BLOG#4 T RHYTHM TAPE PROJECT (RECORDING TO TAPE)

INTRODUCTION

Given the opportunity to record a band to tape at SoundPark studio the production team  decided we would record Reggae band T Rhythm. T Rhythm is an exciting group that range from being an 8 to 12 piece band.

Having a clear set of plans and being prepared before recording a band is so important. Especially when you or your client are paying an hourly rate to hire the studio. Having a well rehearsed band also saves time and money. However even when you are prepared there is so much focus, clear communication and time pressure that you need to be on top of on the day when professionally recording a band.

There is nothing wrong with a challenge or a confident attitude but as an engineer and producer you need to be aware that each role of production can take time. It would not be unwise to factor in time for mistakes and have alternatives worked out at planning stage. In saying this it is also a possibility that your backup plan may not be an alternative due to certain equipment not being available or technical faults. By planning ahead you have a good idea of the direction you want the recording to go.

HOW DOES ONE WORK UNDER TIME PRESSURE WITH A GROUP OF MUSICIANS?

Having an experienced professional and patient band like T Rhythm was great for our engineering team. It allowed us to carefully and effectively set up equipment, patching requirements and sound check properly. As lead producer of the project I felt it was  important to communicate with the band to make them aware of what was happening and make them feel comfortable.

Although setting up took longer than we anticipated we made sure everything was right at the pre recording stage. There were a couple of minor adjustments with microphones and equipment during the band recording  but it could have been a lot worse if we were not thorough to begin with. The choices of equipment, microphones, microphone placement via good research and planning worked well for the team and the client. Capturing a great sound to tape or DAW in any situation also depends on instruments being well tuned and a great performance from the musician.

Communication between the band and engineers is extremely important when recording live to tape. It was important to know when T Rhythm were ready to go for a take or if they were just rehearsing. Likewise it was important for the band to know when we were going for a take. Cueing up the Studer A80 tape machine, constantly watching meters and operating Pro Tools accordingly were all part of the process for every take. In a perfect world it would be easy to press record on the tape recorder and stop the tape machine at the end of the day. The reality is that tape reels are expensive with a duration of 20 to 30 minutes of recording time in our case. You will certainly know when the reel runs out as it will spin off the tape heads if you don’t stop it in time. Not a good practise.

When working with a large production team it’s advisable to split the roles. This is an organised and effective method that can save a lot of time and confusion. It was also beneficial having calm communication amongst the team and assistance in other roles and heavy lifting activities when required. However chances are you will not always be working with a large team of sound engineers so when working with a band it is important to be as organised and on top of your engineering duties as possible.

WHAT WERE THE BIGGEST CHALLENGES & WHAT DID WE LEARN FROM THIS PROJECT

I am a firm believer of learning from every experience. Despite having skills and experience there is always something you can learn or improve upon for next time. At times the communication could have been improved. In failing to communicate something properly the next best thing to do is to stay calm and think logically which the team managed to do with great enthusiasm to achieve the best results possible. An example of this was when we realised equipment from our list was missing and we needed to replace it quickly.

Another example was when we realised that we were losing recording time and needed to move the bass amp into another room to avoid it leaking onto other tracks. The third warning occurred when we realised that the amp we had chosen for the keys wasn’t right for the recording so a quick swap over operation to a direct input was implemented. This brings up a point that being decisive and acting on it is important when facing issues or having to make quick changes when recording a band in the studio. Our most important lesson was that always having somebody present while the tape machine is running is extremely important!!!

I have always been fascinated by tape machines and how they work. Therefore this project gave me a broader understanding of the process. It can be quite involved and takes practise to become an expert. Impressed by the character tape added to the recording especially dealing with a dynamic genre like Reggae which has utilised tape effects for many classic recordings, I can see the benefits in owning a tape machine and utilising it with my own productions in the future. At the bottom of this blog post I have added a link and videos for those wanting to know more about tape recording operations and a closed loop analog signal processor called CLASP.

1.CLASP ANALOG TAPE RECORDING PROTOOLS DAW INTEGRATION   http://www.endlessanalog.com/tag/clasp-analog-tape-recording-pro-tools-daw-integration

2.ANALOG HEAVEN STUDER A820 & STUDER A80 IN PERFECT SYNC WITH DAW

3.REEL TO REEL BASICS

4.REEL-TO-REELS: MULTITRACK RECORDING

 

REFERENCES

CLASP Analog Tape Recording Pro Tools DAW Integration « Endless Analog. (2016). Endlessanalog.com. Retrieved 27 November 2016, from http://www.endlessanalog.com/tag/clasp-analog-tape-recording-pro-tools-daw-integration

For all digital guys, analog heaven Studer A820 and Studer A80 in perfect sync with DAW. (2016). YouTube. Retrieved 27 November 2016, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eoIXbnaliE8

Reel-to-Reels: Multitrack Recording. (2016). YouTube. Retrieved 27 November 2016, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rqF2cGWafOA

Reel-to-Reel Basics. (2016). YouTube. Retrieved 27 November 2016, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0BFWvku7jxs

Studer A80 Tape Machine. (2016). HistoryOfRecording.com. Retrieved 27 November 2016, from http://www.historyofrecording.com/studera80.html

 

  AUSTRAJAM PRODUCTIONS 2016

AUS220 WEEK 9 REGGAE/DANCEHALL HIPHOP REMIX FREELANCE PROJECT

INTRODUCTION

This week I will be announcing and discussing a freelance project myself and two other team members have decided to take on. The purpose of the project will be to provide a Hip Hop remix of a Reggae/Dancehall track provided by our client.

