Category Archives: Songwriter Blog

Breath or BASH?!?!?!?

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With all the changes in technology over the last two decades in the audio industry there have become what is known as “the loudness wars”.  Ever since the late Sixties, early Seventies there has been a push to make everything louder. This has ushered in new developments in microphones and other pieces of gear. However, with the developments in digital technology the emphasis on how loud a recording can (or should) get has really become evident. Let’s take a look at the dynamics of a mix and a mastered mix.

A lot of times folks will miss conceive the mastering process with the idea that it is all about just making the recording louder. Although getting a mix a little louder is often one of the goals of mastering, it doesn’t have to be the end all be all. There are many times when the aesthetics of a song/recording calls for the sense of headroom and airiness. These are not often qualities associated with brick wall limiting mastering techniques. There are, however, some new tools that are available to mastering engineers that can really open up a mix. Do you need more width? Maybe using tools that have frequency specific panning is the tool. Do you need more depth? Again, utilizing frequency specific tools can push elements of the mix back and forward. Do you need more dynamic range? Try getting out the pencil tool. The most important part of mastering is knowing how to improve the aesthetic that is already there.

Sometimes, however, that does mean it is time for the squasher. One of the reasons squashing a mix has become so important is because of the wide range of playback systems that are now used. Remember, iTunes launched in 2003… Before that there really were not many different ways folks listened to music. Now your song has to sound amazing on dozens of vastly different playback systems. Luckily there are some amazing tools out that can turn a beautifully dynamic mix into a brick of sound, and still keep some sense of musicality. Multiband compressors, linear eq, transient clippers, and a host of other new tools ar changing the way we master audio. Simply throwing a limiter on and normalizing a mix just doesn’t cut it anymore.

All things considered, all the tools in the world will not give a good mastering session if you are going in the wrong direction. As I mentioned before, the most important part of mastering is the aesthetic of the source material. If you are mastering a singer songwriter the same way you ar mastering EDM… Then you probably are missing the bigger picture. It is equally important for both the client and engineer to have the same aesthetic goal in mind. Once that is established it is up to the engineer to achieve that goal. Not all songs are the same… So using the same mastering techniques for all songs just makes no sense.

Linear phase Vs. Non-Linear phase Mastering.

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Linear phase or Non-Linear phase mastering is a REALLY REALLY important part of the mastering process that YOU need to know about… but what is it? This article will dive into what Eq is, the effects of phase shifts, and knowing when to use each type of Eq. Not all Eq is made alike… let’s find out how.

We first start off with talking about the technical parts of equalizers. When applying equalizers (Eq) to your tracks you are doing more than just increasing or decreasing frequency amplitude. The process of applying Eq also introduces a certain amount of delay (phase shift) to the signal. Without getting too technical; it is important to understand that in regard to Eq, the terms delay and phase shift are one in the same. With Non-linear Eq, when you make an amplitude adjustment you are also making phase shifts to the signal. Whereas, with Linear Eq, when you make an amplitude adjustment there should be no phase shifts to the signal… So what does that mean?

Let’s go to the lovely world of analog audio. Even as digital audio is taking over the industry; there is a demand for analog gear and for digital replication of analog gear, but why? When you talk with experienced engineers/producers/musicians who have extensive experience with analog gear they will all praise the “character” or “color” of certain pieces of gear. That is because all analog Eq (and their digital replications) are Non-linear and have phase shifts. It is the phase shifts that really give character and color to the sought after pieces of gear. Do you love the sound of a Neve 1081, API 500 series, or Pultec? Then you love the phase shifts from the changes in amplitude with these iconic pieces of equipment.

By contrast, a Linear Eq will leave the phase of each frequency alone as you make amplitude changes. As you may have guessed, Linear Eq then will introduce no color or character changes to the audio signal. It also helps to preserve the transients of audio signals by preserving their phase. Have you ever had an engineer say “I love the sound of that Linear Eq”… no, because Linear Eq is by nature very transparent. When applying Linear Eq the only changes you hear are the changes in amplitude for the specific band you are working with.

Now the question comes; how do I know which one is right for my project? Part of the answer may come from knowing what kind of processing was used during the tracking and mixing process. If you used gear with lots of character then you may want to preserve that sound with Linear mastering. However, if your tracking and mixing process happened in the box with sterile sounding plugins, then maybe Non-linear mastering will give your tracks some life. Knowing the difference and how to apply both Linear and Non-linear Eq is an important part of getting the sound you are looking for.

3 important questions to ask when mastering.

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Mastering… That’s a horse of a different color. Well, to start off this blog post series on mastering… yes, I used a Wizard of Oz quote. I’ve been on all sides of the mastering spectrum. That is I’ve been the musician sending tracks to a mastering house, I’ve been the producer/engineer sending tracks to a mastering house, and I’ve been a mastering engineer sending and receiving files. With that said, I’ve certainly felt as if I was on a magical pony ride to nowhere or that I’ve paid a price for nothing with mastering houses before. Now I realize that those feelings really came from me being largely uneducated about what questions I should have asked and what I was looking for in the mastering process. This month I will look at 3 important questions to ask when mastering.

