Because I love lists, here is a list of my favorite records from 2000-2009 in relative alphabetical order:

1. Angela Desveaux – The Mighty Ship (it’s just beautiful and great on vinyl)
2. The Arcade Fire – Funeral (if you don’t respoond to ‘wake up’ you could be lifeless and dead)
3. Britta Phillips and Dean Wareham – L’avventura (again, it’s a beautiful record)
4. The Dismemberment Plan – Change (my dc friends make their perhaps last and greatest record)
5. Mike Doughty – Rockity Roll (no over-thought tunes. i wish this was longer.)
6. Duffy – Rockferry (what a voice!)
7. Eno and Byrne – Everything That Happens Will Happen Today (two of my favorites yet again on a record together this time writing great songs)
8. Godspeed You Black Emperor – Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas To Heaven (the soundtrack to the first have of the decade for me)
9. Kanye West – Late Registration (that kanye certainly has something to say)
10. Kadman – Sing To Me Slower (if dave never wrote another song other than diesel and honeymoon’s end, we’d be ok)
11. Keane – Perfect Symmetry (stellar pop)
12. The Killers – Hot Fuse (see above)
13. Leisure Icons – Leisure Icons (angular mathy locals that has been in heavy rotation here)
14. Low – The Great Destroyer (dave fridmann + low = happy mat)
15. Luna – Rendezvous (i used to put my daughter to sleep to this record)
16. Mouse On Mars – Idiology (Mmmm, stomp pedals)
17. N.E.R.D. – In Search Of… (more drums please)
18. The Octopus Project – Hello Avalanche (my band opened for them this summer. i can’t stop playing this record)
19. Parts and Labor – Stay Afraid (new york’s finest)
20. Saint Etienne – Finisterre (sarah cracknell’s voice is to die for)
21. Sam Prekop – Who’s Your New Professor (i love the beats on this record)
22. Katy Perry – One of the Boys (good production, songwriting and a pretty face don’t always equate to crappy pop music)
23. Prince – The Rainbow Children (prince did have some good records this decade, and this is his finest)
24. Rod Lee – The Official (rod is a genius and you’ll be hearing more about baltimore club very soon)
25. Shakira – Fijación Oral Vol. 1 (that shakira can do anything)
26. Sigur Rós – Takk (birthing sounds)
27. Austin Stahl – The Things You Carry (austin can write about heartbreak like no other)
28. Radiohead – I Might Be Wrong (one of my favorite live albums ever and i am not a huge radiohead fan)
29. Rilo Kiley – More Adventurous (jenny lewis.)
30. Justin Timberlake – Justified (pharrell williams is one sick drummer, JT is someone who i’ve yet to get sick of)
31. Tokio Hotel – Schrei (they were everywhere in europe. who cares if they play their instruments.)
32. Trans Am – TA (my dc favs… they can do no wrong)
33. Wendy and Lisa – Girl Bros. (see above, they can do no wrong)
34. John Zorn – Live at Tonic 2001 (john zorn would be in the supergroup in my head. acharei mot is my jam in this set.

Continued from Part I…

Adapting Your Song Structure for the Studio
Your band has just finished listening to a studio mix of the song that is most requested by live audiences. As silence descends, everyone looks kind of confused. It’s just not happening. Everything is played “correctly”, but it doesn’t really pop and snap like it does on stage.

Maybe that long build between the verse and the hook sounds repetitive. The volume increases, but there’s no crowd egging you on, no wave breaking into the chorus. Maybe the abrupt halt between the end of the chorus and the instrumental breakdown sounds forced and kills the momentum; the wowed audience – waiting breathlessly to hear you come back in right on beat – is not there to cheer when you do.

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If you’re a musician who’s spent much time in the studio, you’re well aware of the myriad ways the studio experience differs from rehearsal and a live setting. These differences arise out of the studio’s microscopic (or microsonic, if you will) view of music, which diverts attention away from spontaneity and emotional expression.

Some musical elements notoriously stand out in the studio: audio bleed, tempo, precise playing, being in tune, etc. But others are not as well known. In particular, and to the surprise of many artists, the songs themselves may not work in the studio like they work conceptually or even live.

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1. Practice! If you don’t practice you won’t sound good. Bottom line. If you are planning to use a click in the studio, learn how to play with one.
2. Tune, tune, tune! If you don’t know how to tune, check out this link or ask a friend who does. When going to record in a studio, work with an engineer who knows how to finely tune your kit.
3. Put new heads on. That said, if the existing heads aren’t excessively worn or dented and you like the way they sound, they are probably ok. Keep in mind new heads may need a couple days of playing to break in. Check and tune as needed in between takes/songs just like a guitarist would.
4. Try tuning the drums to the fundamental key of the song played on. When drums ring in the key of the song, the ring is more pleasing to the ear. (more…)

A common question when planning for a record is how much to budget for mixing. (Check this out if you’re not sure what mixing is.) Unfortunately, there is no universal answer. Ta da! That was helpful, wasn’t it? Seriously though, my usual response is: “Double what you plan to spend tracking and expect to spend that mixing.” In my experience, it’s a formula that works for the majority of bands.

Some folks are surprised that mixing requires that much of an investment. After all, you spent all that time tracking to make sure you got just the right sound. Isn’t it now just a matter of twisting some pots and sliding some faders?

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I am not a total purist about lists. This list is about records that I either heard in 2008 or came out in 2008.

1. 1. Angela Desveaux: The Mighty Ship – I played a show with a band a few weeks ago. We opened for them. And they had their record on vinyl. It’s insanely good. The drummer is mind blowing. I’ve not seen a drummer lean in to his hits in forever. I’ve never seen someone so expressive. Oh and the music is beautiful. And Angela’s voice is wonderful.

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