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so, i have this crazy idea


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i'm heading to the usa in may next year for 16 days... so far it looks like i'll be going to l.a ... new york... nashville.... chicago... and detroit

 

anyway... what i thought would be a cool thing to do is record an e.p while i'm there (4-5 songs).... by using a different studio for each song as i'm travelling ... it would be something like acoustic guitar, vocals, and maybe a second guitar track... with some vocal overdubs

 

as to what studios i'd use i'm not sure... i know i want to record a track in the recording booth of jack white's third man records in nashville... and i know i'm probably dreaming, but i'm contacting some big name studios to see if they can squeeze me in for a session ...and what the cost would be... (e.g., i've asked electric lady about their C studio)... i'd then look to different studios as the bigger ones say no or become cost prohibitive... i'm hoping to use studios with a great history

 

all songs and arrangements would be rehearsed and recorded (multiple times) in my studio at home before i left, so i can hopefully nail it when i'm there

 

anyway... thought i'd share... feel free to tell me it's a dumb idea... i'm still going to do it :)

 

i'd use this thread to post updates etc

 

 

 

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cool idea, though a little bit crazy... i'm not u.s. but sun studios in memphis comes to my mind when talking famous..

keep us updated :)

 

contacted sun earlier today :thu:... waiting to hear back from them... memphis is a 3 something hour drive from nashville (apparently) so i'd be crazy not to try there

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There's a ton of studios in America, and I'm sure you'll have no problem finding a few who are willing to take some of your money. smile.png

 

As far as the big boy rooms, most of them are struggling. You'd have more negotiating power if you were planning on bringing in a large, long-lasting project that was going to keep them booked for a while, but if you're willing to consider B and C rooms instead of their A rooms, and can be flexible on session times, you can probably get decent deals. Another big advantage for you is your setup is relatively minimal, which means it's a fairly easy gig from the studio's perspective, and you can be more flexible about what room you use since you don't need to fit a 40 piece orchestra into it, or have a large band that needs lots of isolation booths.

 

One other way you'll be able to save some money is if you don't insist on their top-rated engineers. You'd pay more for me than you would for my assistant - assuming I had one ATM. lol.gif

 

Of course, being a west coast guy, I can give you more LA area studio recommendations than I can studios in NYC or Chicago.

 

If I was going to Nashville, the two studios I'd be most interested in checking out (off the top of my head) would be Sound Kitchen and Blackbird.

 

I've always liked working at A&M / Henson studios, and Studio C might be right up your alley... but it's tied up on long-term lease ATM so you can't book it. A and B are bigger than you need by a long shot. So is D, but you might be able to go with that room. The Mix room could also work - there's a nice iso off of it that would really be all you'd need, considering your minimal setup.

 

NRG is also very nice. I'm not sure if EastWest is currently renting time to outsiders or not, but if so, there's few studios in the LA area with a richer history. Formerly known as Cello, and before that, Western Recorders - as in United Western. Did you ever see the Tom Hanks movie That Thing You Do? The studio at the end? It's Studio One. For a project like yours, you'd want (or at least *I'd* want) the much smaller Studio Three, which is where a lot of the work on Pet Sounds was done. I'd also recommend at least trying to hit up Capitol Studios - one of the few studio complexes in LA IMHO that can compete with EastWest in terms of legacy and history. Of course, the other biggie that can make that claim would be Ocean Way - the other half of the old United Western studios, and not far down the street from EastWest.

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Chicago is in my neck of the woods... about 2 hrs away, depending on traffic. Most of the old big name studios have shut down. CRC (Chicago Recording Company) is still around. They have a long history in town and a good rep. http://www.chicagorecording.com/music-studios

 

Gravity Recording is another good studio, but it's only been around since the early 90's. I can still recommend it. http://www.gravitystudios.com/index.php/about-2/about/

 

Me personally, I would be pushing it to record my own EP in my own studio with only 16 days, but YMMV.

 

It's a big country with a lot of travel time between the destinations you've mentioned, but sounds interesting. Keep us posted! :)

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Chicago is in my neck of the woods... about 2 hrs away, depending on traffic. Most of the old big name studios have shut down. CRC (Chicago Recording Company) is still around. They have a long history in town and a good rep. http://www.chicagorecording.com/music-studios

 

Gravity Recording is another good studio, but it's only been around since the early 90's. I can still recommend it. http://www.gravitystudios.com/index.php/about-2/about/

 

Me personally, I would be pushing it to record my own EP in my own studio with only 16 days, but YMMV.

 

It's a big country with a lot of travel time between the destinations you've mentioned, but sounds interesting. Keep us posted! :)

 

thanks for the suggestions

 

i hear you about time being limited... but i'm going to tailor the project with that in mind... minimal arrangements etc... i think i can get it done

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thought i'd post an update... i've had to cancel (hopefully postpone) this trip for health reasons... i was due to leave on the 18th of this month

 

pretty disappointed... but i went a bought a neumann u87 and a bricasti m7 for my studio to soften the blow

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thought i'd post an update... i've had to cancel (hopefully postpone) this trip for health reasons... i was due to leave on the 18th of this month

 

Sorry to hear about your health issues. :( Nothing too serious I hope!

 

pretty disappointed...

 

Understandably. :)

 

but i went a bought a neumann u87 and a bricasti m7 for my studio to soften the blow

 

:eekphil: Those are some nice consolation prizes! :lol::cool2:

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thanks Phil

 

yeah, i was gutted

 

the health issues are ongoing things i'll have to learn to manage

 

Currey, the engineer at Sun is holding my deposit for me (it was non refundable) and said i can use it whenever... determined to make it happen at some stage

 

i was feeling a bit down and out and thought... i know!... new toys!!!! :)

 

i got a killer deal on the bricasti ... it's truly a thing of beauty... but now i want another one

 

 

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thanks Phil

 

yeah, i was gutted

 

the health issues are ongoing things i'll have to learn to manage

 

Currey, the engineer at Sun is holding my deposit for me (it was non refundable) and said i can use it whenever... determined to make it happen at some stage

 

That was really nice of them to do that. I really hope you get to use that at some point. :)

 

i was feeling a bit down and out and thought... i know!... new toys!!!! :)

 

i got a killer deal on the bricasti ... it's truly a thing of beauty... but now i want another one

 

 

I'd love to have a Bricasti - that's probably the best reverb box I've ever heard. You have great taste! :philthumb:

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I too, just found this thread. Sorry about your health issues, truly. Hope they get resolved speedily and you can chase your dream.

 

One bit of advise...Driving from Nashville to Memphis...Nowhere in the USA do people drive faster than they do in Tennessee. I'm from Texas and we ain't scared of laying in on the pedal but them Tennesseans are plumb BatCrap Crazy on the Interstate.

 

No offense meant to any folks from to the Volunteer State. Just stating a fact.

 

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