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Re: Anyone out there stop recording music?

11 by indiegrab_360
jfv wrote: Wed Aug 10, 2022 7:26 am Yeah. Self-recorded and released a bunch of tapes and two CDs up through 2005. Then moved away from the other guys in the band and started a family. Hadn’t had the same desire to write or record music since then, up until last year.

EDIT: it's an oversimplification for me to attribute it all to starting a family. I got bored with it, too. I was always super self-critical of my own writing and recording, and I had just gotten to a point where the only songs that I were happy with were all of the same mold. The world doesn't need more open-chord rock songs, at least not from me (that was my thinking).
2005 is a while ago. I'm 6 months off songwriting and recording. I agree it's easy to over-simplify this conversation... There's a lot of complex thoughts involved. Recording can force a good amount of self-evaluation. Although, I've noticed in my 30's I've been much, much less critical of myself than I was in my mid-twenties.

I struggle with it in some ways. Example: I've just finished two consecutive years of... very intensive and focused work on music. So, technically, I'm better now than before, so I feel like I could probably achieve at a higher level now than any time previous... but at a point it does get self-indulgent. And.. there are other ways to achieve musically aside from producing your own records. Just some thoughts...

Re: Anyone out there stop recording music?

12 by jfv
^ I did not cut out performing during those 16 or so years. The band morphed into an every-now-and-then mostly rock & roll cover band. I did the vast majority of song arrangements, set lists, etc., but no writing or recording. It was/is a lot of fun just playing out and not worrying if others (or I…) thought that my own songs blew chunks.
jason (he/him/his) from volo (illinois)

Re: Anyone out there stop recording music?

13 by losthighway
jfv wrote: Wed Aug 10, 2022 8:11 pm ^ I did not cut out performing during those 16 or so years. The band morphed into an every-now-and-then mostly rock & roll cover band. I did the vast majority of song arrangements, set lists, etc., but no writing or recording. It was/is a lot of fun just playing out and not worrying if others (or I…) thought that my own songs blew chunks.
This is a pitfall I only recently understood because I've covered other artists so little in my bands. My current band has a policy of rotating cover songs every 6 months or so. Everyone gets a turn to pick.

There have been times where our one cover song in the set (Husker DU, McCluskey, Seaweed, Engine 88, Weakerthans) has levitated me in a way the originals did not. You can feel the greatness of a song as you gradually learn how to own it and then transmit it to people. I've had shows where after I've said, "That was amazing..... but if only I could write one that connects like X". In a cover band full of people with good taste I could see that being a tower that would make writing a song myself feel like a fool's errand.

Re: Anyone out there stop recording music?

14 by DaveA
Putting out some new music within the next few days, in fact (some solo guitar pieces), but would place myself in the camp of "recovering musicians." Meaning, I still play at home and put releases together from time to time, and who knows, could play in a proper band in the future, but I have no interest in making a career out of it or having it become the focal point of my identity again. There've been long periods of inactivity in the past and there may be some in the future, and I don't feel that bad about it, as music is more of a hobby now than something I want to be plugged into all of the time. I also work in other mediums that I might be more proficient at than I am writing and playing songs.

Aside from posting here and keeping up with a few old friends and collaborators, if that counts, I'm not involved in any scenes now and have mostly disabused myself of the illusion of being on top of things. Am no insider. At certain points creating and releasing music might have been therapeutic, or an effort to prove something, but for now, the make or break factor behind bringing things to light is that they won't bore or annoy me too much, as a listener. In a way, music is a form of "self-entertainment" for me. I think my engagement with it as a player is more healthy and realistic now.
ZzzZzzZzzz . . .

New Novel.

Re: Anyone out there stop recording music?

