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Defending The Use of Backing Tracks!
For many years, the use of backing tracks has been considered a no-no by many "purist" musicians who consider this to be "cheating". However, having now established myself as a solo act who uses tracks, and as an accomplished bassist, guitarist and vocalist, I feel there are some good defences for their use at gigs!
1. Poor qulaity backing tracks, or midi files, I agree, will sound poor and the public may well pass judgement on the overall act by the quality of their tracks. However, high quality tracks, that have been prodiuced by real musicians, can sound fantastic....
2. I am an entertainer as much as I am a musician. What matters to me most is that my show sounds good, I enjoy playing, and that the audience enjoys the show.
3. I love working with full bands, the buzz from playing with a band is second to none; however, ny love of music is such that I want to make it my profession, and is there really enough well paiud work out there to support a full band each week to accomplish this? Unfortunately, no. But as a solo act, or duo, this can be acheived and helped by backing tracks.
4. Many tracks, including my own, are either 100% produced by the artist, or much time is taken with software to edit / enhance and manipulate each track to sound right for the player. This work is seldom recognised by the public, and the best results can only really be acheived my musicians / music professionals.
5. They improve your playing.... Ha ha! I hear you say, but backing tracks are unforgiving; you make an error, the band will not compensate for it, the track carries on regardless! As many tracks are recorded to a click, timing is improved ten-fold when you play over them.
6. A backing track does not demean anyone's playing ability.
7. I am not trying to state a case for tracks sounding better than a real band; that would be ridiculous, but they are a realistic alternative if produced well enough!
So I am ready for the onslaught of comments from the purists out there..... would love to hear from you if you are a full-time employed unsigned band of four or five members who don't use backing tracks at all.... If you are out there, hat's off to ya!
1. Poor qulaity backing tracks, or midi files, I agree, will sound poor and the public may well pass judgement on the overall act by the quality of their tracks. However, high quality tracks, that have been prodiuced by real musicians, can sound fantastic....
2. I am an entertainer as much as I am a musician. What matters to me most is that my show sounds good, I enjoy playing, and that the audience enjoys the show.
3. I love working with full bands, the buzz from playing with a band is second to none; however, ny love of music is such that I want to make it my profession, and is there really enough well paiud work out there to support a full band each week to accomplish this? Unfortunately, no. But as a solo act, or duo, this can be acheived and helped by backing tracks.
4. Many tracks, including my own, are either 100% produced by the artist, or much time is taken with software to edit / enhance and manipulate each track to sound right for the player. This work is seldom recognised by the public, and the best results can only really be acheived my musicians / music professionals.
5. They improve your playing.... Ha ha! I hear you say, but backing tracks are unforgiving; you make an error, the band will not compensate for it, the track carries on regardless! As many tracks are recorded to a click, timing is improved ten-fold when you play over them.
6. A backing track does not demean anyone's playing ability.
7. I am not trying to state a case for tracks sounding better than a real band; that would be ridiculous, but they are a realistic alternative if produced well enough!
So I am ready for the onslaught of comments from the purists out there..... would love to hear from you if you are a full-time employed unsigned band of four or five members who don't use backing tracks at all.... If you are out there, hat's off to ya!
Replies are closed for this discussion.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by The Goodges on -
I think that you've hit the main points in your explanation. People generalize, like with everything, but the use of backing tracks is all about the tracks and how you use them. The problem is totally that there are people out there using absolutely awful sounding backing tracks and mostly being used by just vocalists, leaving them to be seen as mainly the tool of the non-musician, glorified Karaoke. But now more and more people like you and us and Mickey Flynn, who lets face it was doing this way before us, are using the backing in combination with skilled live musicianship, as I’m sure many others are starting to do aswell. It gives quality acts the chance to earn a decent living without having to many musicicans to pay.
We could not make a living if we were paying a drummer. But our use of recorded drum tracks makes it possibly. We made the tracks ourselves, and we made them to sound as near to live drums as possible, so to all intense and purposes we sound like a 3 piece rock band, when we are only a guitarist and bass player.
