Can (DJ-)mixed recordings be merged with their unmixed versions?

[wlhlm]

I’m trying to add a digital media release based on this Discogs entry. The vinyl release is already in MB: Release “Differential / Transition Soul” by Deep Space Organisms / Concentric Flow - MusicBrainz

On this release, I’ve noticed that its associated recordings have been merged with the recordings in this compilation: Release “Different Perspective” by Various Artists - MusicBrainz

Now, the problem I see here is, that the compilation is DJ-mixed and the mixed recording is significantly shorter than the unmixed version (6:55 vs 8:32) and I think these should count as different recordings. In addition to different run times, the audio content of mixed recordings is also significantly changed due to the transitions from the previous and to the next song. AFAICS, the style guidelines don’t explicitly mention DJ-mixes in the context of merging recordings.

@dns_server expresses as similar view in another thread:

@dns_server

It is a dj mix so all recordings should be unique.
This is because the mixing process will usually have parts of the next and previous song and possibly other samples added for effect so this recording will be different than the normal version.

The original edit merging into the mixed recording received 4 yes votes, so I’m a bit unsure: Edit #33239402 - MusicBrainz

/cc @drsaunde

[mfmeulenbelt]

DJ mixes are not explicitly mentioned, but “Variations in the length of silence at either end of tracks is not a reason to keep recordings separate, since no changes have been made to the audio itself” (emphasis mine) should be pretty clear.

I just had a listen and both tracks do have different audio. It also looks like the track length in MusicBrainz is wrong.

[yindesu]

DJ-mixed recordings should indeed be separate recordings, not merged.

[wlhlm]

Thanks everyone for the feedback. I’ve gone ahead and created the digital release with new recordings and pointed the vinyl release towards those instead of the DJ-mix.

I would appreciate a vote: https://musicbrainz.org/edit/72381386

[jesus2099]

You could go to the DJ-mixed release with @Bitmap’s userscript called set recording comments and set all recording comments to something like DJ-mixed (or better with the name of the mix).

Don’t forget to write a small edit note explaining why and linking to the release, as recording edits won’t show the related release.

[wlhlm]

Thanks for the tip. I made the edits as you suggested: https://musicbrainz.org/release/61cc70be-8f5c-4b5a-a551-2b44dbc4d58d/edits

[darkshyne]

The current explanation of that relationship in the editor only applies to DJ mixes which merge several songs into one mix. What to do with DJ mixes that are separated into single tracks, like lots of bonus CDs/CD2s where the first CD includes the unmixed versions and the second is a DJ mix? Those should ideally be connected somehow.

[UltimateRiff]

I actually just started a thread a few months ago with how I’d connect such examples

How to relate single-track and multi-track DJ-mixes to the originals?

just making sure this makes sense to others, and not just me… I’ve often found that artists will release a DJ-mix in multiple forms, one where the tracks are split into several files, and another where the whole mix is a single file. for example, 4×4=12 by deadmau5 has a single-track continuous mix as well as a multi-track version of the same recording(s). I feel like these should both be related back to the original tracks, and only just recently figured out a possible solution: [PXL_2023040…

tl;dr connect both DJ-mixes to the original with the DJ-mix relationship and connect the DJ-mixes to each other using a Compilation relationship (there’s a diagram in the thread for clarity)