Cue: Slight Rant (but still worth reading, I promise…)
I’ve been noticing a bit of a shift in the local recording scene lately and I’m not sure if it’s a byproduct of the Covid-era frugality, a sign of the ever-changing musical times, or a random wave of occurrence like most other things in life. Whatever the cause, it’s a little frustrating to watch so I’m taking to this tiny corner of the internet to verbalize my inner dialogue and, hopefully, find some clarity for myself and maybe others.
Here it is: I’ve observed a large percentage of local releases bearing engineer / mixer / producer credits from someone in their own band, or from someone in another band that they’ve played shows with in the recent past; active musicians, not active engineers. People who are just dabbling in audio recording.
Not a problem in itself, except that 90%+ of these records do not even come close to competing sonically with other releases in their space. Furthermore, I suspect that the decision to work with said person is often made purely on factors of cost and convenience.
This will come across as pretentious to some people, I imagine. It may even sound hypocritical, given that I wrote another post recently that praises the rare, rising Producer as a potentially fantastic person to hire for your band’s next album, especially when their services can be had at reasonable rates. I assure you that my opinion on this matter spawns from the desire to see good, local bands getting the attention they deserve - and records that sound bad rarely bring that result. More often than not, I watch as these releases (that feature truly excellent songs and performances) fall flat and are quickly passed over by listeners that could have become fans if the music were presented well.
Now, I’m not a total idiot… I realize that personal connections and word-of-mouth have always been effective means for finding a studio or producer to work with, especially in local music scenes and smaller-scale productions. I also realize that some bands just aren’t able to hire outside personnel on, say, their first release due to budget constraints or simply because they dig handling things DIY at the beginning. Nothing wrong with that.
No, the frustrating part is to listen back to these releases and know how much better they could have been if they sounded like proper records…
Or how many more potential fans the band could have reached if their tracks weren’t recorded in a basement and then mixed + mastered in another basement…
Or how much more impact those releases might have had, if they didn’t suffer from poor sonics, clumsy editing, or having a lead vocal buried 6dB below where the music sits.
This is where I get confused. If a band has spent hundreds of hours writing, arranging, practicing and perfecting their songs, why the hell would they settle for the easiest-to-find, lowest-cost provider when looking to record those songs? If the lowest-cost provider is also the most capable person to help push the songs to their fullest potential, then by all means, hire them! But damnnn, the results tell a different story almost every time.
Like, really… there are 8-12 fucking awesome mixers in our area who work loosely within the genres that I do (Hamilton, Ontario - rock ’n roll music) and almost all of them are pretty accessible from a cost standpoint. It seems that good production can be found between $500-$1500/song, including studio rates and personnel fees. I’m also aware that some less-established engineers are happy to work at $100/song (or for free), but that doesn’t mean that their work aligns with the goals of your band’s next release.
While the absolute high-end of any industry’s rates are typically a little inflated, you can consistently find solid quality vs. value ratios near the established center of those rates. There’s a reason it costs $X to professionally record, edit, mix and master a record - studios generally have set dayrates, there’s a ton of work that happens outside the band’s view, the value of experience has an actual cost, etc etc. A good engineer/mixer/producer will be able to explain those costs and help you understand what you’re actually paying for.
More importantly, they will deliver you a final product that you’re actually stoked on, in less time and with fewer revisions than if things were handled by a relatively inexperienced recordist. All of which will help bring you more fans, more exposure and ultimately help further the pursuits of the band.
Isn’t that why we record and release material in the first place? To reach our fans with music that they’ll play again and again?
Listen, I’ve had conversations with a dozen+ bands in the last couple years that have eventually made the decision to hire, say, the drummer from a band they played a show with, or their own rhythm guitar player, because “they’ve decided to get into recording.” These decisions seem to be made chiefly from a cost standpoint. (“These two people both want to work with us, but one of them will do the whole EP for $500…”)
I don’t mind losing a record to another capable engineer for, literally, any reason… I do mind losing a record to fuckin-Greg-down-the-street because he’s willing to work for $1.50/hr and here’s why: He will very likely leave your record far short of its potential and now all those great songs you’ve been working on count for nothing.
A little blip on a weekly Instagram “new releases roundup,” to be skipped by listeners and never heard again.
That same release, recorded and mixed well, could have been the next big record in the scene and gone on to influence a whole subset of other bands. That lost opportunity kills me.
A great sounding, well-produced release certainly doesn’t guarantee a record’s success, but a poorly-mixed shitshow of an album almost certainly guarantees mediocrity at best.
I wrote a long form post about strategies for choosing an audio professional to work with, but simply heeding the following advice may prove invaluable when considering personnel:
Always listen to the last 2-4 releases from a prospective producer / mixer and use this to compare and contrast your possible choices. Mixes don’t lie.
Repeated: Mixes. Don’t. Lie. You should probably listen to what a mixer has actually done recently, in order to gain perspective on what they can do with your band’s next release.
I’ll say it one final way:
The vast majority of my fellow producers and mixers got into the industry because we want to work on good music with good bands, and help those bands reach some level of success. That’s why we’ve spent the last decade or more learning how to make records and mix music at a high level. We want your release to sound its absolute best and we’ll go above and beyond to make that happen. Crucially, we’ve actually put in the years of grinding in order to gain a skillset that makes these things possible. There’s nothing wrong with newer, less experienced sound professionals charging less and building out their track record, but please, don’t just let cost and convenience be the sole drivers in your decision to hire someone… your music is worth the extra thought and attention.
Besides, what’s the true cost of spending months of your life working on a record, only to release something subpar when it could have been notable.
Just a perspective from a working engineer who cares about your music.