Where to find more info on writing music in the studio.

• Where can I find more information about bands and the writing of albums in the studio. While randomly linking across the internet I found and article on the album "Euthanasia" by Megadeth and how they made a film about the album which was the first "studio written" album. I have introduced a similar concept to my band for our current endeavor which will be our second album. Our first album was written and then taken to the studio. Now we have the equipment available to us that we can essentially have unlimited studio time and would like to use the studio as part of the writing process. I have read about the production of Radiohead's "OK Computer" being a studio endeavor in addition to a number of other great albums. My question is related to locating more items like the making of "Euthanasia" film. I would like to find more resources about bands using the studio which focus on the process more than the band. So rather than being like "LOOK! at Radiohead do a brilliant album" it would be along the lines of "let's examine the process of Radiohead creating a brilliant album." The focus here would be on methodology and the ideas that formed the process without delving into the shallow (mtv-esque) or the overly technical (some production how-to video) but a balance between the forces in the creation of the album. Also any input on why you think this is a good/bad idea is more than welcome.

• Answer:

  Where to begin? Well, the first thought that came to mind is The Beatles' "Let It Be" movie - which is a film of them making an album in the studio. It's incredibly depressing - they didn't really like each other so much anymore at this point, it would appear. McCartney comes across as a control-freak, Lennon as generally absent and high. But you do get to see them working out different arrangements of songs. It's not the most studio-oriented recording in the world, although if you compare what you hear in the movie with the Phil Spector produced version and the more recently released "Let It Be... Naked", you'll get a sense of how those guys used the studio. (Here's a http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000F52LIO/metafilter-20/ref=nosim/ to a box set that includes the movie and both versions of the album. I think the movie has NOT been officially released on DVD - I bet 'cuz Sir Paul vetoed it - so I can't attest to the quality of this.) I'm also reminded of Geoff Emerick's recent book, http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1592401791/metafilter-20/ref=nosim/. It's an excellent read - a nice combination of gossip (maybe a bit off-topic for you) and substance - he was, after all, engineer for most of the Beatles' career. He quite literally invented many of their sounds. The introduction to that book is written by Elvis Costello, whose album "Imperial Bedroom" was engineered by Emerick. Elvis makes the point that a good engineer will be a bit of a taskmaster and keep the band from getting bogged down in "geniusville". In other words, with all the time, resources, and equipment at your disposal, you need to avoid the trap of following every single idea without judging its value. Some ideas are fits of inspired genius, others are distractions. It is incredibly easy to mistake the latter for the former. A good engineer (or really, any set of objective ears) will help immeasurably. I read this while in the middle of my THREE YEAR album-making process, and it seemed very fitting indeed. I'd also suggest the "http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw/002-3901543-7936024?url=search-alias%3Ddvd&field-keywords=Classic+Albums&Go.x=8&Go.y=19&Go=Go" series - I have the "http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0000AOV85/metafilter-20/ref=nosim/" episode, and while it has its share of "Behind the music" moments, one still comes away with a good sense of the clarity of thought that all members of the band posessed while making that album. This applies both to their songwriting and their use of the technology at hand. I'm told other episodes are very good, too. Back to the Beatles, their sessions have been documented exhaustively - fittingly so, since they basically invented the whole endeavor. Check out Mark Lewisohn's http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0681031891/metafilter-20/ref=nosim/, http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0811836363/metafilter-20/ref=nosim/, and, most recently, this fantastically obsessive volume http://www.recordingthebeatles.com/. Finally (for now, until I think of more), the lesson I drew from asking similar questions: the studio is indeed a great tool, but like all tools it needs to be used responsibly, in the service of great songwriting. "OK Computer" is a brilliant album (one of my all-time faves!), but I have heard acoustic versions of all of those songs, and they all stand up perfectly fine without all the production. My acid test: if you can't play it on acoustic guitar and sing it to your family at Thanksgiving dinner and have it be an enjoyable piece of music, then anything you do to it in the studio will sound like whitewash. Best of luck.