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I’ll tell you some steps that I use to record my solo projects in hopes that it may enlighten some people to try different ways of tracking. The project is my own since I am able to play drums, bass, guitars and I’m also a vocalist. Therefore, I can turn out a pretty decent, polished final product with little or no help from anybody else. Sometimes I consider this to be very limiting in my creativity since it never hurts to have another set of ears on your project but I have never been unhappy with my results. I’ll break it down in a step by step manner so you understand exactly how I am able to achieve my finished product.

Step 1: Choosing my Tempo
In this step I have to ask myself what I’m trying to communicate. Is this tune going to something a little slower and romantic? Uptempo and rocky? Fast, in-your-face and attention grabbing? The best way I have found is setting up my Boss TU80 tuner/metronome to find the perfect BPM.

Step 2: Setting the Structure
Typically I have a pretty good idea of how the song will be as far as my intro, verses, bridges, chorus, etc. but this is where I make any changes and really button up the final structure of the tune. I typically play the song through numerous times changing things around a little bit to test the affect of my changes on the overall mood of the song. I usually go with what I had previously set but in some cases I have extended the chorus so that the hook is a little more prominent or made other changes that I feel better suits the song.

Step 3: Recording Acoustic Guitar to the Click
This step is where I will begin recording some instruments and I typically start with an acoustic guitar unless I know the desired outcome is an up-beat rock song then I’ll play electric. I like using and recording the acoustic guitar first with the click because I find it to be the most expressive in regards to dynamic changes and crescendo. I will record the entire tune using the acoustic guitar making sure to play as basic and least complicated as I can as I mainly use it as a base for which to build the other instrument parts upon.

Step 4: Drums
Recording drums all by you’re lonesome can get a little frustrating and lengthy due to the sheer number of microphones required. In some cases, a simple triangle microphone setup will suffice. A microphone in the kick and 2 condensers in overhead positions to capture the entire kit can produce a good sound however I rarely use the triangle setup. I need the ability to control the level of each individual drum and cymbal. I prefer the ability to strip out any nearly inaudible sounds picked up from the mics. For example: If I’m not playing the toms, I mute the tom tracks and the same goes for the cymbal tracks, you get the idea. Doing this reduces the amount of noise and it also gives you the ability to apply completely independent EQ and effects setting to all the recorded tracks individually.

Step 5: Bass Guitar
Here is another step that can take longer than others due to my perfectionism and my lack of ability to play the bass as well as guitar or drums. Recording bass in this stage of the project is ideal for me to help with the mood since I’ve recorded everything to the feeling of my acoustic guitar. I’m always able to achieve the bass sound I’m looking for by recording multiple bass tracks. One track is the DI signal coming either directly off the bass using a DI box or coming from the amplifiers DI output. I like the DI because the transient attack is always slightly faster than that of a microphone. I will also use a bass microphone such as the Electro Voice ND868 Dynamic Bass Drum Microphone close to one of the drivers about half way between the center dust cap and the surround, plus I always use a large diaphragm condenser microphone set up 2 to 3 feet away from the amp cabinet to capture the sound of the amp inside the room. The fact that I record the same bass from numerous sources helps to create fixes for problems I may encounter in mixing.

Step 6: Electric Guitar
I prefer the sound of Ribbon microphones on guitars, they have a natural dynamic limitation to them but I will still always record electric guitars with a Shure SM57 close to the speaker and condenser microphone placed a similar distance as I would when recording bass. I will spend more time with mic placement on guitar amps. This is where it might be beneficial to have somebody else there to play guitar as you move the microphone around, monitoring on a set of good headphones to find the sweet spot. It really is key in finding your preferred guitar sound. As far as recording multiple guitar tracks, I typically try to use different guitars and amplifiers or amplifier settings to make it obvious that there are different sounding guitars with their own unique tone being used. The idea is, if you can’t tell which is a les paul and which is a stratocaster, you’ve done something wrong.

Step 7: Lead Vocals
I like using a few mics on vocals too. You really can’t go wrong by having more audio to work with than less. A large diaphragm condenser mic and a tube mic positioned where they should be to capture the vocals directly while a small diaphragm condenser about 3 feet back but still pointed at your mouth for a slight ambiance. I typically won’t start recording the vocal tracks until I’ve gone through my parts a few times to both warm up the pipes and set where I’ll be breathing. You don’t want to just rush in to recording the lead vocals since they will likely be positioned right out front in the mix so if you begin to strain from lack of breath, it will be noticed. With vocals, timing is everything. I try to think of my breathing as another part of the songs rhythm because it greatly affects the way I feel about my vocal passages. If you need to read your vocals as you sing them as some artists do, you can place little signs where your breaths should be to help you get into the groove.

Step 8: Backing Vocals
Whether you record harmony parts, doubling vocal parts, choir parts or combinations of all, I suggest recording them the same way you would record the leads. Of course if you are recording a choir, you can’t go wrong using four large diaphragm condensers. The idea is to capture everything, every breath and every note completely.

So, there you have it. I’ve now spilled all my secrets about recording my solo project. I do still have some secrets in mixing, signal chains and specific microphones used but you get the idea. I hope some of this information finds you readers well and helps in one way or another. Every piece of equipment I have mentioned, I have purchased from American Musical Supply so you can get the same stuff to achieve the same or similar results after some getting used to the process. Thanks for reading!
-Ryan