This is the one aspect of making music that can give it an identity almost more than any other stage.

It's the one process that can make what you're working on emotionally engaging or completely forgettable.
I've actually come to really enjoy bringing life to plain tracks, exploring different sound "landscapes".
Tag-teaming a mix with a producer can be incredibly rewarding these days.
These records all include elements of my mixing, co-mixing with the producer, or the total sound.