Expect the unexpected
A producer is far more than a mixer, songwriter or engineer. You’re also a psychologist, creative consultant and most of all a resourceful problem-solver.
While every session is different, the one thing you can always count on is that you’re going to get some curveballs – and you’ll only be as successful as your ability to deal with those when they come across the plate. We’ve seen just about everything: bands who come to the studio expecting to record an album but with only a handful of songs written,drummers who throw a fit when you ask them to play to a click, guitarists who write in Guitar Pro and have never actually played their songs, and way more things that we can’t talk about here.
Is this stuff frustrating, annoying and a distraction from doing what you are all there to do (make music)? Yes, yes and hell yes– but it’s part of the job so you need to learn how to roll with the punches without ever showing a hint of fear or weakness. You’ve got to be the master of the situation.
As one simple but common example, let’s say the band decides they don’t like the guitar tone. No problem, right? Just re-amp. Except they didn’t give you a DI… problem! What do you do??
In this clip from his Nail The Mix session, Andrew Wade shows what “resourceful” really means and why it separates the men from the boys– here’s a mindblowing little hack he uses to create a new guitar tone without having a DI (using the session from “Right Back At It Again” by A Day To Remember).
File this one away in your bag of tricks and remember that your job as a producer is to always find a way over, around or through whatever obstacles are between you and an amazing recording!
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