badash
Joined: Aug 18, 2006
Posts: 1732
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Posted on Jun 05 2007 01:42 PM
Okay I've been playing around for about a month with recording and I have what I'd call "red button syndrome". I can work something out, play it in front of people, share it at the jam, whatever, but when it comes time to record it, I push the start button, and my sphincter produces enough suction to glue me to the chair! I'm alone in the room, I can play the stuff blindfolded, but once the record button is pushed, I'm so tense I can barely tremolo pick and will miss strokes...
Anybody deal with this? Does it pass with time? Any tips?
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JakeDobner
Joined: Feb 26, 2006
Posts: 12159
Seattle
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Posted on Jun 05 2007 01:45 PM
Just keep with it. Once you nail something the first time all will pass.
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WR
Joined: Feb 27, 2006
Posts: 3832
netherlands
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Posted on Jun 05 2007 01:49 PM
beer or scotch
not too much
I mean it.
— Rules to live by #314:
"When in Italy, if the menu says something's grilled, don't assume it is."
https://www.facebook.com/The-Malbehavers-286429584796173/
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LRDrummer
Joined: Apr 06, 2006
Posts: 94
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Posted on Jun 05 2007 02:02 PM
I think everyone deals with this from time to time. I've logged many an hour in the studio (and love it) and I'm still not above it. I agree with WR that beer can definetly help ease the tension though alcohol isn't always a possibility for everyone. I also agree with Jake-keep at it. It gets easier the more you do it.
-Taylor
— drummer-Lava Rats
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eddiekatcher
Joined: Mar 14, 2006
Posts: 2775
Atlanta, GA
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Posted on Jun 05 2007 02:03 PM
Na....don't worry about hitting the button.....Just start the recorder and let it run. When you feel like it, yell out "take one" (or whatever). Give the tape an audible four counts in temp (assuming it's in 4), then tap out four inaudible counts and hit it. When ya blow it, don't worry about the tape machine, let it run, take a breath (a slug of beer helps), and start the process again. There's something about starting and stopping the machine that eats away at a lot of us. Don't worry about the times and intervals, that's what modern digital editing is for......after a while you'll relax and laugh about the whoe mess and it will usually work out......Hell, if I can do it.......ANYBODY should be able to do it......ed
— Traditional........speak softly and play through a big blonde amp. Did I mention that I still like big blonde amps?
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tenderfoot
Joined: Feb 01, 2007
Posts: 308
Ellicott City, Maryland
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Posted on Jun 05 2007 02:04 PM
I have the same thing, only I have stage fright too. I can strum and sing in front of a crowd but lead gets me so nervous. Since I only play for my wife and cat it is not a problem. I don't drink so my only solution is to play something a million time before performing it in front of someone or recording. Perhaps that would work for you. Keep playing the same song over and over until you don't even need to think about it.
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SurfBandBill
Joined: Mar 15, 2006
Posts: 1487
San Francisco
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Posted on Jun 05 2007 02:29 PM
Like most people have said - just keep at it. As Eddie K suggested -- just play all the time with a recorder on, and sooner or later you'll forget that you're recording.
I am also a big proponent of alcohol - a drink or two can help dispel "paralysis through analysis"
~B~
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WR
Joined: Feb 27, 2006
Posts: 3832
netherlands
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Posted on Jun 05 2007 03:12 PM
SurfBandBill
I am also a big proponent of alcohol
 I didn't know that 
seriously, like bill says, one or two, don't get drunk, and only if a drink or two helps you relax and all.
and always remember the erase button is there to cover up anything embaressing 
I also second (third? fourt) the "keep it rolling suggestion"- we recorded some drum tracks like that two weeks ago and it really made the atmosphere a lot more relaxed. just giving it a few shots, and whatever ends up on tape good can be edited to a single track. the digital age rules.
 I failed my first driving test because I was too nervous. I passed second time on a giant hangover.
— Rules to live by #314:
"When in Italy, if the menu says something's grilled, don't assume it is."
https://www.facebook.com/The-Malbehavers-286429584796173/
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SurfBandBill
Joined: Mar 15, 2006
Posts: 1487
San Francisco
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Posted on Jun 05 2007 03:25 PM
WR
SurfBandBill
I am also a big proponent of alcohol
I didn't know that
~B~
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Rocketman
Joined: May 10, 2007
Posts: 11
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Posted on Jun 13 2007 05:01 PM
A drink certainly helps. Few years ago I was recording with a band for a whole weekend and the other guitarplayer couldn´t do it. I had to play all his parts as well. So the few drinks didn´t help him now that I think of it.
