From PassivePromotion.com :

Spectral management sounds like something you'd hire a firm to do, but it simply means finding a place for each instrument in the frequency spectrum. In my last mixing article, I described how to tighten the low end of the mix using a frequency analyzer. When the competing rumble and mud is removed, you're left with tight and punchy bass. The same philosophy applies to the rest of the mix.

Click here to read Brian's entire post.

If you’ve ever been in a band, or attended any sort of event with local music, you have surely crossed paths with “demo cds.” Unsigned bands have been using these for decades, whether it be on vinyl, cassette or CD. They are an excellent promotional tool great to hand out to fans before, during and after shows.

Demos can be created in many different ways, but all too often bands are overwhelmed by the process and don’t even know where to get started. Here are some guidelines to head you in the right direction:

1) Pick the Recording Venue: Where are you going to set up shop? Do you have the cash to book studio time, or are you planning on recording from home? If home, try to find a room in the house that is relatively dead (low echo/reverberation). If you are a one man show (acoustic guitar/singer), recording from home would suffice. If you are a twelve man bassoon army, it may be worthwhile to save up some dough and hit up the studio.

2) Choose the Recording Method: This depends largely on your budget and your style of music. Hardcore punk band crunched for money? Record live. Pop music intending to be radio friendly? Multi-track that shite.

3) Choose Recording Equipment: If you book studio time, you should check out the studio prior to your recording session to see what kind of equipment you will be able to use. If you are looking to do a home job, there are several options both cheap and expensive:

- Super Cheap: Purchase a voice/mp3 digital recorder and stick it in the middle of the room. Results will probably be crappy, but if you have virtually no money to spend, it’s better than nothing!

- Cheap: Record one of your gigs. Talk to the sound guy and see if you can work out some deal to get a recording of your show. If possible, see if they can record straight from the mixer, that usually yields better results. Nice sound guys will do it for free.

- Moderate: Rent/Purchase an 8 track recorder and some microphones. Recording equipment is pretty cheap nowadays, you can usually rent or purchase everything you need from your local music store. Ebay is a good resource as well for used gear. However, this could be difficult if you do not know how to set levels correctly or use EQ effectively. Do your homework before jumping into this option!

- Expensive: Buy a computer, audio interface (sound card), sequencing software (Pro Tools, Sonar, Cubase, etc) and some microphones and create your own budget home studio! Record into the sequencer, and either mix & master the tracks yourself or send them to a studio. This will run you at least a few grand, especially if you don’t have a sufficient computer for recording music. Check out Tweakheadzwebsite for some excellent example home studios.

-Very Expensive: Book studio time. It’s expensive, but can yield great results for your demo. Just make sure you prepare thoroughly so you don’t have to book too much extra time to finish your project.

4) Mix & Master: Record labels and fans won’t expect your demos to sound perfect, so these steps are as critical as the actual tracking. If you can put together a rough mix by yourself, more power to you. If not, there are some studios that will offer mixing & mastering services for relatively low costs, just search around your town for them.

chris

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If you would like to learn a bit more about Chris, please visit his e-portfolio or his band's website:

http://www.personal.psu.edu/cob5020

http://www.asbpkmusic.com

In this article at Serve The Song, the idea of listening from a non-musician's perspective is tackled in hopes we as songwriters and musicians can write music that is universally appreciated.  It's always a tough task to be self-critical, and it's even more difficult to get an idea of how someone with no formal musical background might hear your music.

Here's a quote from the article:

If it’s true that musicians and non-musicians hear music totally differently, there is nothing wrong with that. In fact, that’s what makes music so interesting as a general phenomenon. It hits us all in a different way for different reasons and at different moments in our life.

Making a CD is like taking an audio snapshot of where you are as an artist at a given moment in your career. Since it’s expensive to make a quality recording, it’s very likely that you’ll be using this CD to represent yourself for a long time. The better prepared you are the more fun you’ll have making your recording and the better your CD will sound.

Recording acoustic guitar is one of the most common yet challenging instrument to record, especially when you're working from a budget home recording studio.  In this article, I go into detail on my approach to micing acoustic guitar, microphone placement, strings and picking considerations, and other recording tips geared towards the home studio music producer.

Here's an excerpt from the article:

One important thing to note about recording in general, is that the performance always matters the most. No matter how optimal your recording set up is, how expensive your gear is, how knowledgeable of audio engineering you are, the only way to achieve a great recording is if the performer is totally comfortable.

Here is the full article on how to record acoustic guitar.

For more articles about song craft, music production techniques, and online music promotion, visit Serve The Song.

In contrary to the long and very sophisticated tips on this website, I have a short one.

I found a very good and very cheap audio mastering service: http://www.tribeofnoise.com/goldenears.php

(You probably have to sign up first, but that's free and so is all the music on that website) 

From Music Think Tank:

There’s a myth being perpetuated these days that recording costs are approaching zero. I think it’s fair to say that most musicians today could make a decent demo-quality recording themselves for a negligible amount of money. But to suggest that most artists can create a professional quality, commercially viable recording at almost no cost is misleading. Making a great recording that can capture people’s attention in a very competitive music environment still requires a reasonable investment of money and time.

Click here to read the entire blog.

When it comes to recording an album project where you’re the artist, you’ve got a lot of big decisions to make that will ultimately influence the way your project sounds.  In other words, the more you do to prepare yourself before the record light comes on, the more enjoyable the process and the product will be.

Click here to read to full article. 

You want your CD to sound perfect. You want fans to love it as much as that record that's been their favorite since they were a teen. To have the best recording experience and maximize the quality of your recording.

http://www.discmakers.com/music/ffwd/record.asp 

Analog for a stereo mix is still my favorite, but it’s not a use-all cure-all. If you use quality digital gear, it can sound great. Analog tape does help even out a mix, so long as you don’t over-do the (elevated) level

http://www.getsigned.com/jvest38.html

While the days of demo tapes are gone, this article still has some valuable advice on what record companies are paying attention to when you send in your demo.

http://www.audio-recording-center.com/article-demo-tape.html  

Not long after the rush and release of writing a song, comes the realization that you will need to record it. And while we hate to write anything in stone, especially things related to the creative process, there are, nonetheless, several recording Facts of Life that you should be aware of.

http://www.taxi.com/faq/recording/home-demo.html  

I'm always amazed by how many people working in home studios think you need a $750,000 console, a 48-track digital machine, an arsenal of $2,000 microphones, and tons of outboard gear to make your tapes sound "professional." It's just not true.

click here  

Best practices for capturing your beats in the studio or in your bedroom.

http://www.tapeop.com/magazine/bonuspdfs/gooddrums.pdf

Tape-Op is an essential magazine for recording engineers of all
levels. Here Garrett Haines gives advice on getting the best vocal
recording out of your setup.

http://www.tapeop.com/magazine/bonuspdfs/tipsforrecordingvocals.pdf