Rhapsody Street Studios

This is a question I get a lot. It's worth mentioning before we begin that we must start with the assumption that you are serious about your effort. It is not uncommon for people to contact us via e-mail and believe that sending one e-mail will get them a record deal. This is an obviously ignorant assumption. We seldom call these people back. You must realize, if there was a "sure-fire" way to get a record deal, everyone who wanted one would have one. The only thing we know for CERTAIN is that the above technique will NOT get you a record deal. Now, let's begin with what I consider "standard."*

1.) Soul Searching
Ask yourself the following questions: "Am I/Are We Good?", "Do I/we have unique talent?", "Do other people think so (your parents and best friend don't count)?" Many people will find that asking these questions will help to make improvements in their craft (or lead to more practice).

Hopefully all the answers to the above questions were "Yes." Now come the second round of questions: Are you a band or solo artist performing your own music? If so, proceed to step 3. If not, step 2 is for you.

2.) Material
If you aren't performing your own material, you need to determine what material you will be performing. If you are a band, start writing. There are almost NO famous cover bands. Does this mean you can't make a living being a cover band? Absolutely not. We're talking about record deals here. Solo artists have a choice: cover or original. The good news for solo talent is that it doesn't have to be your OWN original material. That becomes great news when you realize most A&R people abhor cover demos. Why? It takes about half as much talent to copy someone else's style, even if it is Mariah. So go original, PLEASE. Where to find original unrecorded material? Contact local and regional music publishers. They might have a song already recorded that they are trying to pitch to an artist. If they don't have a professional recording of the song already, many will often strike a deal with you to allow you to record the song if they can have a copy of the demo masters to use in their own promotion. Choosing the right material is important. Make sure the material you choose suits your style.

3.) The Pre-Production Process
If you are a solo artist who has lyrics and melody, but no arrangement, we can help you "finish" the song and make it ready for recording. Usually you will have to pay an arranger's fee, in addition to any studio time the arranger needs to put your song together. Some arrangers make co-authorship arrangements up-front. This means you both own part of the song. In most cases, you have a controlling interest in the song (You get to control how it gets used, you just need to pay the co-author whenever you make some money). Some arrangers will sell you the arrangement outright. Your mileage may vary. Before you go to record your demo: practice, PRACTICE, PRACTICE!!! Know all the parts to all your songs. We get bands all the time that couldn't tell you the chord progression during their solo. What if it sounds thin and you want to overdub a rhythm part there? The studio makes things possible that you may not realize. Know all your parts, all the time. Don't be reading your lyics off the inside of a CD jacket or off of a piece of paper.
See if the studio you are recording at has a producer available to help you guide your recording in the direction you want it to go. A good producer can help you pick the right tunes to record, help you select the best takes, offer creative arrangement ideas, maximize studio time, get the most out of the mix, and help you meet your expectations on time and on budget. All beginning bands/artists can only benefit from having an experienced producer at their session.

3.) The Recording Studio Demo
So you've chosen a studio (Rhapsody Street) to make your "Demo"; now you need to prepare for your session (at Rhapsody Street). Pick three songs. THREE. Do you have lots of money? Then record more. Three songs is the minimum and the maximum for an A&R demo. You'll be lucky if they listen to all three; you'll be unlucky if they get past 2 and find out THERE's ONLY 2?!?! Most decision makers decide in the first 15 secs if they are going to waste any time thinking about an act. If they get past the first song, it's a good sign. If they want more, believe me, they'll make the phone call. Back to studio time (at Rhapsody Street). Be prepared. It's that simple and that complicated, all at once. Rest well the night before. Bring ALL your gear (except for your PA). Don't spend the night before at Splashtown, then get drunk, then sleep 2 hours and not have time to shower. DON'T DO IT! Here's what you need to bring:

Singers: Bottled water, NOT ICE COLD. Don't attempt to eat lemons or anything you don't do everyday.

