Crafting Asking Alexandria’s Powerful Vocal Mixes: Taylor Larson’s Pro Tips

Ever cranked an Asking Alexandria track and wondered how those vocals hit so hard, cutting through a dense wall of guitars and drums yet still retaining clarity and impact? It’s not just raw talent (though Danny Worsnop has that in spades); it’s also a meticulous and creative mixing process. We dove into a session with producer Taylor Larson to break down what’s really behind those great vocal mixes, specifically looking at his approach to an Asking Alexandria track. Check out the full Nail The Mix session here. Get ready to pick up some killer techniques you can apply to your own metal productions!

Kicking Off with Effects: Automation is Your Friend

One of the first things to notice in a pro metal mix is how effect vocals—those little ear-candy moments, delays, and reverbs—pop out exactly when they need to. Taylor emphasizes that a ton of automation is key here. For instance, if there’s a specific delay throw you want to be prominent after a phrase, don’t just set it and forget it. Automate the send or return level to push that effect up in volume precisely when it needs to shine.

For these effect vocals, the processing chain might be simpler than you think. The goal is often just to get them heard clearly. This involves:

• Cleaning out mud: Getting rid of unnecessary low-end rumble.
• Boosting presence: Helping them cut through.
• A touch of limiting: Using something like an L1 limiter to keep the level consistent, making it easier to automate them precisely into the mix.

Interestingly, some effect tracks might even be pre-processed and printed, meaning the creative choices were already baked in during production.

The Foundation: Cleaning Up the Muck

Before you even think about compression or fancy effects, there’s a universal truth for all vocals: clean out the mud. This means tackling any low-end rumble and problematic frequencies in the low-mids. These frequencies don’t add power; they just cloud the mix and fight with other instruments. Getting rid of this gunk is a crucial first step to a clear, punchy vocal. For more on carving out space, check out our EQ strategies for mixing modern metal.

Strategic Compression: Choosing Your Weapon

Compression plays a massive role in shaping the vocal and making it sit right. But not all compressors are created equal, and Taylor Larson uses different tools for different jobs.

The LA-3A: Depth and Character for Backing Vocals

For backing vocals or some effect layers, the Teletronix LA-3A is a go-to. Why? Because the LA-3A tends to sit vocals at a different level in the mix—more “parked back” without getting lost. It’s not about aggressive, in-your-face presence like an 1176. Instead, it offers a smoother, more controlled character that allows these elements to support the lead vocal without cluttering the front of the mix. Think of it as adding depth. Plus, it’s incredibly simple with just two main knobs: Gain and Peak Reduction.

The 1176: Upfront and Aggressive

When you need that vocal right up front, punching through the mix, the UREI 1176 is often the answer. It’s known for its ability to make vocals feel immediate and energetic. This is a staple for lead vocals in many heavy genres. We’ll dive deeper into its use on lead vocals later. Explore more metal compression secrets beyond just making it loud.

Shaping the Tone: EQ and Specialized Tools

Once your vocals are clean and dynamically controlled, it’s time to sculpt their tonal character.

The Power of Tilt EQ

For some elements that needed a general brightening without introducing harsh peaks, Taylor reached for a Tilt EQ. This type of EQ is super cool: instead of boosting or cutting specific bands, it “tilts” the entire frequency spectrum. Imagine a line on a graph EQ; a Tilt EQ rotates that whole line. If something needs to be a bit brighter overall but you don’t want to over-emphasize specific high frequencies, a Tilt EQ can gently lean the whole sound in that direction. It’s a great tool for subtle overall tonal shifts.

Taming Harshness with Soothe

Sometimes, even after careful EQ, a vocal can have harsh, resonant frequencies that are just plain annoying. This is where a plugin like oeksound Soothe becomes a lifesaver. Soothe intelligently identifies and attenuates these problematic resonances in real-time, smoothing out the harshness without making the vocal sound dull. Taylor calls it “life-changing,” and for good reason—it can rescue takes that might otherwise be unusable.

Handling Harmonies and Doubles

Harmonies and doubled vocals add width and power, but they need careful treatment to support the lead without overwhelming it.

Filtering and Subtle Compression

For harmonies, the goal is to get them out of the way of the lead vocal while still providing support. This often involves:

• Filtering: Cutting frequencies (especially lows and low-mids) to ensure they don’t clash with the main vocal.
• Compression: An 1176 is a great choice here, too. Taylor’s favorite settings are often Attack right in the middle, Release as fast as it can go, and a 4:1 Ratio. This helps give them their own distinct sound and control.

R-Vox for Presence and Panning

To help harmonies and doubles cut through and sit nicely, the Waves R-Vox (Renaissance Vox) plugin is a fantastic and simple tool. Just pulling down its main fader pushes the vocal forward and can even add a touch of low-end “oomph.” These elements are often panned out wide, respecting any panning schemes the band might have already established to keep things cohesive.

