Dudes and Chicks, let me first tell you where I'm coming from in this arena. In the 70's I sang in my own garage bands. In the 80's I managed and promoted New England entertainment. Along the way I have starred in the local cult classic, "The Hook of Woodland Heights," and I have written, produced, directed, shot and currently specialize in live/post audio for numerous independent films. Why haven't I continued to manage bands today? Well, between the fact I gave up the negotiating relationships for being more creative in the music scene stalled from two major factors, the increase of the drinking age and the family institution of the baby boomers. I've always said record what you've got before what you got isn't what it was or has been taken away. A good friend of mine, a bass player, an Entwistle type can't perform his lead type fills because of Fibromyalgia. The dudes on Oxycontin for the pain and he locks up after about five songs. It's a damn shame to see such a talent being forced to only sing when he has added such rhythm and artistic fills to many a rhythm section. Certainly a lacking to many a band today unless you can say Les Claypool for an example. Certainly great talents are taken away for many reasons and all the more reason bands must record their material. But even more it has become even a greater tool to reach the masses and reinforce touring at a profitable level.
I currently use Pro-Tools as my recording and mixing tool, but there are many products that have fashioned themselves after Digidesign's creation. Digidesign was the company that created the audio wave, a digital visual representation of sound. Even the everyday user has come to see this through their simple audio programs on their PC's at home. This revolution has made for the musician an opportunity to create decent quality recordings that easily can be burned to CD. The marketing of that material has become even easier thanks to the Internet reaching millions if one is clever enough to do so. It has changed the face of recording studios and how musicians who once chose to use simple 4-track cassette recorders that turned out rather poor quality even if the user had considerable knowledge of recording. Today, the musician can spend very little on either software like N-Track or hardware like the Roland V systems to cut a demo or a full length CD. The cover and labels can even be designed and printed on ones own home PC. Of course something you do on your own will still not have the quality a professional can give you, but if you apply yourself, the product is worth more than what was presented in the past on 4-track cassette. The product can lead you to the professionals who will take over in this process and let you do what you do best; perform.
What I would like to present to you today is more than just recording your music, but to plan your music around it's purpose. Do you have a political message? Could it be a musical score in a movie? Or do you want to have your band get on a tour? Putting the extra thought into what your song will make it more viable. As a filmmaker, I'm always looking for music that I can incorporate into a visual piece for a movie, commercial or corporate video. Starting out you may want to get your material out there without making anything for it. Radio Stations have their formats and with people listening to even more diverse music today, then say back in the fifties, musicians should look to diversify. A musician that puts out songs on a CD that cover a wide spectrum is going to increase success of that product. A country tune could take off on a country station or the dramatic instrumentation gets used on the new cutting edge independent film that gets picked up by Hollywood. The hook from a commercial piece that you thought was a cute but simple song ends up being used in the next AT&T commercial. Don't forget to record your live events. Believe in what you do, expand your horizons, market in every direction and what you least expect could very well become your biggest success. It all starts with a thought and then getting it recorded so it is archived for ever will be your first success as an artist because, if nothing else, you can someday play it and look back on your memories. I've heard many an artist say I wish I had a recording of when…
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