Mixing Fleshgod Apocalypse’s Epic Orchestra with Stefano Morabito

Mixing a band like Fleshgod Apocalypse is no joke. When you’re faced with blast beats, death metal vocals, shredding guitars, and a full-blown symphonic orchestra, it can feel like you’re playing the Dark Souls of mixing. Every element is fighting for space, and one wrong move can turn your powerful, epic mix into a muddy, chaotic mess.

So, how do the pros handle it? We got a front-row seat as producer Stefano Morabito mixed "The Violation" by Fleshgod Apocalypse on Nail The Mix, and his approach to taming the massive orchestra was a masterclass in metal production. Forget what you think you know about fitting synths into a mix; this is a completely different beast. Let’s break down some of his key strategies.

The Foundation: Why the Orchestra Is Priority One

In most metal subgenres, the orchestra or synth elements are treated as background texture. The standard move is to high-pass filter them, scoop out the mids, and tuck them neatly behind the wall of guitars. But with Fleshgod Apocalypse, the orchestra isn't just texture—it's a lead character in the song.

Stefano’s entire approach starts with this philosophy shift. Before even touching the drums or guitars, he laid the foundation with the orchestra. His first step was purely organizational: arranging the string tracks in his DAW from the lowest-pitched instruments to the highest (Double Bass -> Cellos -> Violas -> Violins). This methodical approach sets the stage for building the orchestra as a cohesive, powerful unit on its own terms.

Building the "Beef": A Counterintuitive Approach to EQ

Here’s where Stefano’s technique really goes against the grain. Instead of immediately cutting lows to make room for the metal band, he focused on making each orchestral section sound huge and powerful first.

Starting with Low-End Clarity

Working on the double bass tracks, his first goal wasn't just to make them heard, but to make them clear. He used an EQ to find and cut the soupy, undefined mud in the low-mids and the extreme sub-bass frequencies that just eat up headroom.

At the same time, he boosted a bit of the upper-mids to bring out the articulation and "zing" of the strings. The goal wasn’t to remove the low end, but to focus it. This is a crucial move in modern EQ strategies for mixing modern metal; it’s about shaping, not just cutting.

Adding Weight, Not Just Slicing It Away

Even more surprising was his next move: adding low-end "beef" back into other string sections like the cellos. Why would you add lows to an element that’s inevitably going to compete with a heavy bass guitar?

The logic is simple but brilliant: make the orchestra sound like a real, powerful orchestra first. Treat it as its own complete production. By giving the individual sections their natural weight and body, you create a rich, full symphonic sound. If it clashes with the band later, you can make broader EQ cuts on the main orchestra bus. But if you start by gutting each individual track, the orchestra will sound thin and weak no matter what you do later.

The Art of Imperfection: Making Samples Sound Real

One of the biggest challenges with programmed orchestras is that they can sound sterile and fake—like a "Nintendo orchestra," as Stefano put it. A key part of the Fleshgod Apocalypse sound is making those samples breathe and feel human.

The "Out-of-Tune" Viola Trick

This is a genius move from the band’s composer, Francesco Paoli. To add realism, some instruments, like the violas, were intentionally programmed to be slightly out of tune.

If you soloed the viola track, it might sound a bit "wrong." But layered within the complexity of the full orchestra, that subtle imperfection is what sells the performance as being real. It mimics the natural, minute tuning discrepancies of a live orchestra and erases that sterile, robotic feel of perfectly programmed MIDI.

Sweetening the Highs

To further shape the violas, Stefano used EQ to make them sound more "mellow" and "sweet." He identified and tamed the harsh, scratchy high-frequencies from the bow sound. This helped tuck the violas into their proper place in the orchestral soundscape, giving them a rich body without an aggressive, distracting attack that’s better suited for lead instruments like violins.

Taming the Dynamics: Surgical Control

With the tones shaped, the final step was about control. A dynamic orchestra can have massive swells in volume that are great for a film score but can wreck a dense metal mix.

Pinpointing Problem Spots with Compression

The violin trills, for example, had a significant volume swell that would jump out of the mix at the wrong times. Instead of just turning the track down or automating the fader, Stefano reached for a compressor.

By applying targeted metal compression, he was able to catch and control only that loud swell. This kept the trill's energy and excitement intact while ensuring it didn’t overpower everything else. It’s a perfect example of using a compressor not just for "glue," but as a precise problem-solving tool.

Using a Spectrum Analyzer for Clean-Up

For the main violin parts, Stefano leaned on a spectrum analyzer to help him make some extreme EQ cuts in the very high frequencies. This visual aid helped him surgically remove unnecessary fizz and harshness, cleaning up the top end and making the violins sit more musically in the mix without sacrificing their bite.

See It All in Action

These techniques are a great look into the mind of a top-tier producer tackling a truly complex mix:

• Change your priorities: In symphonic metal, treat the orchestra like a primary element, not an afterthought.
• Build sounds first, carve space later: Give orchestral elements their full, natural tone before deciding what to cut for the rest of the band.
• Embrace planned imperfection: Use subtle "defects" like detuning to make samples sound more human and realistic.
• Use processing with purpose: Apply EQ and compression to solve specific problems, not just because you think you're supposed to.

Reading about these concepts is one thing, but seeing them used to build a mix from scratch is how you really level up your skills. In the full Fleshgod Apocalypse Nail The Mix session, you get to watch Stefano Morabito apply these principles to the entire song—guitars, drums, bass, vocals, and all—explaining every single move he makes.

If you’re ready to move beyond presets and generic tutorials, learning how pros like Stefano tackle real-world mixing challenges is the next step. You can unlock your sound by seeing exactly how these massive metal songs are put together. Grab the multi-tracks and follow along with Stefano by checking out the full Fleshgod Apocalypse mixing session.