I find myself culling quotes that seem relevant to the psychology of making records – that is, what goes on inside of us as we do this creative work. I’m particularly interested in what happens as artists and recordists become more and more aware of different aspects of their craft and how they go about doing it. Some of these quotes are from people who make records, and some are from those who don’t.

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“I think there are two forms of creative energy. One is “energy A,” which is an analytical energy where you layer things up track by track, then zoom in and work on little details. The other is “energy Zed,” which is a Zen-like performance energy that is spontaneous and improvised and produces a different animal.  Both are useful and important. the smart process involves harvesting performances then analyzing them and layering them up. Initially you might just look for rhythm, then maybe you look at melody, then harmony, then timbre. Each time you put down a layer of performance you slow it down and analyze it. Musicians need to be aware of how they work. sometimes you just need to flip it and do it the other way and see what happens. working backwards is an exploratory process. I love diversions and I keep on following them, which makes the process a lot longer.”

-Peter Gabriel