We recorded a single track in the sound gallery studios based in the Pheonix Exeter, we contemplated to record the whole song in a Half Day session. We recorded a demo track that was transferred to the two production students working with us, which allowed them to understand the outcome we wanted from this Project and recording session. We had a brief chat with the producer of the studio and created a plan to make sure we make the most of the time we have so we can experiment along the way with different ideas. We were given a brief tour of the studio, this being both the recording booths and the control room. This let us know where to find equipment so we would not have to ask later when trying to record. We made the decision for each instrument to record to a separate recording we would record at the start of the session, however George would record his drums at the same time as he needed everyone to play live with him as the producer said it would make it easier for him and save time later on. We later decided to record any extras after everyone's main parts were recorded as a safety measure.
We looked at the different pieces of equipment we would be using as musicians. We also did this while having a tour and setting up separate mics. While this was happening, I asked many questions about the kind of microphone I was using. For example, "how far would I have to stand back from the Mic while belting as I am a louder vocalist than ash." I also asked about "when recording the briefs where we should stand together will the other is singing." and so forth. We also were asked questions about how we wanted to be recorded, for example did we want to hear ourselves as all of us had headphones on to hear the others and to hear the producer when asking questions and giving us advice. I also helped set up wires and microphones in the studio so I could learn how to do it if I had to in the future when recording in different or similar studios. We did a sound check to make sure everyone was happy with their levels and how everyone else sounded in their headphones. This took around 5 minutes, which was very proactive. We had also set up an all-round mic in the main recording booth so me and ash in the other room were able to hear them if they needed to talk to use. We did not need this however as they could hear us fine through the microphone we were recording with, due to the fact it being extremely sensitive
We started of running through the song as a band to allow the drummer george to get his recording of the drums along side us which meant he was recording to a click and everyone followed him and gave him cues for changing sections in the song. Due to george recording the demo track to a click it meant that he had a lot of prier practice for this moment and hee was able to get his finished take after 3 takes. This means we save a lot of time later in the session as people aunt constantly changing aspects of their sound through their headphones. It also means we spend most of the time recording instead of changing settings and level. George had a simple micing set up with some extra mics used that made the recording outstanding. For example, they used two mics on the snare, one facing the skins and the other belief to get that extra sound to layer with the rest of the drums. 7 drum mics were used for the recording, all of which have separate roles. Luckily the set up was remarkably like the setup we used for the demo this way we knew what kind of sound we wanted. It also meant that the production students knew how to set up the equipment already, so it did not take a lot of time, which meant we were able to relax and not be rushed. Due to George having a similar drum kit at home it meant that he had a good understanding of it and was able to get two or 3 amazing takes. This allowed us to carry on and be ahead of schedule. We then kept looping the track playing it and having each individual instrument recorded.
We were able to record bass and piano together as they played along to the recording we just made. Both instruments were recorded differently due to the kind of frequencies they create. For example, the bass amp was recorded through a miced up bass amp and the pian was recorded through DI so after we could add some cool effects and change the piano type in post-production. Were as the bass we planned to not have to produce as much explaining why we used the raw use of the sound coming from an amp and bass microphone. They were able to record their parts together after around 5 takes which is still quite proactive. In the meantime, we talked outside about various parts and anything we might want changed in the postproduction stage like what synth setting to use for the piano. We then recorded the guitar on its own and did a few tracks when it came to specific parts that needed two guitars. The reason we did this was the layering of two guitars when ollie did specific aspects of soloing was at know point was there a sense of emptiness. This was great as it meant later in mixing, they would not have to change each individual instrument to change the sense of emptiness and fill it up with the other instruments being played at the same time. We produced this idea thanks to the demo track and ollie planning on how to achieve the exact sound he wanted.
Lastly, we recorded both vocals for the piece, we started off by recording Ashes part first, the reason being they started first so it would give both of us a starting point to know when to come in on and get our feel for the music. We did a few takes initially and realized that it was not very consistent, so we got ash to sing a bit closer into the microphone. We then all sat down with ash to see if they were happy with the levels and so on. We then recorded many different takes, and ash sang the parts they were supposed to harmonies with me. The way ash was able to communicate with the cues is they were able to see me through a glass window while recording so when it was my parts I would lip sync Infront of them so they knew when to go back in this was much needed for the ending of the song as it is call and response. We did the same with my part however we started me a bar before my part overwise we would have sent too long with me just waiting for my part in which I am supposed to be singing.