Guitarists & Bassists: SET UP YOUR GUITARS. A well set up guitar will be in tune ALL OVER THE NECK. A guitar that has never been set up WILL USUALLY NOT BE. Just because the guitar is new does not mean it has been set up. We can refer you to experts that can help you for $50-100/instrument. Restring your instruments the night before and play them for a while to stretch the strings. Have at least one additional COMPLETE set of strings. (If it ain't complete, it will be missing the string that breaks) Bring LOTS OF PICKS. Make sure you have more than one instrument cable. Bring many 9v batteries. Do you have AC adapters for your pedals? Here's a tip: they stink. Use batteries to isolate the pedal from the mains current. You may not be able to put the pedals on the same electrical circuit as the amp, so bring batteries. This is usually NOT the time to try out a new piece of guitar gear. Inevitably, something will cause a problem if you change your normal setup when you go in to the studio. Replace the batteries in your guitar(s) if they have active pickups before the session to save time. Tune early and tune often. Bring good amps. Make sure all the tubes work. As long as you bring YOUR main amp, this is one rare case where borrowing gear(amps) for the studio can be a good thing.

Drummers: Call ahead and check with the studio BEFORE your session. Some studios (like Rhapsody Street) have drumkits that are very nice and the engineers already know how to get the best sound out of them. If you have a nicer kit, the engineer will want to use it. You will need new heads for either scenario. Check with the engineer beforehand, and he can let you know what heads he thinks will get you the sound you want. If the engineer doesn't know what to use (that wouldn't happen at Rhapsody Street), buy coated ambassador batter heads and clear diplomat bottom heads.

Keyboardists: Bring your whole rig. Bring your manuals. Extra media (Floppy, ZIP, whatever). Know your rig. At the bare minimum, know how to: turn MIDI channels/tracks off & on; know how to change your sequencer's clock source to "external MIDI" or "MTC". By knowing how to run your rig, you make it easy to integrate it in to a studio's. (At a studio like Rhapsody Street, we can take your weak sounds and make them HUGE)

Anyone else : Bring extra reeds, spare mouthpieces, rosin, cabling, whatever powers your instrument x2, etc...

The current "en vogue" recording practice is to cut the "floor tracks" first. This means cutting all the bands parts first with a scratch vocal. In some cases, only the drums and bass are kept, and all the other parts are re-recorded with more attention to detail. Why do this? Well, in most cases, the vocal sells the band and the song. Vocals need special attention. Guitar parts can be split up (clean/dirty/rhythm/lead) to create sonic textures in the mix. Guitars can also be doubled to make them larger. The house building analogy is a good one: first lay a foundation (drums & bass rhythm), then frame the walls/song (guitars and guitar overdubs) Put a roof and exterior siding on it (vocals & background vocals). Then finish out the inside (keyboards, percussion). Different kinds of music need different technique, but that is a good primer. I usually recommend cutting all the rhythm tracks (drums/bass/keys/guitars) and having the vocalist take home a rough mix that he/she can use to work on the vocal. Some studios love to have you pay for rehearsal time, (learning your songs on their clock) Rhapsody Street hates that. We'd much rather you spend the money on mixdown. Get it right, then come record it. When it comes time to mix, I usually ask the artist to show up towards the end of the mix. Let's face it, if you could mix, we'd let you. Let the engineer give you his best effort/interpretation before you say "TURN THE GUITAR UP." Keep in mind that stuffing the guitars may make the guitarist happy, but no one will be able to hear the vocals. If your mix is going to end up on the radio, PLEASE, defer to the engineer's judgement (assuming the engineer has had his worked played on the radio before).

When the mix is finish, get it mastered. Mastering makes it sound real. Don't get cheap now; you've worked too hard. Just break out your wallet one last time and get it done right.

4.) The Package
You've recorded this great demo, but not one record label that got your CD-R with "DEMO" scribbled on it is calling you back. Hmm, could it be that YOU NEED A PACKAGE?!?! Well, yes, I believe it could be. What goes in a good package, Mack Damon? I'm so glad you asked:

a.) Professionally labeled CD recording of three great songs. The label should have all your contact info in it. Please don't assume that the CD jewel case and the CD will stay together. ASSUME NOTHING.

b.) A well written biography that outlines the history of the band/artist. Get on the internet and read real bios if you can't afford to hire a PR firm to write yours. Don't put BS in there. The record industry is filled with BS'ers that can smell your BS from 2 miles away. Don't say you opened for Guns & Roses when you didn't. Don't be pretentious. Let the bio give a clear picture to those who have never met you or seen you. Spend time on it. The bio should have all your contact info in it. And don't ask me to write it.