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pyrobob
Joined: Apr 27, 2006
Posts: 251
Auburn, CA
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Posted on Jun 13 2007 07:13 PM
paralysis through analysis.....I like that, makes me wanna have a drink right now.
serious though, whatever gets you to relax
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ShaunNecro
Joined: Mar 06, 2007
Posts: 524
Bay City (Michigan)
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Posted on Jun 13 2007 08:25 PM
It's kinda similar to playing out for the first time. You wanna make sure every thing is perfect, and you make no mistakes. Of course, this inadvertently causes us to screw up even more. Just remember, if you listen close enough you can hear tons of screw-ups on recordings. The best recordings are the ones that really make you move, not the perfectly played ones. Just my two cents.
— I am super sweet
www.myspace.com/thetremblors
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ziv
Joined: Jul 17, 2006
Posts: 56
dayton, ohio
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Posted on Feb 22 2009 12:07 PM
Back in the early New Wave days I wrote a song called "I Can't Get Started." One of the verses was:
I woke up this mornin'
And thought I'd put somethin'
Important on tape
For posterity's sake
I push in the button
My mind turns to nothin'
Don't know what to say
And my fingers won't play
I can't get started.
I still feel that tension when I record. Even when I'm recording alone, there's something about that red button that makes me tighten up. I try to remind myself that rock and roll is about energy, not perfection, and that some of my favorite records are full of mistakes. I like Eddie's suggestion to keep the recording going. When I stop and restart after a mistake I seem to make the same mistake again and again and I loose the flow of what I'm trying to play.
I also wholeheartedly agree with the beer drinking doctrine so enthusiastically endorsed here. A slight buzz does seem to grease the wheels. Like Joe Walsh said thirty some years ago, "The smoker you drink, the player you get."
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GeologyRocksCA
Joined: Jan 30, 2009
Posts: 242
Cotati, CA
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Posted on Feb 22 2009 01:39 PM
Is any of this driven by fear of wasting limited/costly studio time or time for players that are either getting paid by the hour or have other places to be? If that is not an issue, than like previously noted, just try to relax, joke about it, and things should work out. Joking about it is the best. I used a studio toilet at the start of a session once not knowing the water was turned off to it. Trust me, there was enough laughter going around to loosen everyone up.
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Rio
Joined: May 22, 2006
Posts: 500
Hamilton, Ontario
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Posted on Feb 22 2009 02:33 PM
turn the lights down... you'll be so distracted just trying to see what you're doing that you'll forget about the recording making you nervous...
— http://www.facebook.com/?sk=lf#!/rockinrio.delrosa
http://www.facebook.com/?sk=lf#!/TheHighTides
http://www.facebook.com/?sk=lf#!/pages/The-Blue-Demons
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zak
Joined: Sep 24, 2007
Posts: 2728
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Posted on Feb 22 2009 02:44 PM
This post has been removed by the author.
Last edited: Sep 23, 2009 22:19:11
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bigtikidude
Joined: Feb 27, 2006
Posts: 25544
Anaheim(So.Cal.)U.S.A.
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Posted on Feb 22 2009 02:54 PM
what would that be Zak?
— Jeff(bigtikidude)
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dp
Joined: Feb 26, 2006
Posts: 3546
mojave desert, california
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Posted on Feb 22 2009 03:00 PM
don't look at the recorder!
turn on the TV with the sound down and watch the weather channel, or cnn, or the nasa channel, or a dvd or something. Or open the window blinds and watch the wind blow the trees. just don't look at the recorder!
relaxation is good: some use beer or wine, or cognac, or pipes, cigarettes...some simply learn how to breathe in and breathe out. i prefer the "focus on breathing method". Zen guitar, focus on relaxing, or relax into your focus...however you do it...
the suggestion to do more recording is excellent...turn on the recorder and fill it up...you can always hit "delete" or "erase"...
lastly, i say persist. there have been times where I have literally had to try 25 times to get "the part" recorded sucessfully...i just kept trying.
usually, my parts come pretty easilly: 1 to 3 takes...but, sometimes it takes a few more tries to get what is in your head onto the track...keep at it!
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dp
Joined: Feb 26, 2006
Posts: 3546
mojave desert, california
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Posted on Feb 22 2009 03:01 PM
zak
I think Jim Morisson had the best possible approach to dealing with "tension" when he was recording the vocals to "You're Lost Little Girl" 
legend has it, he utilized the "fellatio method"... 
Last edited: Feb 23, 2009 19:06:19
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KingKahuna
Joined: Mar 06, 2008
Posts: 21
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Posted on Feb 22 2009 05:21 PM
Hi badash I record my instro's in sections ,I record one section and when I am happy with it I move on to the next section ,It was hard when I tried to do it in one hit , I used to stress out bad when I was nearly at the end hoping I would not stuff up and have to start all over again but doing it in sections Is much easier .
Have A Good Day
Rich
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