Maybe I can pick up a few things to help things along this year too. Here's a shopping list I jotted-down on the BART one night this week:
What am I forgetting?
If you have any interest at all in joining the fray, please shoot me a note. As you can see this is a great excuse to go out and buy some gear. Your spouse will surely agree.
Better Drum Recording: So I literally dusted off my recording gear and tried to use my standard shortcuts and equipment (D112, Oktava C-12s, SM58) to record 'Doomed From The Start'.
Guitar stuffs: More from recording 'Doomed'. I played the Fender Lead II into the Zvex Nano Amp into the Mesa 4x12. I think that thing is packed with celestions. I'll have to doublecheck tho. I'm using the Zvex instead of the dual rectifier because it sounds nice and because of the late-night recording sessions.
I recorded 'Doomed' with a SM58 about 6 inches away from the speaker.
Vocals went through the Pacific Pro Audio - LD-2UBE and I think I heard what Derek was singing about in his song about the microphone. There's something almost too transparent about the sound. I'll muck around with this a little more.
Bruce: what's your deal? You're getting incredible guitar tones. You're playing all over the place... hitting jan hammer, buckethead, and tbone burnett in the same week.
Seth: You are cranking winners out at what, like 3 at at time? You'll have 2 years of material to refine by March at this pace.
Peter: You're in the week 2 doldrums but you can bust through!
Derek:
Derek & I had a funny chat about engineering voodoo the other day:
Derek: k
Chriz Greacen: I'm borrowing a drum kit from tornatore.
Chriz Greacen: it sounds AMAZING.
Chriz Greacen: it's just a really nice sounding kit. something custom
Derek: how do you record vocals?
Derek: where is the mic aimed?
Derek: distance?
Chriz Greacen: http://www.drumsolo.cc/index.html
Chriz Greacen: vocals: mic aimed at my mouth
Chriz Greacen: it's about 2 feet away
Chriz Greacen: I'm standing under a surfboard
Chriz Greacen: which is right at my head level
Chriz Greacen: and right near the mic
Derek: what color surfboard?
Chriz Greacen: I wonder if that has any effect.
Chriz Greacen: it's white
Chriz Greacen: but it's in a big silver bag
Derek: is that the secret?
Chriz Greacen: and it has wax on it.
Chriz Greacen: could be!
Derek: I've tried everything, from aiming the mic at my nostrils, mouth, forhead, pointing up, down and straight on, distant, not so distant, up close, etc
Derek: I can't get any midrange. Just irritating fizzy highs and muddy lows
Chriz Greacen: I'll give you the mic to try if you want.
Chriz Greacen: I just need to get my 'real' studio truly dusted off.
Derek: it's likely my voice, but everything records that way through the mic. Maybe I don't llike my mic.
I'm uniquely unsuited for handling engineering responsibilities of any complexity because of my short attention span, lack of familiarity with the physics of sound, and penchant for shortcuts. I'm not recording engineer, but I played one on the web:
Check out the Clubbo Website for more about the Lazarus project and learn how lazarus keeps rock legends alive.
I just barely made it in before midnight. This is gonna be tough.
I came up with the verse on guitar & vocal melody idea over breakfast, but didn't get a chance to sit down and record until about 9pm. A little over 2 hours later, and 'Took To The Air' popped out. I was really itching to record drums for this one, I wish I had my kit in my garage.
Peter, there's still time! C'mon!
I recorded this on my laptop which is completely wrong for the job. Sure, I have the multitrack on there, but I was installing a mp3 codec at 11:15... Gotta get this in shape.
Also, Jim's Samson USB Mic is right for the job. Extremely handy to have this working with the laptop.