What Are The Chances I'll Find a Guitar Player for a Recording Project?

Asparagus_Prince

Asparagus_Prince

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'merica
For several years I've been working on a demo of my own material (serious material... I just posted a silly spoof song of mine but I'm talking about a real creative endeavor).

But I really need a talented rock guitar player to help me. My guitar playing is very basic and I want someone to re-record my parts and maybe inject a little of their own personality. Relatively soon I'll probably start scouring the internet world to see if I can find someone.

But my question is this: I don't have much faith that I'll find someone. Or the right person. And here are some of the reasons why:

-When I look at musician-seeking sites or social media pages there doesn't seem to be much demand for that sort of thing.
-Guitar players seem to want gigs. No one seems particularly interested in recording projects these days
-I'm not looking for a collaborator or songwriting partner or to start a "band", per se. These are fully realized songs and this is my baby. I figure that will turn most musicians off (although I'd be open to some sort of partnership or "band" approach if someone believed in what I was going for).

I'm guessing I'll be disappointed when I start looking. So I just want to get people's random hunches: Do you suppose my hunch is right? Or am I underestimating the amount of musicians out there who'd find this intriguing?
 
Is there a monetary attachment to this search? I suspect you'd find someone willing to learn the language of your music for a nominal amount of money. I understand the complexity of asking to be entirely committed to your project while staying detached enough not to stain your vision.

There are enough networks out there for at least one person to find it intriguing. My advice is to go ahead and put feelers out to see how much interest you garner. It isn't a commitment to explore the space and discern if it will work for you.
 
Asparagus_Prince said:
For several years I've been working on a demo of my own material (serious material... I just posted a silly spoof song of mine but I'm talking about a real creative endeavor).

But I really need a talented rock guitar player to help me. My guitar playing is very basic and I want someone to re-record my parts and maybe inject a little of their own personality. Relatively soon I'll probably start scouring the internet world to see if I can find someone.

But my question is this: I don't have much faith that I'll find someone. Or the right person. And here are some of the reasons why:

-When I look at musician-seeking sites or social media pages there doesn't seem to be much demand for that sort of thing.
-Guitar players seem to want gigs. No one seems particularly interested in recording projects these days
-I'm not looking for a collaborator or songwriting partner or to start a "band", per se. These are fully realized songs and this is my baby. I figure that will turn most musicians off (although I'd be open to some sort of partnership or "band" approach if someone believed in what I was going for).

I'm guessing I'll be disappointed when I start looking. So I just want to get people's random hunches: Do you suppose my hunch is right? Or am I underestimating the amount of musicians out there who'd find this intriguing?
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Yes, this is not particularly difficult material. Most musicians I have played with would be able to learn and perform this in one session.

Network and I'm pretty sure that you will find someone.
 
Thanks you two. I kinda forgot that I even posted this question until I saw the responses. I know the answer is to get out there and find out, and I will. But in the meantime I'm getting apprehensive and that's why I posted this thread. I have a nervous itch about it. I've been at this demo "phase" for seemingly forever. So it's nerve-racking to think I'm about to invite someone into what's been a very private, unchanged world for several years now. Plus I'm sure there's a fear of failure. If I simply can't find the right person, what then? Give up?

Mysterier, you asked if I'm paying. The short answer is yes, I'm willing to pay. Which brings up another question that I'd love to get feedback on, if you/others don't mind. Does the following sound reasonable?

In my perfect world I'd find someone that's willing to "sit down" with me and experiment with different sounds, mic angles, etc, without a clock necessarily ticking at X dollars per hour. Maybe not a "bandmate" exactly, but some sort of partner that's more than an ordinary session musician. I know musicians will say stuff like: "You expect someone to do this for the fun of it? For fuck's sake PAY musicians! We're poor!" But no one's paying me either! And I'm the one putting up the funds. I'm hoping/assuming there's someone out there that would be willing to freely attach themselves to a project if someone else is making it happen. Especially if they like the music and believe in it. I'm not expecting to make much (or maybe any) money off downloads but I'm sure some sort of revenue sharing arrangement could be made with a potential partner. Low risk/high reward.

But the short answer is yes, I'm willing to treat this as a straight-forward session musician situation if all else fails. I KNOW I'll be doing that with backing vocalists eventually. But I like the idea of having a lead-guitarist partner that's more than just a track layer downer. Someone that's experienced in recording or arranging would be a nice plus. And so would someone that can inject their own personality/energy into the guitar playing.
 
What discourages me is that I skim through Musicians-seeking-musicians apps/pages quite a bit. And I've NEVER seen someone proposing something like I'm proposing. And I never see a lead guitar player "Looking for someone that's written their own stuff and working on a recording project". It doesn't seem like a thing.
 
I can help you. Feel free to message me, I'd love to collaborate. I am an experienced live and recording artist/guitarist. I can show you my material.
 
And by collaborate, I simply mean help you record a guitar part or whatever tf you need. Just credit me if you release it, and maybe reimburse me for my time if it takes a while.
 
I'm not a great producer, but I have people that help me record
 
Asparagus_Prince said:
What discourages me is that I skim through Musicians-seeking-musicians apps/pages quite a bit. And I've NEVER seen someone proposing something like I'm proposing. And I never see a lead guitar player "Looking for someone that's written their own stuff and working on a recording project". It doesn't seem like a thing.
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There is a sub genre of musicians that are session players. That's who you are looking for. We know our shit ;)

deficit has made a kind offer, you might want to reach out.

Good luck 👍
 
deficiT said:
I can help you. Feel free to message me, I'd love to collaborate.
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This response is going to start off sounding unappreciative, but bear with me. I do want to take you up on your offer. But let me back up and explain why I haven't sought out online session musicians like yourself before now....

