from Ken Irwin of Rounder Records
>X-X-Sender: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>Date: Mon, 1 Feb 1999 12:56:11 -0800
>Reply-To: "Bluegrass music discussion." <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>Sender: "Bluegrass music discussion." <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>From: Ken Irwin <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>Subject: Re: How to Produce a Rock Record (fwd) <g>
>To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
>Subject: HOW TO PRODUCE A ROCK RECORD!
>
>First, spend about a month on "preproduction", making sure that everything
>is completely planned out so that no spontaneity is necessary or possible
>in the studio. If there are no "hits" there, make the band collaborate
>with outside songwriters. Line up extra studio musicians who are better
>players than the band themselves, just in case.
>
>Next, book the most expensive studio you can find so that everyone but the
>band gets paid lots of money. The more expensive, the more the record
>label will take the project seriously, which is important. Book lots and
>lots of time. You'll need at least 48 tracks to accomodate all the room
>mics you'll set up for the drums, all of which will be buried by other
>instruments later anyway, and for the added keyboard tracks, even if the
>band has never had a keyboard player. And for all the backing vocal
>tracks, even if the band only has one singer.
>
>Then, record all the instruments one at a time, but make the drummer play
>to a click track for every song so the music has no chance to breathe
>whatsoever. That way you can use lots of MIDI gear. Do multiple takes of
>each song. Use up at least 30 reels of 2-inch tape. Take the best parts
>of each take and splice them all together. You might even use a hard-disk
>recording system like Pro Tools, then transfer it all back to analog
>two-inch. Spend at least two weeks just compiling drum tracks like this.
>You'll need to rent at least a half a dozen snare drums, and you'll have
>to change drum heads every couple hours. If you really do it right, the
>entire band will never have to actually play a song together.
>
>Now, start overdubbing each instrument, one at a time. Make sure
>everything is perfect. If necessary, do things over and over until
>absolute perfection is achieved. Do a hundred takes if you must. If this
>doesn't work, get "guest musicians" in to "help out". Don't forget to
>hire someone who's good with samples and loops so the kids will think its
>hip! Better get some turntable scratching on there too. Be sure to spend
>days and days just experimenting with sounds, different amplifiers,
>guitars, mics, speakers, basically trying every possible option you can
>think of to use up all that studio time you've booked. No matter how much
>time you book, you can use it up this way easily. Everyone involved will
>think they're working very hard.
>
>Make sure you rent lots of expensive mics and expensive compressors and
>expensive preamps so you can convince yourself and everyone else how good
>it's sounding. Charge it to the band's recording budget of course. Make
>sure you have at least two or three compressors IN SERIES on everything
>you're recording. Any equipment with tubes in it is a sure bet, the older
>the better. The best is early-1970s-era Neve equipment, old Ampex analog
>recorders, and WW2-vintage tube microphones, since everyone knows that the
>technology of recording has continuously declined for the past 30+ years.
>Don't forget to get some old "ribbon" mics too. Make sure that by the time
>it's finished everyone is absolutely, totally sick of all the songs and
>never wants to hear any of them again. Oops! Now it's time to mix it!
>
>Better get someone with "fresh ears" (who's never heard any of it before)
>to mix it in a $2000/day SSL room with full automation. Make sure he's
>pretty famous, and of course you have to fly to LA, NYC or Nashville to do
>this, because there simply are no decent studios anywhere else. Make sure
>he compresses the hell out of everything as he mixes it. Compress each
>drum individually and then compress an overall stereo submix of 'em. Make
>sure to compress all the electric guitars even though a distorting guitar
>amp is the most extreme "compressor" in existence. Compress everything
>else, and then compress the overall mix. Add tons and tons of reverb to
>the drums on top of all those room mics, and add stereo chorus on
>everything else. Spare no expense. Spend at least two weeks on it. Then
>take it home and decide to pay for someone else to remix the whole thing.
>
>Then get some New York coke-head mastering engineer to master it, and make
>sure he compresses the hell out of everything again and takes away all the
>low end and makes it super bright and crispy and harsh so it'll sound
>really LOUD on the radio. (Too bad about all those people with nice home
>stereos.)
>
>Oh-oh!
>Your A+R guy just got fired!
>Looks like the record will never be released!
>
>
Jeff Wall
http://www.twangzine.com The Webs least sucky music magazine
3421 Daisy Crescent - Va Beach, Va - 23456
