One is a rock band recording their own songs and the other is a classic sounding funk band with a mix of covers and original, with a brass section awwwwwww I love brass sections.
Both bands are unsure about which direction to do the recording session either to record everyone together live and add a few instruments and vocals or to layer each instrument individually after the bass and drums are recorded.
This takes me back to my opening statement and after listening to the songs I have recorded in my collection and discovered something.
It dawned on me I have done hell of a lot of live recordings at the studio and on location.
I don't know if the studio side was to save time and costs or it was the direction I have nudged the band in with their sound and playing.
I personal get a complete frill out of recording live as it gives the feel and power within the performance and also comes across more human to the listener .
Layering instrument one after another is fine and gives me more control over the sound without the drums and guitar bleeding over every microphone, but if the player has had 5 or more goes at getting the same part right it can start to sound a bit stale to me and just going through the motions. Other words it works for some but no always for others.
With live recording what you hear is what you get, so as crazy as it sounds,the odd
missed note or a drum stool squeak just adds to the sound and feel.
Lol- I recorded a great Latin band live and with every stop which the band did with in the song the drummer pulled back on his drum stool and you can hear a long squeak, but it sounded like it should be there and added to the song, just magic :)
As a recording engineer my ears are always picking out instruments from a song on a record, and believe me I hear notes out of tune, rhythm mistakes, coughs, etc. You tune in to it and it's really sad you don't just listen as a whole but as smaller elements.
"Hey is it me or does anyone else think the flute solo in "Californian Dream" is completely out of turn from the first note to the end????
But does it add the feel to the track?
So I'm not saying I don't love recording every song with each instrument, what I'm saying is that you as a band you maybe just be missing out on that special bit of magic thats there and might happen.
Anyway back to the editting for me now as I have to clean up guitar and drum tracks for the blues band I'm working with.
Regards
Tony
Phattone studios.
Good shout Tony - I've heard tracks where the bass was out of tune all the way through, and these are released and do well - radio airplay etc. The feel must be the thing! That said, some instruments can take the odd error (guitar) and some can't (drums) - drummers are the utter cornerstone. If they can push feel, etc that's great, but it their timing is bad, it's bad for the whole band.
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