Studio Journal

I let a few friends listen to the track. While they thought it was good then noticed that the rhythm guitar and bass just weren't quite in time with the drums.

I have to admit they are right. I was able to fix it somewhat with editing, but that's not what this particular track is about.

I'm putting this song on hold for now and moving on with Greek Tragedy, which I'm currently hashing/hacking out. It will be an acoustic song, but I may add some electic or drums to it or the second half of the song.

Ofcourse I will still keep practicing my playing for Voodoo. When I record again, I will do the rhtyhm guitar first so that it's tight with the drums. Then I will record the bass line. Since it is essentially a melody it can float around a bit with out causing trouble.

Also, I did write some lyrics so I may try singing on this one (ugh).

Bill@Welcome Home Studios post lots of valuable infomation on the guitar player forum. He is a recording professional and it is rare to find such excellent advice for FREE.

Quoting Bill:

First, I suggest that you concentrate on the writing and let some other recording geek do his job. Why split your forcus?

Now, drums and bass are not 'added'. If you try this, they will -sound- 'added'. Write the song, get the whole idea happening, then write the bass and drum tracks, and play along with them. If you do this the other instruments will fall into the drum/bass groove.

The best tool for this that I ever worked with is no longer available... it was called Drummer, from Cool Shoes software, and I would sit with my acoustic and write drum tracks for whole songs measure by measure, and when I was finished I had a completed drum track. (I also play bass a little, so I just played my own bass parts... hint.... it ain't lead. Keep it simple and crisp.)

About mixing... the best way tot hink of the sonic palatte is as a glass.... it can only hold so much, then you're screwed. Everyone tries to mix every single instrument so that it is KILLER... killer hot, killer tone, full spectrum balls to the wall KILLER. well, okayyyyyy..... but an instrument that full of level and harmonic content does not mix with anything. Each instrument has to leave room for the others, or you just end up with mud. So mix these instruments in context, while listenting to he rest of th song, and you'll find that you use a much gentler hand on the controls and get better mixes quicker.

Also, in the typical pop song the instruments support the vocal, so if you start with a killer vocal sound at a good level and mix the other instruments in to support that vocal, the whole thing will make more sense than if you start with something like the kick drum and try to build your mix from there.

Bill


More Links to Bill:

Official Site for Welcome Home Studios

Bill's articles and profile at zoominfo.com

Bill at the Guitar Player Forum

Last night I doubled the drum track and turned it all the way up. I was finally able to get into the groove. So I started recording, and got over half-way through the song, then broke the first E-string on my Yamaha AES. Luckily, I finished recording all the parts that absolutely required the Yamaha and was able to switch over to the Squire Strat. It actually sounded better for the higher gain passages left to record.

All in all the session went well and only took about 1:45. I only recorded two full takes but that's all I really needed. I went in to check/edit the file for a rough mix and it sounded pretty good. I was able to listen to it the first time through with no cringing. That's always a good sign.

I think I'm ready to move on, this song should be able to stand with out any lead guitar noodling.

Allah be praised.

Earlier this week I was really getting frustrated with myself. I just couldn't get the rhythm part down for the Voodoo song. Tuesday's guys night out was a welcomed relief. This song seems to be kicking my ass instead of the other way around. 5/4 time cannot be that difficult! All my confidence is being sapped away.

I've known for weeks now that the real problem is that I'm relying too much on the wave form computer display for timing and not listening to the drums. I think it's because the drums just aren't clear enough.

On top of that I've been having trouble finding a guitar tone that sounds good with this tune. By the way, I need to get rid of my Line6 Spider, who wants it? The Squire wasn't cutting it, I think I need to change back to 10s or maybe 11s, the 9s just sound too wimpy. I switched over to the Yamaha AES which currently has 10s. That was much better, but I had to cut way back on the echo/delay. I know it sounds like an excuse, but the feed back was throwing me off. It was keeping ME from focusing on the drum beat.

Last nights practice was a little more productive. Even though I spent at least 40 minutes tweaking the tone on my guitar and adjusting the EQ on the drum track. All the tweaking left me with about 30 minutes of rehearsal/practice time, which I extended for an additional 30 minutes because I was making progress. To me it seems that two hours of practice either shows that I am a perennial novice or just a hopeless optimistic.

