Thorp and Sailor's Grave Board

How much does it cost to make an album (or EP, or a single)?

random - 6-5-2015 at 03:44 PM

I'm really curious about this. I'm in the middle of an NWA (band, not pro wrestling) documentary, and they mention how amazing it is that Straight Outta Compton was recorded for $8,000 in six weeks. I'm not a musician, and I don't know what actually goes into recording and releasing music, but we hear all the time how there's no money in the music industry anymore.

Studio time? Sound engineer or producer? Mastering? How long does recording actually take?

I've seen Mark Lind mention a few numbers, and I once asked something similar to a guy who ran a bigger oi label.


Murk - 6-6-2015 at 08:59 PM

Quote: Originally posted by random  
Studio time? Sound engineer or producer? Mastering? How long does recording actually take?

if you know someone and they have a set up in their house, $30/hr
if you want something semi serious, $60-$100/hr
the big time stuff starts around $200/hr

engineer is part of the above costs usually
producer will usually want some points on the album if you're at that stage

the only way to get an idea of how long recording will take is to know how many songs are written and how much practice has been put in to them

studios are for capturing sound, but some people think they are creative brainstorming retreats

i've seen a song take a whole day and i've seen it take an hour

over the years, i tried, with no success, to tell people they can save a lot of money by getting a rehearsal space for much cheaper and waiting until things are written and tight before paying studio rates, but people want to be "in the studio"...