Chapter 6

Rowan had been right. By Saturday night we were done with all but one song. He said he wanted to leave a little time on the last day to talk about the actual lineup of the songs on the record and listen to it all the way through several times, to make sure we liked the song progression.

We were all back at Hanna’s aunt’s house and the place was kind of a mad house. Monday, we’d all come back to put the drum kit into the garage, since we wouldn’t need it for the rest of the week and she’d invited the guys to stay for dinner. Somehow that turned into what we ended up doing every day, even though we didn’t have to. Originally, we’d decided that they would come to meet us every morning, we’d load the van, and then all drive to the studio, but once we found out we didn’t need the drum kit, that could have changed. They were able to carry Marco’s keyboard and Lyla’s bass guitar up to the apartment, since neither took up that much room. Since they were staying closer to the studio, they could have just gone back and forth each day without needing to come all the way out to the suburbs, and we’d meet them there.

And yet, every evening when we finished recording, we’d all come back here to eat. I felt a little bad for Hanna’s aunt because she was basically paying to feed six teens and young adults, with all of us eating quite a bit, and dealing with how noisy we’d get.

Sam was eating it up, though, since everyone but Marco seemed to like kids and was okay with him hanging out with us. Lyla was the most surprising. While she wasn’t a nerd like Kat, she’d play games with Sam and listen to him ramble on about whatever thing he was obsessed with that day. I vaguely remember her saying she had younger cousins and got the impression they were close, so maybe it was just that she was comfortable around little kids.

Marco didn’t seem to love Sam being around and just ignored him. I think that upset Sam, but at least Marco wasn’t being actively hostile. Besides, everyone else was okay to talk to him, and Kat would actively engage with his interest, so he was okay. Marco ignoring Sam, however, did annoy me a little bit, since Hanna’s aunt was going out of her way to feed us, and to give us somewhere comfortable to decompress after very long days in the studio.

Marco had also been a little difficult in the studio, giving Rowan attitude when one of his suggestions got shot down. It wasn’t like Rowan was treating him any different than any of the rest of us. He was good about listening to us and always gave well-thought-out reasons why this or that suggestion didn’t work, but he did shoot down a lot of our ideas. I’m pretty sure a lot of that was because of how green we all were, especially about the marketing side of the industry, and he did take a fair number of our suggestions, but Marco took it badly every time.

We were just sitting down to eat when my cell phone went off. We were running late for dinner, because we’d gotten back later so we could keep our schedule for the next day, and Mom usually called around this time, so I picked it up without checking, stepping away from the table.

“How are things going, Charlie?” Mr. French asked.

“Good. We’ve only got one more song to lock in and then we’ll start working on the song order. I can’t believe we got it all done. I would have sworn we’d only be three of four songs in by this point.”

“Rowan’s a pro. He’s been wrangling musicians since before you were born.”

“I can tell. I’m still a little concerned with the...”

“No,” Mr. French said, cutting me off.

“What?”

“You were about to complain or ask for my input on something, probably something you suggested to Rowan that he disagreed with. Right?”

I was a little surprised I was that transparent.

“I just wanted to hear another take on the idea.”

“I know, and I get the impulse, but I’m not going to second guess him. He’s there with you in the room, and I’m not. You also don’t want multiple people making changes to your record. It’s one of the reasons you’re so lucky you got someone with his status. A newer producer would have been getting notes from the studios with everyone from marketing guys to accounting giving suggestions on what they think you should do. That’s why so many bands’ first records are so much different from their second. They don’t know how to say no for that first one, so it isn’t until their second album that you hear their actual sound. I guarantee you that he’s been intercepting those notes and turning them around, since he has the clout to push back.”

“Ohh,” I said. “Sorry. I wasn’t meaning to ask you to second guess anything.”

I could see what he meant, and I guess it wasn’t fair to Rowan to start asking someone else to second guess his decisions and recommendations. I still felt one of my songs had gone too far pop and lost what I liked about it, and I was a little bit salty about it.

“I get it. I know we all like to think we don’t compromise on our art, but you aren’t just playing for yourself anymore. Commercial artists, be it actors, painters, or musicians, all end up compromising sometimes. It might not always be conscious, but if you’re doing it for a living, you’re thinking about what sells and what doesn’t. You’re thinking about audience expectations and what didn’t resonate with them the last time. Let me guess, you feel the album’s gone too far into pop for your liking.”

“How’d you know?” I asked, a little taken off guard.

“Because I’ve heard everything you’ve recorded up through today. I got off the phone with Rowan just before I called you. Believe it or not, he recognizes that you’re chaffing a little bit at being herded, and he wanted a second opinion to make sure he wasn’t being too focused on commerciality.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. Now, before you go thinking you’re somehow special, he does this kind of often. Not for all the albums he works on, but on many of them. Just like you want to hear what others think about what you’re doing, he needs that feedback too. I’ve been in the industry, have training in both scoring and producing, and I’ve had my stuff on the market. True, it flopped, but you know what they say, those who can do, those who can’t, teach.”

“I wouldn’t say that.”

“Only cause you’re a good kid and don’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings, and because I’ve never played you my own stuff. Trust me, it’s not great. I can recognize that, but at least it makes me someone a pro like Rowan feels comfortable bouncing his ideas off of. Why do you think he hangs out with me?”

“Your winning personality?”

