A Day In The Studio For The Kingdom Project

Friday was one of those truly fabulous days. I was able to spend all day Friday in the recording studio. We were laying down the rhythm tracks for some Christian music written by fellow guitar player, songwriter, and good friend, Ike Elliott. Ike has a post up about Friday on his blog too. The music is part of a non-profit company I'm involved in called The Kingdom Project. I'll tell you more about that in a bit.

Ike's been writing some songs over the past year or so, all of which I like very much. He has a real gift, writing in a style somewhere between The Beatles and Newsboys. After soliciting various opinions, the songs were whittled down to seven which we recorded the basic tracks for on Friday.

Recording music is a fascinating process. I've recorded in my home studio and professional studios. But the process is pretty much the same. The songwriter has a message and a vision woven into their songs. If you are recording your own songs, you get to decide the next steps. But here comes the courageous part. To really do a song justice you have to free it into the hands of other musicians who are part of the recording and creative process. That can be scary or it can be a very liberating experience. It's all comes down to communicating the vision of the music, and the kind of connection you have with your fellow musicians.

The process in the studio can become very technical at times, becoming all about dialing in the instruments, keeping in time with the pulse, playing the right chords and notes, keeping it in the pocket, etc. Recording is like looking into the mirror - it doesn't lie. What's recorded is what you played. If you were ahead of the pulse, even just a little bit, it all shows up. If the musicians aren't connecting, you can hear it. And when the are connecting, the music just flows. The best part is seeing what other musicians do with the song and the ideas from the producer and songwriter.

Each person brings their own talents, ideas, roots in music, etc. Most importantly is a desire to try and achieve what the producer and songwriter are looking for. They may give you freedom to do whatever you feel would work, or they may say "give me a tasty David Gilmour kind of lick right there." At one point during our recording, the producer, Jeremiah Horner, asked me to give him "the biggest pick slide you've ever done." I set my Strat so it would get the kind of sound I thought he wanted, and let'er rip as he punched it into the recording. We all had a huge laugh at just how over the top the pick slide was, but you know, it worked in the song and it's what Jeremiah had in mind. And we all liked it. It was a fun moment that everyone got a lot of enjoyment from.

We spent from 9am to 8pm in the studio and the time just flew by. I only checked the clock twice; once at 12:45pm when my stomach started growling, and then again at 6pm. Each time it only seemed like an hour or so had gone by. Time in the studio goes fast because you're so focused on what you're doing, and because you're having so much fun.

We're planning to go back in the studio in June to do some doubling, overdubs, vocals and solos. That's yet another kind of creative process that I'm looking forward to. In the mean time, I'll be practicing using the rough mixes Jeremiah gave us on Sunday.

A little bit more about the project... This recording is part of a non-profit company called The Kingdom Project. KP is all about helping emerging Christian artists get their music produced, recorded and promoted. We're developing a web site with all kinds of resources to help new songwriters get a leg up on the ins and outs of copyrighting their music, and getting a demo or a CD made, and connecting with others who can help them. We also connect folks interested in sponsoring new artists or projects with songwriters, producers and musicians. Ike's recording is the first project we've initiated. We'll plan to begin our second project sometime later this year.

So if you are interested in learning more or getting involved, please feel free to contact me. We're looking for songwriters, sponsors, and help with the web site and content.