How to Prepare for Recording a Demo Tape

Video Transcript

"Hey! My name is Jerimae Yoder and I am with Expert Village. I want to talk about home recording and start talking about how to record instruments in preparation for that. In preparation of home recording, you need to make sure that you elimated any interruptions or distractions in getting into a place in your house, apartment or somewhere you can do your thing and your friends can do your thing without having a lot of distractions. Turn off all phones, cell phones, turn off your ringer on your other phones, close your doors. Do it at a time where there is not a lot of noise going on outside, construction noise like that and people mowing their lawns so that you can get the best sound quality out of your home recording as possible. But 4:00 a.m. may be awesome for you as a musician. If you are just coming home from a gig or something, you want to lay down some tracks but doing drums in the morning if you have neighbors, probably not a good idea unless you have a real sound proof room. A room within a room type of thing where people can't hear you from the outside or if you want to rock out on your half stack or full stack, probably not a good idea to do it at 4:00 a.m. if you've got a bunch of neighbors that are going to complain. So you've got to make those conscious decisions to do it at a good time, that is good for your family, good for your friends, good for your neighbors and sometimes it is really tough. Sometimes it is better to go out and get a rehearsal space or some space that you can put your instruments in so you can do a recording there and you don't have to worry about other people listening to what you guys are doing at 4:00 in the morning. Just make good use of your time. Don't waste your time doing stuff that you don't even do when you got all of your recording gear ready to roll and try to eliminate those distractions again. Psych yourself up man. Be ready to play. If that is listening to some music to get you going, get your adrenalin pumping, having a cup of coffee, having some friends over to support you in that, that aren't distractions again. Get ready, psych yourself up to do the best performance you can because that is what demo tape is. It is a live performance but you can do it over and over again but you have to do it well. You have to play it well. Psych yourself up and make it the best that you possibly can. "