Part 1!
I have just begun a recording project with my good friend and musician colleague Daniel Cook. It will be 'sort of' the second recording that we have done together. The first being the BOP album which was a collaboration of our 5 piece band 5 years ago.
This will be a duo project right out of the gate... which all decisions and funding will be made by ourselves. Exciting, with glimpses of stress muddled in there.
To begin, we each have brought some money to the table and understand that our budget will dictate a lot of our decisions. You can have a wonderful wish list of hiring the best Engineers, Producers, Masters and every stellar musician you know, but at the end of the day when you are an independent artist the BUDGET WILL tell you what you can and can not have.
We are recording an EP:Here is the definition of EP
EP stands for "extended play" as they are longer than the original single 45s,(vinyl)and usually containing 4 tracks. Artists usually release EPs before their whole album comes out. It is to give the fans a taste of what is coming. It could include anywhere from 2 to 10 songs often depending on the length of the full album. The EP would come out anywhere from 2 months to a year before the full length album.
A good example of an EP containing 4 tracks was the Beatles' 'Twist and Shout (EP)'. The format was also used as a low-cost way of showcasing new artists.
In appearance, the EP was similar to a 7" Single but played at 33 1/3rpm rather than 45rpm.
So, even though the music industry has moved to digital CD's etc. we've kept the same description of a 'short' album and EP.
Our new CD will have 6 original tunes written by Daniel and myself, featuring a variety of different styles and stories. As Daniel and I work together we seem to finish up songs quite quickly and keep adding them to the list as we go, knowing some might be cut due to the BUDGET.
We bounced around some ideas of the title for the album and some ideas for the album cover. It's not always easy making these types of decisions since there are two very different personalities and distinct ideas. We will work hard at compromise. As I jokingly say to Daniel... we will do whatever he decides and I'll go along with it!
One wonderful new technology for independent artists are download cards. This is an awesome way to sell music with very low over head for the artist. I am uncertain of how they are being received by the general public, if they (general public) will miss having the jewel cases, thanks yous and lyrics sheets.I think as time moves on, download cards will become more and more common.
Who knew that we would go from an etched vinyl record to a simple download card????
Diva M
