The Indie Studio’s REAL Guide to Booking Indie Artists — Kaleidoscope Sound Responds to Erin Barra

Randy Crafton is Owner, Engineer, and Producer at Kaleidoscope Sound, Union City, NJ.

Randy Crafton of Kaleidoscope Sound -- as an indie studio owner, he's got another perspective on the booking process.

Thank you, Erin, for your article, “The Indie Artist’s REAL Guide to Booking Studio Time” — it’s filled with excellent advice in many areas.

For me, as both a Studio Owner and Engineer, it was good to be reminded of “tales from the other side of the fence.”  That fence, however, is the thing in your article that I would like to have a little chat about…

A Brief History of Studios and Artists

There was a time, not so long ago, when many studios were owned by multinational companies or record labels. During this time, an “us against them” mentality arose between the Studio and the Artist. This is probably because Studios received their main income from labels and when an issue arose between Artist and Label, the Studio would find itself allied with the Label for obvious financial reasons.

Well, those days are largely behind us, and most of the surviving studios are sole proprietorships, i.e. “Independent Studios”. Indie Studios are much like Indie Artists, in that we have no outside support from a larger company. I believe “Indie” for the Studio as well as the Artist, is code for “dealing with reality every day.”

The Multitasking Studio Owner

An Independent Studio Owner’s multitasking skills are on par with an Indie Artists’, but with extreme, mind-numbing, financial overhead and risk.

Not only do we need to know the art of music, acoustics, sonics, mic choices and placement, engineering, mixing, mastering, production, and artist support, (i.e. the reasons we originally started doing this), but we also have to stay on top of technology, deal with banks, taxes, utilities, gear, repairs, maintenance, staff, marketing…and the list goes on.

Moving Forward

With this in mind, I would like to point out that our goals, needs and circumstances are not that different.

We both may occasionally wistfully pine for the old days when big money from big companies seemed to flow like water while the Artist focused on his or her Art.  But, on the bright side, we now have the autonomy to create our art without the confines of label or corporate interference.  With the benefits of Independence also comes financial responsibility, so we all either quit, or make the best of the situation at hand.

It Takes Two to Tango

So, with this said, let’s talk about the “Studio Time Tango”.  I agree it is mysterious that some studio managers do not return calls.  You have no idea how mind-numbingly frustrating it has been for me in the past to find that my own managers have been guilty of this.  Booking time is how we keep the Studio operating, correct?

The 48-channel API Legacy Plus in Kaleidoscope's Studio A.

That being said, it is a crazy business, and even facilities with full-time staff find themselves short-handed at times. The days of the Studio Manager sitting at the front desk, waiting to answer calls are long gone.  Just as you, the Indie Artist, needs to wear many hats, the Studio Manager must also attend to the needs of the current client, which often include:

• assisting other Engineers,
• helping with room set-ups and changes,
• scheduling equipment maintenance,
• meeting with office support staff,
• maintaining book-keeping and bill paying,
• placing meal orders,
• etc…!

In the pace of the day, do they get extra credit for focusing on the needs of the client currently in the studio, rather than neglecting them in favor of seeking more business?  I would give the Manager the benefit of the doubt for about six hours before assuming the worst of the Studio.

Shall We Not Dance?

It’s those related, interdependent interest that gets Indie music out there:  The Artist needs the Studio and the Studio needs the Artist.

Hopefully for all involved, this is enough common ground to begin a successful ongoing relationship.  At the end of the day, we both want to make a great record, have pride in the product, have a basically pleasant day, and solid working relationship.  Neither of us wants to feel taken advantage of, abused or forced to manipulate just to endure.

I have to be honest; I didn’t know the exact definition of “incendiary”, prior to your article, but now I do.  It would seem that starting a fire in an environment in which you hope will be a comfortable, creative, safe, and — dare I even say nurturing — environment down the road, may not be an ideal strategy.  The old adage about the location of your outhouse and your dining room comes to mind.

Breaking Fences

So my suggestion to studio owners and managers is to remember that our clients are as busy, focused and financially stressed as we are.  We live in the studio every day, but for many of our clients it is a rare and very important event in their career.

My request of the Indie Artist is to not consider the Studio an adversary when you are in the vulnerable position of recording your life’s work.  As a parent, I know first-hand that abusing, manipulating, or otherwise beating the crap out of the doctor or hospital delivering my baby would not help the process go any more smoothly or be best for anyone involved.

We are fellow musicians and Artists, so lets remember this: We are all ultimately here for the music and we need one another to survive.

Sincerely,

Randy Crafton
Owner, Engineer, and Producer at One of the rumored amazing and affordable studios in NJ — Kaleidoscope Sound.

PS: Your article has also inspired me to put together some quick Pro Tools videos and tips on how to prepare sessions for bringing in to the studio.  In the future we will also provide some advice on overdubbing and recording tracks at home.

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