I would like to next time go in a studio to have an understanding of all the equipment beforehand, this would mean that I wouldn't have to spend time trying to work on what technology I'm using and how to use it. This would mean that I could spend the majority of the time souly recording and using every bit of time I have in the studio. Another thing for improvement would be creativity in a short amount of time, for example nearing the end of the recording studio we had around 15 minutes left before needing to pack down in which we could have added some cool add in to the song to make it much more unique but just decided not to. For example, some harmonies or slight guitar riffs in the background. I would also like to have added some call synth effects in but we didnt and forgot.
Parts of the equipment were remarkably like the ones I used in Studio 54, however there were positive changes that would make me want to go back to this studio instead. The first reason would be spacing the recording studio as it has a double-sized recording booth which means everyone can be in the same room when recording but when I was in studio 54, we were all in separate rooms due to the design of it. What I also liked was it had a vocal booth as Studio 54 did not, so they had to put me in the hallway and the vocal booth is a lot more perfectional and I was able to communicate with the producers as there was a window connected to the studio room. However, the equipment's seemed slightly more dated than the mixer in studio 54 but still created an amazing sound quality after the mixing. I also felt that as we were prepared went a lot more smother however with the same amount of time, we recorded 4 live recordings, but I do understand live recordings take less time and we recorded without a click. I did feel the producer of the studio was helpful in both studios, and it was obvious that both had a lot of experience, and that made me more comfortable in the studio, as I believed we would get a good recording. Although ben in studio 54 was a lot more creative producing some ideas in which we could figure out what were could do to make our tracks Beter where as sound gallery was just record it and only helped with what we asked. In this situation I preferred ben Green as I like creativity and changing things, but I understand people do not always want that, so it depends how you want to record your song when it comes to both studios. However, I thought they were amazing and at a similar level in quality and would go back to both.
A major difference is the quality of the sound when it comes to instruments. For example, when performing on stage you Iver use monitors which are speakers that face the band or in ear monitors which are headphones that the performer uses to hear the whole bad. Both of which create a high-quality sound for the performer. However, when working in a studio you use higher quality microphones. The reason you cannot use these when performing Infront of an audience is the microphones cannot be too sensitive. A good example would be if I use a sensitive microphone when it is facing me, it is also facing the drums amps and so on. From experience what happens is your microphone will pick up the drums especially which if you are using effects on the vocals will make the drums sound off as they are using the effect and that is what the audience can hear. This is the reason when recording in the studio me and ash were in a completely different soundproof booth. This is so there would not be any bleeding into the other microphones in the studio. Bleed is when one instrument is picked up from another mic trying to pick up a separate instrument. One instrument for which this is a huge problem is drums, the reason being it uses 7 plus microphones and the overheads are dynamic which means there is a frequent problem I've found which is guitar. However, the instrument that creates bleeding the most is vocals, which is why most studios have a separate room for vocals. If they do have a room, it means that they can use an extremely dynamic and sensitive microphone to capture the sound the best.
A significant difference between performing live and recording is precision, for example when performing live especially pub gigs which is most performances, I do be in a cover band is. Many people there usually do not have a musical background and have been consuming alcohol. This means they cannot notice if you make a small mistake, for example going out of key. Were as if you are in a studio as you need a perfect take overwise the song isn't going to be at its highest potential which is what you want when recording a song as you don't want people when listening to it not to hear you at your greatest level as they might not be as happy with it as you wanted. Another thing is timing, for example when recording you must usually, depending on the quality of your performance, play with a click. Were as when you perform live you don't which means you have a lot more freedom but when recording you have to stay in time for the whole recording otherwise it will create problems for the producer and other artists recording instruments on your track after you as it will throw them of. The final part that makes recording in a studi so different to performing live is you most of the time dont record your performances live you usually record in sections were as when performing you have to do the majority of it live unless you are using backing tracks but usually only use backing trackes if your a solo performance or duets. Its very rare you see a band using a recording.
I learnt a lot about recording separately to a band as the two times I had been in a studio before we recorded our songs live were as this time the recording were not and were separately recorded. I learnt a lot more about recording while listening to yourself as before I only ever recorded and asked not to hear myself till after. A positive with this is you are able to notice if you make any mistakes or aren't happy with anything and if that is the case you can stop the recording and try again instead of wasting the time recording the whole song not liking it and rerecording it, this way saves time and is a lot more proactive if you are on a tight schedule and you Arnt planning on using multiple takes and merging them together with the best bits. Even though that does work it loses that live aspect that the listener wants overwise it seems to over produce but that is my opinion.
The recording studio was amazing to work with and i was able to learn a lot from bith the performing and production side of working in a studio.We were able to sucessfully record the single in the time that we had pretty comfortably and the end goal was a great sucess.