The fact is that nowadays backing tracks used and produced in the right way can make you sound better than if you were a full live act in the same situation. Live drums in a pub venue can often be way too loud and sound awful. With our recorded drums and all other instruments going through the PA, we can achieve a large venue sound in a small venue.
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Permalink Reply by Simon Lees on -
Too fuckin' right. Yeah it's great to play on a big stage with a big band but if you want to make a living week in, week out and you're not fortunate enough to earn enough from record sales to pay the bills you have a choice. Either get a 9 to 5 job doing something totally unconnected to music which you'll probably hate, or use you skills in a way where you can pay the bills AND have fun doing it. There are some truly dreadful acts out there doing the glorified karaoke thing but if the pubs are stupid enough to book them then it just makes those of us who can play look really good! Regardless of what anyone says there is a market for folks who use backing tracks and I for one say THANK GOD!
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Permalink Reply by Simon Lees on
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I think the people who have the biggest problem with folks who use backing tracks are other musicians. I have a regular following in the West Midlands and many of them watch bands too. They're simply music lovers and as long as there's something to watch as opposed to a disco, they're happy.
It took me four years of umming and ahhing before I took the plunge and used tracks. I thought it was sad. I'd been in bands for the previous eight years and that's the way it should be. In an ideal world I'd still prefer to play exclusively in a band but I live in a town where there are 10,000 guitarists and 1 drummer. And he's a twat.
I do occasionally play in a tribute band and I also have my own band (Anubis) which will hit the road next year. I toured with Budgie for four years in eight countries including the USA. However, no band I have played with has given me the income I need to keep a roof over my head (and yes I pay Income Tax, National Insurance, Accountancy Fees etc). As for not advertising gigs. Yeah I won't say anything about my next gig just in case somebody turns up....
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Permalink Reply by Simon Lees on
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I think you're right - the problem is there is so much crap out there the cream will take a bit longer to rise. Still, some of it is so bad it's quite entertaining - like the X-Factor auditions. Sounds like cause for a new topic!
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Permalink Reply by The Goodges on
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Get over yourself strato, we went out acoustically for years and decided to take the plunge into backing tracks after much thought because we were doing more and more rock material that it was becoming just impossible to pull off with acoustics, we went out using electric guitars for a year playing rock music and some people loved the fact the we had the balls to do that without drums. But the fact is that since we have made and used the drum tracks now everybody loves it and we are going from strength to strength. We thought of using a drummer but the fact is most drummers on this level just aren't up to the grade and we would not have been able to make a suitable living having to pay for a drummer. But we have worked hard to make them sound like live drums so to most we just sound like a normal 3 piece band. Oh and bollox to Simon and Garfunkel.
Backing tracks are not damaging live music infact they creating a whole new genre where talented acts can afford to present top class acts to small venues.
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Permalink Reply by The Goodges on
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Simon Lee is right, the main people who have a problem with backing tracks are musicians because most of them are musical snobs and the top half of their body is firmly shoved up their own rear end!
I used to be like that but i'm glad to say I got over it and thats why I don't enjoy mixing with many musicians any more because most are twats who think they are better than everyone else. I've worked in this business on and off for over 15 years on all levels big and small ( and believe me I spent a while mixing with some bigguns) but most are arrogant buttheads. Thats why I am happier now earning a moderate living going around with my wife playing music I like to people who enjoy it, and then going home to my kids. And thats the problem, most musicians don't live in the real world and need to get a life!
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Permalink Reply by Simon Lees on
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Dude, it's Lees with an S.
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Permalink Reply by The Goodges on
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sorry Simon LEES
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Permalink Reply by Simon Lees on
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And don't you forget it! LOL
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Permalink Reply by Simon Lees on
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It was probably me.
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Permalink Reply by Wiggy's Rock Show on -
It could have been me.... Ten years ago you say? No, actually, I had hair back then!
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Permalink Reply by The Goodges on
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OK
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