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Going in the studio! Any advice?


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I've assembled a band and booked a studio to record some of my own stuff! I looked and found one recently opened studio in town that has both a grand piano and a Rhodes.

 

This is not my very first time in a studio but I am still basically a greenhorn, and it's the first time recording my own songs and compositions. I would appreciate any advice from you all.

Life is subtractive.
Genres: Jazz, funk, pop, Christian worship, BebHop
Wishlist: 80s-ish (synth)pop, symph pop, prog rock, fusion, musical theatre
Gear: NS2 + JUNO-G. KingKORG. SP6 at church.

 

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I'm not especially experienced either, but I think I can offer two points of advice:

1. Planning. Make sure you know what songs/pieces you're recording, and what the instrumentation is/how many tracks you'll need.

2. Take advice. The engineer might suggest a technique that will work well. Do you have a producer with you - they might offer additional creative advice.

 

Good luck.

 

Cheers, Mike.

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Rehearse before arriving. Check in and make sure everyone has gone over and is doing what you expect and wanted. Saves you a lot of time, money, aggravation.

 

If you"re not happy with a take, do it again, and maybe again. The more you have to work with, the more salvageable the session.

 

Less is more when mixing - not every instrument needs to be equal, or possibly even present at all times. It"s ok to let things go so that your main parts and ideas come across to the listener.

Yamaha CP88, Casio PX-560

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There is going to be lots of advice coming. Here are some quick thoughts off the bat:

 

1) Rehearse rehearse rehearse. Even if you're paying your band for the rehearsals, it's way cheaper than popping for all that studio time and then getting home and finding out you didn't get your basics. Once it sounds reliably good in rehearsal, rehearse three more times.

 

2) Record your rehearsals so you can hear "after the fact" how things sound. Make adjustments and rehearse those adjustments, and record those rehearsals as well, rinse and repeat.

 

3) Write down BPM for each song; the engineer will want this. Rehearse at that BPM and listen back afterward. (Notice a trend?) I'd recommend a master list with the song title, instrumentation, BPM, and "vibe," to give to the engineer for reference. You can also send a recording of the latest rehearsal tracks.

 

4) Develop a game plan for recording--which order you'll hit in. The engineer can help with this.

 

5) Related to that: You can also talk to the engineer in advance about arrival times for your musicians. If the first hour and a half is going to be teching and micing the drums, you might want to let your bass player and guitarist show up and hour after the drummer. It's respectful and also keeps everyone fresh.

 

6) Even though the studio has piano and Rhodes, you can still consider the session a success if you get good bass and drum tracks out of it. The rest you can do after the fact; it's harder to get a great rhythm-section track after the fact.

 

7) I prefer the "three times through and then punch" approach. The whole band plays the song three times, and hopefully you can count a really good take among those three (which is not to say it's a guarantee), then decide on a "keeper" and punch missed notes or hits or lines with the band or individually. Or play it 6 times if that's what it takes. Just don't leave without at least a good basic (drums and bass) for each song.

 

8) Even if budget is tight, if I am BL I always buy everyone lunch or dinner. If you can swing it, keep some $ aside for this.

 

9) Clarify with the engineer--for both of you--if he or she will also be providing any direction on the songs. Some prefer to be ProTools monkeys (particularly if they are not being paid to produce), some are closet Phil Spectors with strong opinions they can't wait to share. Just be clear about who is making the calls.

 

10) Biggest one: Have fun. The studio is awesome. My happy place, personally. It's incredible to walk in as people and walk out having left music in the world. Enjoy it. Good luck!

Now out! "Mind the Gap," a 24-song album of new material.
www.joshweinstein.com

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.....

 

2) Record your rehearsals so you can hear "after the fact" how things sound. Make adjustments and rehearse those adjustments, and record those rehearsals as well, rinse and repeat.

 

........

 

This is really important, particularly if you or your band do not normally record yourselves and hear every aspect of the the songs you will record.

It is one thing to sound good while playing live, but there is a different level of scrutiny put on a recording.

I am not talking so much about how well you play, but about small weird stuff.

When a band hears themself include small weird stuff in a recording of themselves, they stop doing it.

I can tell when I hear a pop band play that does not listen to recordings of themselves.

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All great advice, and I'll add one more point that I didn't see above:

 

Budget for everything taking at least twice as long as you think it will, maybe three times. Talk to the engineer ahead of time about how you want to track stuff and how long each piece is, get an estimate, and double it. Even if you don't use all those hours, you'll rest easier knowing you don't have to rush things because you're running out of money.

 

Too often, I have had bands come in and think they're the Beatles tracking "Please Please Me"... "We have ten three minute songs, so that's like, half an hour of studio time, right?"

Dr. Mike Metlay (PhD in nuclear physics, golly gosh) :D

Musician, Author, Editor, Educator, Impresario, Online Radio Guy, Cut-Rate Polymath, and Kindly Pedant

Editor-in-Chief, Bjooks ~ Author of SYNTH GEMS 1

 

clicky!:  more about me ~ my radio station (and my fam) ~ my local tribe ~ my day job ~ my bookmy music

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If you're going to use their grand piano and Rhodes, find time for playing each before your date. No two have exactly the same feel, even among the greats. Get a subtle taste of the tone of that particular instrument. That will help you in a subtle manner once the red light is on.

