Adrian and I have spent the better part of two years working and recording his debut record, Better Son. Adrian, from Southern Illinois,  does a lot of listening, and speaks selectively. But when he sings, he SINGS. It’s compelling. He has a voice that makes you stop to listen – And wonder where he’s been. David Bazan and Jay Farrar come to mind with out being derivative.

Better Son could arguably be called a concept album. The nearly chronological songs tell of Adrian’s self-destructive romances and indignant attitudes toward the faith that would ultimately rescue him. The lyrics range from poignant verses on the attack, to soft-spoken pleads for mercy and a second chance (or third, or fourth). The sound he achieves is clearly based in roots/Americana, but polished with a love for pop music.

The record is sprinkled with Baltimore guests. The always awesome and rather prolific Frank Corl plays drums on all but one track. Christopher DeMeo (Infinite Honey) laid down drums on the last cut, E.Joseph and Paul Mercer played guitars on a few tracks and Ruby Fulton and Andrew Histand (both from We Used To Be Family) played violin and cello, respectively.

Recording-wise many of ribbon mics (close and room) were used to track the initial vocal and acoustic guitar parts. Many of the original scratch takes we recorded in the studio were actually used in the final mixes, as well. It’s more proof that first takes are always quintessential to incredible and heart-felt performances.

This record is very special and hope you check it out. A tour is planned for later this summer and early fall. Below are my two favorite tracks.

Better Son
[See post to listen to audio]

Scavenger
[See post to listen to audio]

Kadman’s first record was one of the first Baltimore records I heard after I moved here a bunch of years ago. It was simply not anything I had heard out of Baltimore. Or what I thought “Baltimore” sounded like (little did I know!). I thought this band was incredible. There was something different about them. I’ve still yet to find a band here in Baltimore that sounds like them. That said, I am drawn to bands that think outside the box and do things differently. That is one reason why we worked so well together. We did a mini-EP last year (that will hopefully someday see the light of day), but I felt like we could do so much more together. I was happy when Dave (the singer/guitarist) came to me to produce his sophomore effort.

Anything
[See post to listen to audio]

This record went through a few stages. We scrapped the drums a few times, muted a ton of guitars, re-tracked bass tracks, wrote one song in the studio, I played theremin, re-thought the vision and then rinsed and repeated. It was a four month process from start to finish but felt like one. Dave was a great musician to work with. I’d ask him to “add this pedal” or “let’s try this room mic over here” or “hmmm, this section really doesn’t need that acoustic guitar in the chorus” and he wouldn’t flinch. Of course, Dave brought his own thing to the table as well. He’d bring in a keyboard part or a drum idea or a harmony. It was a two way road in building this record.

Mountain Song
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Dave put together a solid and vibrant band for a rather subtle yet dynamic sound. Frank Corl, the drummer, came from more of a pop/rock background but really understood the nuances of Dave’s music. He really put forth the art of the snare. We ended up using a half dozen snares on the record. James Bahleda came from an electro/goth background. But he is this beast of a bassist who can not be stopped. Be it on upright or electric. There are some lines he put down that still amaze me even after the umpteenth listen. And he has good taste in Scotch. Last but not least, I brought in Dawn Dineen and E.Joseph to sing on a few tracks. Dawn duets with Dave on one song called “An Army Rises.” E. Joseph and Dawn are both amazing singers and writers on their own. Both due out for another record soon, as well!

There are really few words to describe the record, it should speak for itself, but I’ll try. It’s a record of nuances. It’s intense – it’s acrobatic – it’s very different than their last – it’s dreamy, it’s loud, it’s quiet, it’s dense. Enjoy the samples!

Little Darling
[See post to listen to audio]

Our friends, Kadman, came by the studio last week for a fabulous microshow and they gave us some really moving interpretations of their songs. They did two sets, the first being songs from their first record. And the second set came from their upcoming record I’ll be producing here at Mobtown.

We really enjoyed what Kadman brought to their performance, including completely different arrangements and instruments such as banjo, upright bass and harmonica, three instruments that didn’t even appear on their record. Ringleader Dave Manchester’s intense vocals filled the room and carried the emotions of the slow-core tunes. Way to go with the spirit of the micro-show!

Dave was joined by James Bahleda on upright and Frank Corl on drums who will both be on the upcoming record.

Tech stuff: U87 on vocals, Sennheisser 509 on guitar, Oktava 012 up the bridge of the upright and C3 spot mic, Floor tom got a 421, the snare got a SM57 and the overheads were SM81s.

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