recording solo album

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Milkman

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Hello,

I'm going to start this summer recording some things for a solo album...and have found it proves a lot more difficult than i thought...that is because i want to record myself playing each of the instruments.

For each song, I want to record a keyboard track, drum track, auxilary track, maybe a synth track and vocals...but I have found it very difficult to get each track to groove with eachother...so a few questions...

Should I record each track all the way through, or do the song in sections recording each instrument?

Should I be scared if one track doesn't line up exactly with a click? Are they ways to fix a track...i.e. like a snap to time or something?

If it helps, I use Cool Edit Pro with my audiophile and Mackie 1202 mixer...thanks a lot...
 
This is quite doable. You should lay down a click track first to set the timing for the song. Then lay down your individual tracks, one a time.

It is probably best to do a complete track of one instument. Then go back and "punch in" corrections to any mistakes on that track until you get an acceptable take. Leave the vocal track for last.

I'm not familiar with Cool Edit, but most multi-tracking software will allow you to move things in time. You may have to do it manually - rather than using some "snap to" feature - but it is not too difficult.

Questions regarding talent left aside for now, it is not overly difficult to do a project as you propose. Good luck.
 
thanks datchay, would the instrument track be snapped into time with click track?
 
Unless you're going to be looping, I'd forget about snapping anything. There's really no need to. The measures don't have to line up perfectly (again, unless you're looping) as long as your audio does. Like dachay said, use the click track as your timing reference.

Another note, if you're using a drum machine, you can lay out and record the entire drum track first, then that becomes your click track. If you're using real drums, it's usually better to use a normal click first. Do start with the drums, though - it'll save you a lot of headaches.
 
There is no magical way to make your timing better. Either get the performance right or use a loop.

You can snap midi data if you are using drum machines or keyboards but not audio data.
 
There is no magical way to make your timing better.
Click to expand...
Tex, in most multi-track programs you can move an *off time* item.

I don't mean to imply that you can take a bad performance and turn it into a good one, but you can correct an off-beat snare hit, or move a vocal phrase backwards or forward in time to correct minor timing mistakes. This is at the root of what makes digital audio so powerful.

But as stated before, there is no *snap to* function for audio. These corrections are normally done entirely by ear.
 
i do all my recording in this way; and it is possible, if a bit time consuming

i'd advise that you get your click dead on, and any 'backing' instruments *really* tight. Do it in one take, too; cos its a bit of a game trying to exactly match the waveforms up when you punch in again (although, again, it is possible!)

My experience has been that any small mistake early on will mess up pretty much anything that follows - it is worth the extra frustration to get it right!..... You *can* chop the wave up and sort it out by hand, but there is no automatic way to do this for audio (as far as i know) - so this can mean a calculator, a steady mouse and a lot of time! Far better to do it right in the first place.
 
I'm recording a solo album, and I do everything myself. Take in all that's been said before, get the click track right first. I tend to lay down a rhythm guitar next (as a guide as much as anything) then work on the drums. Do the vocals last.

It can be hard work and time consuming, but try and get it as perfect as you can, it's worth it in the long run. I find this one of the most enjoyable things ever, it's very rewarding. I hope it all works out for you.

Dave.
 
I like to loop a simple drum track (kick snare) and use this as my "click track," then record a scratch vocal/rythm guitar track to help me map out the song before I lay down any real tracks. I then do: drums, bass, rythm and the rest in that order.

The hardest part for me is playing drums to the click. Man, and drums is my firs instrument and I thought I had pretty good time. But nothing like playing to a click to highlight your timing inaccuracies!

The solo route can be frustrating, but in the end it is pretty cool to hear a complete mix of all you. Plus, no arguing from the bass player that his track is too low, etc. ;)
 
A couple of years ago I did a solo album. I religiously used a click track for everything but I found it wasn't always easy and at the end of the day I believe it screwed up a few songs. I right all my songs on acoustic guitar and even though I have a good sense of rhythm playing to a click doesn't always work. With more experience I've found the reason is that some guitar rhythms have a lot of syncopation. Whilst an entire bar of music may stay the same the placement of the crochets is not strictly even - and this is where the "groove" of the music is buried. Trying to play to a strictly even metronome means that you end up fighting it and the performance whilst "in time" sounds very strained.

