In The Studio With Jimmy – Day 2
Posted on March 10th
It’s the morning after my final day in the studio remixing Stars. It’s been an intense and exhausting few days but I’ve absolutely loved it. There’s no better feeling in the world than doing something you really love discovering you can work relentlessly forgetting about trivial little things like hunger and fatigue! True to form then I couldn’t sleep on Thursday night, impatient to get back to it…
Friday morning didn’t really go to plan. My train was held at the platform for over an hour for the police to investigate an assault on a passenger. It was a sobering reminder about keeping life in perspective knowing that I am guilty sometimes of spending too much time thinking about the future. You never know what might happen tomorrow, so it’s important to enjoy today and not needlessly wish the time away.
Eventually though I made it to the studio and things were cooking! We did get a little side-tracked reworking some of the piano parts…but then got down to the main business of the day comping vocals…
For those of you who haven’t been through this process, when you record a song you’ll have a couple of attempts at singing it through, and then spend time taking the best bits creating a master vocal. As a singer sensitive to the sound of your own voice, it can be quite hard to sit and listen to yourself in excruciating detail…but on the flip side it feels AMAZING when you know you’ve nailed it and this process really sharpens you up. I’d strongly advise any aspiring singer to record yourself and listen back, you’ll soon hear the areas you need to focus on when you practice.
Another highlight of the day was having a good old-fashioned jam. Jimmy had jumped on the drums pulling out some break-beats so I jumped on piano and joined in – a nice little interlude from a morning of critical listening.
The day passed by far too quickly and I have to admit to feeling quite sad that my time in the studio has now come to an end. All that’s left are final production moments then mixing and mastering which will all happen without me.
The final mix should be completed next week, and mastering soon after. In a way it’s nice stepping away from the song because when I hear it next I’ll be coming back to it fresh. I won’t give too much away, but if you liked the original demo of Stars, you’re going to love this version!
As soon as it’s ready, you’ll be the first to know, so watch this space…
Animesh Raval is part of a new breed of singer-songwriters combining great musicianship with great songs. Classically trained in piano, his distinctive playing style and love of classical music creates a rare depth to his songwriting: beautiful melodies woven together with poignant lyrics. 