How to Record Pop Vocals, Pt II — Editing

Last issue, we went over what it took to get the best vocal takes for Peking Duk’s multi-platinum singles. In this part, we deal with the raw materials you’re left with once everybody else has walked out the studio door.

During the tracking stage of a densely arranged pop song, it’s fairly common to frantically fly all over the place without finalising the comps or separating out all the layers for your stacks/ doubles. Sometimes you haven’t even put a comp together at all.

You do need to be confident you’ve got everything before the artist leaves. If you’re tracking against a guide (usually from a song pitched by