Ep Recording Plan, What do you think? Options

[ElHombre]

Hello

Im thinking of how to record my EP.
One thing I like is to record at home. But im awful at mixing and all that...

I can record good bass and guitar at my home.

So I thought of doing it like this:

Someone will make drums for me and send me all individual components for mixing.
I will record guitar and bass.

The singer will record song at some studio.

And then a mixer guy will put it all togheter.
All wav. files I guess

Would it work?

[Cosmin Lupu]

As long as you will make sure that all the raw recordings are good quality and the workflow will allow you to keep things in order and in synch, of course it is possible.

You just have to discuss the initial parameters for the tracks with everyone, to make sure that everything fits

[Gabriel Leopardi]

Sounds like a great idea! Cosmin is right about parameters to keep a good quality in make everything fit ok in the mix. There are many albums that are being recorded like this nowadays so it definitely works. And if you need a guest solo, I'm in.

[Saoirse O'Shea]

Just a few comments:

If you're recording and mixing using a daw rather than tape then you don't need to do the drums first and the vocals last since bounce down won't be a noise issue (if you gain stage properly). You may therefore want to do the lead vocals first and drums later.

Pay attention to gainstaging - a lot of people wo are new to this get gainstaging wrong and that can bork the entire project.

If you're recording in different locations think about how you are going to manage different ambient conditions. You might want to record with no ambience and add reverb later than record live and have different ones that may add too much mush.

You will need to keep all the raw tracks, parts and comps and not just the stems for mix down. So you also need to think about how you are going to manage, store/file, prep and deliver them.

Record and mix at 24 and 44.1 or 48. There is little advantage to record at 88.2 or 96 and no advantage to do so above these.

Consider having the mastering done by someone other than the mixing engineer and in a different studio just to get more objectivity.

[Todd Simpson]

That's one way Most folks just use software drums for flexibility and cost savings. But if you can afford to have a drummer and studio time then sure, why not?

One of the biggest challenges you will face once it's complete is the same challenge any musicians faces these days, which is getting anyone to care. We would like to think that music can find it's way based on it's own merits, but more often than not it needs a bit of help to find an audience. There are soooooo many guitar releases coming out now that it just takes a laptop and a guitar to make one, that it's tough to break through the noise.

Try to come up with a strategy, (I hate to use the word gimmick) that will make your release stand out. Also set aside some money for a promotional budget for ads on youtube/facebook/google adwords etc. This is part of the game that is all to often overlooked.

This assumes of course you want people to find/hear your music. If you are really just making it for the pure love of doing so, it really doesn't matter if anyone hears so you can skip all the promotion. Just share it with friends

Todd

Hello

Im thinking of how to record my EP.
One thing I like is to record at home. But im awful at mixing and all that...

I can record good bass and guitar at my home.

So I thought of doing it like this:

Someone will make drums for me and send me all individual components for mixing.
I will record guitar and bass.

The singer will record song at some studio.

And then a mixer guy will put it all togheter.
All wav. files I guess

Would it work?

[klasaine]

The person who'd be sending you drum tracks ... do they know the songs? Are you 100% completely sure of the form of the songs? And/or how good are you at cutting up drum tracks and putting them back together?

If you're set on 'live' drums that's great but I'd sequence some drums with software as Todd suggests, solidify the form of the songs, put down at least bass and guitar (and maybe a scratch vocal) and then send it to a drummer to replace the fake drums.

[Saoirse O'Shea]

The person who'd be sending you drum tracks ... do they know the songs? Are you 100% completely sure of the form of the songs? And/or how good are you at cutting up drum tracks and putting them back together?

If you're set on 'live' drums that's great but I'd sequence some drums with software as Todd suggests, solidify the form of the songs, put down at least bass and guitar (and maybe a scratch vocal) and then send it to a drummer to replace the fake drums.

100% - if you use a live drummer get the drummer to midi trigger and send the midi file as well. That way you have the option of using it to trigger software drum vstis and can edit the midi track as well.

[klasaine]

100% - if you use a live drummer get the drummer to midi trigger and send the midi file as well. That way you have the option of using it to trigger software drum vstis and can edit the midi track as well.

Excellent advice!

[Cosmin Lupu]

100% - if you use a live drummer get the drummer to midi trigger and send the midi file as well. That way you have the option of using it to trigger software drum vstis and can edit the midi track as well.

I second Ken on the usefulness of this advice. See, I have written my thoughts above, forgetting to mention that I have been used to work with the band in such a way that before recording, we always know each and every bit of music that will be recorded.

Usually, before entering the studio - we have an already home recorded version of the tune and a clear idea in respect to the sound that we aim towards. So, for us, it's just a matter of recording the song in an environment that allows us to end up with hi quality raw tracks, but we know exactly what to play and when. So as Tony mentioned, make sure that you know what to ask of the people you are working for or even give them the whole song to learn - if you wish to do it like that. If you want their personal signature on the tune, well, that's trickier, because it involves composition work which will make the progress more slow and tedious.