 "I want to be an intellectual, but I don't have the brainpower.
  The absent-mindedness, I've got that licked."
        ~ John Cleese

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Preparation is everything. It makes no difference to the recording producer if you spend an entire recording session fumbling around with one song or bang out an entire EP worth of songs. Come up with a strategy for the parts you want in each song and the most efficient way to lay them down.

 

I think the best way is to lay down the main structure and primary lead solo of 3-5 songs and then add flair to them later in the session, or another day altogether without needing the full band. Something my brother did when we recorded was take the rough cuts home for a month between sessions and come up with whatever ideas to put the cherry on top of each song.

Keyboards: Nord Electro 6D 73, Korg SV-1 88, Minilogue XD, Yamaha YPG-625

Bonus: Boss RC-3 Loopstation

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Too often, I have had bands come in and think they're the Beatles tracking "Please Please Me"... "We have ten three minute songs, so that's like, half an hour of studio time, right?"

 

And, the Beatles took 3 hours and 18 total takes, including harmonica overdubs. https://www.beatlesbible.com/1962/11/26/recording-please-please-me-single/

 

OP, you don't mention how many musicians are in your band, the instrumentation or if there are vocals.

We also don't know the experience level of the individuals in your band or if the studio has isolation booths and your players are used to such things.

 

My inclination is to get a basic track - drums, bass and keys (no solos). Maybe guitar if they go direct and are part of the groove.

 

If you mic the piano and there are trumpets, they will be loud in the piano tracks. One "blurp" will take the piano along with it. Live vocals with the band will be polluted by other performers, their boo-boo can hose a keeper track by the singer. That gets discouraging, the last thing you want is to generate frustration.

 

Go basic and add what is needed after would be my best advice.

 

The scratch tracks at tempo at practice is a great idea, a simple recording of that could and should be given to the studio so they know what they are getting into.

You might be able to use those scratch tracks as guide tracks for making the new and improved basic tracks.

 

If you can possibly get an experienced director/producer so you don't have that additional stress - DO IT!!!! It may "cost more" but not if it makes the sessions smooth, easy and FUN. As mentioned above, having FUN is paramount, gloom spreads like pink-eye. Cheers, Kuru

It took a chunk of my life to get here and I am still not sure where "here" is.
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What everyone is saying REHEARSE before recording is key to saving time, money, and music sounding more natural.

 

Two groups I worked for reheased a lot with their producer before going into the studio. They worked on the arrangements to get to length they wanted, vocals, harmonies, etc. They done they recorded and mixed their album in one week and that was before computers. The actually made money on their first album. Another bigger group did a lockout at the rehearsal studio I worked at spend a couple months with their producer working out every detail of their next album. Big advantage is working on the arrangement before so you play them like a tune sound so much better than creating song with cut and paste. I worked for Jimmy Miller Production back when Jimmy was producing the Rolling Stones and Jimmy rehearsed the tunes as much as he could before studio and got the basic tracks worked out before studio.

 

Rehearsing and arranging first has a lot of benefits.

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  • 4 weeks later...

Fresh out of the studio, thought I'd share what I managed.

 

We spent two days in there and recorded three songs without the vocals, two instrumentals with sax and one piano ballad. The songs came out just great while the solos in the jazz oriented instrumentals were sort of OK, at least mine definitely could have used better preparation even though I practiced more than I've ever. But I'm sure people will still like the end result. I have a day job so I'm mostly content with my stuff not being as awesome as some of the stuff I'm inspired by, made by full time hugely experienced world class musicians.

 

In addition to the band, I've brought two friends, an engineer and a producer with me. Both twenty somethings like me but the house engineer was enthusiastic to exchange ideas with them. And all of us got to play with amazing "toys" as the studio has very good equipment, drums etc. in addition to the acoustic piano and Rhodes I've mentioned.

 

So now there's synth, guitar and vocal overdubs to be done in home office style and then hopefully all of you can check out what I'm cookin'.

Life is subtractive.
Genres: Jazz, funk, pop, Christian worship, BebHop
Wishlist: 80s-ish (synth)pop, symph pop, prog rock, fusion, musical theatre
Gear: NS2 + JUNO-G. KingKORG. SP6 at church.

 

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I would like to add my 2cents as a retired sound engineer.

Have your band members check their equipment for noise, buzz, hum, crackle...you get the idea. Isolation Boxes, Transformers and Ground Lifts can help combat unwanted noise. Use balanced cables where applicable.

If anything uses batteries, make sure they are fresh with backup. If you have a favourite vocal mic, don't be shy and bring it.

Respect the engineer! He/She truly wants the best for you and your band.

