well, i'm back. i've had a crappy month! ha! "what's new," you might be thinking? the worst part is that me and my wife and child all got *really* sick a few weeks ago. we got a really bad virus that knocked us essentially out of commission for a week. i still am not all the way back. i've gone to the doctor three times in the last month. not cool...
so, needless to say, this has pushed back my work. actually, april march and i are trying to figure out a time to ge together to do a song for a new french label but it's been impossible with me being sick and her busy schedule. i swear, it's hard to be a rock star when you have small kids! and she has two! but hopefully we can get together soon. i will give ya all the details when it happens, and hopefully have a few pics to share as well...
oh, yeah, i have put up a witch hazel sound myspace page. i had resisted for the longest time cuz it seemed so trendy and kiddie but it's actually kinda cool. i've been able to catch-up with some people i haven't talked to in years. anyway, go to the page and become our friend, if you wish!
i bought a new laptop with some tax return money so i can work on music in places *other* the studio. i'm hoping it will make me more effective in my work, since i can work most anywhere at any time.
i've been listening to some newer stuff lately that friends have burned for me or stuff i've found on the internet. i listened to the new shack and it ain't bad but not as good as some of their early stuff. my friend burned me the scott walker box set that came out a while ago and it's good but i don't think they did a great job of picking songs...it coulda been a lot better. i *have* but have not *listened* to the new scott walker disc but i have it. the reviews make it sound like it might be a tough go. i actually liked "tilt" and can't believe that came out over 10 years ago...sheesh...
i did like a record called "lucky dog recordings" by former tindersticks singer, stuart staples. it's very good and quite similar to the tindersticks, as you may've expected. i loved the tindersticks...
here's the records i didn't like: the new my morning jacket pretty much stunk, IMO. it sounded like another band...a rare john leckie production i didn't like...i didn't like the rilo kiley album either. wayyyyy too slick and she *clearly* thinks her lyrics are wonderful. this is so irritating to me and why i am a bit concerned about the new scott walker record because he talks about how the music is there to support the lyrics. and the rilo kiley feels the same way. i really hate that...it should be a partnership with the music. sounds obvious but it ain't to some folks...the espers record ain't too bad for a nu-folk record but it ain't as interesting as the banhart record...that may be do the interesting production on the banhart record by thom monahan...i've only ever met thom once when he was in a band called monsterland, and i met them because they had the same lawyer as i did, mr. matthew kaplan. and he also produced the last chamber strings record. i hope to meet him one day...he's good...
speaking of the chamber strings, i talked to kevin via e-mail and he's still trying to get his living situation together and re-emphasized to me that he really wants me to produce the next record. i told him i wanted to and hoped we could get started on it as soon as possible. watch this space, as they say...
i've been missing having a band lately. i would like to have one again but i can't imagine finding people in this area who would be into what i'm into. maybe i'm being too pessimistic?
btw, i'm really into politics and i thought i might share with you those sites in the "blogosphere" that i frequent: dailykos, firedoglake, talking points memo, the huffington post, and hullaboo. those are the best, IMO...
well, i guess that's all for now. i'd tell you i'll write more but you wouldn't believe me anyway...
Thursday, June 15, 2006
Tuesday, April 11, 2006
Deep Thoughts
man, i have GOT to have the lamest header's ever...
anyway, i have to say something about Gene Pitney who died last week. i wrote about how cool he was in a earlier post on this here blog, so i was really quite sad to hear of his passing. i was lucky enough to catch most of a show on XM that featured them playing all of the Gene Pitney Anthology with commentary and stories about the songs from Gene himself. the program originally aired back in August but they re-ran it on the occasion of his passing. it was great and it really struck me that while i dislike over-emoting in singers, i am sucker for really emotional singers like Gene who go just to the edge but never over it. he will be missed...
i was listening to the new Stereolab and Flaming Lips albums yesterday and i must say, on first blush, i'm pretty dissapointed in both of them. the Stereolab is almost by the numbers it seems, which is too bad as i have enjoyed the last couple of records. and the Flaming Lips just sounds...half-baked and i mean that in all ways, really.
it's finally been warm here the last few days. today it was almost 70 degrees! yay! it's about damn time. anyway, that means i can begin joggin again. i have been on a diet since the new year and have almost lost 30lbs so far. and yes, that means i look less like Brian Wilson at his mid-70's worst than ever before!
ok, well that's all for now. i am tired and i want to go to bed...hey! didn't Morrissey say that once???