At the end of the session I was pleased with my progress. I think I finally have the groove down. Tonight, if I can start practicing with out tweaking, and I can hit the groove on the second or third run, I will do some recording. Then maybe I can think about, maybe, putting in some lead lines, but just a few. I really think the bass line could carry this song, but I'd feel really lazy if I didn't put in at least put in a rhythm guitar.

Wish me luck Y'all.

Last night I resumed rehearsal for the rhythm track for Live at the Voodoo Lounge. I was sorta disappointed with the results. Ofcourse, I had been focused on the drum track and the bass track for several weeks. I hadn't even picked up the guitar that whole time.

Further more, I could not get the tone I wanted, even after tireless tweaking. Then when I finally started to rehearse, once again, my timing was off. So I just spent the rest of the night practicing Eflat Major, C minor, Bflat Mixolydian, F Dorian, etc. Maybe that will help.

Also, I think I may need to revoice the chords I was using.

I'm so happy to finally announce that I don't have to slave on this bass line any more.

I did the final edits on the bass line last night. I had about 4 complete takes. They all passed, but since this is a studio recording, I'm allowed to pull out the best passages and splice them together. The rest fall on the cutting room floor. Heck, that'st he way the pros do it.

I know I could play the entire song OK, but for the recording I wanted it to sound as good as possible. I left in a couple of mistakes though. It makes the song sound more natural, besides I don't like to splice out indiviual notes or phrases. I try to limit my splicing to complete choruses and verses. When it's a bridge or coda or solo and the timing has to be perfect, and there is a natural space or pause between the phrases, I will splice if it is absolutely critical to the timing.

Anyway, I pleased with the song so far, very pleased.

Great news! Last night's recording session was awesome. I was able to record atleast 3 acceptable takes.

One take was even all the way through the entire song just once.

I think that means I practiced enough this time.

I really felt like my timing was good and it was fun.

That makes a great recording session.

It took all of last week, but I was able to redo the drum track for Live at the Voodoo Lounge.

It really made a difference. It's so much easier to play along with, and it sounds better too.

I started tracking the bass guitar again last night.

I hope to be finished with the guitar by next week.

RE: Live at the Voodoo Lounge (first draft/rough mix)

I just need to admit that the timing is off. I just had hopeful ears. I did not practice enough.

But listening over and over again has definitely helped me Identify the problem.

1.) The Drum Track is not clear enough.
2.) The Drum Track is a little too busy.
3.) I plan to re-do the drum track entirely so that my bass line works syncs with it.
4.) I like the bass line, but the tone is too wimpy and the timing IS off. I'm re-recording it.
5.) Some sections of the Bass Line just get boring, those need to be re-written.
6.) The guitar playing was totally out of synch, hopelessly out of sync. I'm re-recording that too.

I was hoping to be done with this project, but I think this can be a good song with more work.

This may be why it is important to have a producer. In the studio recording Live at the Voodoo Lounge, I must've spent almost three hours recording the bass track and almost 4 hours on the rhythm track. I eventually recorded what I thought were suitable takes. Maybe I was just exhausted.

Listening to all the tracks together (as a whole) was disappointing. It really sounded like it worked while recording. But now it was just a mess of sounds working against each other. I was thinking I should rerecord the whole thing. I really should!

But the mixing engineer in me wanted to see if he could save the takes. I was able to synch some of the passages up a little better. But it seems the real problem was that the drum track was not coming through. That's easy enough to boost. But the bass and the rhythm guitar really need their own separate space. They are playing to the same rhythm, but accenting on different beats.

So I listen to the song, I tweak it here and there, then listen to the song again and again and tweak it some more. During this process I really have to work hard to be objective, because I so want it to work. I hate to think all my previous work was wasted.

Finally with a little bit of reverb and stereo placement finally get all the instruments into their own spaces. It may be wishful thinking, but it is starting to sound the way I want it to, maybe not the way it should, but it does match my vision (good or bad).

Now to decide if the song is good or enough or if it all needs to be re-recorded.

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At the Guitar Player Magazine Forum

Once I got the rhythm down for the verse and rehearsed it a few times the other parts just fell into place.

I had a very productive rehearsal last night. I was able to finish creating an interesting guitar riff to go with the chorus bass line. And I just about had the ending nailed.

I always prefer to work out the ending during the recording sessions though, just because it always sounds more natural and definately less rehearsed.

