slowburn

Hounds Of Love by Kate Bush, 1985

Everything in the studio has been set back up and I’m starting work on “tea&toast”. This is going to be one of the weirder, more experimental songs and should be fun to record. I am not completely happy with the current song arrangement, so my plan is to try out several different effects treatments for each track, recording each of them first take, and then sort everything out during the mix. Hopefully this will also help give “tea” a unique character to distinguish it from the other songs.

I am definitely getting anxious to finish up the recording and get to mixing, partially because it should be fun and something different, but also just so I can finish up the project and move on to other things. Working on one song at a time has helped me not get sick of any of the individual songs as I record them, but I am definitely getting a little tired of the strict recording process and rules I’ve set up for this project and am eager to do something new. This desire to finish up will no doubt be a good thing once we start mixing, as it will hopefully help override some of my perfectionist tendencies and allow us to just finish things. For now, I’m getting a little antsy to write some new music that is anything other than ambient…

I’ve been playing with the UAD Neve channel strip plugin and really like it. When I did preliminary mixes of the other songs, I was using the UAD Neve 1073 and 1081 EQs on every track, and while it sounded good, when put all together it was just too much. This channel strip is a lot more subtle, and I think a good approach could be to use it as the go-to EQ for most of the tracks, and then sprinkle in the other EQs for a little flavor and character on the most important sounds. For now I’m just trying to get comfortable with it by experimenting with it as I record, but like I said I’m really liking it.

Interactive Music by Atom Heart, 1995

Blood On The Tracks by Bob Dylan, 1975

Quicksand Memory EP by Ulrich Schnauss, 2007

Vrs-Mbnt-Pcs 9598 II by Jochem Paap, 1999

Vrs-Mbnt-Pcs 9598 I by Jochem Paap, 1999

Yum… the new UAD version 4.7 also supposedly fixes the Mac sleep bug that has prevented me from using sleep on my studio computer for several years. As for the new plugins, the Neve channel strip is supposed to have a more clean, modern sound than the other Neve plugins, which could be useful. The LA3A is supposed to work like the LA2A with a sound that’s closer to the 1176. The LA2A is smooth, this one is a little more aggressive, both have a simple interface and are really easy to use.

I haven’t tried them yet, but UAD sent me a coupon that expires in a week so I’ll probably give them a shot sometime before then… even though I probably shouldn’t change anything at this point in the recording/mixing process. Oh well, I’m a weak man.

It’s All Around You by Tortoise, 2004

Incunabula by Autechre, 1994