Recording as a career?

[Mindset]

Trust me and take my word for it, I deal with Royalty and A&R people everyday. They will re-coup what is spent and the advance, too. The record company always pays the bills AND will re-coup absolutely everything back, including the record release party. Budget is the planned expense. The re-coup will be for anything spent.
If the record cost $300K, and the album sells $200K of billing minus manufacturing and packaging, advertising (and the list goes on) ... the record company eats the cost, unless there is another album due, and they will continue to re-coup until the expenses are met

Yeah a lot of record labels will recoup costs, but not all record labels. As a producer, I've delt with many projects before. As a record label, we've contracted on many projects on a larger scale. Fact is majority of labels will recoup every cost, but it's not always on the darkside. Deal with artists with strong negotiating power.

 

[MessianicDreams]

I work as a sound engineer - it's the one and only job that I do. Yes its hard, but if you put your head to it and are willing to put in the hours for your passion, then for maybe 60-70% of those who try its possible.

I started out working in a reputable studio as their house engineer. Then studio closed down, and I spent the best part of a year freelancing - which was both very hard and very rewarding. I've just been made head engineer in a 4 studio facility, so it'll be back to regular in-house work, with a guaranteed salary.

I think it's important to know what will give you satisfaction in life. Is it working some boring 9-5 job and getting your satisfaction from your life on the side? Are you passionate enough to let your work become your life?

Sure, I don't make a fortune. I have plenty of friends who went down the "desk job career" route, and for all the money they earn, they fucking hate their lives. Yeh, I work harder than most of them, and earn less money than most of them, but I love every single day of work I do!!

 

[JIMBOdrummer]

Location comes into it too

i live in Boston MA. big city with allot of unseen talent. i mean there will never be a shortage of musicians who want to record. but at the same time it's competitive here.

I've been doing hip hop for a while while in college and its good side money. i'm not sure how lucrative it would be if i pursued it full time.

i've been wanting to start a label too. a local label to promote around the boston area.

 

[vostok88]

what I would be afraid of is all the new hardware that make life easy for anyone who wants to record.. I mean, it's a lot easier now to make your own home studio in your garage than it was 15 year ago.

am I wrong?

I have to disagree with you on this one .

'True', nearly everyone & their grandmother nowadays is in a 'band', owns a laptop DAW program, a couple of mics & cheap monitors. 'Yes', they can record 'decent' demos from this highly-new trend of recording.


However, RARELY - are they going to make a 'complete' record that sounds worth a crap. This is where 'real' recording studios come into play. They know how to do this very job, and usually do it well. Especially for all of these 'up & coming' local garage-bands out there who desperately want their records on the radio, MTV, whatever - their little 'laptop-studio-in-a-box' will simply just NOT cut it. it may sound 'good' to their friends & families - but to any record company, producer, major label - forget it - they'll just get laughed at.

So many things go into a 'professional sounding' recording, at an actual recording studio. So if you're in a band that actually wants to even have a decent chance of 'making it' - you'll need to take the time & money to 'do it right' & get the help you'll need at a local recording studio - not from your dorm room.

And believe me, there's been MANY a famous band over the years who have cut their 'platinum-selling' debut album, at a 'local' commercial studio - you don't HAVE to be in a million dollar studio to do that (look at Nirvana for example.) Just find one that has decent prices that you can afford, sounds pretty good, and probably most important - has an engineer(s) that will really 'work with you' & have a really good time in the process of making you sound to the best of your abilities. They usually know what they're talking about and can hear things that you can't, that can often make your band sound much 'better' in the end.

(and don't forget to 'make it fun' either. That's what a lot of it's all about. It shouldn't turn into a 'dread-session'.)

- unless you or you're band prefers to make 'lo-fi' recordings, or 'demos' for the fun of making them - then home-computer set-ups are fine for that.

But in summary - home-computers & laptops will never, EVER sound as good as the 'real thing' - period.


(and I won't even go into the whole 'analog' thing - in which the little laptop-DAWS now 'claim' to sound 'as good as'..................yeah, right.

 

[fat_fleet]

learn to fix amps.
where i live there are about 1500 bands and 2 guys who fix amps.

 

[vostok88]

Funny you mention that.

Our studio has both a guitar and guitar amp 'repair-hotrod' facility in the back. Gotcha covered

 

[mshea]

On the right path...

I applaud you for having the forethought to research your career options. Remember the golden rule when requesting feedback. Take what you need and leave the rest. With that said and done I will leave you with the following advice based solely on my own personal experience.

I am a creative and years ago pondered a similar question as you. I chose to follow the $$$ and landed myself a nice safe corporate gig and that has afforded me the opportunity to fund my passion which is music. Often times I question that and get frustrated when I want to pull an all nighter to finish a song but can't because i've got to be at that office to get that $$$. That frustration fades quickly armed with a nice fat check to purchase gear with.

My husband is a creative and never pondered the question, just went right into the music field originally as a bass player. I am thoroughly convinced he is an alien, he has been gifted with ears that can pick out the frequency of a fly farting and with that gift is now a living legend with 4 Grammys, numerous RIAA awards and a discography few can match. He is as some called it one of the lucky few who has made a successful, lucrative career out of audio engineering and still going strong.

The point is to find a way to analyze your current aptitude. Audio Engineering is an art, if you can't hear it all the training in the world won't help you. I am not sure where you are located but you can request an investigational interview at a studio, see if you can spend some time with a full time engineer. The logical me screams go for the stable gig, but the creative in me is cheering to follow your passion, if and only if you have the aptitude to follow that path.

Best of luck in your endeavours, which ever path you choose. And keep asking questions, knowledge is power.