Fearless Creativity

Imitation is flattery.  But that’s all it is.  It’s not inventive or eye opening or explorative. I believe that when bands aspire for a certain sound that’s all that results in the end, imitation.   What is exciting about being in a band or a part of a musical production is the possibility of creating something that is totally unique without trying.  What I mean is don’t be scared to let any and all ideas flow out of your brain, into your hands, and onto the recorder.   I see it all the time.  Bands limit themselves to certain instruments and sounds because their self-image is already married to a specific genre.  Get divorced, or at least separated.  Date some new genres.  Hell invent some.  Post Grunge Metal Core Folkdisco chips is calling your name.
 

The reason the Beatles were so great is because they were on the cutting edge of technology at the time, pushing for new sounds and rebelling against recording industry standards.  I feel like a lot of times we are all scared to defy the “laws” of music/recording that we all hold to be true in our heads.  In a sense it is out of respect for those who came before us. If we really want to honor the greats we should push for new sounds and ideas.  That’s what they did!  I’m not saying force out some weird sounds purposely just to be different.  We have all heard that crap.  Genre: experimental.  But yeah, what the hell, throw that accordion solo on your new wave song.  It might sound cool.  And hipsters like that stuff, and they must be appeased.

Vocal. Is. King

The vocal is everything.  This may seem obvious to most music listeners, but I feel like after recording bands for the past 8 years it is often the most overlooked part by musicians themselves.  Myself not excluded (I am a slow learner). The vocal is the connection to the listener.  It needs to be felt, understood, and delivered with an authenticity that only comes from a place of real emotion.  It is what gives you goose bumps that first time you hear a line that hits you in the soul, consequently begging for many future plays on your ipod.

Sure you can argue that there are huge fan bases for dance music and jam bands.  But the effects of drugs are temporary.  I am talking “test of time”, pluck your heart strings, get you through the worst times in your life type songs.   Of course there are bands and songs that can just flat out rock your face off too.  AC/DC would be a good example.  But if you look at it even these songs have a message that connects somewhere:  “Rock n roll ain’t noise pollution, rock n roll ain’t gonna die!”.    Hell yeah!  I’m on board. 

I think, as musicians, sometimes we get fixated on our guitar parts, drum fills, and bass lines to a point that we lose all perspective on the purpose of the song at hand.  The vocal is king, and the instruments are it’s servants.  Get me a beer bass line.  Make me a sandwich guitar solo. 

Recording Studio Thoughts: A Recording Weekend at The All Nighter

Recording Studio Thoughts: A Recording Weekend at The All Nighter: Back country road. Sun shining down. You pull down the long driveway to the end and start unloading your gear. You've rehearsed these song...

A Recording Weekend at The All Nighter

Back country road. Sun shining down. You pull down the long driveway to the end and start unloading your gear. You've rehearsed these songs to death and are ready to etch them in stone. Jittery, a bit nervous. You look off to the left and see a woman watering a vegetable garden. This is Paula, she is your lovely host. She greets you and shows you around the barn in renovation where she plans to host many great concerts and parties. You are anxious, but calmed by the country air, soothing atmosphere, and friendliness that surrounds.

Then you meet me (Tommy C), and that is all shot to hell (jk). I show you around the studio and guide you through the setup process. Once settled in we work on getting drum sounds. This is so vitally important to the process and is paid extra special attention. We tape, turn keys, remove heads, loosen snares, tighten snares, remove tape, move mics, high five, finished. The kit breathes, it pumps. No more cardboard.

Next we turn our attention to guitar amps. Knobs are turned, mics positioned, repositioned, we are moving ear friendly waves of sound into Pro Tools and are happy. Move on. I like to run bass direct and have a wonderful Sansamp bass pre/eq that we put the signal through. But here's the deal: There are no rules in audio and the buck doesn't stop with me. Let's mic up the bass amp as well if you desire. Listen, use our ears. Choose the direct sound only. Amp sound only. A Combination of the two, ahhh that's it!


So now that we have tones honed in it is time to record. My philosophy is that to get an authentic sounding end product we need to start authentic. Band plays live! Just like at any rehearsal or show you've ever done. Feed off of each other. Play off each other. Feel the energy! A metronome is optional, although recommended. Great music has been made with or without. The object is to capture takes that "feel" great, not necessarily perfect performances at this point. We can fix flaws here and there, but if the feeling is there we are on to something and can build off of that. It's been a long day and we are all satisfied with our work, but hungry. It's time to relax, maybe order a pizza, start a fire, or throw on a dvd in the lounge.

After a night spent hanging out around the campfire passing the acoustic around you wake up well rested. You put on coffee and make breakfast on the griddle in the band lounge. The shower is calling your name. You stank. Once refreshed it is time to get back to work! The day is yours. Guitar overdubs and vocal tracks are calling your name. Percussion tracks are begging you to add them. This is going to be a fun.... Get out to the All Nighter! Contact me at Cappel Recording to book time