Bruce Springsteen has said that he writes about four songs for every tune that actually ends up on an album. And it pretty much goes without saying that Springsteen is among the best of the best when it comes to songwriters.
With that in mind, it seems a bit confusing that the current trend seems to be to get every recorded song “released” ASAP. While we highly promote interacting with fans and giving them new work to soak in, when it comes to new songs, it is often better to live with them a little while before releasing them into the world. All too often, that song that struck you as “the greatest song ever” when you initially wrote and recorded it may seem a little cringe worthy after a few days, weeks or months.
Tape App from Focusrite
All of this was sparked by the release of a new iPad app from Focusrite called Tape that essentially replicates a two-track analog tape machine for quick and easy recording on an iPad. The app is great to quickly lay down demos of songs, though its functionality is, by design, limited.
You can record through the iPad’s built in microphone or through a compatible audio interface. After your basic tracks are recorded (you can record two separate tracks or one stereo track), you can polish them up with one-button mastering.
Again, this won’t give professional sounding results, but is a great way to record song ideas and demos for posterity without firing up your home recording rig. But it’s a final feature that caught our attention and brought about this article.
“Simply add a title and album artwork and share online with friends and fans via SoundCloud.”
We love SoundCloud and think it’s a great way to share tracks with your fans. We also love providing free demos or unreleased tracks that your listeners wouldn’t otherwise have access to -- this is a great way to build online engagement from your fans.
However, with this quick-share functionality with SoundCloud built into Tape, it might be a little too encouraging to immediately share that new idea. And as we mentioned above, more times than not it is best to let the song you recorded sit for a little while and then revisit it with fresh ears.
Of course, sometimes when you come back to a song you realize that it really is the next big thing, and is something your fans need to hear. But of course even then, you may want to save the song for your next album and let the fully-recorded final version blow your audience away upon first listen.
Whatever you decide, it is just worth noting that in today’s fast paced and short attention span digital lifestyle, it is easy to put things out there before you (or the songs) are really ready for public consumption.
Always remember, even Springsteen doesn’t release everything he writes.
So, Why A Membership?
Let’s face it — trying to create professional mixes without the correct knowledge, tools, services, and network is like playing a concert with a broken instrument to an audience of no one.
That’s where the Sage Audio membership comes in — the membership gives you everything you need to create professional mixes consistently.
The membership is the secret to your success — it’s the difference between the 1,929,999,999 of poor-sounding mixes and the .00000002% of mixes that make people say 'WOW!"
There are 7 unique value-points included in your Sage Audio membership.
Let’s go over each one so you can decide if the membership is right for you.
1. Sage Audio University
- SAU Flagship Mixing Course: 23-video in-depth mixing course that reveals the little-known secrets of mixing and matches the needs of the new music industry.
- SAU Flagship Mastering Course: 19-video in-depth modern mastering course that dives into every nuance of making professional-sounding masters.
- SAU Pre-Mastering Course: Concise pre-mastering course that details the latest industry standards for preparing your mixes for mastering.
- SAU is designed for every experience level, ranging from budding mixing engineers to advanced engineers. The techniques and concepts taught can be applied to any DAW to create industry-leading mixes without expensive software or plugins - and free plugin alternatives are suggested throughout each course.
- Each SAU course includes Start-to-Finish session walkthrough lessons for multiple genres so you can follow along with your preferred genre.
- SAU Certification Document, which can be downloaded and showcased on your website and social channels.
Yes, I want to join the membership now >
2. Private 1-on-1 Mentorship
- The Sage Audio private 1-on-1 Mentorship gives you direct access to us for advanced mixing feedback, in-depth discussions, and customized guidance that's tailored to your specific needs.
- Unlimited private access to us for advanced mixing feedback, where we provide detailed suggestions for improvement.
- Unlimited private access to us for in-depth discussions to help you improve every aspect of your mixes and masters.
- Customized guidance that’s tailored specifically to your needs.
- Fast communication so you can improve your skills quickly.
Yes, I want to join the membership now >
3. Unlimited Mixing Feedback
- Unlimited professional mixing feedback directly from us so you can consistently improve your skills and create professional mixes.
- Mixing feedback is invaluable, and the Sage Audio membership gives you continual direct access to us for real-world feedback so you can improve every aspect of each of your mixes while you're in the process of mixing.
Yes, I want to join the membership now >
4. 50 Free Mastered Songs Per Year
- 50 free mastered songs per year with your own dedicated professional mastering engineer so you can get all your mixes sounding like professional songs.
- You get your own dedicated Sage Audio mastering engineer to create custom masters that are specific to you and sound exactly how you want.
- Unlimited revisions with your dedicated mastering engineer. As a standard of our service, we are not happy until you are happy with the sound of your masters.
- All masters are delivered as commercial, industry-standard high-resolution 24-bit HD WAV masters so they will sound clean and clear on every platform.
Yes, I want to join the membership now >
5. Community
- The Sage Audio community is a tight-knit community of passionate audio engineers who can provide you with additional real-world mixing feedback, meaningful discussions, networking, collaborations, and more.
Yes, I want to join the membership now >
6. 70+ GB of Curated Sage Audio Downloadable Content
- 36 multitrack sessions spanning multiple genres for mixing practice.
- 57 un-mastered mixes spanning multiple genres for mastering practice.
- 62 Recommended Free Plugins List (vetted, tested, and approved, so you don’t have to).
- 39 Recommended Paid Plugins List (vetted, tested, and approved, so you don’t have to).
- 71 Sage Audio custom plugin presets to improve your mixes and masters.
- Sage Audio Membership Badge to showcase on your website, social channels, and portfolio.
Yes, I want to join the membership now >
7. 800+ Video Catalog
- Access 700+ in-depth Sage Audio mixing and mastering videos - curated and organized into categories so you can easily take a deep dive into all aspects of audio engineering with thousands of hours of concise, expertly crafted Sage Audio videos to continually improve your skills at your own pace.
Yes, I want to join the membership now >
