What does “polish” mean to you in a recording? And is it even something you want more of, especially in a rock setting? Can you have a polished recording of an unpolished sound? In my mind, everyone should want a polished recording – this would represent their sound in the best, most appealing way possible. To me it’s about clear translation of the artistic vision, no matter how sloppy or gritty that vision is.
So there are certainly ways that you can spend lots of money to get better recordings (equipment, studio time, engineering & mastering help, etc.) and lots of sound engineer techie ways to improve your sound. Those tips are for another blog post! Let’s start with what you can do to polish your recordings using what you have already.
1. Pre-Production – Start with disciplined practice, lots of practice. Practice with a metronome so you can be consistent in tempo. Record rough versions of the song so you can hear it back and start to think more about arrangements. Make your song better – really evaluate it and refine it. A great recording of a so-so song is a lost cause. Does it need an extra chorus? Can you cut an interlude or long intro? Cutting is usually better than adding, and this is your time to be brutal. For example, I’ll often cut a verse during pre-production if I have any sense that it’s getting too long. Make your decisions now, before you start recording in earnest, because the farther down the road you are, the harder it is to make significant shifts. You’ll still have plenty of opportunity to be creative – in fact, you’ll be more free to be creative since the basic decisions are confidently locked in.
2. Time = Quality – Caution: I’m not advocating a perfectionist attitude here. While a general “spend a little more time” mindset can yield a significant increase in quality, infinite time does not equal infinite quality. So what’s the right balance? That’s one of the decisions you should make during pre-production. Are you making a simple demo of the song? Are you going to be selling an album? Licensing? Do you have a deadline? Often deadlines are good as it keeps you within bounds. Here’s another marker I use: when I hear flat out flubbed notes and other correctable mistakes in someone’s recording, my first thought is always, “I wish they had spent a little more time on this.” Do a couple more takes. Tighten up the mix. Get a second opinion and then go back and do touch-ups. Especially if you release something, your fans can’t “unhear” your recording – spend a little more time to do each small part better and your finished product will be a lot better for it.
3. Intonation – I honestly can’t believe it when I hear out of tune guitars on a recording, yet it happens pretty frequently. Guitar/bass tuners are easy and common tools. Make sure you’re using one regularly. Same for any stringed instrument. When doing final takes, make sure your drummer tunes his drums, too. It can improve your source sound quite a bit. For vocals, it gets a little more complex. Not that the singer has any more right to be out of tune, but how much flexibility they have can vary. And then there are auto-tuners, which have their own strings attached. My take is that you should get a great, in tune vocal track to start with. Then a little subtle use of the auto-tuner can smooth out the rough edges. I also tend to automate the auto-tuner so that it’s off during slurs, glissandos, and anywhere else the vocalist might be doing some expressive gymnastics. The point is to enhance a great performance, not stifle it – use your ears!
4. Timing – Along with intonation, timing can be one of the key areas that seperates an amateur sounding recording from a more polished recording. Especially when it comes to the drums and bass combo, if they are not locked in tight, the whole recording can sound off. There’s always a lot of debate regarding feel and emotion in timing, and I’m not saying it’s better to be a robot with perfect timing. There are sometimes only subtle differences between great sloppy playing like The Rolling Stones (where bass and drums were still incredibly tight), and just plain bad timing. Inconsistent rushing is what most have a problem with – and I’ve certainly been guilty of it in the past, so I’m pretty attuned to it. It can often be the case of just pushing your 8th notes too close together, so really try and get them even. If you consistently play on the back side of the beat and your band moves altogether smoothly, I’ve got no problem with it. A great groove does come out on top every time, but people tend to underestimate how hard that is and simply accept poor timing as a weak substitute.
5. Producer’s Ears – Somebody needs to play the part of Producer. That certainly can be you, but it is easy to get too close to your recording and lose your priorities. You can lose the big picture and get bogged down – I’ve certainly done it when I’m in an intense session recording my own songs. Sometimes you just key in on certain details and completely miss fixing areas that could make a bigger overall difference. A second pair of ears may not hear everything you’re hearing (or they might hear more!) but they can at minimum re-align your priorities so you focus your attention where it needs to be. Another thing I’ll do when producing my own recordings is just drop a song for a while and come back to it with fresh ears. Suddenly those little things I got bogged down in before fall to the background and I’ll realize I need to redo something like a lead vocal line or adjust the overall reverb for the song. Keep your priorities straight! If you’re going to produce your own stuff, be aware of when you’re really putting on the producer hat and analyzing your recording from a different perspective.
