Replay

As I waver back and forth on how to finish Gravedigging For Two...

Yesterday morning I was watching TV and plucking away on a guitar.  Playing one of the new songs (You and Me),   A new countermelody came out, so now I'm redoing the trumpets and trombone.

The beauty of writing and recording music:  Songs can take on a life of their own, pulling in unexpected directions and evolving like a child.
The pain of writing and recording music:  Songs can take on a life of their own, making more work for you and evolving like a child.

I hope this one grows up to be strong and resilient.

Rock N Roll Dropout

I finally finished recording my new album, Gravedigging For Two.
Ten songs that I'm really proud of, that have evolved from sketches, through a few different iterations and styles, to a cohesive package.

Now it should be time to mix and master the project, then putting it out in the world for sale/ consumption.  SHOULD...

Along with music and my wife, I have a huge passion for sailing.  And I'm not a rich man.
If I pay to have Gravedigging mixed and mastered, that will take a huge chunk of cash away from my sailboat fund (that will actually come into existence once my credit card debt is paid).
I waver on my choice daily, but for today I'm planning on doing a rough "monitor mix" of Gravedigging For Two.  Something I can listen to on my headphones, but not put out to the world.  Then, I can get closer to buying my sailboat and feeding THAT side of my soul.

I'm also planning to spend the winter re-recording Love Isn't Enough, and possibly Overture and Reflecting The Broken Mirror.  Other albums that I've written and am really proud of, but which had less-than-stellar recordings.

For now, I guess I'm climbing back into the woodshed to be a musical hermit.  But I'll be back!

Crash Course for Performance!

The other day, I was asked to sit in as a bassist for a friend of a friend.

I'd never heard of him, but said "sure, what the hell."  It's always good to get outside your comfort zone, and playing a show 4 days after first hearing the music definitely fits.

Luckily, I'm loving the album.  It's the best new music I've heard in ages:  Sam Taylor & The East End Love.  My wife heard the first couple of tracks, and thought it's "very me."  Great, stripped-down dirty blues-rock.  Just what my soul needs these days...

So I've got the songs down, got my Fender PJ ready, and just have to find a sexy outfit.   Okay, so that last part won't matter - nobody notices the bass player anyway.

Anyway, I'm REALLY excited to be a part of this.  I'm not sure if it's open to the public, it's at Cherry Cola's on Saturday night for Bob Segarini's birthday party.  And it's going to be a lot of fun!



ps.  That "Fender PJ" reference is the style of bass guitar.  I will NOT be wearing my pyjamas.

Recording Blast

Where has the time gone?
I've spent the last 6 months working and re-working Gravedigging For Two (the new album), and finally have arrangements that I can commit to.  The instruments are recorded, I just have to do the vocals now.

Tonight, however, I'm very excited to try something new:
A live-off-the-floor recording.  Just me. One microphone, one guitar, one take.

Here's the planned set list:

Love is the Drug,
Dead Flowers,
Dirty Old Town,
Downtown Train,
Sister Morphine,
Hurt,
Irish Heartbeat,
Romeo & Juliet,
Song To The Siren,
The Harder They Come,
The One I Love,
Play With Fire,
Unchained Melody
Will You Love Me Tomorrow.

Thankful For Tape Oxidization

Working on the new album last night, I was revelling in the way Little Rose Tattoo has turned out.  It’s been a long time in the making – I wrote the song in 2000 while apprenticing as a tattooist.  But it never felt “right” until now.  Some songs just need to mature to hit their stride, I guess.

It got me thinking of my history with songs.  In particular, the first one that I wrote.  “Unknown Desire” was a disgustingly saccharine ballad that I wrote when I was 15.  Predictably, it was about I girl that I was too shy to approach.  I don’t remember which one, there were so many back then.

Thankfully, I don’t remember the lyrics.  Unfortunately, I recorded my feeble attempt at rock stardom.  One take, me mumbling the song as I strummed away into a cassette recorder.  I gave it to a friend’s girlfriend as a birthday gift (my first groupie), and a few years later she played it back for me. 