ciao,
kevin
anyway, i have to say something about Gene Pitney who died last week. i wrote about how cool he was in a earlier post on this here blog, so i was really quite sad to hear of his passing. i was lucky enough to catch most of a show on XM that featured them playing all of the Gene Pitney Anthology with commentary and stories about the songs from Gene himself. the program originally aired back in August but they re-ran it on the occasion of his passing. it was great and it really struck me that while i dislike over-emoting in singers, i am sucker for really emotional singers like Gene who go just to the edge but never over it. he will be missed...
i was listening to the new Stereolab and Flaming Lips albums yesterday and i must say, on first blush, i'm pretty dissapointed in both of them. the Stereolab is almost by the numbers it seems, which is too bad as i have enjoyed the last couple of records. and the Flaming Lips just sounds...half-baked and i mean that in all ways, really.
it's finally been warm here the last few days. today it was almost 70 degrees! yay! it's about damn time. anyway, that means i can begin joggin again. i have been on a diet since the new year and have almost lost 30lbs so far. and yes, that means i look less like Brian Wilson at his mid-70's worst than ever before!
ok, well that's all for now. i am tired and i want to go to bed...hey! didn't Morrissey say that once???
ciao,
kevin
Friday, April 07, 2006
Oh, the times they are a changin'
i know, i know, i haven't done any entries in over a month. i apologize to the 10 people who might read this blog but i have been busy doing other stuff but who hasn't, right? a pretty crappy excuse all the way around...
so, i've been working a LOT on the studio trying to get it up and running. my studio has been in a constant flux since i moved here in the new place 4 or so years ago. i have changed and remodelled rooms in the studio almost constantly since i moved and have added gear all along as well. it's been a bit of a struggle, really, because i've had to record as all this other stuff is goin' on. case in point was this past saturday when Amy Rigby, who now lives in cleveland, came down to record a song for a Clash tribute album. she brought along her very cool daughter, Hazel, along to play bass and Tin Huey/Waitresses all-around genius dude, Chris Butler to play drums. now, Chris is awesome and as we were getting his drums all set up and mic'ed he was blowing our minds with a story about how he got to spend 4 hours on a plane sitting next to, and talking to, Hal Blaine!!! well, needless to say i was awe-struck and wished we could've talked more but there was work to be done...so, anyway, getting back to my original point. the studio was half done, so of course, the headphones were only working in mono, so poor Chris had to drum with that and the guitar amp was acting up right from the start but we got that sorted out but i still wasn't thrilled with the sound we got, but these things happen. it was kind of a quick session, so i had to kinda do it all on the fly. but overall it sounds good. very rock n roll...the best thing was Chris brought along his Neumann U47 mic. the greatest mic in the history of man. it sounded good when we used it as distant mic on the guitar amp and really shined in figure-8 mode on backing vocals going through my Helios vintage mic-pre but when it came to doing Amy's lead vocals, we were getting too much of a "boxy" tone. i was able to improve it a bit with the eq but in the end we tried a vintage $21 and then settled on another 60's-era mic, a Shure 545 (which some of you may know was actually a favorite vocal mic of Brian Wilson's. in fact, i'm pretty sure Mark Linett mentioned in an interview that they used it on the new "Smile" album) and that worked out well. so, the $10, 000 mic lost out to the $100 mic but that happens...
also continuing work on the Orange Cake Mix album. it's going very well. Jim and i are pretty kindred spirits musically, so it's been really fun to comke up with stuff for his songs. his stuff is so varied as well, so it's been keeping me on my toes to come up with new sounds and not keep repeating the same sounds. though i do have a few "pet sounds," like Mellotron strings, ARP and Moog synths, etc.
i've also continued to work on songs of my own. April March was in the studio here last week as well, picking up some demos of hers we recorded a few months ago and also taking about 9 songs that i have written to see if she likes any of them for possible use for her next album. she brought along her oldest son, Lucian along and it turns out, April tells me, that Lucian is a HUGE Witch Hazel Sound fan! well, actually a fan of our last album. April says he plays it all the time and has fun picking out the different instrument sounds. he also calls me "Mr. Witch Hazel," which it too cute...
i am also going to be doing a remix for a french band called Signal Electrique. they are a really eclectic dance/electronica group whom i met through my old french label. i am really excited about the track i am remixing and i will give you more details about when it will be released, etc. soon...
i was told that Kevin Junior of the Chamber Strings in down in New Orleans now. he's really depressed as he's good friend Nikki Sudden just died. i have tried to contact Kevin through his myspace page but he has not responded as of yet. he has one of the demos we did here at the Endless Summer Institute of Sound last year on his myspace page if any of you would like to hear it. keep in mind it's a demo but it does have some nice sloppy rock n roll charm to it...
