Once upon a time we didn’t have super-jacked computers with Pro Tools 45 and a gazillion plugins that do almost anything you could think of.

It was a tough time. Editing was extremely time consuming. When you mixed, you needed to worry about things like a noise floor (gasp!).

Because the production process was a bit more restricted and potentially time-consuming, certain guiding principals came to light in the form of quaint little adages.

But in the DIY age, these adages have fallen a bit to the wayside. So here’s five old geezer mantras you can recite to yourself before your next production.

1. A Recording Should Sound Like a Record

What it means: A well arranged and recorded multitrack should “sound like a record” simply by pushing the faders up. If the words “well, it isn’t mixed yet” come out of your mouth, you did something wrong.

Why we need it: The modern production generation is beginning to lean too heavily on the mixing process to make things “sound like a record.” This value is misplaced. A good song, with a good arrangement and good tracking should already excite people before a single knob is turned in the mix stage. The mix should be ironing out the kinks and taking it all one step further.

2. A Good Song Only Needs 3 Things: A Singer, Piano and a Piano Bench

What it means: One fairly accurate litmus for a great song is you can strip it down to just a vocals and a single instrument, like a piano or guitar, and it’s still captivating.

Why we need it: The modern production generation is leaning too heavily on sound selection to make a song work. The focus has shifted away from composition in favor of having powerful drums/guitars/unique production. And while having great sounds is an integral part of the process, nothing supersedes the quality of the lyrics, melody, and progression.

3. The Emotion Is Between the Notes

What it means: A great performance isn’t about the notes. It’s about the dynamic, the space, the pocket, and as Miles Davis famously noted: it’s also about the notes you don’t play.

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Why we need it: The modern production generation is leaning very heavily on sequencers. While sequencers are extremely useful and can be very emotive they naturally lack human feel. The humanity of a performance is quintessentially what allows the feel of a record to translate to other humans. Unless the feel is specifically inhuman or robotic. Moreover, a lot of music is relying on sequencers in an almost mathematical way and takes away from the surprise both in terms of performance and composition.

4. The Emotion Is in the Room

What it means: Music is an art of communication, and part of that communication is the conversation between the players.

Why we need it: The modern production generation is relying very heavily on the process of overdubbing to create records. There’s a fear of commitment prevalent in today’s music culture. We’re scared to not be able to edit everything into perfection, or to not be able to treat an instrument without bleed from another instrument. But this process of overdubbing takes away the potential for those spontaneous and wonderful little things that can happen when musicians start feeding off each other. No amount of editing can ever recreate that.

5. To Thine Own Self Be True

Ok, this one isn’t a music saying per se, but it applies.

What it means: Draw your inspiration from an honest place that reflects who you are. Don’t fake the funk.

Why we need it: The modern production generation has the capability to create in almost any manner imaginable. There really is very limit to the things we can do. Oddly enough, the number one issue I have most of the records that come across my desk is that they sound like imitations of another band/artist. Or at the very least don’t seem to speak in a way that’s exclusive to the folks making the record. No one is really interested in hearing a knock-off of someone else. What generally catches people’s attention is the passion put into a record and the fearless daring to go off the beaten path.

Sincerely,

– Weiss





Matthew Weiss Matthew Weiss is the recordist and mixer for multi-platinum artist Akon, and boasts a Grammy nomination for Jazz & Spellemann Award for Best Rock album. Matthew has mixed for a host of star musicians including Akon, SisQo, Ozuna, Sonny Digital, Uri Caine, Dizzee Rascal, Arrested Development and 9th Wonder. Get in touch: Weiss-Sound.com