Recording Headaches

[qbradley]

hearing the band as an alien with multiple prehensile ears.

Great analogy and visual!

[Prometheus]

I have never been satisfied with anything I have recorded. If I ever get a cut on a major label, then I will be satisfied.

Maybe not... There's never been a recording made in the history of recorded audio that an experienced ear couldn't pick fault with. Even in recordings made at Abbey Road level I've heard artifacts that have made me wince.

Part of it is having realistic expecations. Even in the highly testosterone fueled type A personality world of the Sound Engineer, there aren't many of us arrogant enough to think we'll make the first perfect recording ever made. Every fix applied has unwanted side effects, it's always a trade off.

Two good examples that always assault my timpanic membranes like a coin scraping on glass are over used de-essers and overgated drums. That said I'm reluctant to criticize the engineer / producer because I don't know what he had to work with before the effects were applied.

[Triode]

Darren - Are you working with other people? It's not just the technology that might be getting in the way if your process has become making every decision about how the full instrumentation should be.

A compelling recording springs out as a performance coming from one place which is easier to do with voice and one instrument for one person. Once that process extends to fiddling with some plug ins and production whilst still writing the song it's not surprising that merry-go-rounds come into play!

If other people contribute instrumental parts on your songs then recording is more of a snap shot of the performance again - like it might be with just you and and one or two mics playing the song. I think that's the first feeling to capture and share.

All the best with it!

[Prometheus]

Jim, if you could handle those cantankerous pigs you'd be walking in the park with a modern DAW...