"... I'm feelin' pretty awesome these days." Yeah... I'm just putting something here because I keep thinking about it... and to let people know I'm alive since I haven't updated my site or made a post of any kind since the beginning of the year.
I have several blog posts started... which I intend to go back and proof read before posting... and then another month (or two) slips by. So what have I been up to? Well in short... 2 albums, an ep, and a single... that's 29 tunes I've been working on since January 1. Kevin from Parabelle asked about doing another acoustic-ish album in January... I had a couple weeks free so I said yes. Why on Earth I thought I'd get an album done in 2-3 weeks (considering how much instrumentation I had to do as well)... I'll never know. It just doesn't seem to ever work that way. From experience... projects always take 30% longer than I think... 99% of the time. So by filling that gap in the schedule... well some would've called that gap "holiday's"... that Parabelle album squeezed a couple other projects right up against each other. ... that resulted in something like... 10 weeks of straight tracking/editing between Parabelle, Breached, Vince Hawkin's, and Fallen Heirs... and then the focus switched to conquer Mount. Editanmix. I'm far from complaining though... again, in this career, you're either doing well, or you really aren't. Studios are still closing left and right, and some still have this dream they'll make a living recording/mixing bands (and that's it) but there's so much more involved in making music... and if you understand that... at least you have a chance. Other big news... after quite a long search (June 2012 to be exact)... I finally have an assistant/intern. Huge shout out to Luke who you'll probably see around the studio (hopefully) for the new few months at least. After 50+ submission, and interviewing a half dozen people at the studio... Luke was the first one to nail all the requirements and... and... get this... actually show up! There's a lot more in saying that... but to anybody starting out... you need to find and meet people who work in music for a living and see how they do it. Studios are dying... they will not keep you employed... considering they actually hire you in the first place. Understand that the value you bring to the project is, and has to be "you". Your ears, your personality, and your experience. It's not the gear you bought from a store or the "by the book" bullshit they taught you in school... well some of that bullshit comes in handy but it doesn't pay the bills! Everyone doing well has a way that works for them... you gotta find out what works for you and a great way to learn what works for you is to shadow a few others. I understand there's bills to pay, day jobs, family, etc... but you just have to make it work. You can't tell me you don't have time because you're working 40 hrs a week when we (music professionals) have all worked 20hr days at some point... and I'm not making that up. You look and feel like shit after a a few days or weeks (I'm just glad I didn't have skype back then since my mom would've called me out on it)... but you know it's a good idea for the bigger picture. Work has been steady for 14 months straight now. This also includes turning down several projects for various reasons. Some might say I'm doing something right... I think I just have a better handle on what I think others are doing wrong. There's some bigger plans in the works this year too... it's been tough finding the extra hours outside the typical 80+hr work week to get to them... they've begun though... and starting is typically the toughest part of the process. I don't want to spend my life recording bands... but I do plan on spending a good chunk of it working alongside them. I hope everyone is having a great start to their New Year... it's been kick ass over here. - Mike
0 Comments
Your comment will be posted after it is approved.
Leave a Reply. |
Mike Langford - Official BlogBeing on both sides of the glass, I get the chance to wear many hats in the music industry. This is a place to share my thoughts, views, predictions, rants, stories and news! Categories
All
Archives
October 2017
|