Why record in a studio when my friend can record us for free in their house?
OK.. no one actually asks that. But many are thinking it.
If you’re new to doing bands and making music it may seem that studios and home setups are analogous, but stick around long enough and you will realise the difference in a proper session in an acoustically treated space with high quality microphones, consoles and tape machines.. most importantly an engineer that has made hundreds of records that has literally been in every situation a band could throw at them.
The sessions that we run are so rewarding to both our clients and us because its often that they have been struggling in less than ideal recording situations for years. They may have become intimate with the frustrations of making records in poor acoustic conditions that the leap in quality is staggering. People that are fresh into the game may not recognise this but those that love records like children and treat theirs as their own have become repeat clients as they appreciate us going the extra mile and taking them and their music seriously.
Can we bring our own engineer to Underground?
Of course! We are set up to be ‘freelance friendly’ and we look forward to meeting other working engineers in the community.
Can we all play live?
We have built this space so you can conceivably track up to a 6 piece band all live. The Live rooms here have been linked with instrument, speaker, headphone and mic tie lines. This means anyone can be in any room and have their amplifier in any other room which is hugely helpful for isolation.
Can we change a mix, weeks or months after the fact?
This facility is centred around a large format analogue console, unfortunately mix recalls are often not possible. It is best to arrange a suitable amount of time for mixing your record, allowing at least a day at the end of a session to take mixes home for a brief term before making any final adjustments. There are ways around this and if your record has to be done entirely ITB (within a computer) we can accommodate for this but it is not advised. It is possible to also obtain stems from your session here.
What is mastering and is there a certain mastering engineer we should go with?
The way mastering developed was as a final necessary production step, prior to pressing records. When a recording was completed, a lacquer master was made, in the process of creating a matrix (press stamp) for the manufacturing of a vinyl disc or a glass matrix for a cd, small adjustments could be made to the stereo image, dynamic range and/or frequency response. Eventually those small adjustments became supreme in importance and in some ways, the definition of mastering.
It is critical to remember the historical utility of mastering, that it is really a manufacturing step. It is often stated and always true that the best mastering engineers do very little. Some engineers we have had luck with:
Carl Saff, Bob Weston, Matthew Gray, Brad Boatright, JJ Golden
Do you currently offer internships?
We unfortunately cannot justify paying students, and we don’t feel comfortable utilising students without compensating them. Having said that, if you are wanting to help out on a short term basis, say for a day on a session, please email us and come hang out.