3 song'd to death!

[@?,*???&?]

What's the length of a legitimate release to you guys? What is your minimum to get involved? Can the artist suffice to make burned copies of it or do they have to press before you get involved?

Just curious...I think I've worked on a few too many less-than-10-song releases.

[tiger vomitt]

zzzzzzzz

[JGriffin]

Get involved as an engineer or as a producer? As an engineer I'll record a single tune if that's what the band wants to spend their money on, or a double CD (not that I've done any of those). The release doesn't affect me one bit. They can press up thousands of copies or give one each to their mom and dad and stop there. The CD can sit in their basement and never even have cover art made; I don't care. Then again, I'm not in a position to be picky about music clients.

[joel hamilton]

I like my job too much to think about it in terms of quantity per project.

I have busted my ass for too long on ONE song, or breezed through a full length LP with a talented crew to judge the project by its total program time.

You know that, Jeff.


"how long will it take you to record three songs???"

[@?,*???&?]

My point here is that projects that I work on that never see the light of day don't do anyone a service. A 3-song demo shopped to a label invariably leads to, "Sounds great, do you have any more songs recorded?" from the A&R person. I would argue to strive to put together whole collections of songs if you are an independent artist bothering to record. Granted, this internet/mp3 exchange medium has made the single much more prevalent, but at the same time has created an industry where the expectation is almost to record an artist as a 'favour'.

I stick my guns, 10-12 songs or bust! National distribution helps everyone. It should be a primary goal.

[stevemiddlekauff]

I record a lot of seven inches. I prefer it to recording demo cdrs that sit
in someone's basement.

[JGriffin]

If the only reason to ever record music is to get a record deal, Jeff, then you're spot on.

[cgarges]

I'll do whatever the fuck the band pays me to.

That having been said, I try to encourage people to set their goals lower. Spend more time on something they'll be proud of in a year's time. Along the lines of something only being as good as it is when it's released, I've seen WAY too many "big" projects abandoned mid-stream.

I think back to the fifties and sixties, when pop music was an openly single-oriented business. Artists cut singles and when they had enough singles or close to it, they put out an album. This helped almost everybody's career longevity. Nowadays, it's still a sinlge-oriented business, but no one thinks about it this way. A band spends a shitload of money making a full-length, but then promotion goes into one item to sell, which ultimately kills them because thay can't recoup off a project of that magnitude. Back in the day (let me get out my cane and stand on my soapbox) bands released singles with B-sides, which weren't put on the albums, which then made the B-sides collectible as well. When they got close to having 6 or 8 singles done, they'd go in and record a few more tunes (often covers) and release them, making the album something to have if you were a fan of the band. This helped establish a "catalog," something that will ultimately help kill labels in a few years because they won't have any catalog to "remaster" or "re-release" like they've been doing for the past twenty years or so off of artists from the sixties and seventies.

I'm not even going to get into the "8 crappy songs and 2 good ones" argument.


I say, stick to smaller packages. But that's just me.

Chris Garges
Charlotte, NC

[auralman]

I'd much rather listen to 3 well-crafted, thought out, rehearsed, well-performed, well recorded/mixed/mastered songs that a band/artist/producer has poured their soul into than a half-baked collection of 12 convoluted attempts at an "album" any day. Albums usually suck, but songs can often rule.

Ka-ching...$.02

[Dingo]

auralman, who is that guy that is your avatar? He looks familiar.

[cgarges]

I gotta have muh cowbill...

Chris Garges
Charlotte, NC

[wayne kerr]

I record a lot of seven inches

A god among men...

S=H

[wayne kerr]

What is your minimum to get involved?

$35 - DUH!

S=H

[drumsound]

What is your minimum to get involved?

I've got a three hour session minimum. So go that long, most are longer...

[Professor]

No such luxury at the university. I get involved when they come a knockin'. I usually try to discourage them from doing the 17-song "demo" that will get duped a thousand times and sit in the basement for years to come. But these are college students, not pros.

-J