Enough’s Enough

I don’t know about you, but with all the tracks available in most of our DAW’s today, you can have endless possibilities at your disposal. Like some of you, my first recordings were all analog; starting with cassettes, then 4 tracks, then eight tracks…….. etc. Now i have access to as many as i want with the DAW systems, and that’s just the basic systems.  For instance; I’ve been working on a few songs that sound great with all the plugin effects, added guitars, a gazillion vocals to “lift” the chorus etc….it’s almost endless. I sometimes wonder if I write or build songs with all the options i have.  I guess both.  But more than not, I find the song & performance gets lost somewhere in the process. I’ll keep coming back to tracks week after week only to change something to make it “fit just right in the mix”. So after about 20 tracks i’m thinking ” where’s the song i started with? What happened? Has that happened to you? As much as i like today’s technology, i keep going back to the basics. Sounds a little more naked, but hey, who don’t like naked? Real and simple, yet very effective. For me, it’s easier to get my point across in a song if it’s not so busy with layers of instruments. Plus, when I do a solo gig, it sounds like the song i started with- 1 idea, 1 pen, 1 paper (or ipad)…..bingo!  The only time i differ from the norm is on instrumentals. On instrumentals, the more tracks the marry-ire. Easier to keep order.  But when i track vocals, wow, it suddenly it takes on a whole new challenge. What it does is force me to focus on the song, not the tracks.  Less-is-more type thing.   By stripping the tracks, I can really hear everything going on; getting that vocal to “sit” in the mix, not another instrument standing up and saying “hey, hear i am! don’t leave me out, crank me up”.  Plus, by limiting my tracks, it saves me hours and hours of wasted time i could be working on other things like cutting the grass or trying to repair the squeaky brake problem in the family car I’ve had for 2 years….yikes!!  Seriously,  I couldn’t track like i do if it wasn’t for the DAW systems and the available tracks we have today….i’m very grateful.   The opportunities are endless. A true friend if given the proper attention.   Let me know your thoughts and what you’re using to record with these days.   Until next time friend…….keep grooving forward!