I’m sipping (slamming) my coffee and listening to the rain beat down outside, again. I’m not looking forward to walking to my van (Where the hell did I even park?) and head to work. Blah. Oh well. In this morning meantime, I was looking through some pictures and video that I took from my band recording this past month. I’ve decided to write a little “what I’ve learned” from recording this time around. And also, In this morning coffee sipping reflection time, I’ve decided to wear the same shirt that I wore yesterday. Whatever. I don’t care.
*ahem* Here we go.
- Less is more. You don’t have to show off your super musicianship by playing and singing the most complex of fills.
- Deep breaths are really important in singing. You think I would have gotten this memo 10 years ago, but I didn’t. Singing the slower jams is a lot harder for me than the fast ones. It’s because I have to hold the notes and make them strong, all of which are not my forte. BUT, the deep breaths (which you will probably hear if you listen hard enough) will be very present in this record.
- Smiling while singing will help you stay in pitch. When listening to the songs that make you think “Jesus, does she live a tortured life or is she just dramatic?”, just know I was most likely smiling while saying some of the words because I was trying not to go flat on the notes. :)
- I wrote a lot of emotional songs. Guess what?! Recording them was just as emotional, if not more. I do believe I was driving my band mates nuts at times going crazy with my emotions while recording this album. I almost took up smoking. I almost went off the grid. I almost did a lot of things. Thank god I got through it! And thank god they didn’t kick me out.
- A little trip to Jumbo’s Clown room is necessary to keep your sanity
- There’s never enough caffeine
- Recording where there is pretty weather (aka L.A.) was the smartest move ever!
- Everyone will have their little breakdown moment, and it’s important just to let them know you love them.
- That one song that you were terrified of because you came in not confident and thinking your bandmates hated it, thought the producer would rip it to pieces….will end up being the best one on the record.
- your easiest song to play live will probably be your hardest one to record
- Discovering a game on your phone called Move the Boxes, will indeed become so addictive that you will lose track of time and play it until you lose all battery power
- In the future, don’t write so many songs that have “oooooooooo’s” in them. Shit is hard to sing
- i really enjoyed playing my guitar on this album. Usually, I just want to get that over with. BUT this time, working with Michael, really made me enjoy and love the process.
- This was without a doubt the best recording experience I’ve ever had. I’m the first to admit I don’t really enjoy the recording process. BUT this time was completely different. I’m really excited with what we were able to accomplish in 10 fucking days. And I had a very good emotional time doing it :)
- Always work with a producer.
- Naming an album is hard
Ok. I’m just realizing I could go on and on and I need to go to work. Blah. And I actually need more coffee…..
Where’s my umbrella and where the fuck did I park?!
