Everybody knows we're freaky-freaks... but seldom do muffoccurs see the control-freak side of us. Along with our music, we do everything ourselves from the logo & graphic-design to the marketing & promotions... we get it in! But now that the project is recorded, we're left dealing with the concept that from this point on, the shit's out of our hands! Doesn't sound like such a big deal to you? Ok well let's put things in perspective with a little role playing, shall we??
Let's imagine that you're Kinky Notti, an up-&-coming music group from the hard city of Chicago. You've been recording your debut album for at least two years now with some heavy obstacles along the way. Yet regardless of the circumstances, you've persevered & never stopped climbing over the hurdles, because you feel in your heart of hearts that this project not only defines who you are, but you believe it's that unique sound that the world thrives on... and it's the expression that only your group can give.
Fate is on your side. Money is tight, but behind the scenes, you've been playing a mean game of chess, getting all the right pawns in the right places to make things happen for you. Sacrifice is nothing new... for example, when it was evident that studio-costs were getting out of hand, you cashed in your tax-refund check, went straight to the Mac store/Guitar Center and built yourself a brand new home studio to record in.
Now you're writing & recording vocals with ease from the comfort of your own home, on your own watch. Not to mention the fact that now you're using new music-programs and have started producing your own tracks in Logic. Imagine your delight to hear all of those crazy songs from your imagination becoming reality, one after the next, watching your sound fully manifest like never before. Not only do YOU know it's the shit, but whenever you play tracks for your friends and family they go nuts and immediately want a copy. You'd quickly realize that this music shit is bigger than you... it's your baby.
You've gotten used to controlling it all... from writing & producing to recording, rough-mixing & bouncing down all nine original tracks. You know it's time for an official mix & mastering session... but it's something you're not professionally trained to do. Not only that, but you don't have the equipment available to take your own tracks to the next level. It becomes apparent that it's out of your hands... and now it's time to trust another muffoccur with your 'baby'. Let's weigh the options...
Option 1: The Whole in the Wall EngineerYou come up on a hook-up of sorts... a friend offers his engineer buddy as the dude for your project. You rush over to Detroit & meet with them. You decide to throw him a few tracks to test him out.
The Pros= dude is budget-friendly, he loves your music off the bat, he has a decent studio with state-of-the-art equipment and the experience to know how to use it... he is even well-versed in his field and knows the names of several other engineers currently in the industry. But The Cons don't surface until after you get the tracks back...
The Cons= he 'plays God' on your tracks, meaning his interpretation of the track overpowers yours and he uses little to no regard with the reference track you gave him. It becomes clear that in order to make this option work, several four-hour trips to Detroit are needed so that you can 'babysit' dude and make sure he doesn't stray too far off the road. You decide to see what else is out there before moving forward with that.
Option 2: The Studio-Owner/EngineerOne night while hanging out with some music-industry buds, yall roll into a studio, where you meet the owner. He's a cool dude... he even goes out and kicks it with yall that nite at the club. You chit-chat and discover that he has a laundry-list of music artists' he's worked with in the past, mixing and mastering their projects. You set up a meeting to talk with him in more detail and find a few factors involved...
The Pros= his work includes several artists you recognize & listen to daily... the studio is less than 10 mins from your crib... and lastly, he's all about the business. Now, this can be seen as a pro or con because on one hand you realize he's in the business of keeping his studio open, so he's more expensive and is strictly about the paper... but at the same time, you know he's gonna get the job done efficiently for you.
The Cons= opaqueness, meaning it's not openly apparent that he's enthused by your music... he has a been there done that, over it kinda attitude. But this is YOUR BABY we're talking about! It's like him glancing at your baby then saying to you, "Yeah I'll watch your baby... You can leave it here with all these other babies crawling around, it'll be fine..." Would you leave YOUR BABY with him??
I guess it all boils down to the ego. Doesn't it always? All we know is that the integrity of our music is the most important at all times. It is very much like being an over-protective parent. But even parents need guidance and input at times to help them make informed decisions. Therefore, all thoughts or encouraging words are welcome...
*****PEACE TO THE BABIES*****
