MixWithTheMasters Ben Baptie Mixing ‘Beautiful Life’ by Michael Kiwanuka Inside the Track #78

Mix engineer Ben Baptie brings you his second MWTM series! Hosted at Pony Studios in London, this instalment uncovers how he mixed the song ‘Beautiful Life’ by artist Michael Kiwanuka. Ben recounts the transition to his current studio, discusses room design, and explains his setup. With the multi-track session open, he plays the rough mix received and shares his opinion. Baptie comments on what he feels could be improved upon and what he would strive to retain, outlining his intentions for the mix. He guides you through his processing applied to the project, revealing his vocal chain, mix treatment, and how he enhanced particular elements with effects, EQ, saturation, and more!

Part 1
Equipment, room design, monitoring, signal flow, rough mix, routine, vocal chain, effects, grit, emotion


Part 2
Stereo field contrast, panning, strings, drums & bass relationship, EQ, compression, analog mix treatment


Part 3
ITB mix chain, high-end saturation, width automation, gain staging, limiters, finding the sweet spot