A remix can be a great way of introducing and expanding one genre of music to a different audience. Especially when the remix is well produced. The team is enthusiastic and excited to start working and blending both genres together. This could provide our client with the possibility of expanding his audience.

TEAM PROGRESS & A LIST OF JOBS TO DO

The idea of working on a remix for our client/producer Belly Full was decided last week during a discussion with fellow students and team members for the project. We were all familiar and impressed with our clients work before making this proposal. The next day we got in contact with Belly Full to share our idea about remixing one of his tracks. He was excited and agreeable to the idea. In fact he has provided us with many tracks to choose from and will provide the stems for the song we choose to remix. The task for the team this week is to collect a bunch of ideas and decide which track to remix. We have two and a half weeks to complete the remix. This project will be a team collaboration making critical decisions and utilising the facilities at SAE.

Ableton Live will be used to write/produce the remix as we have found this a great DAW for creating remixes in the past. We will be taking full advantage of midi instruments and possibly using the EMP suite to make use and become more familiar with the fabulous outboard synths. Once we are satisfied with the production making sure we have enough elements to start the arrangement, we will bounce and import the files into a Pro Tools session. Pro Tools is great for organising, arranging, editing and mixing. When we are happy with the arrangement we will give Belly Full a listen to make sure he’s happy or has any final suggestions before we book the studio to further develop and start the mix process.

Although another alternative could be to have each team member work on their own mix separately, we feel this project will be a great opportunity for us to produce and mix as a team. It will also give us the chance to really experiment and make use of some great analogue processing equipment available at SAE. Personally I can’t wait to to try out the Fatso  Stereo Compressor. I am also looking forward to the team getting into the large Audient, Neve or D-Command studio to use our creative and critical listening skills for the mixdown session.

Once Belly Full has approved the mix we will attempt to master the remix as best we can. The final handover of the remix will include a mastered and unmastered version incase our client would like to master it else where.

MY IDEAS/VIBES FOR THE REMIX

Below I have included a few Hip Hop remixes of Reggae/Dancehall tracks to inspire ideas for the project. The first example by Super Cat called Ghetto Red Hot was actually the first song that came to mind when the group began discussing remixing a Reggae/Dancehall track. It is also important to consider and compare the original tracks to the remix and make notes of the changes and similarities between the two versions.I have included the original tracks for both remix references on this blog.

Although Perfect Tree by Chronixx was produced and released years after Super Cats’ Ghetto Red Hot, both remix versions have a classic 90’s New York, Hip Hop feel about their production. Most likely because the remix version were produced in New York.

I think the 90’s Hip Hop vibe works well and will be perfect for this remix project. The third remix idea “Champion” by Buju Banton utilises a classic West Coast Hip Hop style which could also work for our remix. We will have to wait and see. To Be Continued….

 

ORIGINAL SUPER CAT GHETTO RED HOT (REGGAE VERSION)

SUPER CAT GHETTO RED HOT (HIP HOP REMIX)

 

CHRONIXX “PERFECT TREE” (REGGAE VERSION)

CHRONIXX “PERFECT TREE” (HIP HOP REMIX)

 

BUJU BANTON “CHAMPION” (DANCEHALL VERSION)

BUJU BANTON “CHAMPION” (WESTCOAST HIP HOP REMIX)

 

REFERENCES

BELLYFULL, C., BELLYFULL, B., BELLYFULL, B., BELLYFULL, B., & BELLYFULL, M. (2016). BELLYFULL. SoundCloud. Retrieved 1 August 2016, from https://soundcloud.com/bellyfull

Buju Banton – Champion (Original). (2016). YouTube. Retrieved 1 August 2016, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wD4SXQRaZr0

Chronixx – perfect tree – cannabis Ft Eesah (Root & Chalice) Official HD Video March 2016. (2016). YouTube. Retrieved 1 August 2016, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdQybP5ZDl8

Chronixx – Perfect Tree. (2016). YouTube. Retrieved 1 August 2016, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KxO4h5ub6AY&list=RDKxO4h5ub6AY&index=1

EL7X, E. (2016). Empirical Labs Fatso EL7X –. Audiochocolate.com.au. Retrieved 1 August 2016, from http://www.audiochocolate.com.au/all-products/empirical-labs-fatso-el7x/

FATSO™ Jr. / Sr. Analog Tape Simulator & Compressor Plug-In | Universal Audio. (2016). Uaudio.com. Retrieved 1 August 2016, from http://www.uaudio.com/store/special-processing/fatso.html

SuperCat – Ghetto Red Hot (Hip Hop Mix). (2016). YouTube. Retrieved 1 August 2016, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j4Eyh10gHSE

 

  AUSTRAJAM PRODUCTIONS 2016