One of the biggest mistakes I see newer bands doing is multitracking their music.

Heres several reasons why you should try to record your band as live as possible:

 

1. There is value in authenticity.

Up until now, you and your bandmates have written, practiced, and possible played shows as a group, together. Whether you rush a section or drag a chorus a bit, there is something magical happening when everyone is locked in, focused on making the song chug along and getting to the end together. Theres an innate and undeniable energy in that full band live performance that carries a lot of authenticity and vulnerability that is extremely difficult to replicate when each person is recording their own part by themselves.

By recording your music as live as possible, your recordings will sound the most authentically like you, because they are you in your purest moment.

Theres nothing worse in my opinion than seeing a band live, and they sound nothing like what their released music sounds like.

 

2. Perfection does not exist

Many engineers will tell that the only way to have a quality recording is to “record it perfectly” by isolating everything and recording each band member individually, usually to a click track.

Not only do I disagree with this as an engineer, but Id like to remind everyone that seeking perfection in any endeavor is a futile and rarely keeps you grounded in the moment, which ironically is one of the most important elements in creating something memorable. By subconsciously trying to achieve perfection, you stop seeing the value in what makes great art great: Its imperfection and human vulnerabilities.

 

3. Time and Cost

How long does it take you and your band to play one of your songs? 2 minutes? 5 minutes?

What if I told you that thats how long it can take to get a professional quality recording of your music?

Because realistically, by live recording with a knowledgable engineer, you could have 75% percent of the instruments in your song recorded in the amount of time it takes your band to play one take that everyone likes. Thats the way its been for most of the century that we’ve been recording music.

After you get the drums, bass, and guitar take that everyone is happy with, all thats left is to layer some final vocals, throw a solo in and maybe the occasional guitar double track and its on to mixing and mastering. Boom. Easy.

If an engineer is trying to steer you away from live tracking, its probably because A. They are not confident or capable in recording a live band (find a new engineer) or B. They want you to be there 4 times as long as you need to be while you agonize over every little note that is a semi tone sharp, or snare hit that is 20 milliseconds off of the click track (find a new engineer)

 

4. Get your music heard.

You don’t need your first ep or album to sound like any of your veteran musical idols. You need it to sound like you.

Your friends, family, and fans will be super excited to see you release anything. Full stop.

Don't be afraid to release something because its not sounding like some of your favorite records. If you have fun recording it, you will have fun listening to it and so will your fans.

Good Luck!

Santiago Luna - Owner / Head Engineer at Cutie Bros. Studios