Removing most of the instruments from a recording
Talking with John Easdale of Dramarama
Cris Cohen: One of the things I found really interesting in terms of studio work, was the recording of the song “You, You, You” for this album, “Color TV.” From what I read, you guys initially recorded with the entire band playing, but then you stripped it down to just vocals, keys, and a little bit of guitar. Why the U-turn?
John Easdale of Dramarama: Well, it was not a calculated move. It was just happenstance. It was like, “What if we took this out and that out?” That is the beauty of being in a recording studio; you can fiddle with the knobs and the faders. And you usually start from just one thing, and you can fix that sound, and then you add the others. We had it going one way, and then it was like, "What if you took this out? And what if you took that out"? We also added a little bit of atmosphere with the keyboards and the effects and whatnot. I am delighted with it. I think it adds to the feeling of the song.
Cris Cohen: And then, as far as the stuff that was removed, even though the other instruments were not heard on the final recording, do you think they were necessary to get the right mood for the song?
John Easdale: Looking back on it, I am not really sure if that was the way I had envisioned it at the beginning. I am sure we could have done it that way, but it was just a straightforward song. The words were the same, and the chords were the same.
It is really hard to answer that question. I can't imagine doing it any other way. Aside from some songs on one solo album I did, I have never recorded a song where I was the only musician.
Most of the time, when we record, it is as a group. Then we work on fixing the different parts. But we record live as best we can. It is trying to maintain that live feeling, the feeling of a bunch of guys playing in a room together.