Reverb. I am brimming with things that I want to say about reverb. There’s no way I can put this into 60 seconds, but effects mixing and synthesis starts next month and I’m really excited to talk about it.
I remember Elliot Mazer, my mentor, telling me that the great producer Jack Nietzsche used to say, “Reverb is like garlic. You can never have too much.” I’m not here to argue the merit of that, but I take his point. Reverb, more than any effect that I can think of, imbues your track with emotion.
You’re not aware of it, but you’re swimming in reverb all the time. Reverb does more than give you a sense of space. It informs you of where you are and when it’s in Congress, it’s even more emotional.
Drenched in reverb, you hear the voice of God. Dry as a bone, it’s intimate. Pillow talk.
A vocal swimming in reverb above a loud band feels impossibly powerful, but reverb also connects us to our lizard brain. Used with subtlety, it can mask the vocal that you recorded in your bedroom. Used artfully, it can tug at your heartstrings like almost nothing else.
The only thing I can think of that’s comparable is smell. Imagine going up into your parents’ attic and opening up a dresser and finding something that belonged to your grandmother who’s been gone for 30 years and you smell that smell. That’s reverb.
How do you leverage that in your mix? Join me.
