Equipment won't write songs for you

V

Vurt

New member
Hello,

I visit these boards when I have the time (not as much as I'd like to), and after a typical 30-45 min. reading, I usually feel just a bit uneasy. There are a lot of "start-ups" looking around and asking for advice, trying to develop their recording techniques, and I think sometimes they're having their attention turned away from the music. To anyone with an instrument, idea, and any recording device: please don't let that happen.

It’s an easy trap, though, because it really is a lot of fun - but don’t lose perspective. In my opinion, if you’re spending more time playing with recording equipment than actually writing songs for use with that equipment, then you’re probably running in place. Of course, if recording is your only responsibility or you’ve got some songs ready to commit, then by all means focus in on the recording aspect. Otherwise, hone your craft and worry about recording when you’ve actually got something to record. Writing isn’t an inherent process (for most of us), it has to be developed, and the idea of the world missing out on some great songs because the person was busy playing with their new digital 8 track…well, it saddens the soul.

I hope no one misunderstands me because I think this truly is a fantastic site, and I’ve learned a lot from it. Everyone’s comments and suggestions are greatly appreciated. As an example though, if someone new to music chimes in requesting, perhaps, information on which recorder to purchase, suggesting anything more than a four track *could * be almost counter-productive. Unless you plan outright on recording 20 tracks, get something decent and relatively easy to use so that you can concentrate on the songs. Great equipment will not do the work for you! Remember, the best Beatles songs were done on 4 tracks. Hell, I’ve heard some incredible songs done on boom boxes. Use your imagination, it’s an artists most valuable asset.

Anyway, just wanted to add my 2 cents. Sorry for the length.
 
You hit it dead center with your observation that recording can be just as much fun as playing music, especially with all these new digital avenues previously off-limits to the average Joe.

It's pointless to try to assign an optimal percentage of your time to fiddle with each hobby without first performing an honest self-assessment of one's skill levels in those areas. Not to mention factoring in what one's actual goal is. Is it playing out, making a CD, writing for others to perform, amusing yourself? Think of it as an Iron Man competition where the third event after music performance/composition and recording is maintaining a life.

Come on over to the sunny side of the street and get a glimpse of the magic that occurs when these hobbies are pursued simultaneously.

It's called the .MP3 Mixing Clinic
 
You are right, but just try getting my guitarist to realise that being in a band is just as much as a comittment as anything else, and "oh, i've got too much work this week" won't work every time. Anyone else wanna take his place and lives in SW London?
 
Vurt -

i hear what you are sying and I agree. I lost track for a while and "it" stopped coming out. But - alas I am back on this horse and ready to push it "further". I learned guitar when I was 14 and continued to play it because the more I did the better it felt - It was and is a perfect way for me to "get in the zone" and get the feeling of living in the present. That's one thing I like about music - it is all about now -

check the post called "Split Personality" under guitar and basses - it's similar
 
Actually I find it very difficult to record "live". I'm only an average guitarist, but I find it near impossible to lay a live track down which is simple enough that I can play it without making mistakes.
 
Vurt:

If a person has come to this site because they're interested in recording, then it *probably* means that they already have some music written. What we're trying to do is CAPTURE the music...give it life...from your head to the stereo, a beautiful thing.

I don't think that most people are going to miss out on writing their greatest music because they're fiddling with their 8 track. In fact I think that the opposite is more common. I know a lot of guys who's music is going to die with them. People who have hundreds of good songs but never get them onto tape.

I think that once you become efficient with your recording devices, they can actually help you write music. Like a writer who refuses to use a word processor because they don't want to take the time to learn the technology. Becoming efficient at recording will help you hear your ideas and therefore make it so much easier to add the little nuances that make the music special.

One more point. Not all music can be plucked out on an accoustic and some of us don't have a band to work with. I am now writing the best stuff that I've ever written because of my move into recording. Suddenly I have a whole band at my disposal, but I retain total creative control. This must be how Ian Anderson feels :)

Slackmaster 2000
 
Great comments everyone, and MasterSlacker, you've got some very valid points that I agree with to some extents. I'm just the type of person who would rather get 20 poorly recorded songs onto tape than 1 masterpiece, simply because I can later go back to the tape (maybe), pick out 3 potential masterpieces (hopefully), and then perfect them (god willing). Paranoia, I guess, but I liken it to fishing; you can screw with your tackle for six hours, but until you throw the line in, you're just screwing with tackle and drinking beer. I do know what you mean though, and you're probably right.

So, perhaps to the surprise of some of you, I’m *considering* a digital 8 track vs. the 424 MKIII that I’ve had my eye on lately. My reasoning is based primarily on past experiences with computers as well as a lot of comments I’ve read from others on this site about outgrowing their 4 tracks. I’ve done that too many times with PC’s, and may as well get a recorder that I’ll be happy with for a while. Anyway, I think I’ll also post a new msg in hopes of getting as many suggestiions as possible.

-Vurt
 
a little off the topic...but this came up in a different forum ..

c7sus , how well does the event tria system pick up and accurately reproduce the low end of the sonic spectrum ?

sorry vurt , dont meant to stray your topic..

- eddie -
 
Vurt:

I think that there are two schools of thought that musicians struggle with. I've been thinking about this for a very long time. The Minimalist vs. the Technolgy. I'm torn between it myself. For instance, I absolutely hate too many effects on the guitar. I don't like chorus and I don't like flange and I don't like cheasy overdrive...etc etc. Yet I find myself using them from time to time, and when I do I feel like I'm cheating!

