I had the pleasure of working with Chris Farmer, who was the drummer and co-composer for the pioneering math-rock band Breadwinner who had a few albums out on Merge Records. I loved that band and always wondered what he had been up to since the band broke up. We recently met when he played a solo set at NOVO 2011. It was tremendous. Sadly his sampler died and we only got half a set. It was well worth it, however, even for such a short set.

Luckily, since then, he decided to start working on his third full length album, recorded live. John Morand (Sparklehorse, Royal Trux, Camper Van Beethoven) engineered, recorded and mixed this record. I had the pleasure of mastering the record.

I am always pretty critical with drummers, as in another lifetime I played drums in many of bands. But Chris is one of the most innovative, creative and dynamic drummers I’ve come across in a long while. He’s also a genuinely nice guy! And this record is no exception. His drumming is impeccable. The record was written on electric keys, coded in to MIDI, arranged live on an MPC2000, and outputted to a Casio and a Novation synthesizer, accompanied by drums. Stylistically, the record is math-jazz, ethereal soundscapish and avant-awesome. It’s a great listen. One in particular I like to listen to in the car.

Enjoy my favorite cut:

Techtonics

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Following the positive reception of his first album, The Scarehouse, Baltimore composer and sound effects artist Glenn Ricci (aka Delirium Dog) journeys further into a haunting world of sonic mayhem with Fever Brain Battery.

I had the pleasure of working with Glenn in mastering this record. This record is filled with blips and bleeps. And while it’s certainly post-industrial you will see no eyeliner near this record. It’s half carnival, half giant slab of metal being thrown off a ledge, of course will stellar quirky beats and detailed soundscapes.

Glenn’s music reaches across genres and occupies a unique space between the post-industrial work of Nine Inch Nails, the sonic exploration of Amon Tobin and the creativity of Mark DeGli Antoni.

Check out a sample from the record below:

Vortex

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It’s time to showcase a condenser mic this month! And there’s nothing we like more than a versatile mic you can find for under $400.

I first got into recording doing a lot of solo and acoustic performers. I emailed one of my favorite songwriter/recordists at the time and asked him what mic he used to track his acoustic guitars. It just so happened the Audio-Technica 4033 was the mic he’d been using for years to record guitars and vocals. This being THE first studio mic for me, I put it in front of as many instruments as I could and received pretty incredible results. Audio-Technica even boasts that this was the mic to break the $1000-barrier in it’s class. (more…)

The New Lines, from New York City, have just finished mastering their first full-length record with me after releasing a handful of 7″s. Fronted by Hewson Chen (Vitesse), he is joined by René Dennis and Michael Donofrio. I always feel that this band reminds me of Nico and The Velvet Underground meets Jesus and Mary Chain if they were all from France. It’s a wonderfully lush pop album complete with totally drippingly delayed vocals, vintage organs and garage drums.

The album will be released in the UK on the The Great Pop Supplement imprint later this summer.

Voyager Program 1977

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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

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Scavenger

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No, not the SM57. The S-M-Seven.

While it’s not my favorite mic, nor is it the most interesting, by any means, it certainly reproduces many sounds wonderfully and accurately. Simply put, it’s utilitarian. And build like a tank. My SM7 has taken many o’ falls and still, many many years later, works like a charm. I’d say, in any given record I produce it’s used multiple times. And not on just one instrument. It yields great results with vocals, drums and bass/guitar amps. I’ve even used it on kick drums (more of the vintage flavor) and have been very happy with the output. It’s claim to fame was when it was discovered that engineer Bruce Swedien used this mic for most of the vocals on Michael Jackson’s 1982 record, Thriller. You know the record that spawned seven top 10 singles and has sold over 110 million copies? So aside from the fact that Michael sounds great behind it, other people do as well. It’s not just Michael’s amazing voice. It’s a cardioid dynamic mic that can stand up next to a U47, U87 or any other variety of vintage condensers.

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