PopTodd Posted January 3, 2012 Share Posted January 3, 2012 So, it's just gonna be me and my acoustic guitar. I'm thinking about just sitting down in front of a few mics and busting out and mixing the 8 or 9 songs in a single session. Cutting it completely live, with no (or bare minimum) overdubs. I think that, with the format that I've chosen, it will bring out the intimacy inherent in that kind of recording. I know that it will be more difficult to get a perfect take, but that is maybe part of the point. What do you all think about albums like this. I'm thinking if stuff like Springsteen's Nebraska and Syd Barrett's The Madcap Laughs. Do you prefer the intimate imperfections of those records, or would you prefer to have better, more-perfect takes of the songs? And yeah, I am planning on multiple takes, of course. (For the record, I AM planning of maybe overdubbing a guitar solo on one song and maybe a vocal harmony on a couple others. Oh, no pun intended there.) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
lamradio Posted January 3, 2012 Share Posted January 3, 2012 That's exactly what I did for my first solo/acoustic record. I just setup a couple condenser mics a foot or two apart and then hard panned them left and right, sat a couple feet away. Gives it a very live, roomy sound.. Love the way it turned out. Not quite as polished as it would sound with overdubbing etc., but that's not what I was going for. And yes, you'll probably be doing several takes.. Nothing worse then a major goof at the very end of a song. But the slight imperfections are kind of cool as they are with the records you mention above; I left one or two on my record. I also did overdub one guitar solo, and a couple harmonica parts. Best of luck with it, if you decide to go this route. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Golden Smoghead Posted January 15, 2012 Share Posted January 15, 2012 Having done this many times, I'd just advise to try to sing the vocals as clean as possible. I usually change SOMETHING in the vocals when I am performing live -- which I think is a good thing for shows -- but those really annoy me later on with these projects. Alternate concept: I'm just not a great singer and can never make a great-sounding vocal take live. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
lost highway Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 If you're going to sing while you strum experiment with mic placement to get as much seperation as possible, and to try and get the phase just right. So many weird things happen to the phase of the two mics when they're so close together. One classic trick is if you have a mic in figure 8 pattern, angle it so the pickup pattern is getting what you want, and the null is pointed towards the other element (either voice, or guit). A whole other vibe is to try singing the words in your head, getting a solid guitar track and then OCD'ing the vocals to get them your best. Depends on what kind of singer you are. I tend to be a little pitchy so I like doing the vocals last so I can work up a good take with a few tries and some critical listening. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
PopTodd Posted January 27, 2012 Author Share Posted January 27, 2012 So, the session is tomorrow. See how it goes! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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