“From A to Z” Podcast Recording #2
Today encompassed recording the second episode of the podcast. Thankfully, since David and I had already been through it before, there were a lot of variables we had figured out. The session was exactly the same, so I was able to transfer all the plugin settings to this new episode.
We had all the same gear, and actually needed to take less than last time since we knew all the factors involved. So I got to work setting up the whole session again. I was running my Focusrite 18i20 into my MacBook Pro, which was running Logic Pro. Both Z and Amber had lav mics, so those were routed into the first two inputs of the interface. I had two SM57s set up, one as a backup mic and another for room tone. The session went by without many problems, and we got another 20 minute podcast recorded. The only thing left for me to do was any editing/cleaning up audio at home.
Writing Session
Today has been one of the few writing sessions I’ve been able to sit in on. It’s a really interesting experience to sit down and hash out ideas with a song that isn’t fully done. I obviously spend time working on my own music, so taking someone else’s preferences and style into consideration is quite the challenge!
We started the day of revising an old song that needed some parts re-tracked. The main thing was getting acoustic guitar put down on the track, which took some time to get the arrangement right. Once that first song was wrapped up, we moved onto a brand new song. Calling it a song, however, would be a bit of a stretch. There was mainly riffs and ideas, but the whole structure of the song needed to be fleshed out. We spent the session working through parts, either adding drums that complimented the part or rearranging the part to make more sense in context with the rest of the song. At the end of the day, we had two songs in the bag to make notes on for another session down the line.
Harmless Habit Drum Tracking
Today was quite the interesting day, as we were able to take our time tracking drums for a single song. This extra time allowed us to really take our time and be as detailed as we wanted for the parts. Once the drums were loaded in, the decision was made to record the drums in the control room, as it was the deadest room available. Once all the mics were set up, the initial tracking began. The actual drums parts were pretty up in the air in terms of composition, so there was a lot of room for experimentation.
We went through each section of the song and made sure the drums were as perfect as possible. We got multiple takes of each section too, just incase the final one had any errors. Since we had the time allotted to us, we also got some in-house samples of the kit to add more personality to the song, rather than just using some regular sample. The last part of the day included any drum editing that was required, however it was a relatively laid back day, so we were cruising the entire time.
Lycan Bite Vocal Tracking & Mixing
Today was focused on mixing the songs already completed and getting vocals laid down on the rest of the tracks. The first half of the day was spent mixing the songs we finished the day prior. Things like FX, editing, and tuning encompassed this part of the day. Once we took a break to eat and take a small break from mixing, the vocal tracking started.
The vocal tracking was another beast within itself. Throughout the rest of the day, we finished up the last three tracks of vocals. This was occasionally grueling due to how many takes the vocalist had to put down for sections like the chorus, where we wanted it to sound big, full, and aggressive. I have to give Scott, the vocalist, massive props as he was absolutely destroying every take he did and sounded phenomenal the entire time. He also had a great attitude, even when he wasn’t nailing the sections of the song. Once the day had come to a close, we were in a great spot with everything tracked and only mixing left for the last day this week.
Lycan Bite Drum/Bass Tracking
This week is a five-day endeavor to record, mix, and master a five-song EP. Today was the first day of recording, which entailed mainly drums. Our original plan was to have both bass and drums recorded, however, there were many unforeseen issues that prevented all of the bass from being tracked.
After getting the drums set up and miked up, the tracking promptly started. For safe measures, we got around three to five takes in case any takes needed to be drastically edited. After the first song was done, we took a bit to get some drum editing done, and in the process, there was strange crackling/hissing in the audio. We initially believed it to be embedded within the audio files, so the drums were retracked for the song. After getting the drums done, the bass was also tracked for the song.
Afterward, we swiftly moved into recording the rest of the tracks for the drums, listening very intently to be sure there was no more noise in the tracks. Once the drums were done, some drum editing was done before getting one last bass track added. During the process, it was finally revealed that something with the elastic audio was creating the crackling sound we had heard earlier in the day. Elastic audio was being used for time purposes, but we found that beat detective would both be ideal and safe. Finally, getting to the bottom of the issue allowed us to record one final bass track for the night, and we’re set up to get moving for the rest of the week.
Podcast Recording
Jack and David recording the first episode of the “A to Z podcast”
The main event for today was the first recording session for an upcoming podcast with Taylor Branding Co. David and I both loaded in around 11 am that morning with a good assortment of audio gear and backup equipment for the shoot. The podcast was done with both video and audio recording, so once ZF came in we started setting up the camera and the lighting along with the audio gear.
ZF had a great set of Lavalier microphones as well as a wireless system for us to directly hook up to our interface. David and I also decided to set up a backup mono mic in case there was any mic failure as well as a room tone mic to fill in any gaps. We used my Focusrite 18i20 interface, as it had enough inputs, sends, and headphone ports for the whole recording. We recorded straight into Logic, as it was the DAW most readably accessible for us.
David was also sure to take notes of what section was which, as there were distinct segments of the podcast. In all, we were there from around 11 am to 2 pm, so I would call that a successful day! The rest of my day included going over the audio we recorded and finding optimal ways to process and edit the audio if it was necessary.
A Tiger Made of Lightning Tracking
Guitar tracking that went on later in the day.
Today was one of the second tracking day for A Tiger Made of Lightning. The day prior consisted of all the drums being tracked. Most of the editing for the drums was done by this point, with a few things left to be tweaked. The majority of this day was bass recording. We had around five songs to get done, so there was a lot ahead of us.
After getting the bass tone dialed in, we ran into a slight issue. When loading up the second track, the bass level dropped significantly from the previous song. We ran through all the different troubleshooting steps with the pedal in the chain, changing the input and preamp altogether. In the end, we found it to be the actual wiring in the bass going bad, which was extremely unfortunate. Thankfully, there was another great bass in the studio that we were able to use for the rest of the tracks. There was only one song that we weren’t able to get to as there was a rewrite that needed to happen first. The rest of the night, however, was used to get some initial guitar recordings done, and one song was fully completed by the end of the night.