  1. Linear phase Vs. Non-Linear phase processing.
  2. Breath or BASH!
  3. Room tuning & playback systems.

The 1 delayed guitar trick

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Let me start by saying, I almost never do this trick, but it is a good one to know. The delayed guitar trick is when you have one guitar track and you simply double the track and add a very slight delay onto it in order to make a second guitar track. The advantage here is that you only need to record the guitar part once to make a wide stereo image. So, if you have a guitar part or musician who is struggling with doubling their parts… this may be the trick for you.

This guitar trick can work well on almost any type of guitar track. Your delay track will sound slightly off… so the more transient the part is the more you will hear the delay of the second guitar track. I would recommend using this on guitar tracks that have a full chord strummed instead of power chord or finger picking parts. If you have an acoustic guitar or rhythm guitar with some overdrive on it you will probably have success with the delayed guitar trick.

Just like the previous doubled guitar tricks, phase is an issue. You certainly need to make sure you are listening in both stereo and mono to check for phase boosting or phase cancellations (This was discussed in depth with our exact doubled guitar tracking trick). Even though you are using the exact same guitar parts, the application of the delay on the second part will help with phasing issues. Keep in mind, they are the exact same guitar part. So you will really need to pay attention to how these tracks are working together after the delay is applied.

As I mentioned before, I never use this trick. I almost always use delay and reverb effects to create depth and space in my mixes. So, adding a delay to a guitar track in order to make a wider stereo image gives me the feel of pushing the guitar track further back in the mix. However, it is a very effective way to make a doubled track with players or parts that will be difficult to physically double track. Additionally, sometimes you are working on projects where the musicians are just not available to make a doubled track. If you find yourself in the situation where you need to make a guitar track a little wider, but don’t have the ability to physically make a doubled guitar track, then this may just be the trick you need.

how to make two similar guitar tracks.

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Last week we looked at making an exact double guitar track. This week we will look at making two similar guitar tracks. Two similar guitar tracks function very similar to the exact doubled guitar track. You will be using two guitar parts to make a wide stereo image of the guitar sound. The difference is the similar guitar track is not tracked as the exact same guitar part… meaning, you don’t have to play the guitar parts exactly the same. Infact, little variances is what this tracking trick is all about.

So what is the goal here? Remember, with the exact doubled guitar tracks we are using time aligning tools to make sure both guitar tracks are exactly the same. With the similar guitar tracking trick, we are actually looking for the two guitar parts to act as one guitar part, but play off each other. I often will track both guitar parts with the exact same main rhythm… then I will make sure that one of the two guitar parts has slightly more; motion, rhythm, feeling, whatever you want to call it. This will give you one rock solid guitar track that is a little stale and one guitar part that is interesting, while still having the overall feel of one guitar part.

I have found that it can be a little tricky to have two similar guitar parts that still make the overall impression of one guitar part. Because of this, I almost always use this trick on acoustic guitar parts that are full chord strum parts. This trick works well when there is a lot of harmonic information going on. Overdrive tracks, distortion tracks, or powerchord parts seem to be a little too transient to make this an effective trick. Trying this trick on the wrong kind of track can lead to the impression of two tracks that were poorly recorded together, be careful!

Just like with the previously discussed exact doubled guitar track, we are dealing with phase here. So be careful to avoid the previously discussed phasing issues. Phase build up or cancellations can still occur with this trick. Make sure to listen in mono, stereo, and/or use a spectrograph to determine if there are phasing issues that come up. Luckily since we are not using the exact same rhythmic material phasing issues seem to be a lot less present with this trick, but should still be a serious concern.

If I find that these tracks are going to be somewhat buried in the mix with a lot of other exact doubled guitar tracks I will often take this a step further. Too many exact guitar tracks can make the overall sound of a recording a little stale. This is because of all the exact same material that is being presented. I will sometimes take the two similar guitar parts and re-record each of them a second time. This time I will try to make both of the guitar parts full of; feeling, rhythm, motion, whatever you want to call it. I will often let these tracks stray away from the original main rhythm a little more, while still trying to maintain the sound of one guitar. When done right, this can really bring the overall feel of the entire song to life while making a very wide stereo image for the guitar parts. Be careful to maintain the sound of only one guitar, but don’t get stuck in the exact doubled guitar part mindset.  

Check back next week for how to make one delayed guitar track.

How to make the exact double guitar track.

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The exact double guitar track is a great trick to use when you need to make one guitar sound really big. This consists of playing the exact same guitar part twice in order to get a wide stereo image. Although today it’s not enough to just play the exact same guitar part twice. I often find myself using a time align tool to ensure the guitar parts are exactly in sync between the two guitar parts. I then take the two guitar parts and hard pan them left and right to make a wide stereo image. The difference in phase between the two guitar parts is what creates a wide stereo image.

Although you can do this trick with any kind of guitar I typically find I do this with overdrive guitars or heavily distorted guitars. Since I often have my lead guitar parts straight up the center in my mix, this trick is almost always used exclusively on rhythm guitar tracks. It is a great trick to make one guitar part sound really big in the stereo image.

