Recording vocals for new songs

[Armistice]

Don't know about you guys, but not being a "natural" vocalist, it seems to take me forever to record the vocals to new songs, because they've not been forged in the crucible of live performance like band stuff is.

I have two songs ready for vocals and then they're done but I've been practicing the various lead lines for a week or more and still can't sing them nearly well enough to push the red button.

I don't care if I don't have all the words down - I'm happy to go from a printed sheet, but it's learning where to breathe and how to make the damn things sound decent with tone of voice, accents, faux emotional nuances and other crap like that takes so much time, assuming I can get even halfway close to staying on pitch... and once I think I have that sort of under control, learning to do it into a microphone and controlling distance and plosives etc. etc. etc. is the next step.

Damn well taking forever.

I hate singers.

Maybe I'll get something finished next week.

[JD01]

Don't know about you guys, but not being a "natural" vocalist, it seems to take me forever to record the vocals to new songs, because they've not been forged in the crucible of live performance like band stuff is.

I have two songs ready for vocals and then they're done but I've been practicing the various lead lines for a week or more and still can't sing them nearly well enough to push the red button.

I don't care if I don't have all the words down - I'm happy to go from a printed sheet, but it's learning where to breathe and how to make the damn things sound decent with tone of voice, accents, faux emotional nuances and other crap like that takes so much time, assuming I can get even halfway close to staying on pitch... and once I think I have that sort of under control, learning to do it into a microphone and controlling distance and plosives etc. etc. etc. is the next step.

Damn well taking forever.

I hate singers.

Maybe I'll get something finished next week.

I agree. Entirely. More practice needed.

[ido1957]

What's your vocal recording strategy/methodology?

[WhiskeyJack]

Don't know about you guys, but not being a "natural" vocalist, it seems to take me forever to record the vocals to new songs, because they've not been forged in the crucible of live performance like band stuff is.

I have two songs ready for vocals and then they're done but I've been practicing the various lead lines for a week or more and still can't sing them nearly well enough to push the red button.

I don't care if I don't have all the words down - I'm happy to go from a printed sheet, but it's learning where to breathe and how to make the damn things sound decent with tone of voice, accents, faux emotional nuances and other crap like that takes so much time, assuming I can get even halfway close to staying on pitch... and once I think I have that sort of under control, learning to do it into a microphone and controlling distance and plosives etc. etc. etc. is the next step.

Damn well taking forever.

I hate singers.

Maybe I'll get something finished next week.

Armi, one thing i like to do is just render a rough mix down of what i have then go for a drive and sing in the car. Two reasons really.

1. Your brain is trying to do two things at once, drive and sing the song, so where to breathe and all that stuff is going to come naturally while your trying to half assed drive and pay attention to the road. I don't recommend busy urban driving for this task. Think rural roads or less busy sub-urban areas where your vigilance is not required to be 150%

2. You are away from that little red button and you aren't focused on "man that would have been a good take" or "maybe this will be the one"

At least in the car it is just you the song, the lyrics and the open road.

Truth be told my vehicle is my mixing room "B" It's is my main second reference for everything i recorded.

[vomitHatSteve]

That's a clever strategy.

[musicturtle]

Armi, one thing i like to do is just render a rough mix down of what i have then go for a drive and sing in the car. Two reasons really.

1. Your brain is trying to do two things at once, drive and sing the song, so where to breathe and all that stuff is going to come naturally while your trying to half assed drive and pay attention to the road. I don't recommend busy urban driving for this task. Think rural roads or less busy sub-urban areas where your vigilance is not required to be 150%

2. You are away from that little red button and you aren't focused on "man that would have been a good take" or "maybe this will be the one"

At least in the car it is just you the song, the lyrics and the open road.

Truth be told my vehicle is my mixing room "B" It's is my main second reference for everything i recorded.

This is a great technique to get in some extra practice time. I do it myself.

[Armistice]

It's a good idea but I spend about 30 to an hour minutes a week or thereabouts in my car... and weekends only. I am using my car as a reference with the mastering I'm doing at the moment - checking levels against each other, EQ, individual track prominence, like snare etc. For some reason I find it easier to do this when I'm motoring along - differences between tracks seem to jump out more at me.

[musicturtle]

Armi,

I erred on the side of not offending you, but if you want suggestions on how to nail a vocal part quicker here is what I have to offer.

• Correctly record yourself playing(piano or guitar) or sequence the melody you want to sing

• Sing along with the melody on open "ah" like a yawn or a doctor is looking down your throat(a good warmup is singing this "ah" sound up and down, in and out of your comfortable range, sounding like a siren)

• Work the lyrics in while trying to keep as much of the "ah" in the sound as possible(almost ridiculously at first)

• Try to keep that relaxed "ah" feeling in your throat when you sing, it will help your pitch

This is the process I go through when trying to get my choir at school to sing on pitch and not belt unnecessarily. And I do this myself when having problems nailing a phrase.

If this is more coaching than you want, please forgive me, I am just sharing some tricks that I use.

Tony

[JD01]

Armi,

I erred on the side of not offending you, but if you want suggestions on how to nail a vocal part quicker here is what I have to offer.

• Correctly record yourself playing(piano or guitar) or sequence the melody you want to sing

• Sing along with the melody on open "ah" like a yawn or a doctor is looking down your throat(a good warmup is singing this "ah" sound up and down, in and out of your comfortable range, sounding like a siren)

• Work the lyrics in while trying to keep as much of the "ah" in the sound as possible(almost ridiculously at first)

• Try to keep that relaxed "ah" feeling in your throat when you sing, it will help your pitch

This is the process I go through when trying to get my choir at school to sing on pitch and not belt unnecessarily. And I do this myself when having problems nailing a phrase.

If this is more coaching than you want, please forgive me, I am just sharing some tricks that I use.

Tony

This is all really handy, mate - and very similar to what a friend of mine was telling me on Wednesday - she's actually a singing teacher.

[Armistice]

Armi,

I erred on the side of not offending you, but if you want suggestions on how to nail a vocal part quicker here is what I have to offer.

• Correctly record yourself playing(piano or guitar) or sequence the melody you want to sing

• Sing along with the melody on open "ah" like a yawn or a doctor is looking down your throat(a good warmup is singing this "ah" sound up and down, in and out of your comfortable range, sounding like a siren)

• Work the lyrics in while trying to keep as much of the "ah" in the sound as possible(almost ridiculously at first)

• Try to keep that relaxed "ah" feeling in your throat when you sing, it will help your pitch

This is the process I go through when trying to get my choir at school to sing on pitch and not belt unnecessarily. And I do this myself when having problems nailing a phrase.

If this is more coaching than you want, please forgive me, I am just sharing some tricks that I use.

Tony

Tone - I would totally never get offended at anyone's reasonable suggestions as to how to improve. I make zero claims to singing greatness!

I'm actually bashing this one out on acoustic guitar - not something I can normally do with my tunes, but this one I can - and wailing along with it - half of the process is actually working out the melody as well and then changing the lyrics all the time when things don't sound as awesome as I expect, so it's quite a process for me - anyway, I'm getting there.

Thanks for the tips! Everyone here brings something to the table.