THE BEACON

Lifestyle

by Brandon Crocker / The Sound Board

Local Artists Have A Friend On The North Side

by Brandon Crocker / The Sound Board

What if you're an up and coming musician who wants to go pro? What do you do?

If you're looking for a job, you need a resume.

If you're an aspiring musician, you need a "demo."

Most places won't have live auditions available. Instead, they will want to listen to your music to make sure that you are a right fit for their venue. And whether you have an actual physical demo, or your recordings are on your website, you will need to have your music available the instant someone asks for it. And if you have your demo professionally recorded, you will have a significant advantage over 95 percent of the competition out there.

This is where "Groove Tunes Studios" comes in to play.

Alpharetta's Groove Tunes Studios was founded in 2005 by recording artist and producer Eric Tunison, a music aficionado whose involvement dates back to the '60's.

Back in the day Tunison played lead guitar and sang lead vocals for "The Classics", a British surf-rock band.

THE "ENGINEER" OF RECORDING

Upon graduating from the University of Washington with an engineering degree, Tunison taught himself to play bass guitar, piano and drums. Before long he was filling reels of self-produced songs and was appointed musical director for a musical-comedy group called, "The Twilight Zone Players." He also operated private analog recording studios in Tacoma and Federal Way, Washington, all while managing many engineering projects for large corporations to support his love of music.

In 1991, Tunison moved to Alpharetta were he designed and built his studio, working with the builder to ensure the studio design details were properly implemented.

Fourteen years later, in 2005, "Groove Tunes Studios" was officially born along with its most significant upgrade to date, "Pro Tools." The recording gear at Groove Tunes Studios utilizes the recording industry standard, 192- track, Pro-Tools HD Accel-3 digital recording system. 192 tracks and great sound! Since the studio's inception, the former engineer has helped countless artists record quality demos.

THE BIG SEVEN

For any artist who is going to start recording on their first demo, here are the seven most important tips from Eric on how to be properly prepared before going into a recording session.

Record your songs during live gigs or at rehearsals, then listen to them. Correct weak spots before your session date.
Have all the instrumental and vocal parts already worked out, and rehearse your guitar solos!
Check with the studio in advance about equipment you may be using.
Practice to a click track or metronome during rehearsals! Most rock and pop music is recorded one track at a time, one instrument at a time, so know how to play your parts to the click track.
Rehearse more songs than you plan to record. There might be a technical or performance problem with a particular song, so it’s always a good idea to have a backup song or two.
Prepare lead sheets for the songs you plan to record. Lead sheets will make your sessions go smoother.
Take care of your body before your recording sessions. Eat well, get enough sleep, and keep your ears rested.