Mixing Spiritbox’s “Holy Roller”: Raw Tracks & Production Tricks

Deconstructing the Aggression: A Look Inside the "Holy Roller" Session

Opening up these multi-tracks is like being a kid in a candy store for metal producers. The session, prepped by Daniel Bronstein himself, gives an awesome overview of how this beast was constructed.

Drums: Programmed Power with a Twist

The drum tracks might look deceptively simple at first glance, but the power is undeniable. It appears to be built around Superior Drummer 3. Here’s the breakdown:

• Kick Sample & Snare Sample: The core punch and crack.
• Printed Snare Top: Likely the processed snare top directly from Superior Drummer, giving that distinct character.
• Toms: Essential for those pummelling fills.
• Overheads & Rooms: Here’s a key detail – the overheads and rooms aren't just cymbals. They have the kick and snare printed into them. This is a classic technique to add cohesion and a sense of space where the whole kit feels glued together from the get-go.

This approach gives you a solid, impactful drum sound right out of the box, ready for further shaping.

Bass: Foundation of Filth

No surprise here, the bass is crucial for that low-end devastation. We've got:

• Bass DI: The clean, direct signal, perfect for re-amping or surgical processing.
• Bass Amp: The amped tone, likely providing the core grit and warmth.
  Blending these two is standard practice, allowing you to control both the sub-frequency weight (from the DI) and the mid-range grind (from the amp).

Guitars: Layers of Low-Tuned Fury

The guitars are where "Holy Roller" gets truly nasty. Daniel Bronstein provided both the Guitar DIs and his printed amp tones.

• Rhythm Guitars: These are the backbone of the track's heaviness. The printed tones likely come from some killer Neural DSP plugins, as they were used extensively in creating the tones for this song.
• Lead Guitars: Again, you get the amped tone, but with the leads, there's additional processing layered on top, adding that extra polish, sustain, or effect to make them cut through.

Production Magic: Beyond the Standard Metal Toolkit

This is where "Holy Roller" really shines. Daniel Bronstein wasn’t afraid to get creative and push boundaries.

The "Holy Roller" Vocal Transformation

One of the most striking elements is that haunting intro vocal. You hear this incredibly processed, almost demonic sound, and then you solo the raw track… and it’s just Courtney LaPlante talking the lines: "Holy Roller sits in the garden. We fled blood into wine, took my body instead."

• The Raw: A clean, spoken-word performance.
• The Wet: Transformed into a signature hook. This isn't just a simple reverb and delay. It sounds like a vocoder (like the Waves Morphoder, though Daniel's version has more), blended with bit-crushing, distortion, and possibly some robotic effects to give it that unique grit and texture.
  This is a prime example of how creative vocal production can turn a simple element into something iconic. If you're looking to shape your vocals, understanding how to carve out space and add character with tools like those discussed on our EQ hub page can be a game-changer.

Octave-Down Guitar Trick: Mangling for Impact

Those incredibly low, guttural guitar chugs that make the riff so filthy? It turns out Daniel Bronstein achieved this by taking the guitar DIs and processing them an octave lower.
Yeah, you might think about artifacts or weirdness, but in a track this aggressive, sometimes you need to mangle sounds to get that badass result. It’s about serving the song and the intended energy. Don't be afraid to experiment with pitch shifting on DIs and then re-amping or processing them heavily.

Breakbeats and Ambiance: Keeping it Fresh

"Holy Roller" isn't just relentless chugging. There are some really cool production elements, like the breakbeat section that gives you a moment to breathe (but still keeps the tension high!). It sounds like some "circle drum sample stuff," possibly a processed drum loop, that adds a different rhythmic flavor. This, along with other subtle ambient textures and synths woven into the fabric of the song, shows a modern approach to metal production, reminiscent of what you might hear from producers like Drew Fulk or Jeff Dunne.

Daniel Bronstein's "No Solo" Mixing Philosophy

Here’s a fascinating insight into Daniel’s workflow for this track: he reportedly never mixed anything in solo. He kept everything playing, constantly layering and adding processing to individual tracks to build a cohesive, gnarly, and "gross" (in the best way possible!) sound. The goal was a wall of sound that was always in your face. This approach forces you to make mixing decisions in context, ensuring everything works together rather than sounding good in isolation but clashing in the full mix. It’s a bold strategy that clearly paid off.

Remote Revolution: Recording Vocals in a New Era

Adding another layer of interest, the vocals for "Holy Roller" were actually recorded remotely. With the pandemic situation, Daniel and Spiritbox utilized Zoom and an application called Audio Movers to track Courtney’s performance. Audio Movers is a fantastic tool for streaming high-quality audio directly from your DAW, making remote collaboration seamless – a testament to how technology is enabling incredible music creation even under challenging circumstances.

Get Your Hands on These Tracks (and Killer Prizes!)

Hearing about these techniques is one thing, but imagine getting to mix "Holy Roller" yourself with these exact multi-tracks. That’s what Nail The Mix is all about. The November 2020 session featured Daniel Bronstein himself mixing this monster track from scratch.

By joining Nail The Mix, you not only get access to the Spiritbox "Holy Roller" multi-tracks (get them here!) but also a massive back-catalog of sessions from other top-tier producers and bands. Plus, there are always insane prize packages up for grabs in the monthly mix competitions. For the Spiritbox month, prizes included:

• A LUT Audio LCT 640 TS microphone
• Sensorial (the program)
• Isotope Music Production Suite 4
• Make DSP Everything Bundle
• 3 plugins of choice from Neural DSP (perfect for recreating those guitar tones!)
• Audible Genius Building Blocks
• A $150 gift card from Runway Audio
• An annual subscription to Audio Movers
• The Perfect Drum Sampler
• An annual record release with TuneCore
• Mastering from Impact Studios (Buster)
• The Isolation Bundle (Buster Odeholm & GGD)
• Joey Sturgis Tones and Drumforge plugins

Talk about a stacked package to level up your studio!

The insights from just unboxing these tracks are immense. From the clever drum programming and layered guitars to the transformative vocal processing and the "no solo" mixing approach, there's so much to learn. And knowing that many of the guitar tones were crafted with Neural DSP products means you can get incredibly close to that sound with the right tools and techniques.

If you’re serious about upping your metal production game, dissecting sessions like Spiritbox's "Holy Roller" is invaluable. And if you want to go deeper than just reading about it, and actually see how pros like Daniel Bronstein craft these mixes, explaining every EQ tweak, compression setting, and creative effect, then Nail The Mix is where you need to be. For more generalized learning on mixing modern metal, check out our guide on unlocking your sound beyond presets. Go make some noise!