There are, however, some things you need to be careful with when creating the exact double guitar track. Phase is your biggest concern. Phasing issues happen when you have two signals that are either canceling each other out, or are amplifying each other. When you are listening in stereo, you may hear a build up of certain frequencies (often your low end), or when listening in mono you may lose certain frequencies (often your high end). If you don’t have an optimal listening condition, or if your are not sure what to listen for, you can use a spectrograph to visually show you when frequencies are canceling or building up.

If you find that you are having phasing issues, you are going to need to change something. To escape phasing issues you will need to make sure you have different harmonics between the two parts. Harmonics are the overtone series that is created from any instrument. While being conscious of maintaining the same tone, you can change your harmonic structure by; changing pickups, use a different guitar, change your microphone on the guitar cab, or change your microphone preamp. As I mentioned before, you want to make sure you are maintaining the same guitar tone (this is an exact double guitar), but you will need to make sure the harmonic structure of the two parts are slightly different.

After you have recorded your two guitar tracks you can then hard pan the tracks left and right and record them into one stereo track or just leave them as two mono tracks. Having your doubled guitars in a stereo track may make production easier as you move along to other parts of the song. Even if you have a stereo recording of each guitar part, you can still bounce each guitar into a stereo track. Just make sure to pay attention to where you are panning each guitar part and microphone. Make sure to watch your phase! This will give you an easy to work with and very big stereo guitar sound:)

Check back next week for how to make two similar guitar tracks.

Three common methods for double tracking guitars

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When tracking guitars it’s important to consider how many guitar tracks you need. Of course when you’re onstage you have one guitar, but when you’re in the studio sometimes you need that one guitar to sound like two guitars. This month we will dive into double tracking guitars. Below are three common methods for creating double-track guitars. This month we will go in-depth on each one of these three methods.

  • The exact double guitar track. These are two guitars that are tracks to sound like one guitar.
  • Two similar guitar tracks. These are two guitars that are tracked to sound alike but are not exactly the same.
  • 1 delayed guitar. This is only one guitar that has a delay effect on it.

Check back in on Monday for an indepth look at the exact double guitar track.

Making the Instrumental

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It doesn’t matter if you are writing an instrumental; as a segway piece on your album, for a soundtrack, or just as an expression. Instrumentals require a lot of attention to detail. without a vocalist, all the attention is now on the music you create.

Creating atmosphere is one of the most important parts of writing an effective instrumental. This can be done with a catchy rhythm section, as is the case with many jazz songs, or it can be done with a effects to make a great soundscape, as with many soundtracks. Regardless of what genre you are writing in, you will need to have a great sense of atmosphere in order to retain your listeners attention.

The other factor in writing a great instrumental is… the melody. Yes, the melody. Even Though you have no singer, you are still going to need a melody that takes the listener on a journey. In the case of a soundtrack this can be a subtle moving note in the effects, or it can be a pronounced and well defined instrument melody. Either Way, your instrumental needs to go somewhere, and the vehicle for that motion is the melody you write.    

Tips for writing the Sing-Along

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I used to think that sing-alongs were all about campfire hangouts… then I realized that the lessons learned when writing a campfire song can be applied to writing songs in any genre. It doesn’t matter if you are writing for contemporary Christian, heavy metal, hip-hop, or any other genre of music, if people can sing your song they will most likely like it.

One of the most important factors in writing the sing-along is the melody range. If you are writing a melody that is too high or too low, then folks just won’t sing your song. In general, if you want to stay within the D-D range on the treble clef. This gives you an octave range of comfortable singing. Additionally, you want the majority of your notes to remain around the B note on the staff. This will sit the melody in a comfortable range for male singers, and will put all your harmonies in an easy range for both male & female singers.

The other factor of writing an easy sing-along is the rhythm of your melody. In general, I try to not write anything faster than an eighth note when writing my chorus lines. That may seem slow, but it does make the songs more intelligible to listen to and easier to sing. If you’re going to put cool swing rhythms into the song, you may want to put them in there a lot… repetition is a teacher’s best friend;)

Check back next week on Monday for our Making the Instrumental blog.

How to make a hit song

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Ok, well we won’t get into all the intricacies of what is involved in making a hit song. However, there is something that is of great importance in making a hit song that most songwriters overlook. That is how marketable is your song? Sometimes you have the luck of writing a song that is just soooo great that everyone will love it, but most of the time a song is made into a hit by how well it is pushed into the market.

This can be done by writing songs that are on topics that have great marketing capabilities. Find themes for your songs that everyone identifies with; love, hate, loss, success, friends, and so on. The theme of your song is probably one of the most important parts of writing a hit song.
Another great way to make your song more marketable is to include content into your song that is searchable. I’m not saying that you have to hashtag lyrics IN you song… but you should be able to pull hashtags out of your song, for marketing. Make sure the lyric content includes content people are already searching for.

Check back next week on Monday for our Tips for writing the Sing-Along blog.