Earlier I believe I said I'm looking for someone to "sit down" with me and I meant that kinda literally. That's why I'm always keeping an eye on the local online musician groups.

My goal is to develop a fairly organic sound with not too many effects, etc. And I want to use my walk-in attic as a recording space. I've slowly been adding sound insulation, diffusers, etc. I like how the ceilings and angles are all wacky and irregular in there. It makes for a pretty good sounding room, I think. I've recorded drums and vocals in there vs where I used to record and there's no doubt it sounds better and warmer.

The reason I'm telling you this is because I've always known it's an option to utilize online session musicians on FIVERR or something like that. But my preference has been to record as much as I can in the same physical space for the sake of fluidity. Besides, someone can be the most amazing instrumentalist in the world but it doesn't necessarily mean the sound or style is going to fit my album aesthetically.

lol... you're probably thinking: Now I understand why this guy has little faith he'll find the right person. He puts up too many conditions!

But I AM intrigued with your offer. Just the fact that you've offered kinda makes it real/nerve-racking for me like I was talking about earlier. There's no harm in seeing how it goes, right? I'm thinking maybe I could pick out a couple rough demos, let you listen to them, and have you re-record the guitar. That's basically how it works, right? But give me a bit to think about how I want to go about this. I might want to straighten up a demo or 2 first.

What type of music are you generally a fan of?
 
craigslist for local meet ups???

there aren't that many people on this site that post often, so i don't know how well you will do here with meeting locals. not saying it's not worth reaching out.
 
Asparagus_Prince said:
This response is going to start off sounding unappreciative, but bear with me. I do want to take you up on your offer. But let me back up and explain why I haven't sought out online session musicians like yourself before now....

Earlier I believe I said I'm looking for someone to "sit down" with me and I meant that kinda literally. That's why I'm always keeping an eye on the local online musician groups.

My goal is to develop a fairly organic sound with not too many effects, etc. And I want to use my walk-in attic as a recording space. I've slowly been adding sound insulation, diffusers, etc. I like how the ceilings and angles are all wacky and irregular in there. It makes for a pretty good sounding room, I think. I've recorded drums and vocals in there vs where I used to record and there's no doubt it sounds better and warmer.

The reason I'm telling you this is because I've always known it's an option to utilize online session musicians on FIVERR or something like that. But my preference has been to record as much as I can in the same physical space for the sake of fluidity. Besides, someone can be the most amazing instrumentalist in the world but it doesn't necessarily mean the sound or style is going to fit my album aesthetically.

lol... you're probably thinking: Now I understand why this guy has little faith he'll find the right person. He puts up too many conditions!

But I AM intrigued with your offer. Just the fact that you've offered kinda makes it real/nerve-racking for me like I was talking about earlier. There's no harm in seeing how it goes, right? I'm thinking maybe I could pick out a couple rough demos, let you listen to them, and have you re-record the guitar. That's basically how it works, right? But give me a bit to think about how I want to go about this. I might want to straighten up a demo or 2 first.

What type of music are you generally a fan of?
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I see. Sorry I either misread your post or missed some context.

I do understand what you would like, but will mention that yes, it's going to continue being difficult to find someone with these exact stipulations. Most musicians aren't going to want to spend like an open ended amount of time working on someone elses project that they won't be involved in long term or contributing material to, that they have very little say in the actual writing or composition, for free. Short of a friend or something like that, you should maybe expect to reimburse someone for that if you're serious about it. It doesn't have to be hourly, you could just give them a flat rate that's reasonable and factors in taking some time to do it right.

I would suggest either finding a long term collaborator, or a session musician, and kinda sticking with one or the other, if you're not able to pay someone.

Fiver or other sites like that aren't going to do you much good if you want to find someone local. I would suggest joining some musician groups on Facebook for your area.

Feel free to send me a demo if you'd like. It's no big deal either way, I have my own stuff I am working on at the moment, but I'd be happy to help as well and I like working on new things with new people and I'm pretty flexible.

Generally I play alt rock, folk, blues, hardcore punk, and some metal, and I play bass as well.
 
Sounds like our tastes are similar enough where we'd probably get along.

But yeah, I appreciate the honesty and you're kinda confirming what I've feared. And, I'm just venting now and not going after you or whatever: But in regards to guitar players being unwilling to involve themselves in someone else's project without having much creative input... This just frustrates me. Guitar players ARE perfectly willing to commit themselves to playing cover songs (aka other people's material) at a gig or whatever. I guess it's just a preference thing. Everyone is different. To me the idea of jamming or playing live is ok, but I've always been far more fascinated with the recording element. When I was a teenager I didn't fantasize about being a rock star on stage. I fantasized about people popping in my brand new CD. Oh, and I also fantasized about being the only male living on a planet full of 19 year old sex-starved females.

Maybe I'll shoot for finding someone that's a little more than a session musician but not exactly a band mate. If I could have someone sit down with me for a normal 40 hour 9-5 type of work week, that might suffice. I'd be happy to pay someone a grand if they're really talented. That probably doesn't sound like much because it only computes to 25 bucks per hour. And I know really good session musicians get paid more than that. But if I add an incentive of additional money based on a percentage of download revenue, maybe that'd be reasonable?

I'm just getting off topic now, but I'm curious if you're ever paranoid about showing people your work? I know I am, and I'm trying to get over that. I've toured a couple studios and each time the engineers wanted to hear my demos. And it's like I'm paranoid someone will steal my work. I know that's not really a thing, and that even if it happens it's relatively easy to prove an original work is yours. But still I hate the idea. It's like these songs are my babies and I'm over-protective of them. Do you ever relate to that?
 
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