Record Rock
Recording Tips for Rock Bands
Common these days in the record company industry, it’s the rule that the bands will have at least professionally produced demos, a good following and many performances under their belt. In the past, A&R staff would sign artists who showed natural talent and very little experience. These A&R people used their imaginations and designated huge expenses for the recordings, taking the pressure of recording studio time constraints out of the picture. Nowadays the world is rife with new bands. They’ve pretty much taken over that first job of breaking onto the scene.
You have to have songs before you can contemplate the complex project of recording and mixing a record. (Unless you’re improvising, which is totally valid but not the subject of concern here.) Following is an outline of considerations when you want to get the best results for recording rock music.
It’s helpful at the outset to have songs that are tried and true – preferably ones that you’ve played before a live audience so you can gage the effectiveness of your material. If you feel that some songs are weak wait until you’ve written a solid body of work. Of course some songs will be better than others so you would naturally sequence those outside of the beginning and the end. It’s necessary, in my opinion to have a few more songs than you plan to put on the CD so that you can eliminate the cuts (if any) that don’t work out in the recording process. You really need to be sure that you and your musicians are secure in performing the songs. it’s assured that under the extra pressure of recording, you almost always are liable to make bad decisions. (Screwing it up)
There are many kinds of recording studios with varying rates that must be considered here. The standard recording method these days has become ProTools, but if you can track to 2 inch tape and transfer it to Protools for editing you’ll get superior results for Rock music. There’s nothing that really compares to tape compression and the natural harmonics that are produced. It is also best if you use analog outboard gear in the processing of your sound. If you think you’ll get better sounds with software, think again.
It’s best to allot an ample amount of time and your budget should reflect that. It always takes longer than you think. As a rule it’s at least 30%-40% longer. That will take some of the pressure off. If you’ve not accomplished what you’ve intended and the cash is running out it turns into a vicious cycle. The nearer you get toward running through your funds, the more anxious you’ll become and get diminishing returns.
When you get to the studio leave your egos at the door. Every member is there to produce the most viable recording possible without everybody deciding that their parts should be more audible. They would be wise to think of the whole versus how well they might hear it when they’re on stage. It helps if you have an objective judge – or have even a recording engineer who understands what you’re trying to achieve. That way you can learn from independent recommendations (In fact don’t stand for an engineer who seems disinterested.)
Don’t be surprised to find out that after doing basic tracks the music is not always the way you thought it was going to be. You really have to practice and listen to the “whole” while you’re playing your own part. This will go a long way toward improving the arrangement. In fact one of the greatest pitfalls is a bad arrangement where every one is screaming “but I can’t hear the vocals or the drums” and such. Try as you might, as the engineers say “you can’t polish a turd”.” Don’t necessarily blame the engineer for not knowing how to fix it all in the mix. It’s actually best if you can make rudimentary recordings of your band rehearsals in order to judge the arrangement more objectively.
About the Author
Bruce is a renowned recordist, film composer and producer. Through his experience in the studio and on the stage, Bruce is and expert on
microphones
for recording, stage performance and Podcasting. Click on the link above where you’ll find useful information and deep discounts on microphones. .
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