Gearslutz.com - View Single Post - Musicians finding the recording process 'boring'

BrianT · 9th November 2003, 09:33 AM

Maybe it really is boring, but we have become techno-drones and are blind to that potential truth, since it's not boring to us, as we get to sit and fiddle with our toys endlessly, hopefully while being paid to do so. I believe that's a pretty decent possibility of the scenario, when assessed objectively.

Compared to playing a concert on-stage, sitting on your butt waiting for the producer to select the "perfect" click track sample for that next song does lack a certain zing, does it not? Maybe we are guilty of choking the life out of young musicians in our pursuit of things 95% of their listeners will never notice, and wouldn't care about even if we pointed them out.

Black Sabbath's debut album was recorded in 12 hours at a cost of $900, warts and all. Here's Ozzie, living large, 34 years later. Led Zeppelin I was recorded in less than 30 hours. It was the ultimate recruiting poster for rock music. I don't think anybody was bored at those sessions. Ahhh....actual talent, along with rehearsal beforehand. What a great idea.

So I'm just thinking out loud here, but maybe:

1. Making records really has become boring and overly focused on the technical (though being geeks, we mostly fail to notice)

because......

2. The majority of current, aspiring musicians lack (A) talent, (B) innovation, or (C) both

but.........

3. We record them anyway, because we all need a gig, and since other people are getting marginal talent signed to deals, maybe we can/should too

so, then........

4. We "have" to fix them up with smoke and mirrors. This is convenient because we get paid to do this. If talented people made platinum albums in about 24 hours on a regular basis, we would be screwed.

Now to put this in perspective, I just spent 14 hours today overdubbing a seriously talented session drummer on 5 songs at the Tracking Room here in Nashville. We had a fabulous time, the drums sounded and felt great, nobody was bored, and it was a good day's work.

But everybody there (artist was not present) had made a concious decision some years ago to make their living inside the recording studio. Everybody there possessed at least some talent plus the desire to innovate.

But I think it may be silly to expect a bunch of kids, who just want to play some music they like, for other people to get off on (which is the purest form of pop music, IMO), to enjoy the quasi-endless process of modern recording. And maybe the fact that the highly technical process, that often makes people feel subservient to a machine, is starting to bug them is a good sign for the future.

Maybe they'll get desperate enough to woodshed, get their stuff really together, and come in to record a platinum album in 12 hours. Would that not truly rock?

Regards,
Brian T

P.S. Bob O......if you're in this thread, fill us in on how much the players on early Motown records obsessed on, and were overshadowed by, technology. Was Marvin Gaye gonna give you 25 vocal passes to comp from, if you had the box to do it?

9th November 2003, 09:33 AM	#9
BrianT Lives for gear Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Nashville Posts: 1,666	Maybe it really is boring, but we have become techno-drones and are blind to that potential truth, since it's not boring to us, as we get to sit and fiddle with our toys endlessly, hopefully while being paid to do so. I believe that's a pretty decent possibility of the scenario, when assessed objectively. Compared to playing a concert on-stage, sitting on your butt waiting for the producer to select the "perfect" click track sample for that next song does lack a certain zing, does it not? Maybe we are guilty of choking the life out of young musicians in our pursuit of things 95% of their listeners will never notice, and wouldn't care about even if we pointed them out. Black Sabbath's debut album was recorded in 12 hours at a cost of $900, warts and all. Here's Ozzie, living large, 34 years later. Led Zeppelin I was recorded in less than 30 hours. It was the ultimate recruiting poster for rock music. I don't think anybody was bored at those sessions. Ahhh....actual talent, along with rehearsal beforehand. What a great idea. So I'm just thinking out loud here, but maybe: 1. Making records really has become boring and overly focused on the technical (though being geeks, we mostly fail to notice) because...... 2. The majority of current, aspiring musicians lack (A) talent, (B) innovation, or (C) both but......... 3. We record them anyway, because we all need a gig, and since other people are getting marginal talent signed to deals, maybe we can/should too so, then........ 4. We "have" to fix them up with smoke and mirrors. This is convenient because we get paid to do this. If talented people made platinum albums in about 24 hours on a regular basis, we would be screwed. Now to put this in perspective, I just spent 14 hours today overdubbing a seriously talented session drummer on 5 songs at the Tracking Room here in Nashville. We had a fabulous time, the drums sounded and felt great, nobody was bored, and it was a good day's work. But everybody there (artist was not present) had made a concious decision some years ago to make their living inside the recording studio. Everybody there possessed at least some talent plus the desire to innovate. But I think it may be silly to expect a bunch of kids, who just want to play some music they like, for other people to get off on (which is the purest form of pop music, IMO), to enjoy the quasi-endless process of modern recording. And maybe the fact that the highly technical process, that often makes people feel subservient to a machine, is starting to bug them is a good sign for the future. Maybe they'll get desperate enough to woodshed, get their stuff really together, and come in to record a platinum album in 12 hours. Would that not truly rock? Regards, Brian T P.S. Bob O......if you're in this thread, fill us in on how much the players on early Motown records obsessed on, and were overshadowed by, technology. Was Marvin Gaye gonna give you 25 vocal passes to comp from, if you had the box to do it?