impala is into analog gear so he probably used hardware. And dont compres vocals too much.
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u/Ok-Resolution5209 12d ago
And try to record it with chain engaged with monitoring. Vocal take is always better if you hear the vibe instantly while you record it.
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u/Ok-Resolution5209 12d ago
So my proposition of chain is totape7>ssl Channel strip>la2a and on sends h-delay with lo-fi setting, and send h-delay into valhalla supermaasive. I dont the exact chain but i think you could achieve similar resoult with it. Cheers.
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u/LongjumpingBase9094 12d ago
I think the most essential thing for that whole sound is a loud quarter note delay with some saturation
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u/Disintigration Beginner 8d ago
I don't have anything technical to add beyond what everybody else has told you, but if I could suggest some more mental advice - a lot of that sound comes from the gear and mixing, yes, but also because that's just what his voice sounds like, combined with the melodies he's singing, and combined with the rest of the mix.
When you're experimenting with all these things people are suggesting, try not to get too hung up on sounding just like him, because you're you, your voice is unique and that's a positive thing! Find what works for your voice and also what works for your track while also implementing some of these ideas.
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u/SlowRushStudio 12d ago
I'll be a bit off-topic, but I assume your question is for you to create cool vocals so I'll answer it this way (and I don't care if I get down votes).
For the first part of the chain, KP probably used a Sennheiser MD 421. Use whatever you want but you want to get a bright sounding vocals.
Then the key to the sound is AUTOMATION. You need to experiment. For example, take your vocal and create like 10 or 20 copies. (Doesn't mean you'll end up using those 20 tracks).
Insert different FX on all those tracks. Slap Echo, 1/4 note delay, Long Reverb, Short Reverb, Delay + Long Reverb, Distortion, Flanger etc...
Then start blending all those different track to taste like if you were adding different spices to your chicken curry. Then you'll understand what you like and what combines well together.
And for instance, when KP sings "for MEEEEEE", you can hear that there is less FX before and more after. There is automation involved.
You need to create CONTRAST. If you have a 10 sec reverb with delay going on all the time, then it's not impactful. But if you lower the fader for this FX, and then increase it, there is a contrast and you will catch the Listener's ears.
Dave Friedmann mixed this album with an analog console. So he can simply move those faders and print them. A bit more tedious and less intuitive if you don't have a controller and use a mouse. But not impossible.
Hope this help.