There's that part of me that will always be of the mindset: "Give me a guitar, an amp, and a wah pedal and you can stick all those fancy gizmos straight up your ass!"

Then there's that part of me that thinks: "Hell, you're pathetic. What would you do if the power went out, eh? Gimme my beat up old acoustic!"

And then there's that part of me that thinks: "Hmm. It sounds cool when I twist this knob around."

So where do you draw the line between playing music and playing with music? Is there one? If someone spends two weeks trying to get a mix to sound perfect...how is that different from a guy who spends 20 years perfecting his guitar tone?

Anyway, not much point to this I guess. There is a part of me that agrees with what you've said for sure. But I do love recording...

Slackmaster 2000
 
This reminds me of what my friend/mentor Douglas once told me, something to the extent of:

The most important thing in recording is learning to use each piece of machinery to it's fullest.

I am 17 and have a very small income, but I have managed to pay off my pathetic car and now I can save up and by a new piece of equipment every now and then. I have plenty of time between purchases to learn all about my equipment. I guess what I am trying to say, is I have Very long and drawn out songs in my head and previously I have had no real way to get these out. I have been playing guitar seriously for 5 years. I can play different parts, but never the whole thing. In bands I can never get others to play what I want. Now that I recently bought a Yamaha CS2X synth I have been busy bringing these songs to reality. I think the most important thing to remember is to resarch and plan your purchases and make sure they are right for you. Some people go out and buy all this fancy equipment and it sits around rarely being used. Like Vurt is saying, You can have all the equipment in the world, but without the songs it does no you good.
 
I guess that I have come from a different angle. I play a little guitar, but I have found my real talent when I started mixing live bands. For several reasons, I now focus my efforts on my studio. I hate seeing good talent go to waste and I know there are many great musicians out there who have little means of getting their material recorded, so I have positioned myself to help them get their music out. Although I am not in a band, I get to be part of one each time they step through my door.
 
Actually,

I paid an extra $5 for my guitar and the salesman told me that it would write songs for me.......was he BS'n me?
 
Yeah, a guitar that writes songs will usually run $200 to $300 more than manual guitars. Sounds like the salesman just needed some lunch money.

Slackmaster 2000
 
Ah-hah! So that's my problem! I accidentally bought a manual guitar for cheap when a few extra bucks could have secured an automatic one. Oh, well... maybe if I teach it to sing it'll write me some songs in return. Even now it seems to try teaching me a song or two, now and then.

Remember the utility of the recorded work in relation to your vision of a composition. More than a couple of times I've recorded that heartfelt song, listened, and decided - dang - back to the drawing board!
 
Automatic shaumotomatic. Oy vey - brooklyn shmooklin. Okay, lookit.

* You spend more time on this, you got less time for that. You spend more time on recording sound, you spend less time on coming up with the sounds to record. Simple. Make your choice. Put yourself on the scale.

* I've been spending a bomb of time recently learning how to record the sound I've been writing and playing. Eventually, I'll spend less time learning this, and more time writing and playing. Or maybe there'll be a balance between all three.

* As I've recorded what I've written and played, I notice *way* more mistakes than I ever noticed before I started recording my music. So, I get rid of these mistakes. This is good, and let me tell a story about me and Scott in case you're in doubt about this.

* I prioritize - which function is more pressing at the moment... oh - by the way - excuse me, I feel a recording coming on...
 
Automatic shaumotomatic. Oy vey - brooklyn shmooklin. Okay, lookit.

* You spend more time on this, you got less time for that. You spend more time on recording sound, you spend less time on coming up with the sounds to record. Simple. Make your choice. Put yourself on the scale.

* I've been spending a bomb of time recently learning how to record the sound I've been writing and playing. Eventually, I'll spend less time learning this, and more time writing and playing. Or maybe there'll be a balance between all three.

* As I've recorded what I've written and played, I notice *way* more mistakes than I ever noticed before I started recording my music. So, I get rid of these mistakes. This is good, and let me tell a story about me and Scott in case you're in doubt about this.

* I prioritize - which function is more pressing at the moment... oh - by the way - excuse me, I feel a recording session coming on...

Okay, the piano's been drinking, not me, and that's why the message got double posted. Well, that's what I reckon, anyway.



[This message has been edited by dobro (edited 12-06-1999).]
 
i also think that music has drifted away from the 'real deal' of long ago. so many times i sit and listen to the radio in distaste of all the sampling and looping that is going on in the mainstream.....i.e. hip-hop, r&b.

music is no longer sounds of the soul, rather sounds of technology which in itself is impressive, but it lacks life, it lacks story.

when i sit and listen to some of my favorite artist of yesteryear like the temptations, louis armstrong, nat king cole, i hear it and i feel it. i hear the music and i feel the story behind it. in today's mainstrem (speaking only of hip-hop and r&b) i don't get that same vibe. every now and then a good one comes along, but with all of the 'toys' in this day and age, it's hard to tell what is what anymore.

so i guess the moral of all of this is to all of the new and old producers, engineers, recording artists, and everyone trying to get ahead and get a start in music. don't do it for the fancy toys, the neat gear, the top of the line equipment. do it for the love and the understanding of your talent. whether it's playing the piano (keyboard) or singing your heart out. learn your talent. embrace it, love it, and make it better. there are no effects boxs, drum machines, or anything else out there that can replace the 'real deal'. go colts!

smoov
 
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