Songwriting

The hardest part about being in the studio is working with a song that hasn't been developed. There is no need to start record production if a song has not been worked out as fully as possible. However, I find that there is a certain amount of songwriting "finalization" within the recording process. Some people think that recording is only done after a song has been worked out or "jammed out" with the band; that all there is left to do is to put some mic's in front of you. If that is all that I did, my job would be pretty boring. Its my job to refine the song in any way to make as great as possible.... to add instrumentation or musical ideas that were not there before... and of course to bring out the emotion in each musician's recorded performance.



This guy (Jason Blume) has several helpful books out there on songwriting. I love to work with songwriters, perferably good ones that can sing their own demo too. But I suggest checking out his books. Anyone who considers themself a writer should check it out.

Staying Inspired

I have found that being inspired is one thing, but STAYING inspired is another. It is crucial to always feed yourself inspirational material in order to stay motivated in the music industry. This is one of the hardest parts about trying to get into such a tough industry. I highly recommend joining any mailing list, web site, or web group that has forum style information where members can post their own material. I found this great new site http://www.guitarplayerzen.com that has posts regarding new artistry for guitar players. Check it out.


Of course it ALWAYS helps to remember why you got into music in the first place....

Music Production 101

Expanding my equipment base has had a direct impact on the style of music being produced. I found that I quickly needed to collect various instruments in order to have a more diverse sound. This not only meant major instruments such as my Fender Telecaster, but things as simple as a Remo pocket shaker (which lately I've been using to death on my tracks). As far as using MIDI and plug-in's go, I use them sparingly. They can be very convenient, but I advocate the real thing. I use when I have a need for some low orchestral strings or for some moody sound effects. Otherwise my music production is all musician performed.

Lately I have been working with incorporating the Akai MPC with my Mapex acoustic kit. I have always loved the snare crack's of Quincy Jones on the Michael Jackson albums or Timbaland with Justin Timberlake. As much as I love drum machines, I don't think that I will ever be able to produce a track without some aspect of a live acoustic drummer. And of course, being a drummer originally, the kick is nearly THE single most important sound that I always spend time perfecting. I also like to add a lot of thickness to my kick, making it almost like a hip-hop kick depending on the track that I am working on. I also started adding two kick drum tracks for some rock/hip-hop songs. I think I first heard this when I was listening to Ludacris's 'Red Light District' album. Its fairly typical in hip-hop now to just have your regular kick playing while a TR-808 plays less frequently, such as on the 1 of every measure. I use this same technique by overdubbing a second kick track and running it through a 'lowpass' effect to boost the 45-50 Hz range. It will have that TR-808 feel to it, but you can control the overall effect, making it more subtle.

Having good equipment is important, but knowing how to use it is even more essential. With any new piece of studio equipment, spend time with it, read the manufacturers technical specifications, and learn how to optimally use it.