Fitting vocals into the mix

It's one of those problems that I think everyone runs into at some point - getting vocals to sit properly in a mix. They're either out front and way too loud, or muddy and buried by the other instruments. The piece I'm struggling on is up on my MySpace (link in my signature). Anyone have a suggestion or two for what I might do in this case? One idea I had a few minutes ago, but since I'm at work I can't try it right now - would a formant shift via ReaPitch be useful at all, up a few semitones or something?

you need to eq it a bit differently methinks kill some low end for a start what compression settings do you have on the vox? what mic? more details about the chain woudl be helpful.

SM57 - Tascam US122 - GSnap - Kjaerhus Classic Comp - ReaEQ, and a quiet send to my reverb bus. The EQ is rolled off below 250 or so, and a +3 shelf starting at around 3000. The compressor is cranked pretty hard to compensate for the Tascam's weak preamps - short attack, long release, high ratio, lots of makeup gain. And yeah, I know the 57 isn't doing me any favors, but it's all I have right now. :(

Faces of the Dead? Cool tune... Have you tried book-shelving? Putting the guit on two tracks panned left/right (yeah, I know you know how :-) I'd try that first (not that I know much about mixin', true amateur, but I learned that from ReaMix).

Little tip: I mix on beautiful Adam monitors, but when I set vocal levels I find my Little cheap pc speakers (no sub) are brilliant. I turn them down low, slowly turning them up. If all the elements are heard evenly then the vocals are in the mix. Loud vocals make a track sound small. Remember mastering often brings them out a bit too.

cool - figured you had probably heard most of this before, guess its just pulling all the little things together! interesting to hear everyone elses take on things too. drillbit, nice plan, hearing things on a different system does help alot to judge those types of things.

Yeah, I've noticed that what sounds like a good vocal mix on my monitors usually ends up being too loud when I take it to work and listen on my iPod or the PC speakers there.

I know this is supposed to be about the vocals.......but how did you record the guitar? It sounds as if it was'nt very close to the mic...but yet the vocals sound as if you are right on the mic. I would suggest if that is the guitar sound you are going for then maybe you should back off the mic to somewhat match the guitar ambience or vice-versa.:) -scott

I haven't listened to the track but I often find that when people run into these problems with vocals that using groups helps a lot. It allows carving space from more than one instrument at a time, a very old and very common mixing technique. Dip (guitars, piano, midrange-whatever) the group by 2db @ X-hz and then boost the vocal in the same place the same amount and pull it down a little. "Sitting vocals" (short of just a very good arrangement) is usually a just very precise level setting... and FX. But to get that level down where you can still hear it clearly you need to deal with masking. Use groups. Always. P.S. Compressing those instrument groups helps a lot also.