Studio & Recording

Queen was, and still is, a unique phenomenon in the world of rock. So, if you want to sound like Queen, then you have to sound just as unique, right? Which, if you put it that way, sort of implies that you shouldn’t sound like Queen at all. But in all seriousness, there’s something deeply satisfying, inspiring, and not to mention educational, about nailing the music of the band that you consider to be the best band in the world. In this blog, we take a deep dive into the remarkable sound that Freddie Mercury, Brian May, Roger Taylor, and John Deacon managed to weave with such grace and have a look at exactly what made Queen Queen.

If you are ready to produce a large body of work, you may be wondering how to make an album sound cohesive and consistent, while still engaging the listener throughout. There’s more to it than simply using repetitive production techniques throughout your album. Our guest blogger, music producer and songwriter, De Ana, explains further, starting at the source…

If you’re reading this, that means you’ve probably been thinking about how you can use your beat-making tools and talents and turn them into a business model. But which platform are you going to use? And how do you sell your beats to the right artists? In this blog, guest-blogger and full-time producer Daddynervs shares a handful of ins and outs that you can use to propel your beat-brewing career.

Unfortunately, there comes a time when everything breaks, and the same is definitely true of music gear, whether it’s speakers, valve amplifiers, or your electric guitar or bass. In the worst case, you’ll need to get it fixed by a professional, but there are some smaller, more simple repairs that you can actually carry out yourself. With a voltmeter, a soldering iron and a little solder on your side, you can get more done than you might think.

Do you get irked whenever you hear a successful producer proclaim: “and I didn’t even know any music theory”? Say they’re telling the truth (usually, it’s far from the truth), so what? Not everyone is going to be a natural, and just think, how good would those same producers be if they had bothered to learn music theory. Right here, right now, Guestblogger Daddynervs tells us why every producer, even humble beat producers, should arm themselves with some good old fashioned music theory – and what music theory actually is.

Audiobooks are on the rise, and since they’re so popular, audiobook producers are in high-demand. Here, Guestblogger Marc Graetz offers a professional insight into the world of recording audiobooks and explains how to narrate them and the equipment you’ll need.

If you think you’re ready to start submitting work to labels and get them interested in your work, then unfortunately it’s not going to be good enough to just present a sketch of a track for consideration – no matter how good it is. What you really need to come with is a near-enough flawless demo. But what do we mean by flawless? Here Guestblogger Tom Peters – co-founder of proshare.audio – is busy submitting demos to labels on a daily basis and here, presents his very own step by step plan so you can polish up and fully prep your demos for consideration.

Solo-podcasting isn’t all that difficult. A simple USB microphone or an XLR microphone-plus-audio-interface set-up alone gets you pretty far. Throw in a pair of headphones and some recording-and-editing software and you’re practically all set. However, things get a lot more complicated the second you invite one or more guests to your podcasts. Luckily, with the help of this blog, you should be able to build a set-up that can accommodate them – whether they’re in the same room or calling in via Skype or Zoom!

So, you just entered the world of studio gear and you want to pick up a pair of studio monitors. How different are these compared to your old hi-fi system or that CD player catching dust in your living room? How does a studio setup work? And do I need an amplifier with my new set of speakers? Answers to these questions and more below!

Back in the day, ribbon microphones were not only expensive but incredibly delicate, and generally, were only built and maintained by the studios that used them. In America, RCA records built their own ribbon microphones, while the BBC built their own Coles microphones. Of course, these days, you can find a massive range of affordable models available, and most of them are a lot more hard-wearing and less delicate than their ancestors. Here, I’ll go over the pros and cons of using the infamous ribbon microphone so you can make up your own mind.

Want to make your own beats in the comfort of your own bedroom? Maybe you want to start producing beats to help out other artists, make their dreams come true, and in turn, see your own dreams come true? Here, guest-blogger and producer Daddynervs offers a guide through the first steps you need to take to start building your own beats.

If there’s one thing that sets an experienced studio engineer apart from a novice, it’s how well they mix the lower-frequency instruments of a track. Here, I’m referring to the kick drum, the bass, the lower sonic regions of the guitars, synths, and keyboards – since it’s all of this that makes up the low-end, and it’s these lower frequencies that are harder to mix than any other part of the frequency spectrum. But why? And how do you get that thick and full, punchy layer that’s going to sound awesome on any set of speakers you put it through? Read on to find out.