Recording - February 2012 - 26

It’s your project, your song, and now you need a singer. Where and how do you find the right one? Sebastian Arocha Morton: Once the songwriting stage of the process is complete, I’ll live with the song for a day or so and decide what type of singer fits best. I’ll usually know if it should be male or female, and judging by some of my production choices, what genre I’m aiming for. I’ll usually start by calling singers I’ve worked with in the past whom I trust. If none of those people fit my vision for the song, I’ll seek out people I’ve discovered or heard on other people’s songs, demos sent to me, or just surfing the web. Sometimes I’ll send a producer colleague or manager an email asking for recommendations.

Interview by Lorenz Rychner

How far do you prepare the song before you make that call? If it’s my own project I have probably already sketched out the type of song I need done. I’ll make a background track for it—not a demo, but an album master in progress, meaning I don’t choose weak sounds which I plan on switching for the final version, I gradually overdub as needed and then mix. Usually I’ll bring in a few cowriters to help me with the songwriting aspect and lyrics, or in some cases I’ll write it all myself. I’ll make sure that there is enough “production” there to make it feel like it’s a professional recording. By “production” I mean there’s enough instruments and sonic details to make you feel like the track is going to sound great. I know a lot of producers who just do a bare-bones demo track, get the vocalist in as quickly as possible, and then fill in the track and replace all the weak sounds after the vocalist’s done. I don’t really like working that way and here’s why: I really believe in first impressions. If I were to walk in on somebody else’s session in a studio and the beat’s weak, the keyboard sounds are all generic presets and the vocals are out of tune, and someone said to me, “Oh it’s just rough, wait until we mix it”, I wouldn’t trust them and I wouldn’t really expect much from the song. I feel vocalists have the same reaction. If you take the time to make sure that when you press Play for the first time, the beat’s phat, the bass is tight, and all the instruments are interesting, the vocalist’s gonna be excited to do their best. That’s what I want! It’s also important to make sure all the sections of your song transition well. Lift the chorus with some pads or guitars if it needs to sound bigger. Drop things out in the 2nd verse or B section if you need color variation, vocalists respond and change their singing accordingly. How do you present the song to a vocalist? I usually sing and record a rough vocal take myself before I even start thinking of guest vocalists, to ensure my song is strong enough melodically and will make sense. Nowadays the vocoder and Auto-Tune effects are so prominent that people don’t mind hearing sketches with robotic sounding guide vocals, so it allows me to really get down what I’m hearing in my head, background harmonies included, without feeling like my bad singing will

26

RECORDING FEBRUARY 2012



Recording - February 2012

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Recording - February 2012

Recording - February 2012
Fade In
Contents
Talkback
Fast Forward
Electric Lady Connections
Lewitt Audio LCT 640 Condenser Microphone
Sebastian Arocha Morton: The Singer and The Song—Going For The Perfect Match
Kel Audio Song Sparrow Condenser Microphone.
KRK Systems RP10-3 Powered Mid Field Studio Monitors
The Mixing Workshop: Tips For Mixing Vocals
Harrison Lineage 8-Channel Microphone Preamplifier.
M-Audio Fast Track C600 Audio Interface.
Sing, Sing a Song: Recording Inexperienced Singers
Earthworks SR40V Condenser Microphone
Stellar Singing From Small Studios
RØDE Limited Edition Black Classic II Tube Condenser Microphone.
Recording’s Showcase of Sounds
Recording Fundamentals. Chapter 2: Introduction To Audio—Part One (What is Sound?)
Plug-In Outlet
Reviewed and Revisited: Apogee Duet 2
iOS Music Tools: DAWs From Laptop To Pocket
Readers’ Tapes
Advertiser Index
Fade Out
Recording - February 2012 - Intro
Recording - February 2012 - Recording - February 2012
Recording - February 2012 - Cover2
Recording - February 2012 - 1
Recording - February 2012 - Fade In
Recording - February 2012 - 3
Recording - February 2012 - Contents
Recording - February 2012 - 5
Recording - February 2012 - Talkback
Recording - February 2012 - 7
Recording - February 2012 - Fast Forward
Recording - February 2012 - 9
Recording - February 2012 - 10
Recording - February 2012 - 11
Recording - February 2012 - 12
Recording - February 2012 - 13
Recording - February 2012 - Electric Lady Connections
Recording - February 2012 - 15
Recording - February 2012 - 16
Recording - February 2012 - 17
Recording - February 2012 - 18
Recording - February 2012 - 19
Recording - February 2012 - 20
Recording - February 2012 - 21
Recording - February 2012 - 22
Recording - February 2012 - 23
Recording - February 2012 - Lewitt Audio LCT 640 Condenser Microphone
Recording - February 2012 - 25
Recording - February 2012 - Sebastian Arocha Morton: The Singer and The Song—Going For The Perfect Match
Recording - February 2012 - 27
Recording - February 2012 - 28
Recording - February 2012 - 29
Recording - February 2012 - 30
Recording - February 2012 - 31
Recording - February 2012 - 32
Recording - February 2012 - 33
Recording - February 2012 - Kel Audio Song Sparrow Condenser Microphone.
Recording - February 2012 - 35
Recording - February 2012 - KRK Systems RP10-3 Powered Mid Field Studio Monitors
Recording - February 2012 - 37
Recording - February 2012 - The Mixing Workshop: Tips For Mixing Vocals
Recording - February 2012 - 39
Recording - February 2012 - 40
Recording - February 2012 - 41
Recording - February 2012 - Harrison Lineage 8-Channel Microphone Preamplifier.
Recording - February 2012 - 43
Recording - February 2012 - M-Audio Fast Track C600 Audio Interface.
Recording - February 2012 - 45
Recording - February 2012 - 46
Recording - February 2012 - 47
Recording - February 2012 - Sing, Sing a Song: Recording Inexperienced Singers
Recording - February 2012 - 49
Recording - February 2012 - Earthworks SR40V Condenser Microphone
Recording - February 2012 - 51
Recording - February 2012 - Stellar Singing From Small Studios
Recording - February 2012 - 53
Recording - February 2012 - RØDE Limited Edition Black Classic II Tube Condenser Microphone.
Recording - February 2012 - 55
Recording - February 2012 - Recording’s Showcase of Sounds
Recording - February 2012 - 57
Recording - February 2012 - Recording Fundamentals. Chapter 2: Introduction To Audio—Part One (What is Sound?)
Recording - February 2012 - 59
Recording - February 2012 - 60
Recording - February 2012 - 61
Recording - February 2012 - Plug-In Outlet
Recording - February 2012 - 63
Recording - February 2012 - 64
Recording - February 2012 - 65
Recording - February 2012 - 66
Recording - February 2012 - 67
Recording - February 2012 - 68
Recording - February 2012 - 69
Recording - February 2012 - 70
Recording - February 2012 - 71
Recording - February 2012 - 72
Recording - February 2012 - 73
Recording - February 2012 - Reviewed and Revisited: Apogee Duet 2
Recording - February 2012 - 75
Recording - February 2012 - iOS Music Tools: DAWs From Laptop To Pocket
Recording - February 2012 - 77
Recording - February 2012 - 78
Recording - February 2012 - 79
Recording - February 2012 - Readers’ Tapes
Recording - February 2012 - Advertiser Index
Recording - February 2012 - 82
Recording - February 2012 - 83
Recording - February 2012 - 84
Recording - February 2012 - 85
Recording - February 2012 - 86
Recording - February 2012 - 87
Recording - February 2012 - Fade Out
Recording - February 2012 - Cover3
Recording - February 2012 - Cover4
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