One of my favorite bands, The Foo Fighters, is widely known for their quirkiness in their early days. They always pushed the limits and did stuff that everyone else was afraid to do. They were known for having funny music videos where the members of the band would dress up in costumes and overplay all of their actions. If you look back at them, they’re actually really funny.
Fast forward 15 years. The Foos are getting ready to record their 7th studio album. Dave Grohl being Dave Grohl, decides to do something unexpected. He decides that they’re going to record the album in his garage. Well, not just his garage, but his whole damn house. With the drums set up in the garage, the console set up in the living room, and vocal booth set up in a large closet, they begin recording. Oh, did I mention they’re also recording to tape?
Something most people may not realize is, when artists today record a song, they have an unlimited number of tracks to record on. That is because all of the recording and audio mixing is done digitally, most often in a program called ProTools. Other popular digital recording softwares include Garageband (if you have a Mac, it comes pre-installed), and Reaper. Because the Foos are recording to tape, they have a limited number of tracks available because the analog equipment can only handle so many.
In an age where everything is done digitally, this is a bold move. All of the members of Foo Fighters, aside from guitarist Pat Smear, are used to recording on digital, which gives you a lot more control over the music you’re playing and mixing. When you record to analog, everything has to be lined up and recorded perfectly because there’s no moving any tracks around after recording is stopped.
The album, Wasting Light, went on to be nominated for 5 Grammy awards, and won Best Rock Album. (source)
I may be a few years late on this one, but GG Foo Fighters. Keep doing you.
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