Recording

[admin]

Question:How well-recorded do my demos need to be?Answer:Great question. We get it all the time. The answer is actually very simple. For song pitches, the recording can be much less "produced" than it should be for artist pitches. Some people believe that a song pitch demo should leave some room for imagination - let the artist or A&R person develop some emotional ownership of the song by imagining a tambourine part or a vocal harmony. For band or artist pitches, you may want to flesh out more tracks that show the artist's whole vision. Remember though, A&R people are far more interested in the song's potential, and the artist's appeal than they are about the quality of the recording. Nearly every act signed to a major label will be recording their entire album over again with a pro engineer and producer. The demo is only a demo!Question:Should I record in a professional or home studio?Answer:For song pitches, you can almost always get what you need from a home studio. Frankly, the same is true for artist and band demos, but you will need more expertise behind the console if you are doing a fairly developed demo.Question:Should I use a producer?Answer:If it's possible to find somebody with a great reputation who really knows how to produce, the answer is yes. A highly skilled, objective ear almost always makes for a much better product. On the other hand, there are a lot of unscrupulous people who claim to be producers, but don't really know what they are doing. Research your choice carefully. Try one song together before you commit to doing more work.Question:Should I sing my own demo?Answer:If it is an artist pitch, absolutely. If it's a song pitch, try a professional demo singer if you can afford one. An exception to this rule of thumb is when the writer (meaning you) has a great voice, or just the right kind of voice for the song. I've heard demos sung by people who had gravel in their throats, and couldn't nail a note to save their lives, but somehow their voice worked. Maybe it was because they conveyed the meaning of the song better than a stranger could. But please don't take this idea as an excuse to put a lackluster, crummy, or inappropriate vocal track on your demo.For More: http://www.taxi.com/faq/recording/#q1

[vikvik20]

I'm wondering if some of the points in this article are still valid in 2010... I mean it feels like based on the Industry listings, everything has to sound very well produced regardless of whether it's a "song pitch" or an "artist pitch". There appears to be no longer any room for "error" and the industry in general doesn't have the time for "imagination". It just appears to need to be "well produced" and sound great from the start.

Thoughts?

-Vic

[fret17]

If there's one thing I've learned by becoming a taxi member, it's that the industry's ears are used to great sound...where my ears have been fine with not so great sound....I've come to learn that to compete....I have to spend a lot of money that I don't have, to achieve the expected sound....My demos and productions are useless as submissions because I'm not a producer or an engineer that can translate my mind's sound into industry sound....I need help and that costs money...plus I don't know if my songs will ever be great enough to compete with the pros.....but I still have fun and I still try and I think thats important....I at least feel I have something to offer on the forum.....

[harbourtown]

Make sure the vocal isn't buried and do the very best you can do.

[tezlocke]

Hi all. I am a new member of Taxi and still feeling my way around. However, I must admit I am initially a little dismayed at the constant request for 'broadcast quality' for just about every submission I've seen. As someone here pointed out, to do that you have to spend a lot of money and we're (or most of us) are 'poor musicians' right? Seems to me, as I am wanting to promote my songs and NOT me as the artist,that a good demo should be sufficient to gain any potential interest in a song if the melody/hook/lyrics etc are clear and that anyone interested in developing the songs full potential would want to take it into a pro studio with pro artists. Surely if all my songs were already professionally produced to a 'radio lisening' standard I wouldn't need a publisher out there to pick up on one of my songs and run with it! Any thoughts?

[tezlocke]

Having just received my introduction pack for joining Taxi I must say it has made me feel a little easier about my own question that I raised. Living as I do in the UK the info took a little while to reach me. It covers the 'broadcast quality' question and seems to suggest that it does not have to be 'CD quality' or anything near it as long as the lyric is clear, melody and so on. So, I guess I will carry on making the best demo's I can given the limited resources/technology available to me and keep on keeping on!

[lyricalk]

I am looking for the same, i really appreciate your work and this information is really helpful for me during the recording.

[AmandaAnderson]

Hi Admin,

Please can you let us know if your answers to the FAQ in this post, still stand today in 2013, as they did back then in 2004 ?

I am assuming they are, otherwise you would have taken down the thread or edited it

Many thanks for ALL the useful info from Taxi and all my fellow forum members

Amanda & Tony

[kclements]

Hi Admin,

Please can you let us know if your answers to the FAQ in this post, still stand today in 2013, as they did back then in 2004 ?

I think it varies depending on your goals - label vs. library music for film and TV for example. A Lot has changed since 2004 - but some things are remain the same. If you think of the gear we use as tools to help get the job done, but skill is still a very necessary requirement, you're in good frame of mind.

I can buy every tool my carpenter has, but I still can't build a house. I don't have those skills. Audio is the same.
You can learn how to engineer and record great sounding records (I've heard amazing records done in a small bedroom with Garage Band), just as you can learn to play an instrument. But is that the best use of your time and money? For me, doing mostly instrumental music, it makes sense to do everything myself. This way, I can do quick turnarounds for listings without booking a studio. For others, it is more important to book studio time and go that route.

Take inventory of the skills you have, what your goals are and determine where to best spend your effort, time, money and talent. Then check that against these questions and see how it lines up. I think these are still very good "rule of thumb" answers - but the "thumb" may be getting smaller

cheers
kc

[AmandaAnderson]

Thank you very much kc, very useful answer.

I think we certainly have a reasonable enough home studio to start out with, and Tony does have songwriting talent, plus good voice and guitar playing (+ mandolin, banjo etc). He is learning to produce his work, with a little bit of input from myself (and practicing on some of his recording friends lol). We have bought a cheapish recording suite for PC and intend to practice with that for midi instruments etc.
At the moment all music is acoustic, with a few effects through the digital recording unit and his guitar amp etc. So learning to use PC for music, and the midi bits and pieces will add another dimension.
If we need a female voice, or other different instruments, then we book musicians for a session and do it that way at the moment.

However, we are also very much total novices at writing and recording for TV/film and artists/labels looking for a song for their next album etc. We joined Taxi a few weeks ago and are both trying to learn very fast indeed I have sent a load of tracks in for various listings, with the intention that when they all get returned, we will have a much better idea of what is required and expected I also spend hours and hours listening to and reading all the posts in the forums here.

Hopefully, in time, it will all pay off

Again, thank you

Amanda (& Tony)