Yes, these are Rock Guy happy faces. And why not? The Drunken Skunk Band got a free two-song demo - and my Sound Foundations students got a full - if condensed - recording experience.
Last Wednesday was the Three Hour Record, the last night of our Studio Sound class - and a fitting finale to what's been a great course. I'll be putting up some samples of in-class recordings on the Sound Foundations page soon, so check there for a taste. And if you're thinking you could use some ground-up audio instruction and hands-on experience - classes start again in January.
One of the best things about running a recording studio is that it makes you a better listener - you develop a knack for picking apart recordings and appreciate things most people wouldn't. Of course, the same can be said for anyone who does music regularly - which is why last night's Guild get-together was so insanely fun for me. A hearty crew of us regulars gathered round the speakers to listen in complete silence (how often do you do that?) to songs for which we'd be given little or no prior explanation.
Then we responded. What makes a song sound "80s"? When is recording "live" a good idea? What's the place of ambient sound? Should music be categorized? Who does and does not have business trying to sing gospel?
For those keeping track, below is a list of the recordings we enjoyed. But as I've said before, if you missed it - you missed out. You'll have to join us next time.
Speaking of which - in light of the holidays and various other impending obligations (translation: I'm getting married!), the Guild won't meet in November or December. There will be other opportunities to connect at Backthird Audio, so stay tuned - and plan on joining us when we resume in January.
Benzie Badlaw played the role of guest artists for Wednesday's Sound Foundations class in recording studio techniques - and boy, did we hear 'em! Students set up a dozen or so different microphones on the acoustic duo for an old-fashioned mic shootout, allowing us to hear the difference between ribbons and condsensers and compare one pickup pattern to another. Every microhphone is good for something - but sometimes you don't know what until you try.
One groovy thing about putting your recording studio in downtown Aurora: you're a short walk from the train, the river, a whole lot of tacos - and Andrea Dawn's loft. We're taking advantage of her proximity by tracking Andrea's new album in short, frequent spurts - a couple hours here, a couple hours there. This is a project we want to go up less like a building and more like a flower. I'm loving it so far.
I found myself in an argument last week with yet another sleazy telemarketer - this one wanted to "fix" my websites but refused to tell me what, specifically, he'd do. The Secret Salesman said he wasn't in the "education" business any more than recording studios are in the business of teaching people how to record.
Actually, SS, that's precisely the business this Aurora recording studio is in.
Above, three of this month's students pose with local kids' act One Ton drum, who were polite enough to serve as guinea pigs at last night's Sound Foundations class. Why so many microphones? We recorded them simultaneously to four different formats - analog mono, analog multitrack, digital stereo and digital multitrack. Was there a difference? Yes there was. Does one format work for every situation? No it doesn't. Is good recording secret, hidden knowledge? Only to the Secret Salemen of the world.
Tonight's performance by Ha!Man at Backthird Audio was that rarity of rarities - something really different. Francois Le Roux - I didn't get around to asking why he calls himself "the Ha Man" - has obviously spent some time developing his chops, he's ultimately got the kind of gift that can't be learned. The South African mixes prerecorded tracks with cello shredding, taps, clicks, whilstles, hums and - occasionally - actual singing to create pieces that are ambient and primarily improvised. He also showed what I thought was real humility by sitting in on every song locals Phil Seeley, Sharon Slaughter, Scott McNeil and Rozanne Stoman could throw at him. Le Roux moved from cello to piano to synth to recorder and back again like a kid at a playground, always creative and sometimes wildly experimental. As far as I could tell, a Ha!Man show is not about "his" music - any music will do.
If I've said enough to make you curious you can find some (overly advertorial) video here. But it got me wondering - what's the last thing you saw or heard that made you rethink music?
Try this: Find a blank piece of paper or an empty box to
type in (the comments box at the bottom of this blog post is a great one). Now write
only two things down.
Thing One: What single activity in the world of music do you
love the most? Be specific.
Thing Two: What do you have to do to make the Thing One
happen that is loathsome, dull and irritating to you?
