Home recording, software, choosing a studio/engineer, find a producer, production deals, choose which tracks, preparing for the studio, in the recording studio, mastering.
When you want to record your music it’s worth considering a few points. Firstly, whether you’re going to record a demo or something good enough to release, remember that you will get much better results if you’ve already performed the material live. Lots of people make the mistake of recording first and then discover that the arrangement can be improved upon after gigging it a few times, or that a song you thought was amazing isn’t working live. Acts often try to record songs before they’ve put the live band together and then find that the musicians they are using live are fine-honing their parts and could have done a better job in the studio.
The next thing you need to consider is whether to go into a proper recording studio or to do some home recording, or indeed, a combination of both. With current computer technology, its possible to get good results at home as long as you have professional standard microphones (shure sm57 and sm58 mics are a good place to start), decent amps and a good mixer (the price of an adequate mixer eg. a soundcraft spirit starts at around £200).
Software like logic, pro-tools and cubase have already become industry standards and are now used in most studios; if you’re going to invest in software to record at home it’s a good idea to get logic or pro-tools as you’ll be able to work on stuff at home that you recorded in a studio and vice versa. If you want to record live drums you probably need to find a recording studio with a ‘live’ room that has good acoustics so you can get some ambient drum sounds. Then if you’re on a tight budget, do the rest of your track laying and mixing at home. The advantage of going to a recording studio is that as well as a live room, they will have a greater selection of professional microphones and some ‘outboard’ gear such as vintage effects units which can help to get more interesting sounds.
When choosing a studio and engineer, word of mouth is the best way to find out whether they’d be the right ones for you. If you don’t know anyone who can recommend a place, most studios and engineers will be able to play you a showreel of material they’ve recorded to give you an idea of what they’re capable of. Cheaper recording studios will charge between £100 and £500 per day which usually includes the services of an engineer. You’ll need a minimum of 2 days to record and mix 2 or 3 songs to a good standard.
If you’re really broke or on a tight budget, look in your area for colleges that teach studio engineering; they will often have a fully equipped studio and students that need bands to practice recording with. You may not get releasable results but you should get a reasonable demo at least.
Another option is to try and find a producer to record your stuff. The difference between a producer and an engineer can be a bit of a grey area; some people call themselves producers when really they are just good engineers, and some engineers are able to make good suggestions for production. The main distinction should be that an engineer is a technician who will enable you to get the sounds you want whereas a producer will have an overall direction and style in mind and may make changes to arrangements and parts of a song. Producers are expensive but if you can find one that likes your stuff, they may be prepared to work for nothing provided they are re-imbursed should their recording make you any money in the future. If you are working with a producer they will probably have a preferred studio where they are familiar with the engineer and equipment. Producers can be instrumental in getting you a record deal; many have established relationships with record companies and can introduce you to an appropriate label.
Some producers, recording studios and management companies offer production deals where they will work with you for free provided that you sign some sort of contract with them, guaranteeing them a share of your future earnings and some rights to your recordings. They can help to promote your band and get your music to the right people BUT be careful and never sign anything without legal advice as this type of deal can sometimes have hidden penalties.
Assuming you’re ready to record, the next thing to do is to choose which tracks will best represent you on a demo, or which songs would be best to release. A general guideline is to attempt to record 2 or 3 songs in one session; 2 should be your catchiest songs which are typical of your style and that go down well live. The 3rd should provide a degree of contrast, eg. a ballad or slower song to show your diversity. Even if you want to record a whole album, it’s best to start with 2 or 3 songs; you’ll learn so much from the first session that you’ll be really on the case next time.
The more time you spend preparing for the studio, the less time, money and patience you’ll waste when you get there. Spend a couple of rehearsals trying different arrangements and working out parts for things like guitar overdubs and vocal harmonies. Take as many different instruments and amps with you to the session as possible so you have lots of flexibility when you’re getting sounds. Take spares of everything with you so you don’t have to waste half your recording time going to a music shop to get stuff during the session. Try and write down all your ideas for a track including how you want the overall sound to be and what parts you want to put on it. Take cd’s of other bands that have sounds you like to the studio for comparison. Write out the lyrics for each track; this will be useful if you need to ‘comp’ the vocal (edit several takes into one rather then do a whole live take). Invite the engineer or producer who is going to be working with you to a rehearsal so they’re familiar with your live sound before they record you.
When you’re actually in the recording studio, allocate your time in advance; for example, if you have 2 days for 3 songs, allow half a day for drums, half for bass and guitars, half for extras and vocals and half for mixing. Stick to this like glue, otherwise you can end up spending a whole day perfecting a guitar solo and run out of time! Most things can be fixed in the mix if you’re using logic or pro-tools and it’s amazing how insignificant a tiny mistake can seem when all the parts are completed. In other words, don’t sacrifice the whole for the sake of a minor detail. If your band is tight enough, try and record bass and drums at the same time so you get a bit of a vibe on the recording. Generally you’ll notice there’s a difference between the take with the vibe and the one that’s technically perfect but has no vibe.
Double-tracking the guitars (where you record the same part twice) can help to make a big sound; double tracking vocals will smooth out the tone and help with tuning imperfections. If you’re a guitar band, try not to load up your song with too many obvious parts that can’t be replicated live so people aren’t disappointed when they see you after hearing the recording. Finally, try and avoid the tendancy to demand ‘more me’ in the mix; listen to the overall sound rather than just your own part or you’ll end up confusing the engineer, fighting with your band and coming away with a bad mix!
If you’re intending to release your recording yourself, you’ll first need to get it mastered. Mastering is basically applying equalisation and compression to the finished stereo mix, to make the overall level equivalent to other released cd’s. It irons out any odd frequencies and make the whole thing sound louder and clearer. Entire studios and engineers are dedicated to the process of mastering and you can spend lots of time and money on it if you’re a perfectionist. However, there is now affordable mastering software available so you can get passable results at the recording studio or at home. If you’re doing the mastering yourself or at the end of a studio session rather than at a designated mastering studio, always use a favourite or appropriate cd as a comparison to check that your eq is well balanced.