“Ha, yeah. Anyway, I think he’s got you going in the right direction. Yes, it’s further away from the classic rock that you try to put into everything, but it works, especially when it’s put with the stuff your bandmates added. They’re a lot more mainstream than your stuff, so if everything stayed pure, it wouldn’t fit well.”

“Did you like what you heard?”

“I did and I think the public will too. Just keep listening to Rowan. He’s pointing you in the right direction.”

“Fine,” I said, putting on my best disgruntled-teen voice.

“If I thought you were like that, I would’ve never suggested you to Rowan or the talent scout,” he said, laughing.

“All right. We were about to eat, so I gotta run.”

“Go, go. You’re doing a good job out there.”

“Thanks, Coach,” I said, laughing at my dumb joke as I hung up.

It was getting late after dinner, so we walked the other three out to the van to see them off.

“So, I looked up some clubs so we could go blow off some steam this weekend, and I found one that looks good. How would you guys feel about having some fun tonight,” Marco said.

“I’d be game,” Lyla said.

“Uhh,” Seth added, looking at the rest of us.

“Absolutely not,” Hanna said, crossing her arms and giving us her most serious expression. “I know there’s only one song left, but going out and getting hammered the night before your last day in studio is dumb. Don’t get this close to the finish line and then drop the ball.”

“Come on,” Marco said. “Like you said, it’s just one more song, and we already got a start on it. We still have a full day to finish it.”

“We also have to go over the song order and finalize everything,” I pointed out.

“Pssh,” he said, waving a hand. “That’s not going to be that hard. Hell, I bet we won’t even need a full day to finish.”

“No!” Hanna said, all but stamping her foot. “You guys have really been pushing this week and everyone already looks exhausted. Besides the fact you all promised Rowan on Monday you’d take this seriously, this is your one big shot to make it. If you get a reputation as not being serious, as being all about partying, the studio might decide you’re all more trouble than you’re worth, and kick you to the curb.”

“So?” Marco said. “It’s not like it’s our names on the contract.”

“Do you think that matters?” Hanna said angrily, her nostrils flaring. “If the contract gets pulled from Charlie, do you think you’ll still somehow be getting paid? If they didn’t want you when Charlie was involved, what makes you think they’d want you if Charlie was gone, fired because you guys couldn’t produce? They didn’t even want you in the first place!”

Marco rocked back a step, and both Seth and Lyla looked a little shocked. Although saying the label didn’t want Marco or the rest of the band in the first place wasn’t fair, it was true that they’d contracted with me specifically on purpose, and we’d all danced around the point since it had happened.

To her credit, Hanna realized she stepped over the line the moment the words came out of her mouth.

“Hanna,” I said in warning.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean that.”

“Yes, you did,” Lyla said, although surprisingly, not sounding at all upset. “And you’re right, they didn’t care if we were involved or not. Charlie has gone out of his way to make sure we’ve been equals in this. You’re also right that this isn’t the time to start acting like prima donnas. We haven’t produced anything yet. As of right now, the label is just taking a chance on us. If we start acting like something is owed to us and we can do whatever we want, we’ll blow it.”

“You’re right,” Seth said. “Sorry, Hanna.”

“Guys,” I said, still feeling bad about what Hanna had said. “I don’t care what the label said, we’re in this together. I don’t want any of you to think I can just say ‘this is what’s going to happen’ and we have to do it my way. I hope you haven’t felt like I’m big footing you or anything.”

“You’re not,” Lyla said. “We all agreed we wanted Hanna’s help keeping us organized and doing everything we needed to, and she’s doing what we asked her to do. Let’s go back and get some rest.”

Seth nodded and turned to follow her, but Marco was a few steps slower, still looking pissed.

“That’s going to be a problem, you know that, right?” Hanna said.

“What, Marco?”

“Yes. This isn’t the first time he’s tried to push you into doing something. I think he feels like he should be in charge, and he’s testing how far he can get you to bend.”

“Do you blame him? He’s been playing since he was my age, and he’s what, seven years older than me? He’s been out on his own, making his living playing music, before I even moved here. It’d be hard not to resent some kid coming in and getting everything you’ve worked for, and then bringing you along as charity.”

“Charlie, you can’t think like that. I know this sounds harsh, but this isn’t about being fair or making sure everyone feels special. Right now it’s just one record and one tour, but there could be a lot of money in the future, and you have to treat it seriously. You can’t keep making promises that’ll come back and bite you in the ass later if things go bad. What if Marco decides he isn’t getting enough credit and argues that you’re promising him you were equal was some kind of verbal contract. I’m not saying he would or that he’d win even if that were the case, but you have to think about these kinds of things. You’re not just doing this for fun anymore. It’s time to stop being naïve.”

I was a little too stunned to reply for a second. It wasn’t quite a gut punch, because Mom had already said something similar to me after we signed the contract, but it’s still hard to hear someone call you naïve.

“I’m not trying to make you feel bad,” Hanna said, seeing the expression on my face. “I believe in you, and really want you to succeed, but that means sometimes telling you when you’ve got your head up your ass. You’re a good person, Charlie. You’re always thinking about making sure everyone else is happy and trying to never be the bad guy. Those are both good qualities to have, but only when you don’t go overboard. You need to decide what you want. Do you want to be everyone’s friend, or do you want to make it as a musician?”