Still want to open a recording studio...

[superblonde.org]

True or false, everything today can be recorded direct except wind and brass instruments (and those instruments are rare in music today anyway). Drums replaced by e-drums. String section replaced by synth software. No need for a vocal booth because there's no bleed from anything, worst-case use a bedroom closet. Therefore the studio is not needed anymore, the entire process is done in a spare bedroom. All players getting individual headphone mixes.

So isn't wanting a studio for audio, like saying someone wants a darkroom, for photography. (Which no one needs because only the 0.1% of photographers does developing anymore) A studio is outmoded. Where are the literary writers saying they want a large salon & library-room to type a novel on a typewriter, gone, now replaced by a small desk, a harddrive of ebooks and a word processor, only the 0.1% hipster wants to recall the "old ways" with a mechanical typewriter.

What is a recording studio today?

If I had a cubicle desk job still, I would covertly store a collection of audio gear in a filing cabinet and requisition a conference room after-hours or weekends as a 'recording studio' for bands, when the cubicle maze is deserted, and on the side of any buildings with the accounting & marketing guys etc, it's deserted anytime after 5pm and certainly on weekends, always, seems like they 'never work'. Acoustic treatment? What for? There's no mic's except on the vocalist. Ironically. After working in a local recording studio on a couple tiny projects part time recently, I can basically say that I want almost nothing to do with quote unquote musicians, especially young musicians, double-especially young vocalists.


I like pipeline's comment about, essentially, networking at shows. Pick & choose the bands to work with that way as well, rather than they-come-to-you. And also recording live instead of in-studio. That seems like a cool way to go. Record live at regular record-store parties, that would be cool. The trendy-trendy new music shows on social media like Tiny Desk concerts, Band In A Van, etc, are recorded semi-live, in unusual settings, with a small, controlled audience. Plus video as well. The John Lennon Educational Tour Bus. Make the studio mobile. Redefines the meaning of the phrase "pimpin' out my ride."

[pipelineaudio]

We've been doing a lot of the one camera, pretty much live stuff lately as it works well for subscription type bands where they need a new song each month for their Patreons

https://youtu.be/_C7vdnp6MAw

[ivansc]

First session done yesterday and much to my surprise the engineer had me standing in the control room singing and playing my guitar up against the internal window/wall, with the rest of the band in the main live room separated by gobos.

I am going to have to get used to this... struggled to see the guys due to daylight (!) reflecting off the internal window, even after the outside shutters were closed off it was hard.
But we got some good results. And like I said, this is a personal studio belonging to an established artist & is generally only used by them and people they want to help along in their careers.
I got grandfathered in there as an "old friend" so feel very privileged.
Engineer was lovely and very competent.

So now at least we have ONE sort of studio that is viable, even if it is only going to be something a lucky few can afford to do.
Me? I am just really grateful.

[superblonde.org]

I was lucky enough to attend part of a recording technology talk from an award winning LA engineer. (grammy, i think, not that it means anything but it's something) Part of the presentation was how he used two ipads to record a guitar-singer-songwriter. Two young kids were holding the iPads near the sound sources and used the 'voice recorder' app on each iPad as the artist played. No stands, they just physically held the ipads for the song. This was done in a quiet & neutral room. Then he mixed it. He played the track (from iTunes, where they published it), it sounded awesome. of course, the artist being recorded was also incredibly talented. his main point was that technology (i.e. the built-in microphones of the iPad) has exceeded the ability to distinguish generic equipment from pro equipment. his second point was that the real skill needed was listening aka 'having good ears' during mixing. his later points were about getting really good monitors to allow this (and not using headphones) and being proficient with a DAW (which I guess many of the attendees did not like because he kind of said that part about the DAW apologetically). It was a pretty simple recording example. But, it worked and was real-world.

Coincidentally I believe the artist was from HI. I forget the name though.