There's
No Such Thing As A Demo
By John
McKay
Bands often use the
term 'demo' to describe what they're
looking to do. "We want to record a 4 song
demo." The thing is, though, that 'demo'
is an inaccurate term, that leads to an
attitude of tolerance for sloppy playing,
poor instrument preparedness, etc. 'Demos'
do exist, but really, a 'demo' is a simple
recording of a song, for the purpose of
demonstrating it to another musician, or a
lyricist. Basically, for another member of
the creative team, not a fan or other
listener.
Anytime you are recording a song for
public release, even if you're planning
only to give it to a few friends
initially, you should think of it as an
album or EP. Your fans will be listening
to it as if it were, and if it is well
received, you may end up pressing hundreds
or thousands of copies.
So, what is the difference between a
'demo' and a proper release? For one
thing, a demo has no artwork. Thinking
about your packaging and artwork while
planning for recording can help you get
the idea of a release more firmly in your
mind. Don't worry about impressing record
labels or radio people, worry about
impressing your fans. If you can make them
happy, everyone else will fall into
line.
A demo usually has only one song (if it's
a proper demo), or possibly a few, if it's
being used to show a new bass player the
songs, or what have you. An album is
generally about 10-14 songs, an EP
4-6.
An album will have a proper flow to it.
Start to think about sequencing early on.
You don't want to get married to anything
yet, but just have an idea. This will help
you to visualize the end product. Think
about the contrasts between songs, the
narrative flow, if there is one, and
whether you want the album to follow the
traditional sequence of shorter poppier
songs up front, with the longer 'artier'
tracks towards the end.
You can also start thinking about
production. A great album will have some
'stunts', little things that make the
listener notice what's going on. These
could be as simple as an acoustic section
of an otherwise electric song, using an
unusual micing technique for a vocal line,
a weird effect here or there. On
Jawbreaker's "24 Hour Revenge Therapy"
album, there's a long section at the end
of 'Condition Oakland' with Jack Kerouac
and Steve Allen mixed in. It catches the
listener by surprise, and over time
becomes one of the highlights of the
record.
Think hard about things like this, and
ideas you have. Take notes, listen to lots
of music, with an ear to how the artists
use the recording medium to keep things
interesting and moving along. You might
notice that the snare drum sounds
distinctly different from track to track
(Built To Spill's 'Perfect From Now On' is
a good example.) You might notice that
some songs sound close to the listener and
others farther off (through the use of
room mics and reverbs), or that a track
moves away as it progresses.
Most importantly, have the attitude that
this release is forever. While there is a
chance that you'll re-record these same
songs at some point, in my experience,
that doesn't happen often. Put your all
into the effort, and don't accept 'good
enough'. Be open to happy accidents, weird
sounds and interesting mistakes. But don't
leave things that bother you, or that are
just plain wrong.
I always take the attitude that this
recording is for release, and that we
should do our best to get it just right.
Try to take on this attitude next time you
record, I think you'll be glad you
did.
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