i've thought about this in great detail and here's where i stand...
1. tell me what you like, in terms of sound, once. tell me the album. i will listen to it on my own time. do not make any promises here. the point of the matter is, listen to the character of what they like. they say, i love the kick on as i lay dying, go listen to it and discover for your self if its clicky, boomy, whatever the hell. do not anylze the shit out of it. do not curve eq it. do not fucking care what they did to make the sound, just get the idea.
2. tell the band that you aren't here to mirror a mix. if you have any sort of rep, you'll be able to say this with confidence. the band got to you somehow, find the trail. most of the time its because they heard something you did that they liked, that means they like what you do, that doesnt mean copy someone elses work and sound-style to please your client. i straight up tell my clients that i am here to do my thing, not copy eq sounds from someone elses cd.
3. if you're producing something, seriously try not to listen to any other work. the whole point of having an influence is hearing it one day and learning and growing from it. not listening to the record in between trackin songs and discovering you need more solo's, octaves, more down tuned parts, more this mor that. fuck that. be yourself, do what feels necessary for the songs you are writing and recording.
4. yes its ok to call a part a meshuggah part, yes its ok to say, "hey we could do what the black dahlia murder would do here". how is that not hypocritical? because those bands have made an impact on the musical world and its just a way to describe a musical peice in words. it doesnt mean you're ripping people off unless you're actually ripping people off!
5. do not ask me to do something i am incapable of doing. no i cannot make your cd sound like colin richardson mixed it, i am not colin richardson. you came to me for a reason, or do you take that back now??
the end =]
happy recordings
