Dance Gavin Dance Vocal Mixing: Kris Crummett’s Reverb & Delay

Ever crank a Dance Gavin Dance track and wonder how those vocals manage to soar and punch through such a dense, intricate mix? A huge part of that signature sound comes down to the masterful vocal processing by producer Kris Crummett. We got a peek into his session, and he dropped some serious knowledge on how he crafts that DGD vocal space using reverb, delay, and some clever automation. Forget just slapping on a preset; Kris’s approach is all about nuance and creating a dynamic, engaging vocal.

Let's dive into some of the key techniques Kris Crummett uses to make Dance Gavin Dance's vocals sit perfectly, giving them both atmosphere and clarity. These are tips you can take straight into your own DAW.

The Foundation: Subtle, Long Reverb

Right off the bat, Kris revealed a core part of his vocal reverb philosophy for Dance Gavin Dance: long reverb, but turned way down. This isn't about drenching the vocal in an obvious effect. Instead, it’s about creating a consistent sense of space that helps the vocal "float above the music a little."

He emphasizes that this foundational reverb is pretty much always there, providing a subtle bed for the main vocal. He’s not afraid to experiment to find the right character, but the key is that it’s present and supportive. To help the vocals cut through and maintain focus, even when turned down, Kris often adds a boost around 5kHz. This touch of high-mid frequency can bring out the articulation and presence, letting the vocal shine without being overly loud. For more on carving out space with EQ, check out these EQ strategies for mixing modern metal.

Crafting Epic Room Vocals

For sections like intros or parts needing extra vastness, Kris incorporates dedicated room vocals. These aren't just an afterthought; they're a significant textural element. He mentioned that for some DGD tracks, the vocalist was literally standing on the other side of the live room, shouting the parts. This natural distance is a great starting point, but Kris then enhances it further in the mix.

Adding Grit and Excitement with Effects

To give these room vocals even more character and make them feel truly distant and impactful, Kris doesn’t shy away from processing. Instead of just sending them to another reverb, he often inserts an effects rack directly on the comped room vocal track.

His go-to plugins for this include:

• Devil-Loc by Soundtoys: Used subtly to add a bit of unique harmonic distortion and "dirty up" the clean room recording.
• Radiator by Soundtoys: For more pronounced distortion, adding excitement and energy, particularly to higher-frequency room vocals.

The goal is to create something that sounds less like a pristine vocal and more like an energetic shout echoing from the back of a large space.

Taming the Brightness with EQ

After adding distortion with plugins like Radiator, room vocals can sometimes get a bit too bright or harsh. Kris addresses this by EQing out some of that excessive brightness post-distortion. This surgical EQ work ensures the room vocals have energy and vibe without becoming painful or clashing with the main vocal. It's a balancing act to get that "shouting from the back of the room" feel just right.

Strategic Delay for Impact and Texture

While the long, subtle reverb provides a constant sense of space, Kris uses vocal delay more selectively to add emphasis and rhythmic interest. He doesn't typically have the delay send active all the time.

Automating Delay Sends

A key technique is automating the delay send on the vocal bus. This means the delay only appears on specific words or phrases where it will have the most impact. By keeping the main send muted and only opening it up for chosen moments, the delay becomes a more noticeable and intentional effect, rather than just washing out the entire performance.

Crummett's Go-To Delay: Echo Farm

When it comes to delay plugins, Kris has a clear favorite: Echo Farm by Line 6. He was ecstatic about its return, praising its unique sound that he feels "there's nothing else quite like it," not even hardware equivalents. He finds it has a special character that just works. While Echo Farm is a top pick, he also frequently uses EchoBoy by Soundtoys, another powerhouse delay plugin popular for its versatility.

Making Vocals Punch: Automation and Bus Processing

To make specific words or syllables jump out of the mix and hit the listener with more impact, Kris employs some clever automation, often directly on the vocal bus.

The "No" Vocal Bus Trick

For a specific part where the word "no" needed to really stand out, Kris took an interesting approach. He created a dedicated bus, which he humorously called the "No Vocal Bus" (because it was for the word "no," not because it lacked vocals!). He routed that specific vocal phrase to this bus and then turned up the bus level significantly and even brightened it a bit. This ensured that when the "no" came in, it had a distinct power and presence.

Word-by-Word Punch

This idea of accentuating specific words extends to other phrases too. Kris mentioned automating the level of the vocal bus up for the beginning of words like "don't" (in "don't worry"), "you," "bout," and "by."

Why do this on the bus instead of the individual vocal track? By automating the bus level, the dry vocal punches through more, as it hits before the send effects (like reverb and delay) fully react to the volume boost. If he were to automate the track volume itself, the sends would also increase proportionally, making the word louder but also wetter. This bus trick makes the word feel drier and more "in your face." For "you," he'd even ride down the "w" sound slightly after the initial punch of the "y" to maintain clarity. These micro-automation moves can make a huge difference in how a vocal line feels. While he doesn't explicitly mention it here, this kind of bus processing is also where you might apply subtle compression to glue things together and control dynamics.

Bringing It All Together with Nail The Mix

Kris Crummett's approach to Dance Gavin Dance's vocals is a masterclass in using reverb and delay not just as effects, but as tools to shape space, create impact, and enhance the emotional delivery of the performance. From the subtle, ever-present long reverb to strategically automated delays and punchy bus processing, every move is intentional.

Techniques like these are invaluable for any producer looking to elevate their vocal mixes:

• Subtle, long reverb for foundational space.
• Processed room vocals (using plugins like Devil-Loc and Radiator) for added dimension.
• Automated delays (with favorites like Echo Farm) for rhythmic interest and emphasis.
• Vocal bus automation to make key phrases pop.

Want to see exactly how pros like Kris Crummett dial in these sounds, make critical EQ decisions, and automate effects to get release-ready vocals? At Nail The Mix, you get to watch world-class producers mix actual songs from bands like Dance Gavin Dance from scratch. You get the raw multitracks and an all-access pass to their entire mixing process. Check out the full Dance Gavin Dance Nail The Mix session with Kris Crummett to see these techniques and many more in action.

If you're ready to go beyond presets and truly Unlock Your Sound, seeing these concepts applied in a real-world session is the best way to learn. Grab your Dance Gavin Dance session access and start mixing!