Yeah, I know how you feel.
This month I’d planned to use this space to muse about the
new SlotMusic format. We could chat about it on the blog and have a dandy time.
But on Saturday, I discovered something vastly better and more fun to write about
instead.
Music.
I rediscover music on an almost weekly basis. I play it –
and record and book and teach it – for a living, and I’ve found I constantly
need reminding why. On Saturday I capped off an extremely busy week by playing
a wedding with the Total Package – and it wore me out. We spent 45 minutes
figuring out which door we were allowed to bring our gear in through. I spent
hours on my feet re-arranging minute schedule details and relaying messages
between the bridal party and a host of managers and catering staff. My team
members got served dinner moments before I needed them to start performing. I
spent $42 on parking. I was pining for my pillow before we had played our first note.
Then we did play our first note, and had a ball, and time
flew by. I love to play. I love it.
This is why I play: I love music. I love the people I play
with, and – when my heart’s in the right place – I love the people I play for.
I love a thousand things that have to do with music, and it’s hard for me to
pick just one Thing One. But I made up the game – so here’s my answer: I love
singing with a band. Making a sound that comes from all of me, from toes to
forehead, and doing it in sync with other people – that’s the thing I love the
most.
Here’s what I don’t love. It’s a longer list: tight budgets,
bills, guitar repairs, keyboard repairs, vans, van repairs, stairs, gig bags,
heavy cases, heavy amp racks, cables, synchronizing schedules, long days, late
nights, feedback, extension cords, strange hum in the PA.
Here’s what I’m putting for my Thing Two: Getting to the gig. That’s
what I have to do to sing. A lot of times, especially when I’m tired, I wonder
if Thing One is really worth Thing Two.
All it takes is a quick self-google - don't pretend you haven't tried it -
to see what kind of impression you and your music are making on the Web.
(You'll may also suffer the annoyance of discovering other, weirder artists
with your same name - never mind; your mama loves you more.)
Aside from your own website, there are three major places you should be if
you're serious about promoting what you do. Here's where you ought to be - and
how to be there better.
1. Myspace.
Chances are good you're on myspace already - and chances are equally good your
myspace page is an ill-tended, spam-infested, visually offensive bad acid trip
of an experience. Check out Wired's excellent wiki on how bands should use myspace - then swing by Andrew Dubber's
excellent blog and read his lectures on what not to do.
2.Wikipedia. Didn't think of this one, did you? Wikipedia's a colossal resource - do an
internet search for your favorite band and you'll almost certainly see a
Wikipedia entry on the first page of results. If the same's not true for you,
what does that say about your legitimacy? Anyone can write a Wikipedia entry,
but it's considered dubious and distasteful to write or edit one about
yourself. Get a fan who really knows your work to do it for you - or hire me! I'll write your
myspace bio while I'm at it, and I do this sort of stuff for cheap.
3. Facebook. You may be hanging out here too, but if
you're promoting music then you want a Facebook
Page for that.
Moving beyond those three, you'll find there are a zillion other sites. Virb,youtube, PureVolume, FameCast... the
list goes on, and it seems it's always changing. If you find you're maintaining
a lot of profiles, check out Atomkeep or ArtistData - tools that allow you to update
multiple profiles at the same time. Maybe you can save enough time to cram some
actual music in.
Wednesday marked the last night of the first course in my new Sound Foundations series. "Sound Foundations I: Stage Essentials" is a ground-up crash course in live mixing and PA design, setup and maintenance. It's been a pleasure to spend the last four Wednesdays getting to know four local engineers-in-the-making - from budding high-school electronics genius Sam to piano teacher Karen to church-sound servants Dave and Dan. We capped the course with an hour or two of troubleshooting - making mysterious hums disappear from our PA by even more mysterious means. Wish I'd thought to take some pictures for this blog.
I'm even happier to be barreling right into our second course, Studio Essentials, next Wednesday - with a lot of the same students and some fresh new faces as well. Teaching is an absolute pleasure for this Aurora recording studio owner - thanks guys!