 

 

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It goes without saying to use a click, not only for timing but equally necessary for punch-ins.
Often true, but it might not go without saying, especially if you rehearse the band well ahead of time and you have a good thing happening and the song feels good (recording your rehearsals, even on a phone, will help with determining this). Sure, a click makes editing between takes a LOT easier, and it also ensures that the tempo is consistent from the top to the bottom of the song every time. And some drummers love the steadiness and precision of laying down a track to a click.

 

But if your band already feels great playing an arrangement down live, I've been in situations where the click will actually remove certain cool "human" things from the performance. I've also played with drummers who can't live comfortably with a click and will push-pull around it, creating an unnatural "loping" feel that's more distracting than if they speed up on the chorus and then slow back down for the verse (I try not to play with those drummers anymore, but I don't always book the sessions!). My current solo record is the first time I've recorded with a click in a few years at this point, since my bands have gotten very good at getting into a room and Doing What We Do. Style of music affects this, obviously, as does the caliber of the players you have on the session and how well they know the material.

 

Mostly, though, I'd print out the initial list from MathOfInsects and hang it on your bedroom wall! Have a blast.

Samuel B. Lupowitz

Musician. Songwriter. Food Enthusiast. Bad Pun Aficionado.

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Some great advice here, and glad to hear from the OP that his session went well. I run a studio, and have been on both sides of the glass. When things go well in the studio, it"s a joy!

 

One piece of advice I might give, is that if you are planning on tracking to a click, rehearse with it as a band so you get used to playing against it. I"ve had too many bands come in that needed a click, but had no experience playing to it as a band. Play with it until you"re as comfortable with it as without.

 

Also, and related, don"t assume you need a click. Unless the genre requires it, a lot of band recordings can sound great tracking without a click. You can always add a tempo map later if you need a reference for overdubs or syncing, but if the band"s pocket is happening without a click, go with it!

Turn up the speaker

Hop, flop, squawk

It's a keeper

-Captain Beefheart, Ice Cream for Crow

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There is going to be lots of advice coming. Here are some quick thoughts off the bat:

 

1) Rehearse rehearse rehearse. Even if you're paying your band for the rehearsals, it's way cheaper than popping for all that studio time and then getting home and finding out you didn't get your basics. Once it sounds reliably good in rehearsal, rehearse three more times.

 

2) Record your rehearsals so you can hear "after the fact" how things sound. Make adjustments and rehearse those adjustments, and record those rehearsals as well, rinse and repeat.

 

3) Write down BPM for each song; the engineer will want this. Rehearse at that BPM and listen back afterward. (Notice a trend?) I'd recommend a master list with the song title, instrumentation, BPM, and "vibe," to give to the engineer for reference. You can also send a recording of the latest rehearsal tracks.

 

4) Develop a game plan for recording--which order you'll hit in. The engineer can help with this.

 

5) Related to that: You can also talk to the engineer in advance about arrival times for your musicians. If the first hour and a half is going to be teching and micing the drums, you might want to let your bass player and guitarist show up and hour after the drummer. It's respectful and also keeps everyone fresh.

 

6) Even though the studio has piano and Rhodes, you can still consider the session a success if you get good bass and drum tracks out of it. The rest you can do after the fact; it's harder to get a great rhythm-section track after the fact.

 

7) I prefer the "three times through and then punch" approach. The whole band plays the song three times, and hopefully you can count a really good take among those three (which is not to say it's a guarantee), then decide on a "keeper" and punch missed notes or hits or lines with the band or individually. Or play it 6 times if that's what it takes. Just don't leave without at least a good basic (drums and bass) for each song.

 

8) Even if budget is tight, if I am BL I always buy everyone lunch or dinner. If you can swing it, keep some $ aside for this.

 

9) Clarify with the engineer--for both of you--if he or she will also be providing any direction on the songs. Some prefer to be ProTools monkeys (particularly if they are not being paid to produce), some are closet Phil Spectors with strong opinions they can't wait to share. Just be clear about who is making the calls.

 

10) Biggest one: Have fun. The studio is awesome. My happy place, personally. It's incredible to walk in as people and walk out having left music in the world. Enjoy it. Good luck!

 

Spot on as always!

 

As a retired waiter, I might be inclined to bump #8 up to #1 and expand on it. It's been scientifically proven that people do better work when they've been fed cupcakes, pastries, lunch and beer. It's always worth it.

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Although I believe these sessions have already taken place, I did have one more thought that I don't think was covered.

Make sure your engineer understands the kind of record you are wanting to make. For example, the staff engineer may spend most days recording Metal, or Hip Hop and your's is a Synth Pop or Jazz band. This matters because engineers will default to microphone choices they are familiar with. I once watched an engineer teach a class at SAE. He had a band in the room, and was discussing how to mike the cello player, and he spent an hour telling his students why Mike X was better than Mike Y, but if you only had Mike Z, here's what you should add. It struck me that they'd not heard the band play anything yet. They had no idea what sort of band it was. It could have been Punk for all they knew, which probably would have made an unaltered Mike Z the best choice. So send the engineer mp3s of your rehearsals or demos in advance so he or she can be better prepared to get you the sound you hope for.

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