15 by indiegrab_360
DaveA wrote: Wed Aug 10, 2022 11:17 pm Putting out some new music within the next few days, in fact (some solo guitar pieces), but would place myself in the camp of "recovering musicians." Meaning, I still play at home and put releases together from time to time, and who knows, could play in a proper band in the future, but I have no interest in making a career out of it or having it become the focal point of my identity again. There've been long periods of inactivity in the past and there may be some in the future, and I don't feel that bad about it, as music is more of a hobby now than something I want to be plugged into all of the time. I also work in other mediums that I might be more proficient at than I am writing and playing songs.

Aside from posting here and keeping up with a few old friends and collaborators, if that counts, I'm not involved in any scenes now and have mostly disabused myself of the illusion of being on top of things. Am no insider. At certain points creating and releasing music might have been therapeutic, or an effort to prove something, but for now, the make or break factor behind bringing things to light is that they won't bore or annoy me too much, as a listener. In a way, music is a form of "self-entertainment" for me. I think my engagement with it as a player is more healthy and realistic now.
Yeah.. I feel you. This is kind of the response I was looking for when making this thread. I'm trying to stay healthy too, basically. That's a great way of framing the question.

Right now I'm learning sheet music as a way to stay engaged with music and work on some sort of goal. I set a timer and do 20 minutes per practice session. If I skip a day or two I don't fret. It keeps it light, and fun. The idea of working on some masterpiece album that defies genres and becomes a cult classic, while lofty and enticing... Can be a bit of a drag to actually try and do, I guess.

Re: Anyone out there stop recording music?

17 by penningtron
twelvepoint wrote: Thu Aug 11, 2022 4:19 am Is this thread strictly about recording music, or is the spirit of it more about the ebb-and-flow of our creative engagement?
Yeah the last few posts seem to be leaning towards the latter, which could also open up the discussion to playing live or in bands.

I guess I never anticipated hitting a point where some of this would cease to be fun or rewarding, but maybe it's inevitable. Ironically I am preparing for a session in 2 weeks but it's different than anything I've done before, or at least I hope it doesn't fall back into familiar patterns.
Music
Drums

Re: Anyone out there stop recording music?

18 by RyanZ
penningtron wrote: Wed Aug 10, 2022 12:14 pm I can personally vouch for FM BrendanK, who offers his drum services for quite cheap. Yeah, I play drums, but it was more fun to hear someone else's interpretation* (I sent guitars only recorded to a click). And he has a better drum recording setup than I do.
*I never actually posted/shared that track, cuz self doubt, defeatism, etc.
I can also vouch for Brendan. He's been great to work with. I've used him on a bunch of stuff over the course of the pandemic, and will be hitting him up soon for more!
New Shit:
https://lamekites.bandcamp.com/album/less-one
Discogs:
https://www.discogs.com/seller/ryanzepaltas/profile

Re: Anyone out there stop recording music?

19 by jfv
Sort of my fault that the topic got expanded. I have a horrible tendency to digress. Working on it.

Back to recording/writing:

I've tried the "do something new/fresh/exciting/experimental" approach multiple times to try to get back into it (which I really, really want), like trying to write a song in an unusual key or time signature, or with more dissonance, or with an alternate tuning... but no matter what, it always sounds forced and unnatural, and oftentimes just like something else.

So I end up going back to just strumming the guitar, humming a melody, and writing a song from that... resulting in yet another open-chord rock song. Boring. I guess I'm stuck doing that forever.

I suffer from what I perceive to be a combination of lack of creativity, motivation, and self-confidence.
jason (he/him/his) from volo (illinois)

Re: Anyone out there stop recording music?

20 by Dave N.
I’ve always worked in fits and starts. I spend a few years accumulating half-ideas, then I spend a few years turning them into whole ideas. Aside from a few rough ideas on my phone, I haven’t done much of anything. My recording gear has sat fallow through much of the pandemic. It doesn’t bother me, because I know I’ll fire it up again, eventually. I’ve recorded a lot of stuff during the last 20 years. Nothing wrong with taking a lengthy break.

Recently finished recording an album with one of the bands I play with. It was enough to keep me from feeling completely counterproductive this year.
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