This week it was time to do any extra parts, or overdubs of existing parts. All we needed to do was record an alto saxophone part, and re record the clav part as there were some awful clicks on the track.
Much like recording the guitar, we opted for an SM57 pointed at the sax, and a 414 used to record the room sound. Originally, the plan was to only use the 414, but Jack and I recommended that we use a dynamic microphone up close for a more direct sound. The sax is a very loud instrument, or at least it can be. And it sounds completely different depending where you’re stood. If you’re behind, or away from the bell, then it’s so much less of a piercing sound than if you have your head close.
Once we had the mics plugged in, we needed to reassign there inputs and outputs in Pro Tools, as we used the live room, which was already used to record the guitar part previously. By now, our Pro Tools session was a complete organised mess, and we only had a few tracks left. In fact, in the end I think we’ve used 23 out of the available 24. Which I reckon is quite impressive.
We recorded one take of the sax, and then had to do a quick drop in to correct a mistake that was made in one of the choruses. After that, we decided to record a second take on two new tracks, to beef up this part of the song, as more than one sax part would really change the way the entire recording felt. Having done that, we had a listen through, and the same chorus effect created by the vocals and the guitar was created.
After we were done with the sax, we recorded the clav part again, in its entirety, just to make sure that we erased any mistakes or clicks on the track. This was done using the DI method, just like before. However we turned down the volume of the electric piano to avoid getting any nasty clicks.
And, that’s it for the recording. Only the mix to go, I can’t wait!
– Anthony.