Mallrat - "Better"

Part 2 is Andrew’s philosophy in practice: production and mixing aren’t separate jobs. They’re the same mission, at different angles, and the fastest way to level up is to stop treating them like different phases.

He breaks down how he likes to work when he has the time: one day for cleanup and prep, then stepping away so he can come back with fresh ears and a fully creative mindset. It’s a deceptively simple workflow choice that can change everything. 

From there, Andrew dives into the backbone of his mixing approach: subtle compression across multiple stages using subgroups, letting elements interact so the mix stays alive and controlled instead of flat and “over-compressed.” Then he takes it further with a modern loudness reality check: how to win the loudness war without losing punch, using expansion and multiband dynamics to make the midrange feel louder while keeping transients intact.