December 16, 2024
The first day on any sizable recording project is largely consumed with set up - getting everything properly miked and wired, isolating the instruments from one another so they don't “bleed” (drums being heard on bass mics for example), getting all the recording templates set up in the control room, and mixing the individual headphone channels for the players in the studio. Once you have it set up, you're ready to roll, and you go in every day and roll until it's done.
Our situation is a little different since we're not doing the more traditional approach of go in and record an album in a week or two, then make way for the next project. We have our “home” at Cabin Studios - a fully featured studio belonging to Les and Stephanie; complete with Les's gold and platinum records for Will the Circle Be Unbroken hanging on the wall in plain sight. While we are set up, Dustin will still be able to record the occasional small acoustic project when we're not working, which is probably going to be a day or two a week over the winter months at least.
Of the songs we're recording, we've been rehearsing and performing more than half of them for the last few months. We're playing them tightly and comfortably, and it makes sense to start with those songs to get our “studio bearings”.
Our plan is to lay down the basic rhythm tracks live as an ensemble for each song, then take our turns overdubbing the vocals and “melody instruments” (acoustic guitar, banjo, octave mandolin, accordion etc.). That plan is a bit complicated by the fact that five of the 16 songs on our initial agenda have no drums; the four of us are accustomed to playing them together in a circle with our acoustic instruments and singing. It will be a significant engineering and production pivot when we are ready to turn our attention to that batch of songs, so the “drum tunes” are first on the docket.
It takes a while to organize a workflow and a process, and organizing and planning that out with Dustin and Les is one of my big responsibilities. We're all seasoned pros with a lot of experience, but having a good plan and a lot of of conversation as we go makes it easier to get the best out of our diverse songs as well as varied personalities and strengths, while optimizing the pros and cons of various technical tools like the recording software.
With all the planning and preparation, our first day in the studio was a smashing success! Thanks to Dustin's longtime friend and ace shred guitarist Larry Zarobinski lending a hand, between us all the drums, bass and electric guitar rig were miked, wired and ready to work right after lunchtime. Lisa, Stephanie and I laid down the basic tracks to “Til the Well Runs Dry” smoothly and we were done within a couple hours. I took the opportunity to lay in the lead guitar break as well.
We're gearing up for the next session of basic tracking this week. We'll have more photos and videos, little teasers, and my bandmates will occasionally weigh in on this blog as well. We're glad to have you along for the journey!
LUNCH - Drew's homemade chicken tacos
Cabin Studios house engineer Dustin DeLage at the helm, aided by Larry Zarobinski
Studio work involves a lot of waiting around, and these two talented musicians do it in style; they are ready to rock when the production team says "let's go!"
The view from behind my seat - the Strat and the Line6 Helix ready to make some cool sounds together!