I’m always asking our head engineer for DIY tips to share with our readers because he knows so much about recording and mixing as well as mastering. So the other day, I got an email from him that surprised me. I was expecting a bunch of audio-physionetics that only the most techie DIY musicians would understand, but instead he had a few tips on writing…
John has been an artist even longer than he’s been in the studio business, and we’ve been friends almost as long, so I should have seen it coming, but after reading his suggestions, I’m already trying to change some of my own habits.
So without further adieu…
Writing: That Idea In Your Head
Every song ever made began with someone thinking about, playing, or singing something and afterwards thinking, “Hey, that sounds kinda cool. That could be something.” A passionate musician is quick to ensure that the idea is not forgotten.
When such an idea comes to you, this is the time to write the lyrics out, play the same guitar riff a million times, show it to someone else, or record somehow whatever it is that got you excited, musically. It’s important to record these ideas at the time because, no matter how simple or complex they seem, your own ideas induce your own musical passion and can get you in a musical rush, or, “in the zone”. To lose the feeling for music can be devastating to our musical careers. (Just ask Kurt Cobain.)
Writing: Quickly Recording Ideas
I believe that the most unique musical ideas we’ll ever have will come to us when we are not in a music setting. The most unique idea you’ve ever had will not come to you while you’re jamming with your friends. Therefore it is crucial, assuming you want to produce unique musical ideas, that you are capable of capturing that idea – no matter how small – right then and there.
The method I generally use is my phone, an iPhone. The iPhone comes with a small recording app that we can all use to record any idea in the moment. The quality won’t be good at all, but it’s enough to jar our memory later. When I am humming something I think “sounds kinda cool” I personally don’t drive home immediately and start playing it on the guitar. Instead, I wait until I’m in a good music-writing mood and I pull up the array of recorded ideas stored on my phone, and choose one (or more) that sit well with me at that time. And I go from there…
Have fun,
-John Taylor
Feel free to leave some feedback – that’s what it’s all about. How do you write your music? Is there a secret to capturing the perfect song? And do you have to use an iPhone?
…
John is the head engineer at SoundOps Mastering, and is probably a genius. He loves production and is as much into the technology that makes it happen as he is the music itself. When we can’t find him in the studio, he’s usually outside either running or pitching a tent somewhere in the woods. You’ve been warned.
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