PacifRick
Senior Member
Like some (or most) of you guys, I am lucky enough to have a great studio for recording just about any situation. I take great pride in capturing the best sound possible out of my kit and the other instruments. I cannot settle for just a decent sound, and any project that I have ever been a part of, I have spent a great amount of time tweaking and tuning for the best possible sounding recording, with great results.
With that said, I'm a (new-ish) part of a 4 piece cover band that has started tinkering with some originals with plans to record them. Since I have a studio, and it also serves as our practice space, it was a given that we would record there. I actually volunteered to do the engineering because its my equipment and I trust myself to capture a great sound, plus I truly enjoy it. Also, keep in mind that our band leader/lead singer doesn't necessarily strive for perfection on stage, and the same has became apparent while recording. Everyone else is on the same page as to what we want to sound like as well as the quality of our recordings. We now have one song completely mixed down (by me) that I am excited for everyone else to hear. So far I have spent approximately 20 hours on this one song, including tracking all band members one on one, myself setting up drums and rehearsing and recording for many hours trying to achieve the perfect take/sound, and on final mix-down (all while taking time away from my kids/wife). What really bothers me though, is that today I get a call from the band leader just generally speaking about plans and associated costs about getting the to-be finished CD duplicated and sleeves/artwork etc. He had the nerve to break down the cost and the responsibility per member.........including me! Before I say anything, we are not talking about a lot of money here, but I work a normal everyday job and work hard for my money. I have worked just as hard on this recording, and were only 1 song into it. The band leader has spent approximately 2 hours on it. For the life of me, I cannot justify personally paying for any further work on this album, and by the time we are finished I will have paid my dues.....10 fold! I am also not wishing to defer my cost equally among the band, but since the band leader is making that decision I feel like he should cover my expense. Am I wrong to be upset at such a request? I feel like working up an invoice like I would any other band and itemize the studio time, equipment rental and engineering expenses and presenting it to him when he asks again for the money. Don't get me wrong, I am not griping about the money, but a little recognition about the amount of time that goes into a project like this would be greatly appreciated!
*Rant Over!*
With that said, I'm a (new-ish) part of a 4 piece cover band that has started tinkering with some originals with plans to record them. Since I have a studio, and it also serves as our practice space, it was a given that we would record there. I actually volunteered to do the engineering because its my equipment and I trust myself to capture a great sound, plus I truly enjoy it. Also, keep in mind that our band leader/lead singer doesn't necessarily strive for perfection on stage, and the same has became apparent while recording. Everyone else is on the same page as to what we want to sound like as well as the quality of our recordings. We now have one song completely mixed down (by me) that I am excited for everyone else to hear. So far I have spent approximately 20 hours on this one song, including tracking all band members one on one, myself setting up drums and rehearsing and recording for many hours trying to achieve the perfect take/sound, and on final mix-down (all while taking time away from my kids/wife). What really bothers me though, is that today I get a call from the band leader just generally speaking about plans and associated costs about getting the to-be finished CD duplicated and sleeves/artwork etc. He had the nerve to break down the cost and the responsibility per member.........including me! Before I say anything, we are not talking about a lot of money here, but I work a normal everyday job and work hard for my money. I have worked just as hard on this recording, and were only 1 song into it. The band leader has spent approximately 2 hours on it. For the life of me, I cannot justify personally paying for any further work on this album, and by the time we are finished I will have paid my dues.....10 fold! I am also not wishing to defer my cost equally among the band, but since the band leader is making that decision I feel like he should cover my expense. Am I wrong to be upset at such a request? I feel like working up an invoice like I would any other band and itemize the studio time, equipment rental and engineering expenses and presenting it to him when he asks again for the money. Don't get me wrong, I am not griping about the money, but a little recognition about the amount of time that goes into a project like this would be greatly appreciated!
*Rant Over!*