How To Handle Pre-Production Like a Boss
I still get asked regularly about pre-production, from both producers and bands - what is the point of it all, what does the process actually look like, and which things should be focused on during the pre-pro sessions themselves. I wrote a blog article about this years ago and it was consistently one of the most viewed pieces of content on the site. Feels like a worthwhile article to re-write and improve upon.
Pre-production ain’t sexy, but it can lead to a sexy level of preparation in advance of making a wicked record.
In easy terms, this is all that pre-production really is:
Sitting in a room together (band + producer) and working through the songs from the upcoming release with a focus on resolving any musical issues, improving any weaknesses, and fortifying any inherent strengths in the material.
If the songs come out ‘better’ than how they went in, you’ve had yourselves an effective pre-production session.
That’s it, that’s all.
Well, sort of.
While there are many tools available for changing or altering the elements of a production, their effectiveness all centres around how the changes will make the listener feel. Stick with me here. I know you’ve heard famous producers talking about “connecting on an emotional level” and all the other cliched platitudes that exist on the internet. I also know that I didn’t really understand what the fuck they were talking about until I started paying hard attention to these concepts as I became a better producer and mixer.
We can use things like tempo and key to affect the overall vibe of the song. Instrumentation, arrangement, sense of space, and song structure all help to build on that. Specifics like individual parts, background textures and little musical flourishes really drive home the ‘emotion’ in the final track. There’s a ton of different ways to approach these somewhat abstract concepts, but the point is: great pre-production can streamline the process and help create unique ideas that will make your record stronger. It will also make the actual recording process faster and more efficient.
No one wants to spend extra time and money on additional recording days to fix things that could have been handled in pre-production. So before you head into the studio to record your band’s next release, spend some time on the pre-production phase and set yourself up to nail things from the start.
Here’s what an effective, practical approach to a pre-production session in advance of, say, a 5-song EP might look like:
First off, you’ll want to record the rehearsals so make sure you’ve got a recording device on you. I’ve found that even rough iPhone recordings work just fine. If I’m feeling fancy, I’ll bring my little Zoom handheld recorder. Keep it simple.
I prefer working out of the band’s usual rehearsal space which keeps everyone comfortable and in their normal jamming environment; no need to throw in extra variables here. I’ll usually want to hear the songs played - in any order at this point - from front-to-back. “Just call out the song titles before you play them,” I’ll say. Hit record on the Zoom.
I write the song names down, along with the tempo that they’re played at, tapping them out on a metronome app. If tempos sway wildly throughout a song, a note is made for that, too. We may have to find a tempo compromise, or we may end up programming tempo changes within the song. I don’t know at this point; I just write it down.
Little notes on anything that jumps out at me will be detailed for each track. Sometimes that could look like, “transition from chorus2 into bridge is clunky… work on drum fill and guitar shots.” It could also look like, “Song shreds… don’t touch anything” or “verse2 could use a harmony vocal on the last line, for lift.” At this point we’re just prospecting and getting our heads around the material.
(This is considerably easier and faster when the band has sent over decent demos in advance. If at all possible, get the band to send over rough rehearsal recordings before booking your pre-pro together.)
On this first play-through, I’m purely listening for how the songs hit overall, any glaring structure or performance issues, and building a mental rolodex of what we may want to address downstream. After we’ve played through the whole ‘setlist,’ we’ll have a chat about the songs and some of those first impressions I just jotted down. The band usually starts that conversation on their own as soon as they finish the last song. The bassist might say something about missing a rhythmic change on a particular tune and we’ll focus on that song to start. Have a talk, play through the song with the changes, have another talk.
This part of the process is just about reiterations; methodically working through slightly different approaches in order to progressively zero in on the core elements of the songs and make small improvements with each playthrough. If the band is good and the material is well-written & solidly rehearsed, we’re looking at a straight-forward session with some minor notes, alterations and a game-plan for the recording dates.
At other times, we may ended up shortening / lengthening song sections by a few bars, re-ordering or adding to the song structure, or cutting out parts completely. While heavy-handed moves like this are fairly uncommon in my experience (most good bands sort the majority of this stuff when they write and rehearse new songs), it can happen.
And if it better serves the impact of the song, then I think it’s justified. Obviously, the scope of the producer’s role should be defined when actually hiring someone, but keeping an open mind to potential changes is a good rule of thumb at this stage.
I’ll usually continue re-playing and re-chatting about the songs until everyone in the room is feeling excited about them and any changes we’ve made. If there’s a particular note that seems to bother someone in the band, now’s a good time to address that. Alternatively, if you’re having problems getting everyone on board with a particular idea, you may want to shelf that concern (or abandon it completely). So long as its been brought up and examined, you’re in a good position to circle back to it in the studio later and at least now everyone involved will have an informed opinion on the different directions the project could take.
Besides, we’re not trying to make permanent, concrete decisions here necessarily… this is more about poking and prodding for improvements that can be made later in the studio, and for ensuring every member of the band (and the producer) have explored their options for the material. People often change their minds after some reflection time and the process will help to keep everyone on the same page, and open to different ideas in the studio.
A few general examples, for illumination purposes:
If we want a song (or section of a song) to feel ‘heavier,’ I’ll probably suggest slowing the tempo by a few BPMs. For a more chaotic, frenetic feel, we may speed things up
For a more dynamic overall vibe, we might approach an idea like dropping the rhythm guitars from, say, the first half of Verse2 in order to give space to re-introduce those guitars on the back half of that verse
If the original arrangement is feeling repetitive, we could look at overdubbing an addition guitar part (or vocal harmony, etc.) in order to keep things interesting for the listener
Always keep the overall vibe and feel of the track in high regard and use that as a compass to help guide your collective decision-making. If we’ve decided that a particular song needs to exert aggression and angst, we’ll use those emotional cues as the basis for our approach and make sure any changes we’re making will support that feeling and outcome. Higher-level production like this does not need to be complicated.
If you’re producing the project (or are self-producing it as a band), now’s a good time to put together a rough ‘Parts List,’ similar to how a Shot List functions for the director of a film: you want to have a good idea of all the main parts that will need to be recorded for the arrangements of each song. Beyond the bed tracks (drums, bass, rhythm gtrs, etc), that list might look something like:
Track 1
Verse1 guitar overdub, to serve as a response to the lead vocal lines
Chorus1 high vocal harmony on lyrics X and Y
Chorus 2 high + mid harmony on lyric Z and a synth pad to lift it above Chorus1 feel
Overdubbed 3rd rhythm guitar on heavy section in the bridge
Guitar feedback to transition into Chorus3