(side note: I keep trying to use the wah on this ryhthm part, but it sound just awful, I'd settle for a cheesy 70s disco sound, but I haven't gotten that down yet)

I'll be using the trusty Squire Strat (set to the middle p/u) tonight, although I might try it with the Yamaha AES as well.

I'm probably not going to do a lead track, but I might add one after I listen to the full track after some editing.

Yeah, Yeah, Yeah. Randall already said he was having trouble with the 5/4 time signature for Live at the Voodoo Lounge (more than once).

I almost had it on Monday night. But I had to take Tuesday night off for Poker Night with the guys. It was fun, but unfortunately, I broke my $20 bank by 8:30. We were playing 357 and I was not doing well at all.

Since I got home early, and since I only had two Bud Lights, I thought I could still rehearse. I guess loosing money and drinking beer helped me relax. I was able to get into the groove a little better. I finally realized that the bass line was leading and accenting on the odd beats as follows: Lead on 5, then accent next measure on beat 3 and 5. It's a two measure rhythm.

The bass line is pretty busy. So I have a simple chord progression for the verse: Gm4 + 7 sus 5; Gm7 sus 5 for 4 measures, then FmAug sus 5, then repeat and coda with a Dm.

The bridge sounds good when I double the bass riff on the guitar. Then for the chorus I have a repeating riff that is starting to sound good.

I think I am finally starting to make progress here.

This happens everytime I take the week-end off. I had to learn the rhythm I created last week all over again. But then I decided I still did not like it.

So I added three more chords to the progression, now I have to learn a whole new rhythm, but tomarrow night is poker night with the guys.

I think the may be the song that I never finish because I'm starting to have doubts about the whole bass line.

What good is a bass line that is so difficult to put a rhythm to. Is a 5/4 time signature supposed to be this difficult?

Well starting on Tuesday I was finally able to drag myself back into the studio after a week off. My family and I went to Houston. It was fun but stressful. Young children can add a whole new level of drama to just about any situation. Now I know exactly what my father and mother went through when they took me to Houston as a child.

I'm getting back to Live at the Voodoo Lounge. I had so much trouble with the bass line that I had to turn off all the effects while recording. Well I turned off all echo and compression, I left in some reverb. I needed a clean sound to get into the 5/4 beat. The bass line starts a little before the 5th beat. I was just having a lot of trouble getting that beat and the echo was throwing me off. Even after that and lots of rehearsal and lots and lots of takes, I still had to synch up the bass track with the drum track (slightly). Luckily I got all that done before vacation.

Coming back, I was hoping just to focus on the rhythm guitar track, but the bass line was still sounding weak. Adding compression just didn't seem to help. Adding compression and echo just ruined the sound completely. So I copied the bass track and adding compression to one using low sensitivity and medium release and a medium compression ratio. On the copy I only added slight echo with very little feed-back and a low mix ratio. I set one track slightly left and the other slightly right with the drum track in the middle. Now it's blasting me ears and I know I won't have much head room left for the guitar track. I can deal with that later.

I spent the rest of Tuesday practicing scales and modes for E Major. Finally on Wednesday I got to start working on a rhythm or melody. The bass line is based on a G Phyrigian Mode, so I was trying all the related modes. F Dorian was sounding sorta nice along with C Aeolian. By Thursday I was able to practice a modified Cm7 chord for a rhythm to go with the first part of the song. I even toyed with using a wah. I like the wah, but the clean sound is nice and punchy. I'm thinking I might be able to add a melody to other parts of the song with C minor or F dorian, but nothing is written in stone yet.

I programmed a drum track with a funky 5/4 time signature. That was relatively easy compared to creating an interesting bassline. It took me two week to create, reherse and record. Why so long? Blisters my friend! I'm not new to playing bass, but I was playing two hours a night for three days when I formed blisters on two of my fingers. I think I must've bruised my bones too. It was pretty painful and it took 4 days to really clear up.

After another week of rehearsal, I was able to record a decent bass track on the on my second day of record. The dang blisters kept trying to come back. I think I let my recording session go too long.

I was pretty worn out, so I keep the track and just polished up the timing a bit. I think my timing was off because I was sitting down to record. In retrospect, I think my timing would've been better if I were standing the way I usually do when recording.

I need to keep that in mind for the next session.

Best thing it, I can get back to the six string guitar now.