Maximizing Success in the Recording Studio, Part One
Maximizing Success in the Recording Studio, Part Two
First Time Bands and Bands on the Tightest Budgets:
Quality recording studios are generally expensive. While it is best for a band to wait and save up enough cash to afford the sound they are after, sometimes certain circumstances, and situations place the group outside of the linear professional studio experience (all elements of the production taking place inside professional areas). This does not mean that the finished product the band is seeking to create has to sound unprofessional. Other options are always on the table if one keeps an open mind and is willing to put the time in to explore the possibilities available to them.
1. The band has a full album at the ready, but their budget cannot cover the cost of 9-12 songs. While the artistic need to present all of the music written in album form is extremely important for the full expression of a message, the band should seriously consider making the album into an EP. If it happens to be a concept album the group can take a note from serialized stories and split the album into a Part 1 and a Part 2. While every artist wants to present their vision in full, at one time, it could be argued that placing immediacy over quality creates a sonic experience that is a step behind where the recording could have been. The audience receives a complete work that has unfulfilled sonic potential, when they could have been given a more exceptional auditory experience that holds up to the standard of music the band has written. Bands transcend recordings that possess lower fidelity all the time (especially when they write undeniable songs), but excellent songs, paired with excellent recordings make it much easier to transport the audience into the world the musicians have created for them.
2. It is important to keep objectivity and focus during the recording process, which is why constructing a production team around a band is of utmost importance. Bands on extremely tight budgets have to make sacrifices and one such sacrifice is allowing for some objectivity to be lowered by allowing a band member with recording experience to serve double duty. One of the benefits of a professional facility is gaining access to great sounding rooms. If the band is not live tracking they should consider recording all of their drum tracks within a professional facility, with a professional engineer. They can then build their music around those tracks by recording other instruments from the best sounding and quietest space the band members have access to, using the band member with recording experience to run the outside session. At the end of this process the musicians can then send their collected tracks to their chosen mix engineer.
It should be noted that all instruments depend on the room they are projecting into, but some instruments are more forgiving than others (especially when being closed mic’d). A drum set is extremely dependent upon the space it occupies and when it comes time to decide how the recording budget should be distributed it would do the band a great service to ensure that the drums are recorded in the best environment possible.
3. If a band has a solid range of recording equipment and access to a great sounding space, it is possible they could ask an engineer to come to them. Only having to pay for the cost of the engineer and their travel expenses, rather than paying for both the engineer and the studio could lower costs for the band. By recording in this fashion the group gains access to a professional who: can helm their session, understand the best way to utilize the equipment at hand, and troubleshoot issues the band may not be able to handle on their own. It is also possible that the engineer may decide to bring some of their own tools to the band’s location to assist in the recording process as well. This concept is one that would need to be discussed with the engineer before they were hired, since gratis equipment brought with the engineer would be at their discretion.
Momentous events often require momentous planning and the setting of a recording goal by a band is only the first step on a intense and rewarding journey. A band must define how they wish to present their work and then determine the realistic parameters their work will reside in. They must understand and define what sacrifices need to be made, as well as what elements cannot be compromised. The group must then delve into the creative problem solving part of their minds in order to uncover options that will aid them in achieving the recording quality they have set out for, while working within their budget.
Look for the final part of this series next Tuesday, Pillar 3, Preparedness.