I’m glad I wrote it – every attempt improves your craft.  And I learned from the experience (never give sexy gifts to friends’ girlfriends).

Of all the songs I’ve written, and there are hundreds, Unknown Desire is the one that I’m glad will never be heard again.  As long as that damned cassette tape has oxidized by now…

What I Did On My Summer Vacation

Yes, it’s been way too long without an update.

What’s happened since April?  Well, let’s see. 

My studio computer died a miserable death.  And since it was a Windows XP machine, when I replaced it I had to replace the interface and most of the software.  This meant that I had to learn the new workflows for Sonar X3, since I had been using Sonar Producer for years.  X3 is a fantastic piece of kit and comes with loads of extra software, so along with learning the DAW itself, I also ended up adjusting to the fancy toys that came with it.

Right before I replaced my studio PC, my wife and I decided to move.  So that took out some time.

Now for the good stuff…

During this downtime, I had a wonderful idea on how to produce my next album.  I’ve always loved Motown/Stax-Volt type music.  As a bassist, that’s how I learned my craft – learning from Duck Dunn, Bob Babbitt, etc…  So I’m going in that direction.  Not totally soul, but my current style leaning in that direction a bit more than usual.

This past weekend, I finished the drum tracks and general arrangements.  This is the biggest stumbling block for now, since the guitars and bass can be done in a couple of quick takes.  That will just leave the vocals, traditionally my biggest pain.  But they shouldn’t be too taxing this time, since these songs have been WELL rehearsed in my summer break.

Anyway, things are very exciting at the moment.  My breakfast is done, time to put on the headphones, sling the bass across my shoulder, and groove.

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes!

Sorry, it's been a few months since I've been in touch.  But what a few months it has been!

First, my studio PC died suddenly.  It had lived a long and prosperous life, but I was waiting a little longer to replace it.  I waited too long...
Luckily I save my data to a second hard drive (VERY IMPORTANT TO DO!!!).  This kept my musical projects saved safely, when the primary drive died and locked away everything on it.  Unfortunately, this included my collection of music from everyone other than myself.  All my MP3s were killed!
Since I'm a paranoid geek, I planned ahead and backed up everything on another external drive.  So imagine my surprise when that drive died as well, while copying my music collection onto another computer!  It got from Abba to Prince before failing.
So lost is my discography of Rolling Stones, Roxy Music, Stereophonics, Yazoo... you get the picture. 

Luckily I still had most of them tucked away as DVDs in the basement.  For the rest, I downloaded bit-torrents.  While I usually avoid downloading torrents (i prefer to pay the artists for their work), since I had actually purchased these on DVD, i think i've covered my obligation...

At this point, I should have been ready to just replace my studio PC and get back to writing and recording, right?  Wrong.  Since my studio PC was on Windows XP (and had not been online in 6 years), I also have to replace my IO Interface and recording software (Sonar DAW). 

I checked out my options, and priced out the best products to suit my revamped, basement home studio.

Suddenly, my wife and I decided to buy a condo and move out of our rented townhouse!  Luckily, I hadn't yet bought all the new gear for my studio.  Since now I won't have a studio per se... 
The new studio setup will be a  Windows 8- based 17" laptop, a Focusrite IO Interface, and headphones.  As for software, I'll be upgrading to Sonar Platinum.  I've been a big fan of Cakewalk/ Sonar since dipping my toe into PC-based recording in 2003, with their HomeStudio line of DAWs.  Platinum will require a learning curve, as there have been 3 major releases in between my Producer 8.5 and the newest Platinum.  That'll take some time to get used to, but I'm sure it will be worthwhile - from what I've seen this upgrade should really streamline my processes.  And hopefully ease the transition from a dual-monitor PC with lovely (speaker) monitors to one laptop screen and headphones....

Stay tuned, I'm still here! 
I swear...