Rerecording Old Material

[Bugz McNair]

Anyone else, after discovering a fair amount of new techniques when it comes to the recording process, get that itch to tackle a previously recorded project and do it over with the new tricks you've learned? As someone who has just stated taking recording music seriously within the last year, I have still learned a lot(this site has helped a lot too). When I look back on some of the songs I recorded I see so many rookie mistakes, and I just can't stop myself from redoing them. I can already see this is going to be a habit I'm going to have to learn how to break. I know I still have a lot to learn, and do we really ever stop learning new things anyway?

 

[Wardove04]

I have been recording for approximately year now, and am currently going through the same exact phase as you are now. I recorded several songs (5-10), and I'm seriously contemplating re-doing them. In my opinion, I don't think it would hurt to try to make a song better. In addition, I think the songs will have a new perspective on them. However, don't let "returning to old material" slow down your creative energy to create new material. Hope this helps, good luck!

 

[mjbphotos]

I did it for a few songs that will be on my CD as there were things I could noticeably improve on them and things I was not happy about before I sent to the mastering studio.

 

[rfahey86]

I've tried to do this, but it never works out the same. I usually end up changing parts of the song. Adding new parts, removing others.

 

[grimtraveller]

Before getting involved at HR I had mixed close to 100 songs over a 4~5 year period on an 8 track cassette portastudio. But on reflection early this year, I thought much of the content was muddy and in some cases cluttered and certainly clipped and overburdened with effects. So I decided to remix all of them. It's a pain in the patootie, painstakingly going through each one. And sometimes, I find that something does need to be rerecorded. I was quite fortunate, last week a friend that has moved to Switzerland was over for a couple of weeks. She'd sung on some of the stuff in need of repair back in '99, 2000, 2004, whatever and was able to redo some. It was so much better. I've touched up bits of guitar and bass, rejigged a few tunes, cut out/ erased alot of what I consider twaddle and I feel alot better about it all. And this is all alongside stuff I've been recording digitally over the last 2 years.
Sheesh.

 

[aaronmcoleman]

Yup all the time. I just have to decide enough is enough and be done with a song sometimes. That usually inspires me to go on and write some new better stuff so I don't feel like I wasted my best songs on some lousy recordings.

 

[mcmetal]

Yes and no.Everything i've ever recorded needs re-recorded better.That's part of learning and striving to do better the next time.I'm finishing up a project of 12 songs i've written over the past several years.Those were songs that were recorded with a drum machine when i was looking to join a band.I just wanted to put something together to show my writing style but never considered any of it "finished."

Because of course others always want their input and the song always "changes."Sometimes that's a good thing and sometimes i hate when someone messes with my songs.That's another issue entirely and i could rant on forever...I decided to record them again because i'm done with them.I don't have time for a band anymore so i just wanted to complete what i had started.

On songs that i wrote with the intention of it being a finished song i just learned to live with what i did.Sure they could be redone with better quality but i'll never capture the essence of the song as it was when it was recorded.My songs reflect on my life and what i was going through at the time i wrote them.Those songs got me through the bad and good times.I can pick out every flaw in them,every mistake,and still enjoy them as much as when i first wrote them.

Maybe someday i'll redo some of them again.