[ image 1 type=center ] A vital, cost-effective and often neglected step in attempting to put your music on tape is the concept of pre-production. Planning ahead can save money (and time) in the studio. Budget considerations, time schedules, artwork and duplication arrangements are some aspects that should be tackled, but one of the biggest problems I run into in the studio is bands who are laying down music and are unfamiliar with individual parts — guitar players hearing the bass part for the first time or the bass player finally understanding what the drummer is doing. This happens all the time. A crappy PA and practicing too loud certainly provide less than ideal circumstances, making it hard to hear and pay attention to what other band members are playing. But the song must come first — a stellar performance or pristine recording of a bad song does no one any service.
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Break the song down to the vocal and the main instrument, which usually is guitar or piano. A great song should exist. Is it musically boring? Where are the accents when you wrote the song? Where are the accents when you play it with the band? Why are they different? Is it lyrically interesting? Does it try too hard or not hard enough? Does the melody follow the guitar line? (That's bad if it's all the time but can be interesting sporadically). Are there large sections where nothing is happening? Is the song too long? Is there a hook? Don't be afraid to re-write or edit the song. I doubt every lyric was guided by divine inspiration.
As the song is played in this format, band mates should be open-minded in their listening. Often times people just project their part on what they hear and think their part works. This is where communication comes into play. Band mates need to be able to discuss the song, structure and individual song parts without putting others on the defensive. Telling a guitar player their part isn't any good is tricky business but necessary. I can't tell you how many times I've heard a musician say to the band, "But that's what I've always played." That doesn't mean it's the best part. Speak up.
Record the song at practice.
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