recording experiences (3 Viewers)

[Lord Damian]

just got back from a 2 day barnburner of a recording/mixing session...was a lovely time for the most part (weather was a bit shit the second day and this affected moods) but we ended up with 5 very nice tunes that should make a bit of a ripple in our local scene.

got me thinking about whether good sessions are the norm or are they usually filled with anxiety? what has been your experience?

for the record, i'm not talking your average home recording session, but one where you're paying money to sit around and debate tempo/arrangements/whether to keep the count-in in the mix....

and PS - if any of you's are ever in London, Ontario, Canada and fancy a bit of top-notch recording fun with a renowned genius of the Canadian indie scene, look up Andy at http://www.andymagoffin.com/ - a more amiable and eccentric chap you'll never meet.

 

[rampz]

the last recording session i was ever involved in back in 1993 involved me doing my parts for 2 songs in one take and then sitting around for hours upon hours whilst our guitar player added layer upon layer of 12 string acoustic, e bow blah blah blah.

all in all it wasnt much fun for me.

 

[stevieb]

the songs should be really well structured and arranged and demoed so you know it sounds right before the final recording is done and sometimes the demo can feel better than the final. the mixin should be done a while after you record to let things really settle in. reocrd everything you might think is needed and then if your happy with that leave it for a week or two then do the final mix.

my thoughts..

 

[Anthony]

sometimes the demo can feel better than the final

yea, you can waste a lot of time trying to recreate the demo.

 

[Unicron]

I've only been in a studio once. I found it to be a boring pain in the ass and ultimately hugely unsatisfying due to the results we wound up with. Recording = worst "cool" thing about being in a band.

So we bought a home setup after that.

 

[dudley]

i waaaaay prefer recording in a proper studio to home recording, though i love that too.
always feel like i have to raise me game when in a proper studio. gets very frustrating when it's not falling into place and you get concious of the money wasting away, but when it falls into place, it's the best

 

[Lord Damian]

the songs should be really well structured and arranged and demoed so you know it sounds right before the final recording is done

yup - we ran into a situation of about 3 or 4 non-keyboard/piano players trying to figure out parts for those instruments spontaneously...kind of a pain.

always feel like i have to raise me game when in a proper studio.

i became very aware of that in a good way...at first i was worried about 'thinking too much' about my part but it worked out in the end.

 

[sparse]

I spent two days recording feedback in an effort to recreate something I had done on a demo !ninjaaaa Didn't quite get it either. Handclaps are also a pain.

 

[Anthony]

Re: handclaps and multi vocals

is it better to

1. record one at a time and overdub.
or
2. get as many people round a mic and do it once (or twice)

 

[RED(tape)MENACE]

I spent two days recording feedback in an effort to recreate something I had done on a demo !ninjaaaa Didn't quite get it either. Handclaps are also a pain.

Could ye not have just flown in the part from the demo?

 

[sparse]

Re: handclaps and multi vocals

is it better to

1. record one at a time and overdub.
or
2. get as many people round a mic and do it once (or twice)

It's the same really, but you could get lucky with the all at once effort and get it in a couple of takes. The only problem there is that there's more people to get flustrated. I hate recording. I ALWAYS have to do my bits again.

 

[hermie]

I :heart: recording.it's boring and monotonous for long stretches for sure but when things start coming together there's nothing better.

 

[Anthony]

It's the same really, but you could get lucky with the all at once effort and get it in a couple of takes. The only problem there is that there's more people to get flustrated. I hate recording. I ALWAYS have to do my bits again.

ah, i already have opinions on this and I think option 2 sounds better. Just wanted to see what others thought.

 

[mark]

they* call me 'one-take-mark', i rarely have a problem recording. but aside from one occasion when i wasn't even playing through my own amp (i was using lord damian's fender bassman) i've never been happy with my recorded guitar sound. it's worrying me a bit coming up to new mound recordings. i've come to the conclusion that close micing my cab is not getting me the sound i hear. it's that kind of thing that worries more then performance in a studio.







* = I.

 

[dudley]

ampfarm

 

[mark]

arsefarm more like. be gone with your guitar poddery!

 

[sparse]

ampfarm

ampfarm is a great way of figuring out what gear you should buy. They should have it set up in guitar shops. I want a fender deluxe because of it, but what I really want is a 100w fender deluxe, which is annoying seeing as it doesn't exsist, so now I want a fender twin reverb instead, or just a tube reverb tank.

Will I ever stop buying equipment!?

 

[dudley]

arsefarm more like. be gone with your guitar poddery!

yer only option then is a decent studio with a cracking live room and deadly mics. delicious ribbon mics.
never heard a home recorded guitar that i've thought ruled

 

[RED(tape)MENACE]

I've got delicious ribbon mics ;p

Also, Deluxes sound very different from twins.
Why do you need 100w?
Any Deluxe I've heard has been plenty-fuckin-loud.

 

[Anthony]

i've come to the conclusion that close micing my cab is not getting me the sound i hear.

that's because you can't be arsed carting that huge cab to anywhere you record.