Break Out of The Box

The audio world used to be full of rebels willing to break all the rules. Now it's held back by those who want to either follow suit or stay within presets and pre-defined guidelines. The reason why we have half of the effects, plug ins, and innovative gear choices at our finger tips, is because of someone who was not satisfied with the status quo.

It was those late night experimental mic placements. The beautiful accidents of various electronic anomalies. Those "mess ups" that were intentionally left because it DIDN'T sound like everyone else. There was a different thought wave when it came to music years ago. The studio was not so much a place to make magical recordings it was an instrument in itself that merely captured those magical recordings. Recordings that were made by well versed and thorough musicians. These great takes were then enhanced by a more than able engineer with good ears, a heart reference of what music should sound like, and a limited amount of ways to achieve that balance. It was not one person or any one idea that made a great record. It was everyone binding together and pursuing the same goal.

During the month of March, I challenge you to experiment with something new. We all get locked into our habits. That mi sounds good on that cabinet, that guitar pedal always stays at those settings, that vocal take is always treated with the same effects and sung on the same mic, in the same room, with the same person... See what I mean. It sounds kinda boring. 

If you want to really ramp up your interest and discover new things, then try new things and you will naturally be excited by what you get from that. Stand out, and do something that you or no one else you know for that matter has ever tried! Come back periodically and let me know what you've done and lets share!

We Have A Lot To Learn

I saw this a few months ago and just had to share it! This so true! I have been listening to a lot of podcasts and watched several videos of "famous" mixing engineers and all of them say repeatedly that they are learning stuff everyday. Mixing is very technical, but there is a side to it that is also very artistic. Maintaining a balance between the two is crucial, and when art is involved with nearly anything, it is always evolving and changing shape.The only way to effectively manage that change is to continue learning and trying new things.

Today, I encourage you, that before the end of this week, try something new. Search youtube for a cool trick or tip and apply it. Put up some mics and move them around a room with an acoustic guitar until you have a catalog of various sounds in that room. Put a distortion pedal on your keyboard. (It actually sounds pretty cool) What you will find is that by doing things in a different way and learning new things to try out, you will rekindle the passion for what makes you unique. Your methods will be different, your style is different, your music will be different, because you are unique. So don't be afraid of learning new things from someone else, rather embrace them and they will ultimately fall into your hnads and be molded in a way that only you can.

I challenge you to DO SOMETHING new this week!

Motivation for The Home Studio

Every audio engineer has their moments of motivation, and their moments of procrastination. There are several factors that play on each side. For me, I am usually less motivated when I am tired. For one, I know my mixes will suffer from sleep deprivation, and for two... I usually end up going back and thinking, "What was I thinking?" So I rely heavily on coffee. I love coffee! It not only peps me up but it relaxes me as well. I am a coffee critic. I love trying different brands, different blends, and love to make up my own. So, one oft favorite "Homebrews" is the "Juniorint Latte". Everyone who has had it also loves it! In fact I have had people travel from miles away just to have one!

So, to beak away from the monotony of typical posts, today I hand down to you my "secret recipe". Try it and let me know what think.

Why? Because coffee is good!

How To Know When The Mix Is Done? (My Take)

Recently Grahm Cochrane over at the  RecordingRevolution.com covered this topic on Twitter with a link. To give you the brief overview, his method is to stop when your head is bobbing, when your feeling the music and not just analyzing the mix. For more insight and a ton of wisdom head on over to his website and give that post and many others a look.

Now, another method that I have learned is note taking. It is geeky, and thus why I love it! Joe Gilder over at the HomeStudioCorner.com kicked down this method (I felt cool when I said, "Hey, I've been doing that!"), but he went a step further to explain the whys of note taking to his listeners. Great stuff!

So my spin on all of this is...
What if you don't like the song? What if you LOATHE the song?! In this case it will be nearly impossible to bob your head, and note taking... Well, turns into doodles of you with a shotgun pointed at your computer.

So what do you do?! You've gotta make money right?! Or maybe this is one of your own. (It happens) Well here are some tips from some guy in a small town with big dreams.

1) If it is your mix and you don't like the song, move on. No one will be hurt and you may save yourself some embarrassment. You're actually doing yourself a favor, because the stuff you love to mix comes out WAY better anyway. If it is a clients, one option is to ask to hear the stems of the songs your asked to mix before you agree. This could save you time and money as well. Then you could work on something you like, get better results quicker, and move on to the next job. It's good practice anyway, considering most people like to give you recordings that are not useable.

2) If you can't bob your head, note taking is going to be the only way thru it. Listen critically, write down what needs changed (without touching a mouse or keyboard) when it's played through, make only the changes you've wrote down. Rinse and repeat till there are no changes left. Then run it to the client in a ziplock baggie with rubber gloves! 

3) The last option is to take breaks. Mix something else, then come back to it. Don't take so many breaks you conveniently forget to mix it and give your service a bad name.

4) Overall, your time is valuable, you only have so much of it. Don't involve yourself in things that will drain you of your time and happiness for the sake of making a dollar or two. It IS ok to say no to a client, if done with humility and kindness it may even make them come back with a better recording.

So in conclusion, the methods of reaching the end result of a finished mix are still the same as before. But, if you can't stand the mix, you still need to make informed decisions and give it your best shot, or simply don't take the job. It would be much better than producing work you're not proud of or could drive away work later. Be true to yourself and to your style. 

What Drives You?

It is a simple question but the answer will keep you focused on what matters most. 

What is it that makes you set aside time to write that new song? What primal 

instinct is it that makes you wanna pick that guitar up as you walk by and play a 

few chords? What urge dictates to you that you want to finish that mix?

For most it can be easily answered in a few seconds, for others they may really think about it for awhile. But I can almost guarantee that the same conclusion will be reached, directly or indirectly. It is for the sake of creativity, and the love of music!

Just a little reminder today to keep it real! Remember why you are doing what you 

love to do! If it gets to burdensome, and it feels to much like a job. If it begins to 

drain you of happiness and you are getting burned out. It is OK to take a break, but don’t linger there, the longer you procrastinate the easier it gets to just simply say, “Awwww forget it”.

I have found that it is during those times when I was “burned out” and just felt to 

lazy to try, that some of the best material comes out then. It is almost like it was 

waiting till I got my technical self out of the way and just let my feelings and 

emotions take over again.

It is so exhilarating to walk into the studio with no desire to make anything happen 

and then watch it unfold right before you. It helps to ground you and remind you 

that this wonderful thing called music is never truly dormant, it is just waiting for a 

good time to shine.