Making Screams Cut: The Magic of Saturation

Screamed vocals need to be aggressive and upfront. One of Taylor’s secret weapons for this is Soundtoys Decapitator. This plugin is killer for adding harmonics and really bringing screams close to the listener.
The approach is often straightforward: start with the “Drive” knob at zero and turn it up until it sounds awesome. No need to overcomplicate it! Decapitator adds a “sick” character that can make screams truly rip. It’s so versatile, it even gets used on drums or strings for an effected sound.

Following Decapitator, R-Vox might be used again to give the scream even more of that low-mid push and forward presence.

Adding Weight and Warmth with Tape Emulation

To give vocals (especially screams and heavier parts) a rounder, bigger feel, tape emulation plugins are invaluable. Taylor uses the Crane Song Phoenix II plugin. For a super round and chest-thumping sound, he might opt for darker settings like “Dark Essence” and “Opal.” This smooths things out, adds weight, and makes the vocal feel larger than life. If you have access to Pro Tools, this is a plugin worth checking out.

The Main Vocal Chain: A Deeper Dive

Now for the star of the show: the main lead vocal. Taylor often employs a multi-stage approach to get it sounding huge and polished.

Layered Compression and Limiting

1. L1 Limiter: Similar to its use on effect vocals, an L1 limiter might be first in the chain to gently control peaks and keep the vocal “in place.” This provides a more consistent signal for the compressors to work with.
2. 1176 Compressor: After the L1, the vocal is driven into an 1176 for that upfront character and attitude.
3. R-Vox: Again, R-Vox can be used for that extra bit of forward push and low-end support.

Phoenix for Polish and Size

The Crane Song Phoenix II makes another appearance on the main vocals, but this time with a slightly different goal. Settings like “Luster” (a brighter option) and “Neutral” on the top end can make the vocals sound huge and really kick through the mix. This plugin is a serious contender if you want that polished, larger-than-life vocal sound.

Crafting Ambiance: Delays and Reverbs That Work

Effects are crucial for giving vocals space and dimension, but they need to be handled carefully to avoid washing out the lead.

Wide Delays with Echo Boy

For delays, Taylor often uses Soundtoys Echo Boy. A key trick is to find delay settings that are slightly different on each side (left and right). This creates a wide, stereo delay that sits nicely around the main vocal without cluttering the center. The goal is to keep the main vocal as dry and central as possible, with the effects adding width.

The Pre-Delay Reverb Trick: A Game Changer

Here’s a fantastic tip for using reverb: turn up the pre-delay. Pre-delay creates a small gap of silence between the dry vocal and the onset of the reverb.

• Low Pre-Delay: The vocal tends to sit in the reverb, pushing it further back in the mix.
• High Pre-Delay: The vocal remains upfront and clear, and then the reverb blooms around it. This gives you ambiance and space without sacrificing the directness of the vocal. It’s a great way to avoid a “terribly dry” vocal while keeping it in the listener’s face. Experiment with this!

The Final Polish: Vocal Bus Processing Power

All these individual vocal tracks (leads, harmonies, doubles, effects) often get routed to a main vocal bus for final cohesive processing.

API 2500 for Front-and-Center Impact

On the Asking Alexandria mix, Taylor Larson used an API 2500 bus compressor on the entire vocal bus. This might seem unconventional, as bus compression is often more subtle. However, with all the various vocal layers, effects, and wide-panned elements, the API 2500 helped pull everything to the front, ensuring every vocal nuance was heard. This was a specific goal for this mix.

Bus EQ for Presence and Air

Global EQ on the vocal bus helps to further shape the overall vocal sound. A common move is to add an 18kHz shelf to bring out “air” and top-end clarity, enhancing that sense of presence.

More Phoenix for Overall Glue

Yes, the Crane Song Phoenix II can be used again on the entire vocal bus! With settings similar to the main vocal (perhaps a little less of the process amount), it glues all the vocal elements together and contributes to that crazy, upfront vocal sound.

Running the Bus Hot (Sometimes!)

Don’t be afraid to push your vocal bus, even into slight clipping, if it sounds good. While not standard practice to aim for clipping, if it achieves the desired aggressive character and works for the song, then it works. The ultimate rule is: does it sound good?

Bringing It All Together (And Taking the Next Step)

Creating those massive, impactful Asking Alexandria vocal mixes, as demonstrated by Taylor Larson, involves a combination of meticulous cleanup, strategic compression, creative EQ, saturation, thoughtful use of effects, and powerful bus processing. From automating effect sends and cleaning mud to layering compressors like the L1, 1176, and LA-3A, and using character plugins like Decapitator, Soothe, and Phoenix, every step is crucial. Don’t forget those smart delay and reverb tricks like wide panning and pre-delay!

These are powerful techniques you can start experimenting with right now. Imagine seeing how pros like Taylor dial in these settings, make critical decisions in real-time, and build a mix from the ground up. That’s exactly what you get with Nail The Mix. Each month, you get the multitracks from a real metal song and watch the original producer mix it from scratch, explaining every move. If you’re serious about elevating your metal mixes, seeing these concepts applied in full NTM sessions like the Asking Alexandria one with Taylor Larson is invaluable.

Ready to stop guessing and start mixing like a pro? Dive into resources like our guide on Unlocking Your Sound: Mixing Modern Metal Beyond Presets and see how far you can push your productions.