ok, that's all for now but i promise to write more soon. more politics next time maybe???
cheers,
kevin
so, i've been working a LOT on the studio trying to get it up and running. my studio has been in a constant flux since i moved here in the new place 4 or so years ago. i have changed and remodelled rooms in the studio almost constantly since i moved and have added gear all along as well. it's been a bit of a struggle, really, because i've had to record as all this other stuff is goin' on. case in point was this past saturday when Amy Rigby, who now lives in cleveland, came down to record a song for a Clash tribute album. she brought along her very cool daughter, Hazel, along to play bass and Tin Huey/Waitresses all-around genius dude, Chris Butler to play drums. now, Chris is awesome and as we were getting his drums all set up and mic'ed he was blowing our minds with a story about how he got to spend 4 hours on a plane sitting next to, and talking to, Hal Blaine!!! well, needless to say i was awe-struck and wished we could've talked more but there was work to be done...so, anyway, getting back to my original point. the studio was half done, so of course, the headphones were only working in mono, so poor Chris had to drum with that and the guitar amp was acting up right from the start but we got that sorted out but i still wasn't thrilled with the sound we got, but these things happen. it was kind of a quick session, so i had to kinda do it all on the fly. but overall it sounds good. very rock n roll...the best thing was Chris brought along his Neumann U47 mic. the greatest mic in the history of man. it sounded good when we used it as distant mic on the guitar amp and really shined in figure-8 mode on backing vocals going through my Helios vintage mic-pre but when it came to doing Amy's lead vocals, we were getting too much of a "boxy" tone. i was able to improve it a bit with the eq but in the end we tried a vintage $21 and then settled on another 60's-era mic, a Shure 545 (which some of you may know was actually a favorite vocal mic of Brian Wilson's. in fact, i'm pretty sure Mark Linett mentioned in an interview that they used it on the new "Smile" album) and that worked out well. so, the $10, 000 mic lost out to the $100 mic but that happens...
also continuing work on the Orange Cake Mix album. it's going very well. Jim and i are pretty kindred spirits musically, so it's been really fun to comke up with stuff for his songs. his stuff is so varied as well, so it's been keeping me on my toes to come up with new sounds and not keep repeating the same sounds. though i do have a few "pet sounds," like Mellotron strings, ARP and Moog synths, etc.
i've also continued to work on songs of my own. April March was in the studio here last week as well, picking up some demos of hers we recorded a few months ago and also taking about 9 songs that i have written to see if she likes any of them for possible use for her next album. she brought along her oldest son, Lucian along and it turns out, April tells me, that Lucian is a HUGE Witch Hazel Sound fan! well, actually a fan of our last album. April says he plays it all the time and has fun picking out the different instrument sounds. he also calls me "Mr. Witch Hazel," which it too cute...
i am also going to be doing a remix for a french band called Signal Electrique. they are a really eclectic dance/electronica group whom i met through my old french label. i am really excited about the track i am remixing and i will give you more details about when it will be released, etc. soon...
i was told that Kevin Junior of the Chamber Strings in down in New Orleans now. he's really depressed as he's good friend Nikki Sudden just died. i have tried to contact Kevin through his myspace page but he has not responded as of yet. he has one of the demos we did here at the Endless Summer Institute of Sound last year on his myspace page if any of you would like to hear it. keep in mind it's a demo but it does have some nice sloppy rock n roll charm to it...
ok, that's all for now but i promise to write more soon. more politics next time maybe???
cheers,
kevin
Friday, January 27, 2006
BAD NEWS AND WINTER BLUES
this is starting to be the most depressing blog out there, eh? what with headers like this on! hehehe...
the bad news is rather just MORE bad news in relation to my chosen profession, music. check this out from Yahoo.
now, i would argue- and *have* been to any poor schmuck who, say, gets caught in a elevator with me or whatever- that music has been devalued in america for sometime. really for about 30 years or so. how, you may ask? well, by having music EVERYWHERE ALL THE TIME, people naturally won't value something they get all the time. i mean, i'll be in some shitty store and over the bad p.a. will come some great song say like Nilsson's "everybody's talking." now, this is one of the best songs of all-time, really. and so poignant! but it loses all of it value to people cuz they've heard it a thousand times thanks to oldies stations and
and dept. stores, etc. i KNOW nobody really cares about his kind of stuff but me, but hell, that's what a personal blog is for, right?
by the way, i am thrilled the Pittsburgh Steelers are in the super bowl because i have been a fan since i was 6 years old and i love their running back, Jerome Bettis because he went to notre dame, my favorite college football team for all my life, and because he's such a cool guy. i hope they get "one for the thumb" for Jerome.
