Recording - April 2020 - 52

Demo This!

INSIDE

THE BOX
with Joe Albano
THE SINGER/SONGWRITER

n the heyday of the analog recording era, music production
was the domain of the traditional recording studio, with its
inventory of expensive high-end recording equipment and
its reliance on professional engineers to run it all. The project studio revolution changed all that. The shift to DAW-based production
transformed the industry, and no one was more affected by this
than the singer/songwriter. Thanks to the availability of reasonably
priced high-quality tools, the lone creative can now wear all the hats
and deliver pro-level recordings suitable for direct distribution. Here
we'll explore some of the specific challenges faced by the independent singer/songwriter.
The traditional singer/songwriter approach was to write songs,
record simple, self-accompanied demos, and then submit these
to labels for deals, or to artists for song placements. This model
changed in the DAW era. Now, fresh talent comprises beat makers,
arrangers, and producers as well. Instead of starting with lyrics,
melodies and hooks, these artists build up songs from loops and
grooves, so they're actually shopping feels and arrangements that
(often very specifically) contextualize their lyrics and melodies.

52 RECORDING April 2020

With all the new channels available for self-distribution, many of today's singer/songwriters release and
promote their own material themselves, bypassing the
traditional dance with record labels. While demos are
still a part of the process for many, the notion of what
actually constitutes a demo has changed.
Back in the day, singer/songwriters were often advised to keep it simple. The classic voice/guitar or
voice/piano demo was said to more easily allow A&R
people to imagine the creative possibilities of the music, without the bias that could be injected by a specific production template. In reality, things didn't always
work like that. While some artist reps and A&R types
(like producers running their own labels) might be able to
hear the possibilities in a simple demo, more often than
not, most would react negatively to a lack of solid production-the closer a demo sounded to a professional
production, the more positively it would be received by
A&R departments.
Of course, these days there's no excuse for not working up a commercial-sounding arrangement/production, not only for self-distributed material but even for
demo submissions-the editing capabilities and the
wealth of top-notch processing available in the modern DAW can provide everything needed, except for of
course the singer/songwriter's skill at using those tools.
But even with so many good-sounding inexpensive
mics, virtual instruments, and mix processors available,
it's essential to make sure that there's something unique
about the particular sound of each song. Don't fall back
on the same presets or basic beats, or use the same
effects in the same way on every song-just like changing up the chords, rhythms, and other musical details
from song to song, we should change up the production
elements as well-it may require a little more work (or
a lot more work!), but the increased variety and distinctive qualities of assorted songs and projects will be
worth the extra effort.

Balancing Act

This raises a fundamental question for people working alone in DAW-based production environments: even
though all the tools may be laid out in front of you, should
you try to do it all yourself, or should you enlist the help of
others? There's a certain appeal to being a self-contained
artist/producer/engineer, but dividing your attention between different creative and technical aspects of production can become frustrating and result in a loss of focus
on the most basic thing-the song itself. In the old days,
collaboration between artists and studio personnel was
standard procedure, and it's still a good idea today!

Recording - April 2020

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