Originally posted by Tedster:
Gents...
Maybe a lot of seasoned musicians who are "studio wise", or have egos bigger than New Hampshire don't have a problem, but, I tend to feel pretty nervous walking into a place, especially if that place has worked with some pretty decent acts, and pouring it out. I feel pretty intimidated by the face behind the glass, kinda sitting there analyzing everything you do.
Aside to going in on sedatives, what are some good tips you all use (I think I've heard your take on this, Simon)...on either side of the glass, to make performers feel comfy, or to make yourself comfy if you're a performer. Nervousness makes for more takes.Wow, that question deserve a whole topic all its own. Lemme see if I can at least share some of the things I try to do to keep things moving along before and during a session.
I have a "things to expect" page I made up called:[
="http://www.itrstudio.com/typical.html"]A Typical Session[/
]. It helps prepare musicians for "studio shock".
Getting the drummer to set up and play the night before the session helps a lot, since it cuts down on the time the other guys hafta wait around till they can begin. We nail the drummer's desired sound the night before, so he just hasta come in, pick up his sticks, and he's good to go!
I explain to everybody that, while we're gonna try to nail down a good first take, what's really important this first time around is the drums/bass groove. They're the ones on the "hot seat". I tell the bass player, "we can always punch in a bass mistake easily, so don't sweat it if you make a mistake while you're playing". I tell the vocalist that we're just doing vocal scratch tracks to help the band know where they are in the song, so don't push on the vocals.
The guitars I tell just play rhythm, unless the solo is important for everybody to hear, but we'll do the "real" solos later, on a separate track. I like having at least two rhythm guitar tracks panned left and right to keep them from muddying up the vocals in the middle. And don't worry about mistakes on the guitar - we can easily punch those in.
All of the above usually gets them a little relaxed. Now for the secrets:
I get them to warm up for around 10 to 20 minutes, on songs they aren't gonna be doing, so they can become accustomed to the headphone mix, working in different rooms, getting used to hearing each other, etc. I'll make headphone adjustments for everybody during the first few minutes, and then I'll walk out, and just let them play for a while.
Then we'll start the session. I go for the easiest song first, to help build their confidence, and I'll bring them all into the control room and play it back over the big speakers so they can hear themselves. That gets them excited and they're now pumped to get back in and either fix something wrong or go on to the next song. If there's a tempo problem, I'll point it out to them and joke with them about their playing. (I'll "accidently" leave the talkback mic open and casually say to the guitar player, "Hey, I don't think your drummer sucks - he's nowhere near as bad as you said", or, "So, have you found another drummer yet?"). If they did a really spectacular take, I might get on the talkback and say, "Wow, that was REALLY good - you wanna try that again and we'll record it this time?".
But the big secret is that most bands are too nervous to do their best work the first day. On the second day, we start off by listening to everything we did the first day and decide what to keep and what to redo. By the start of the second day, EVERYBODY'S A PRO, and they're feeling at home in the studio.
During guitar tracking, I might even let the other guitar player run the board, and show him how to do punch-ins and I'll leave the room, same with solos and vocals. Why? Because they're on display and it makes some people nervous to screw up in front of strangers (who they already feel are judging them). Leaving them with just their band mates in the room will sometimes help ease the tension - with some groups.
Other groups need more guidance and direction and for those group, I'll act like the ship's "activity director" and head cheerleader. If things start to bog down, or I see tempers starting to flare, I'll hit stop and call a break right now. We'll go outside, smoke, drink, tell music war stories, and just relax for a while.
Being comfortable is the secret usually to getting a good take. I try to make the band feel as comfortable as possible, and make them feel that I believe that getting the music right is what's most important, not watching the clock. I try to become a member of the band whenever possible. Being a guitar player helps, since I can talk in song terms ("You know that second walkup you do from the D to the G? We lost the time right there. Let's do it again, coming out of that second chorus".
Mainly, it's showing in small ways that it's not just a job for you - it's caring about their music, getting involved, and being as committed as they are to getting a great recording - whatever their current playing skills.
When you're recording a group that's only been playing a few months, it can be hard. When you have that ocassional killer group in, that can be exciting as hell!!
Does any of that help, Tedster?