nothing much to report on the music front...except that i will soon have an announcement to let people know that soon ALL my songs will be on iTunes. it will soon be the ONLY place to get "Landlocked"as it's been out-of-print for a few years now and i'm not sure when it's gonna be re-issued at this point.
cheers,
kevin
the bad news is rather just MORE bad news in relation to my chosen profession, music. check this out from Yahoo.
now, i would argue- and *have* been to any poor schmuck who, say, gets caught in a elevator with me or whatever- that music has been devalued in america for sometime. really for about 30 years or so. how, you may ask? well, by having music EVERYWHERE ALL THE TIME, people naturally won't value something they get all the time. i mean, i'll be in some shitty store and over the bad p.a. will come some great song say like Nilsson's "everybody's talking." now, this is one of the best songs of all-time, really. and so poignant! but it loses all of it value to people cuz they've heard it a thousand times thanks to oldies stations and
and dept. stores, etc. i KNOW nobody really cares about his kind of stuff but me, but hell, that's what a personal blog is for, right?
by the way, i am thrilled the Pittsburgh Steelers are in the super bowl because i have been a fan since i was 6 years old and i love their running back, Jerome Bettis because he went to notre dame, my favorite college football team for all my life, and because he's such a cool guy. i hope they get "one for the thumb" for Jerome.
nothing much to report on the music front...except that i will soon have an announcement to let people know that soon ALL my songs will be on iTunes. it will soon be the ONLY place to get "Landlocked"as it's been out-of-print for a few years now and i'm not sure when it's gonna be re-issued at this point.
cheers,
kevin
Monday, January 09, 2006
new year, same old crap...
Ha! how's that for a header title? anyway, i hope everybody had a great holiday time (take that, Bill O'Reilly) and happy new year to y'all...
here's a interesting link to my friend Mattias from sweden's website. he is a super talented musician and producer who has his own studio in Sweden and he has GREAT gear like 2 or 3 Mellotrons and an Optigan and it's rarer cousin, the Orchestron and here is great link to a movie of him playing with what is probably the world's first drum machine, the Chamberlin Rhythm-mate
Mattias is in a few bands but i first learned of him via his band, Nanook of the North. Mattias sent me a cd-r of this album and, pretty much unlike anything else i've ever had sent to me, it was great! so, i forwarded it on to Parasol records and they flipped and put it out. i was happy to help bring them together. i actually did something like that once before when back in the mid-90's i got to know Liam Hayes a.k.a. Plush and helped him hook up with Flydaddy records for his single "No Education/Soaring and Boring." the downside is i lost contact with him in, like, '98 and haven't talked to him since. he ended up going back to drag city after that single anyway...
so, everybody and their brother does a "Best Of..." list this time every year but since i can't remember much about what i listened to new this year, i'll just say for now that i really liked MOST of these albums last year:
SFA- "Love Kraft"
Sufijan Stevens- "Illinoize"
Devandra Barnhart - "Cripple Crow"
Broadcast - "Tender Buttons"
Paul McCartney - "Chaos and Creation in the Backyard"
and no, i haven't hear the new Burt Bachrach record yet...i'll let ya know...
here's a interesting link to my friend Mattias from sweden's website. he is a super talented musician and producer who has his own studio in Sweden and he has GREAT gear like 2 or 3 Mellotrons and an Optigan and it's rarer cousin, the Orchestron and here is great link to a movie of him playing with what is probably the world's first drum machine, the Chamberlin Rhythm-mate
Mattias is in a few bands but i first learned of him via his band, Nanook of the North. Mattias sent me a cd-r of this album and, pretty much unlike anything else i've ever had sent to me, it was great! so, i forwarded it on to Parasol records and they flipped and put it out. i was happy to help bring them together. i actually did something like that once before when back in the mid-90's i got to know Liam Hayes a.k.a. Plush and helped him hook up with Flydaddy records for his single "No Education/Soaring and Boring." the downside is i lost contact with him in, like, '98 and haven't talked to him since. he ended up going back to drag city after that single anyway...
so, everybody and their brother does a "Best Of..." list this time every year but since i can't remember much about what i listened to new this year, i'll just say for now that i really liked MOST of these albums last year:
SFA- "Love Kraft"
Sufijan Stevens- "Illinoize"
Devandra Barnhart - "Cripple Crow"
Broadcast - "Tender Buttons"
Paul McCartney - "Chaos and Creation in the Backyard"
and no, i haven't hear the new Burt Bachrach record yet...i'll let ya know...
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