Mr. Bass Man

Drums? Done.
Bass?  DONE.

I just completed the bass tracks for all ten songs in the new project. The big surprise for me was that I did them all in one single day.  Normally this should have taken 3 or 4 days I think.
Perhaps it's due to this album being in "pre-production" for a year.  Just not having enough time to record it, I've spent the last year tweaking the songs.  With rough demos done on a computer, I can mute the recordedguitar and vocal trackss, set up a mic, plug in my guitar, and play along with the drums, keys, and bass.  Or I can just mute the bass and play it live.
I've been doing that constantly, changing the lines I'm playing to see what's working best.

So I got it all done in one day.  I ripped through each song one right after the other.  I don't think any song took more than 2 or 3 takes (with maybe 1 or 2 punch-ins).  My fingers are numb and callussed, but those are war wounds I'm proud of.

I'm pretty anxious to get started on the guitar tracks.  These shouldn't take long.  The vocal tracks, that's what will take long...

Post-Graffiti's

Thanks to everyone that came to see The Boys From County Hell yesterday!

We had a great time, and it seemed that most of you did too.  I got to meet a few new people, and I really hope to see them all again soon.

To those that weren't there:  You really missed out.  It might have been our best show yet, everything gelled and we were in sync. 

One guy told me that he liked how obvious it was that we were enjoying ourselves.  I'm glad he noticed, and I'm even more glad that he actually told me.  I'm pretty picky about who I play with.  Not that I'm a snob, more because I don't want to do something I'm not 100% proud of and into.  Phoning in a performance happens to everyone occasionally, but it's unfair to the audience that has given time and money to see you.  And it's unfair to the other musicians onstage.
I try to play every show like it's my last.  Give everything I have.  Because you never know - it might be your last show.  And if you don't give your all, your next show just might not have an audience.


Anyway, I'm really happy to be playing with Cliff, Vera, Johnny, and Jonathan.

The Boys From County Hell, Sunday

There's a great band I play guitar with, called The Boys From County Hell.  Even though there's a girl in it, the name is sticking.

We play (mostly) rowdy Irish folk songs, some more 'rock' than others.  And there's a smattering of traditional reels in it to add some fun.  Lots of Pogues and Dubliners songs.

And it's always a DAMN GOOD TIME.

We're playing this Sunday (july 29) at Graffiti's, 170 Baldwin St, Toronto, from 4-7pm.

If you're in the city, come and check it out!


Here's a clip of The Dubliners playing 'Whiskey In The Jar'.

Overload

A couple of weeks ago, I started working on the recordings that will become my next album. For all ten songs, the drum tracks have been programmed. I’ll wait until the actual recordings are complete before running them through the synth (Toontrack’s Superior Drummer) and rendering them to audio. Just in case I want to make changes as the other instruments shape the songs…

I’ve been practicing the bass-lines, as these will be the next parts recorded.

And here lies my dilemma: The new album has been written. They are ten songs, with fully written and edited lyrics, arranged and organized as I want them. But since starting the “final” drum programming, I’ve written another SIX GOOD SONGS! This is unprecedented for me. My normal practice has been to write 10 that I’m proud of, and throw them on a disc. As it stands these should wait for the 2013 project. But I don’t want to put them on the backburner.

Should I:
a) Record the new album with the planned ten songs and leave the new six for later?
b) Record all sixteen songs and choose the best ten?
c) Record all sixteen songs and sell as a sixteen-song album?
d) Put all sixteen on the backburner and work on the album of cover songs that I can’t legally release anyway but has some pretty cool arrangements?

Goodbye

For my mother, who passed away 4 months ago...


Goodbye

The last words that I ever spoke
The last time you'd understand
Simple words, no room to cry
I think I knew we were saying goodbye.

Wander through the darkness
Clouded memories lifting to fly
So much history, so alive
I think I knew we were saying goodbye.

A young boy, first day of school
Watching his family drive away
Stand alone, young man, stand high
I think I knew we were saying goodbye.

A grown man stands by your side
The same hollow, trying to hide
A strong voice, a tear in the eye
I think I knew we were saying goodbye.

