Recently signed to Black Eye Media, Icarus Complex from Las Cruces, New Mexico is ready to take the next big step in bringing forth thrash metal with heavy, crunchy rhythm and smooth leads with delightful squeals. P.M. Duffy shares the approach he takes in his home studio for crafting his poweful guitar-driven brand of rock n roll.

I'll focus on getting a great metal crunch in the mix and what it takes to get a great balance among the tracks.

I used to scoop the mids a lot with my guitar sound, and it may sound cool by itself, but adding bass and drums will make it sound muddy and hard to hear. I used a Boss GT6 with the Metal Zone setting that a ton of pedal users are familiar with. I bury the guitar signal in gain. Personal preference. Then I start by adding so much midrange that it sounds "nasally" or has a lot of honk to it. I do this as a reference first then take out all the mids I don't want after the bass and treble are done. Never add too much bass - I'll start the bass at zero and add more until it sounds full but not "farty". It's real easy to overdo it, so be conservative. Let the bass guitar do it's job. Start the treble at 12 o'clock and add or take away what you need. You should hear your pick attack clearly, but it shouldn't hurt your ears at louder volumes. If you have a sweep or high-mid control, adjusting that could reveal some easily heard frequencies you don't like. Mids and treble are where the guitar lives in the mix, and with metal it's very easy to go overboard. Here's a trick: Use a Noise Gate in conjunction with a Compressor. This gives you the attack and sustain you need for metal but cuts out the noise when you're not playing. It may take some fiddling with; I set my threshold to 80 and release at 0. That's pretty extreme, but I set the Compressor sustain to 70, attack up the middle to 50, tone at 0, and level to 70. It gives me a heavy, loud, noiseless crunch that has sustain.

I recorded everything with a Shure KSM27 mic, and I left the EQ'ing alone. For me, it just sounded better by leaving it alone, and my rhythm has no reverb or delay to it. I tracked one guitar rhythm panned hard to each speaker. Double tracking means you can't go overboard with your tone. It will sound HUGE after you pan each track. Solos went right up the middle. Clearly, your home recordings are up to your personal preference. That's just what worked for me. So up to this point, the crunch and EQ of the rhythm doesn't step on the toes of the bass, drums, or keyboards.

When I start recording, I'll record a scratch track to a click with a guitar rhythm for reference. I used electronic drums, a drum machine, and a midi program for the drums. Some home recording situations mean neighbors or roommates may not appreciate a drum kit crashing away. I live in an apartment, so it was an easy solution to this problem. If you have the means to record live drums, go for it, but the technology is out there for those of us who can't. The drums are the backbone when I record, so I use them as a reference when I add more tracks. Just keep asking yourself after each take of rhythm or bass guitar, "Does this sound good with the drums if I mute everything else?"

Recording a clean guitar sound is much different than heavy, distorted guitars. I go direct when I can. Ambient effects like delay and reverb sound much more spacious and believable to me this way. Just make sure you use a preamp of some sort, like an amp modeling device or program. Recording distorted guitars direct is a personal preference, as there are lots of products out there that sound great, but to my ears a nice mic on a speaker still sounds better. Experiment, you may find something you like.

Solos are not meant to take over the mix, and being conservative will reward you. I added a little more midrange and turned the tracks up slightly. That makes it easier to hear, and adding a little reverb helps out. With more mids, wah pedals snarl a little more. Fun stuff. Adding too much reverb or delay can make your solos sound cloudy and unintelligible. Use your best judgment for the sound you're going for.

Bass guitar needs midrange. Don't overkill your bass with low-end! I use the same principals recording bass as I do heavy rhythms, except I adjust the sweep on the low-mids. I also hate snappy treble on the bass unless it's funk. Let the guitars do the crunching. A lot of bands nowadays are using distorted bass, but for here we'll assume it's not. Compression is also very important on the bass. It will need to have a strong signal to sustain with the guitars. Adjust your compression accordingly. When the clean guitars come in, I'll throw a little chorus on the bass when it calls for it. And recording the bass direct is now commonplace in pro and home studios. If you can't get loud with a bass guitar, direct recording is perfectly fine. Using 2 tracks to record a direct bass signal and a mic'd bass signal can get some great tones, but be careful. Phase cancelling could be a problem but is easily fixed. (I don't want to explain phase cancelling here, so go Google it.) ;)

If you use keyboards, keep in mind that they can take up all frequencies. I'll record them last and adjust them to what I have already recorded. That way I know where they need to go without mudding up my guitar tone.

Hope this helps! Remember, use your ears to judge where to be conservative. After all your basic tracks are laid down, the more extreme effected tracks will pop, and solos should sit nicely in the mix. Use your favorite bands as a reference and experiment. To hear the tracks I've recorded, check out www.myspace.com/icaruscomplexband and add me as a friend!