Last year, I did an interview with Dan McQuinn, drummer for alternative rock band July for Kings, about his home studio. My intention was to talk equipment and method; which digital audio workstation (DAW) software he used, which audio interface he preferred – stuff home recording guys like us geek out over. I ended up with a story of the changing music industry instead. In 2002, JFK was signed to major record label, MCA. The Cincinnati natives recorded in studios in Los Angeles and Massachusetts with a well-known producer. They toured with Muse, Collective Soul and Counting Crows. But just a year later, without the sales to justify record company resources, they were dropped from the label. It wasn’t the end of JFK. They just went back to the studio– the home studio. In 2007, JFK released their first homegrown album to a warm reception from longtime fans.
In the past 10 years, quality home recording became more accessible to the masses with a new generation of digital products. Today’s home studio requires little more than a computer and some experience. Not only has the recording become DIY, but the Internet is now the new norm for distribution with iTunes and smaller independent sites like CD Baby allowing self-released albums to hit a wide market without much upfront cost ($39 per album upload on CD Baby). It can even be more profitable than going through the traditional label since the online distributors take a much lower percentage than the record companies ever would.
For us home recorders, profit is usually the furthest thing from our minds. What we really want is to preserve those musical moments and ideas that deserve another listen. I’ve been doing this for years. I get the same pride from listening to a good recording as a painter does when he fills his canvas. I can even hear the evolution of my style or how a song has changed over the years. Every recording becomes immortal.
But something I’ve never done is to collect enough material of consistent quality to make a true album. Over the next few weeks I’m going to explore how an independent album is created and released, and some of the tricks I use in the recording process. I also want to hear about your interest and experience in audio recording. Have you ever dreamed of becoming a recording artist? Does your band do its own recordings?