The last words that I ever spoke
The last time you'd understand
I told you that I loved you
I think I knew we were saying goodbye.



(c) 2012 matt swift - steal this one and you're in for some EVIL karma.

Studio-Ready

Wow, what a month!


I booked an entire 5-day stretch to finish building my studio. With cinderblock walls, the sound was brutal. I couldn’t record anything without boomy echoes ruining every take.

I bought 48 Auralex Wedgies and spent a couple of weeks planning the locations and methods to mount them on the walls. The plan was excellent, the execution was not. My plan was to mount wood strapping up near the ceiling, and hang the 12”x12” panels like artwork from the strapping. I borrowed a hammer drill, and bought tapcon screws and a drillbit. Nothing would go into the cinderblocks. Plan#1: Fail.
I headed back to Home Depot, to purchase some industrial-strength tape. Taping the strapping should hold, after all the weight of the wood and foam might be 1lb for each horizontal foot of wall. The tape wouldn’t grip. Plan#2: Fail.
I went back to Home Depot for the third time, to buy some hardcore glue that was “guaranteed” to work on wood, concrete, and foam. Guess what – it wouldn’t hold either. Plan#3: Fail.
Then I had a brainwave: the tape would hold for a few hours before falling off, and the glue probably didn’t have enough time to get a grip before falling off. So I put tape on the wood, and then glued the tape to the wall. The tape should hold long enough for the glue to set. Plan#4: SUCCESS.
That only took about 3 days to work out.
Then I had to mount the foam wedgies on the wall. I bought 100’ of 1” wooden strapping, and had it all segmented into 12” lengths. The plan was to mount each foam square onto two 12” pieces of wood, one vertically on each side. Then I would put a picture-hook into the top and hang them from the wooden strapping like frames. As the entire 24-pack of foam weighed a total of 4.5lbs, I wasn’t worried about strain on the adhesive. The industrial-strength tape looked simple enough, run a foot of it along each 12” piece of foam frame, and stick the foam to the frame. I tried this, and the foam dried out the glue on the tape. No go. Plan#5: Fail.
I tried putting the hardcore glue that was “guaranteed” to work on wood, concrete, and foam. Guess what – it wouldn’t hold either. Plan#6: Fail.
I gave up – I contacted Auralex, and was convinced to buy their proprietary glue spray. It’s the only thing guaranteed to work. Unfortunately you can’t buy it locally, but must purchase online. I ordered it from LAMusic on a Friday, and it was delivered to me on the Monday. Great turnaround time. This worked like a charm. Plan#6: SUCCESS.

I also bought a KRK ERGO unit, to address any remaining sonic deficiencies. I spent yesterday configuring that and testing the room. It’s sounding much better. There was a lot of frustration, trial and error, but the end result was well worth the struggle.

Now I’m ready to start recording the new album!

Musical Memories

A few months ago my mother passed away.


My parents had a surprisingly large influence on my musical tastes – they weren’t like most of my friends parents. My childhood home had a fantastic record stash including Simon & Garfunkel, Blondie, Roxy Music, ABBA, and many other bands that I still love. They took me to my first live concert, Bryan Ferry’s Bete Noire tour in 1988. I hated Ferry at that time, I was into hard rock. I went because they had an extra pair of tickets and my cousin and I had nothing better to do that night. Ten minutes before the show started, I was still mumbling “Bryan sucks – kill the synths!” Thirty seconds after the first song started, I was a convert. I danced through the entire concert, in awe of what I was seeing and hearing. As we left Exhibition Stadium, I elbowed my way to the front of the merch-booth line, buying a T-shirt. I still have it.

So obviously my parents encouraged me musically. When I was 14 and learning to play the guitar, my mother had a piano. She wasn’t especially good, but loved plinking away at it. We used to play David Bowie’s “Space Oddity together.” Only that song, nothing else seemed to work – we just weren’t that good.

As Mother’s Day is coming this weekend, I was thinking about how my surviving family will deal with the weekend. I thought I’d be fine. Then I heard ‘Space Oddity’ on the internet radio and my heard dropped.

I miss you Mum! Happy Mother’s Day!