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John Nelson
Man what a concept! It’s so interesting to see how much of the entire process we, the newbs coming on to the scene in the era of digital recording, take for granted. We listen to old recordings, and think…I wonder what reverb plugin they’re using? Or, man they got the vocals to really find its place in the mix there. The reality being, there were no plugins. The reverb, was most likely the room. And there were likely 8 dudes in bell bottoms leaning over the console with cigarettes hanging out of their mouths working in feverish synchronicity to ensure the portion of the board that they individually were responsible for was tweaked at exactly the right moment. Talk about a commitment to the craft. What’s more, today if we like the sound of the mix we’re getting, but Game of Thrones is going to be on in 10 minutes, we can simply save what we’ve done and come back to it later…no such luck 40-50 years ago. While I am enamored by just how “easy” it is today, some of my favorite records were recorded when getting an album recorded and mixed would be “impossible” by today’s standards. Today, we can mold, shape, tweak, and structure our mixes to accomplish almost anything that we want. We can make edits with laser precision. But I wonder if sometimes, the art takes a back seat to the science. Don’t get me wrong, art and science can be good bedfellows…nature has proven this time and time again with it’s glorious splendor. I guess that I’m saying, to quote my mentor, “Don’t get hung up on the math – Listen. Listen”.
At this stage in the process, I really wish that I had more “hands on” time with my mentor, as he has undoubtedly made some incredible records over the years. His wisdom truly permeates the space that he has created. I wish that I had the opportunity to really work with him to learn some of the nuances of these automation techniques. This said, this is another part of the industry that I must become familiar with. The music industry is “Feast or Famine”, and right now he is feasting. I am grateful to get to see that success he is realizing, but truly wish there was more time to get tactile experience. I suppose that as time progresses and unfolds, the coming days will reveal if this is in the cards or not.
