Home versus Studio-
Bedroom studios are great but today’s best music is still recorded in studios for a simple reason – studios are designed to capture sound, not sleep.
This is your show and your vision which should be realized your way but here’s a few tips for a professional productive session.
1) Music is nothing more than notes & beats in time. Tune up constantly & have new drum heads (at least on the snare), New broken in strings & the intonation checked. If the drummer knows the speed (BPM) & can play to a click track (metronome, drum beat, kick, high-hat, if i have it, i can loop it) It will help with a produced pro sound. Everybody should be psyched but you don’t want to sound rushed.
2) Pro recordings double (at least some) vocals & guitars for a thick stereo mix.
3) Know your music without vocals & solos which are added later. A studio is not a good time to learn parts, practice, practice, practice, PRACTICE!
4) Bring music, notes, lyrics, drinks, food, girlfriends/wife’s picture, your favorite teddy beer-whatever! Do whatever it takes for a smooooooooth session.
5) Be prepared, extra strings, sticks, drum tuning key, wires, wall wort’s/FX power supplies, fuses etc…
6) Make sure that the hi-hat, kick pedal/s don’t squeak, no rattle/buzzes in the drums, instruments & speaker cabinets. Check wires & amp’s for hum & noises etc…
7) Be on time! “Fashionably late” isn’t fashionable & can result in your session being rescheduled or even cancelled.
8) I’m sure that your friends , family, and significant others are really cool people, but unless they’re playing on your project, they should probably stay home & not cell/text every 2 seconds. A photographer/videographer of your session/s are welcome & recommended.
9) Come to work! We don’t charge by the hour, but there is a life outside of the recording studio. Be prepared to get work done. It’s not the time to check your E-mail, Twitter, Facebook etc… There’s a well defined process for getting the music to you quickly & cost effectively, so be ready to follow it. The environment here is very laid back….as long as productive work is getting done!
10) Don’t panic. The studio is a new environment for most people & we want the experience to be a positive one. Everyone drops a note here and there. No one gets to keep their first vocal track (really, no one does)! You’ll have a great time if you just relax & play!
11) Drummers, rehearse keeping a stick/click track going anytime you’re not playing so that the other musicians can overdub their parts later if you’re not playing to a click track.
12) If not a problem, remove the front head from the kick/bass drum. It allows more options as to where to put the kick mic’s (X-2) & offers more options with damping for the best sound which is different in studios verses live. If it’s a hassle, I can deal with it.
13) Remember the phone # & directions/address. If lost, call instead of knocking on neighborhood doors or driving around for hours (it’s happened).