Weird But True: 'Mastering: The Movie' (via gearslutz.com)

This is one of many bizarre but true-to-life animated videos floating around youtube and the gearslutz message board. Surely they were created by an audio engineer, because the situations depicted in these shorts take a candid poke at situations we regularly deal with: trying to work with clients who, in today's realm of cheap production and reocrding solutions, simply do not understand the value of professional mixing and mastering.

Mixing and mastering in itself is an artform. Just as musicians use tools and vocabulary creatively to express themselves, engineers employ their own cache of terms, tools, and tricks to enhance a recorded performance. As an artist, a good engineer is your strongest ally when it comes to the quality of the music you release, yet today it seems the love is all but gone.

Technology has evolved to the point where anyone with a computer can download torrents and/or install plugins to music software in order to simulate the process of proper mixing/mastering. However, there are elements to mixing/mastering techniques that require a skilled professional (aka human being) with a trained set of ears to balance levels properly and bring out the subtle nuances that make great music, well...great!

-TJ

'Playas' Only!

We work really hard, so it's a MUST that we play hard too.
Here's a short video we made on vacation, it features a beverage we came up with and dubbed 'Playas' Only.


The name comes from "playa," the Spanish word for "beach," and a pun off the song "Playa's Only" by R. Kelly and The Game.  So in effect, the drink's true title is "Playas Solamente" or "Beaches Only."  A fitting name, considering our location.


To make a 'Playas' Only, mix the following:

• Chilled glasses with ice
• CIROC premium vodka
• Tropica'l "Uva" flavored fruit bevarage (if you can get this in the U.S., please tell me where!)
• Ocean Spray Cran-Raspberry
• Red Bull
• 1 grape per glass (mashed bananas work well too)

Serve and please enjoy responsibly :-)

-TJ

Bank Remixes Part 5: "What Up Gangsta"

So it came a little earlier than scheduled, but we couldn't wait to post the new remix.  It's strange to think of a song from 2003 as a throwback, but nonetheless, this joint got made over.  Typically we lean towards producing songs with more modern sounds, but if you download the track you'll hear that churning out those raw, grimy beats isn't really a problem for us either.


Like it?  It's yours, click the image below to download the track.  If you're an artist and you want the instrumental for your upcoming project email us at info@thebankinc.com and let's go!


-TJ

Click the image to download this track.

Bank Remixes Part 4: "You're Not My Girl"

Remix 4 is up, check out the video!  I had fun with this Ryan Leslie song, as it was originally recorded at 108 bpm- a nice break from the slower tempos of most of today's hip hop and r&b.


I'm not really sure how to classify this remix; it's not really genre specific, but it has a loungy-club vibe that's somehow able to be laid back even with some aggressive, off-kilter drums.


You can download this remix by clicking the image below. If you're an artist interested in using the the track for your own project, email us:  info@thebankinc.com


-TJ

click the image to download the track.

Bank Remixes Part 3: "Pimp Like Me"

This time around, Wes produced and mixed Twista's "Pimp Like Me."


Check out the video, let us know what you think.  Like it?  Click the image link below to download it.  If you're an artist and you want to lace this track with your own lyrics, email us at info@thebankinc.com.


-TJ

click the image to download the track