c.) A professional 8x10 glossy photograph taken by at least a semi-pro photographer. Try and stay away from lithos, even though they are cheaper. If you look like you skimped on your package, people will make assumptions about you and your music. The photo should have all your contact info in it.

d.) Clippings of you/your act. From any newspaper or magazine that was kind enough to put your name in print. Don't go overboard. One page of carefully assembled clippings can be very effective. It isn't always necessary to cut & paste the article. You can just quote the writer and date of publication on a nice sheet of paper. Invite entertainment writers to your shows so when you need a quote you can get it. You can be evil and take things out of context if necessary. If the writer said your band was: "The most impressive attempt at a cock rock band in Houston" There's no reason it can't be edited: "The most impressive..rock band in Houston." Make the clippings good. Doing benefits and playing for free for charitable events is a great way to get press you can use. The clipping sheet should have all your contact info in/on it.

e.) A list of upcoming performances. Keep it current, and keep the list long. Bands/Artists that play often sound better, get seen more, and build larger followings. Don't just do it for your presskit, DO IT FOR YOURSELF! The gig sheet should have all your contact info in it.

f.) (optional) A well filmed video of a live performance. Spend $200 and rent a Canon GL1 from somewhere and get your pal to spend all day learning it. Then shoot video and edit it in your friend's Mac. Your friends don't have a Mac? Get new friends! Make sure the video makes you look cool. If it doesn't, it's time to wrap up the package.

Put all this stuff in an organized way into a snazzy folder, and start schmoozing, Go to local music events, regional conferences, radio stations, this package will open the next few doors you need opened. Will you get a record deal? Probably not yet, because here what you need NEXT:

4.) The Booking Agent
Every medium to large size city has a few of these crawling around. Meet ALL OF THEM. Don't get stuck in some BS power play between different ones, use all the ones that will talk to you. Some clubs are represented by one agent, so you need to cozy up to him/her if you want to play the venue. In medium to medium-large cities, the booking agents think they are more important than they really are. Resist the temptation to slap them. You need the booking agent to help you get the attention of a manager, but remember: you don't have to like them.

5.) The Manager
In a large city, every third person seems to have managed a band. Managers (like booking agents) make money when the band/artist makes money. This is GOOD. Managers usually only manage a few acts (unlike booking agents) so they need bands that make more money to support their habits (like eating food and smoking cigarettes). You really need to like your manager. I've seen managers that never managed a band before take a band to the top. I've seen also seen managers at the top of their game let artists languish because they weren't important enough. Choose one carefully. If a manager throws down a contract on you, please, get a reputable lawyer to examine it before you sign. In fact, let me make that number 6......

6.) The Lawyers
You need one. Preferrably an experienced one that works cheap, for some reason. Develop a relationship that you can build upon as your legal needs grow. Don't worry if he/she has never brokered a big deal; if one comes along, they will certainly get more experienced people involved. It doesn't matter what you think, you need a lawyer. Ask around, there's always a few super friendly music lawyers in every market. These guys usually work in volume to make up for the fact that no one has a $4mil deal on the table.

7.) The Real Work
Get out there. Network. Play, Kick butt. It's important to spend every waking moment thinking about what you'll do next to put your name in front of the right people. If you work at it constantly, you'll be less likely to blow your big break when it comes. If some A&R guy gives you a chance, DON'T BLOW IT. Don't miss that deadline; don't change your style to try and please him, don't have everyone in the group get a stupid haircut because N'Sync did it.

I make myself available to artists that have worked with me or at the studio. Please don't call and ask me questions if you aren't going to spend money at the studio. I have worked with bands that were picked up by major and indie labels. This knowledge has been gleaned by spending 10 years in the record business. Some tricks that seemed like really good ideas backfired or simply just didn't work. I left those out. If had a sure fire way to get a deal, half the acts that record here would be signed. That being said, you'll find that many people that do this for a living will back up my statements. Take it as you will, and good luck.

*I am very opinionated..... and tend to guard my work carefully.
Don't rip this off and change a few sentences, I'll come after you.
You may link to this page if you want to share this knowledge, but not inside of a frame.
Ask me just to be sure. I promise I will come for you if you steal this good stuff.