We had come a long way, but our journey was far from over. The road behind us had proved more difficult than we were prepared for and our morale had suffered greatly. Everything started to look the same and we began to wonder if we had been walking in circles.
We were at a crossroads. Were we to continue down the same path in hopes of reaching our destination or abandoned the road ahead and forge a new path? We decided on the later and made our way through the dark, ominous forest.
We noticed a strange, blue glow up ahead and pressed forward cautiously. As we got closer, the silhouette of a man started to appear. Whether friend or foe we did not know. Swords drawn, “Who are you? Show Yourself!” I shouted. The man laughed and pulled his hood back, the blue light from his staff illuminating his face. “I am the Dragon Tamer. Follow me.”
It was July 2012. We had just finished up the same three tracks we started with in January. Now read that again.
It was July 2012. We had just finished up the same three tracks we started with in January. Six months had passed and we had only finished three out of the ten songs to be on the album. Our goal of releasing the album by summer had been slaughtered, and our sanity was next in line if we didn’t find a solution fast.
Now don’t get it twisted. The people at ACME were very professional and knowledgeable. We ended up with three great recordings which would later be used on our album, but the process had gotten too long and too expensive for our needs. We were running out of time and were low on cash. There had to be another way.
I was browsing the musicians section on Craigslist and came across a post advertising a recording special with a money-back guarantee. I was intrigued and replied to the ad. The mystery man behind the listing was a gentleman by the name of Jason Lustig. He was a local freelance engineer with over 12 years of experience and a Bachelor’s Degree in audio recording. The list of credentials went on. Then something caught my eye.
“On Location Recording”
That meant we could record in the comforts of our practice space, otherwise known as Seniuk’s basement. I proposed the idea to the guys and they were all in favor, so we crossed our fingers and booked our first session with him.
Recording with Jason Lustig in Seniuk’s basement.
It was recording day at Seniuk’s. We all felt a sense of relief being in a familiar environment. We hear a knock at the door. A small framed guy, who looked to be somewhere in his 30s, stood there with a big grin. His glasses and demeanor gave hints to a possible gamer and/or comic book reader. “Hey Jason, come on in!” I led him down a small flight of stairs and through a series of doors which led to the practice space. He looked around and set his mic cases on the floor. “Alright I can definitely work with this. Let’s get started!”
Mics were set up and we layed down the basic tracks for the seven remaining songs. How long did it take us? One day! Now we’re talking! Things were looking up, and we felt like we had just found a nugget of gold while sifting through the dirty trenches of Craigslist. Usually our Craigslist experiences resulted in no-shows, crazies and ego-maniacs, but this time we struck pure gold!
The process seemed effortless this time. Maybe it was because we just wanted it done, but there was something magical about the process. New ideas trickled in and were executed without taking up days of recording. We welcomed Lustig’s criticisms and looked to him anytime we were fresh out of ideas. His extensive knowledge and experience in the dark art of musical engineering was exactly what we needed. He knew just how to manipulate the dragon to make it bend to his will.
We finished up the tracks in Lustig’s basement, where he had built a control room and small iso booth for vocals and guitar overdubs. He mixed and mastered the tracks and the CD was sent off for duplication by the end of November 2012. We ended up with an amazing product that we were all really proud of.
Our first full-length album titled White Horses & Black Jeans was released on December 18, 2013 . You can find it on iTunes, Spotify, Amazon, Google Play and CdBaby.
Well folks, this concludes my recording studio series for now. I hope you all learned some valuable lessons from my experiences. In case you missed them, here’s the big ones I learned along the way:
- Always come to the studio prepared! Know your parts like the back of your hand.
- Get your instruments intonated and tuned prior to recording.
- When researching studios keep in mind that it’s not all about the fancy gear and bells and whistles. What matters most is finding an engineer that can adapt to your needs and understands the sound you are trying to achieve. This is vital.
- Remember that time is money…your money. Make sure you and the engineer are on the same page with deadlines and budget.
- Don’t do something just because you think it’s the “right” way to record. Different styles of music require different approaches to recording. Do what will benefit your music the most.
- Have fun and admire the journey!
AMANDA LEE PEERS 