From songs to speakers in Huntsville

Singing in the shower is one thing. Recording your music and sharing it with the world is something else entirely. While Huntsville's music scene doesn't bustle like Austin's, we do have several musicians dedicating their time, treasure, and talent to recording their music.

One example is The Pickets, a local country-rock band that includes Greg Picket on vocals and guitar, his father Paul on bass, his wife Ashley on harmonies, and Tom Weger on drums. Their upcoming album The Count was recorded at the new River House Magic Factory, a full-service destination studio on the Trinity River north of town.

What does it take to get songs to your speakers? Greg Picket knows well, having operated his own studio, Prison City Sound, with his father from 2012-2014. For him, handing over recording and production duties to the Magic Factory was freeing. “My job was to be creative because I could trust them to do their job.”

There's a reason for that day job

To make an album, you first have to have some songs. Many local bands, including the Pickets, write their own, a process that can take months or years.

But that’s just the tip of the iceberg. You then have to secure studio time, hire a producer or sound engineer to run the equipment, rehearse and record the songs, and mix and master to pull the whole project together.

Each step costs money. Studio time runs $20-$200 an hour, musician costs are another $50-$500 an hour, while engineering and mixing ranges from $250-$2,500 per song. Prices vary with experience, equipment, and studio reputation.

Even a low-budget production starts at $3,000, while the upper end can cost over $100,000. And that’s not taking into account everything that happens afterwards: putting the recordings into CD or vinyl, album artwork, and marketing. For most independent musicians, especially in Huntsville, those are daunting numbers.

Looking for options

Some bands end up taking their projects out of town. This is what happened with gospel group The Willing Workers of Huntsville, featuring Roland Lewis Sr, Solomon DeBose, and Quentin Houston on vocals, Kwenton Williams on vocals and keyboards, Albert Brown Sr. on bass, and Albert Brown Jr. on drums.

Their first album, Victory, was done in a friend's home studio here in Huntsville, but the second, Well Done, was recorded in a studio in Spring that had more space and equipment.

Another local option is Billy Hillman's HillTrax Studio, in operation since 2010. Hillman has used his vast network as a touring musician to get clientele from out of the area. He believes, “There’s a certain cultural aspect of the university, I think, that makes artistic stuff well received here because of the mix of people that are here to appreciate it, but it’s a limited clientele.”

The Willing Workers might become part of that clientele. Williams had been unaware of the studio. “It’s hard when you don’t have all the knowledge, as far as other musicians and recording artists, to keep it local,” he said.

It's so worth it

The whole process is so much work that getting to hear and share the final product is really gratifying.

For Williams, “It's honestly one of the best feelings in the world. The first album was exciting because it was my first time ever recording. The second album was just as exciting, if not more, because it was my first time having music released on digital platforms.”

It's the same way for Picket. “I almost always feel a huge sense of relief and gratitude. Making an album can be difficult, but I've been fortunate to play music with family and friends who love going through the process as much as I do.”

Getting the opportunity to bring their songs to life and then share them with the world is a highlight of any musician's career. Fortunately, for Huntsville's musicians, you can do that right close to home.

Follow the links and embedded videos to learn more about each artist and studio mentioned in this article.