VOCAL CHAIN HIRE

When you are done recording ask the engineer for the stems (individual audio files). If you have the recording session and you have to bounce them yourself. Make sure all stems extend to the very beginning of the song and start from the same point. This will ensure the arrangement of the song is kept intact. Turn OFF all effects and processing plugins. Make sure all levels and faders are set to 0. Before you deactivate all plugins and reset levels make a bounce of the whole raw mix of the recording. Send me that mix with the Quote Request, so I can understand the project better. When you are ready to bounce the individual stems make sure you choose the correct format: WAV / 24 bit / 44.1 kHz ​ Please, make sure all mono tracks are bounced into mono stems and all stereo tracks are bounced into stereo stems!

The quality of the physical production of a record is as important as the composition and arrangement of the song. There is still a misconception circulating that a demo of your song might be enough to get you signed. That is no longer the case. The industry people you need to forward your career most likely don’t have the time, effort or patience for demos. They can’t be bothered to listen to your demo and envision how this song could’ve sounded if it was recorded elsewhere, because that involves risk taking. The standards for physical recordings and demos is higher than ever and your music has to be presented at it’s best if you want to see real results. The physical recording is the last stop before your music enters the ears of listeners. If the recording is poor or not right for the song - your message wont be translated. Always keep in mind that you get your own message much easier than the listener. You can recognise it even from a phone recording of a simple chord. The listener who has never heard your song will need a bit more to understand the message! This is where quality recording and mixing comes into play.

The recording process is as important as the mixing. You need to make sure you get the sound right at the recording stage, so I can mix it properly. Your final product will be as good as the weakest link in the chain and equally your final mix will be as good as your recording. I can’t tell you how many time artists come to me and ask me “Can you make me sound like that artist?”. The answer to this question is: “Did you record like him?”. If so then - Yes, I can make you sound like him, but if you didn’t then I can only get you close to him. Imagine going to a restaurant and asking the chef to make you a beef steak out of a chicken breast. He/she might grill it and pour gravy over it, but at the end of the day - it’s still a chicken breast!

Mastering is a process, which has the sole purpose of bringing your mixes to a loud stage and making sure the mixes sound relatavely similar on all different sound systems (speakers, headphones, cars, phones etc.) It is important to note that mixing and mastering are two completely different siences using different equipment, software and skills. Never trust anybody who offers mixing and mastering. You should aways use dedicated engineers for both of those stages! That is why I offer sudo-mastering and very simple forms of mastering with my mixes. I only do it for the sake of you being able to compare your mix to other loud songs. If you want to release the tracks I aways recommend using dedicated mastering engineers!