Unless your sense of timing is really bad I'd suggest trying to lay rhythm tracks without a click track. Just use 2 bars of click "preroll" to get you started on a consistent time. If you can't get it to sound acceptably even then return to the click.

I know this sounds counter intuitive but I spent a whole year doing my first home album and I cite this problem as the number 1 cause of degraded quality and loss of "groove". Recent songs I've recorded "clickless" are much more live sounding - like I imagine they should be.

I prefer a really natural style of acoustic rock. If your into dance music disregard everything I've said !
 
Hey dres, sorry to contradict you, but playing with a click is not a matter of how syncopated or straight the music is. I am a drummer and have been playing to clicks for more than 7 years, sometimes for more than 8 hours a day. A click really helps you establish time and learn how to GROOVE. If yoour music sound lifeless after playing to a click it means that you do not know how to play to one and that you need lots of practice...or do you think that vinnie colauita or jeff porcaro never ever played to cliks in the studio and recorded some of the best and most grooving rhythms of all time...think rosanna.....africa. But its true, if you have never played to a click, maybe you´ll be more confortable without one...I really suggest that you start practicing with one, just like the big boys do
 
I would agree with alonso in that the click track is a very effective tool in the studio, especially if your a drummer by trade. When I used to record in the studio with a band our drummer took on the challenge of keeping time with the click track for the first track of a song of which then we followed but that was his job. As a guitarist and a home wrecker I get very frustrated with the click track but I use it because I do not trust my sense of timing and start over many times on a take just to get the feel of the tempo. Oddly enough beer seems to help.
 
alonso: I agree that I'd probably get better at playing with a click with lots of practice. I play drums as well and I find playing *drums * with the click no problem. My trouble comes playing acoustic guitar (rhythm) to the click. I suppose I should start with drums and bass with the click, turn it off then record my acoustic ?

Because I write the songs on the acoustic I always tend to record that first which concequently sets the timing for everything else. It's a bit of chicken and egg thing really. I like the song the way I play it on the acoustic but the song needs to be built on a solid rhythm (bass, drums)... but how do I get drums and bass that fit with my acoustic before it's recorded ..... need more musicians so it can all happen at once me thinks... like my good old band days.

I'm still trying to work it out but slowly my recordings are improving (I think !). Maybe I should take some lessons from the Big Boys ?
 
dres: try recording a reference guitar track with the click as best you can. Then record your bass and drums while listening to both the guitar and click, focusing on the click if possible whenever the guitar part drifts.

Then go back and redo the guitar part listening to the bass and drum tracks. (no click)

Hopefully that should work for you.
 
Yup. If you've got a good meter, you might even lose the click altogether (shudder). A know lot of blues guys do it that way ("Click? We don't need no stinking click - we just need some whiskey"). :D

Seriously though, you can use whatever you want for timing reference. If your meter isn't really tight though, you're better off fighting with the click. I used to obsess with making sure my little measure markers lined up in my recording software. Then I realized that for me, it was mostly pointless (I'm in the he-man MIDI hater's club)

I'd have to say that's the first time I've heard of somebody who can play drums to a click easier than a guitar. All the more power to ya.
 
I have to agree with littledog. The forst thing you need is a reference track for the drums and bass. When you record these two, really focus on the click and on playing as tight to the click, not tense or stiff rhythmically, as you can. Once these tracks are down, when you record the guitar, if there is enough drums, you wont need the click, but if the drums go too quiet or stop playing, you can turn on the click on top of everything else. That is how we recorded our album, and I can tell you that the guitarrist souns jawdropping...he recorded with bass and drums and with the click on top, not so loud as to overpower the nstruments, but loud enough to serve as a reference...
 
For reference track you could use some kind of midi sequence that gives you the harmony and the basic parts of the song. It shouldnt be like a totally polished and arranged thing, but it must be good enough to give you guidance and even inspire your performance a bit
 
If you are playing to a click track and you feel like the groove is lost, one solution is to reduce the click's tempo to half-speed. It will take a little practice to play with the click on, say, the 1 and 3, as opposed to each quarter note, but you will have more give and take between the beats while still landing on the click's reference.

Cy
 
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