What Did You Work On Today? 1-10-05

[djgout]

today i worked more of rocking out on the banjo. i'm the banjo best....well i like to think so. i also got my brother to show me how to use his new wire-feed welder so i can now make some sculptures i started in 5th grade more permanent. no more balancing pieces of scrap metal on top of each other, now i can stick them together with electricity!!!!!

-justin

[GLEA]

Put together a trial running order for our new album. This was the first time I'd heard all the songs (three still need a proper mix) with the short "interludes" we have all done. It's suppose to be a double album, but what do you do on a cd? The idea works, so now we just need to finish up one song, overdubs are coming from a pal in Ohio.

With the end in sight, I sat down today and worked on the liner notes. I wanted to detail all the performances. There are a couple of guests, and everyone in the band played a lot of different things, and we all sang.

I packed up a few copies to send to participants in London, Seattle and Australia, as well as one to the chap who's doing the finish work on my cover design. He's a muso, so it's good if he has it in his head while working on the details.

Soon as that was done, I started work on an ad for the new release. It's about two months away, so the ad copy has to be ready in a week. I only got about half of it done.

Got a call from Brian Roth concerning the problems with my SDE3000. He seemed optimistic that he could bring it back to life. I thought it was Bug returning my call, so I completely confused him at first.

Bug did call later and got me pointed in the right direction to make payments to Roy Loney! I have to sort out a couple of statements so I can pay him for his sales too. Jeez, who thought we'd see a release go into the black? Me, that's why I started the damn label. Also got a great review of Roy's album from Pop Culture Press. I've just scanned it and sent it out to SF. Got a note from esteemed writer and old pal Jud Cost, that he's set up to interview Roy for Bucketful Of Brains, the UK 'zine. All this and the promise of money has put Loney in a good mood.

I finally had a couple of minutes to set up for the next mix. This one should be easy... just us playing live with a couple of overdubs. I just have to see if I can recreate the efx I had on the rough. No I never take notes....

Most of my e-bay auction wrapped up. I only sold three of the six items, but did ok... I'll relist the duds and add a few more things.... Slowly clearing out the junk I don't need, and making some room in the racks

Cooked dinner and after a quick glance here, I'm off to bed.

[Piotr]

My prospective commercial landlord offered me a lease for my pet food store in Forest Heights, here in NW Portland. Now I have to incorporate my S-Corp, the "Bark Market," as well as secure a commercial retail loan through the SBA's lender program. Things seem to be going pretty smoothly so far...

Once I get into business I intend to offer a discount to any pet owners in Portland who are TapeOpers, so get ready folks.

[Shawn Simmons]

Hey walnut, you gonna sell chicks at that pet store? One can never have enough chicks. What a pig I am!

Today, went to The Apple Store to buy a new power adapter for my laptop cause they keep breaking on me. Apple makes some shoddy shit. This is the third one I've had to buy. Fuck.

Then, found some cool books at Barnes and Noble. Bargain bins baby!

Then, went to my studio to work on a really good rough mix for a friend. I ended up adding two additional guitar tracks. One clean part and one slide part thru my Orban spring reverb. Boiiiinnnngg! Then I mixed that bitch. I'm doing two songs for a friend without letting him hear them until I'm done. He laid down an acoustic guitar and vox and I've been adding everything else with the help of some session players and another good friend of mine. I'm going to play the songs for my friend this weekend. I hope he likes them.

Booked a few sessions with some clients. Work! Yippee!

shawn

[StivBatorsWreckedMyCar]

Got my Magnatone 280 back from the shop, new speakers & tubes and a whole going over! Sounds great! Played it all night & pissed off my girlfriend who wanted to watch TV together on the couch.

[Antero]

I wrote a song! Or, like, 80% of a song. Took something I was working on, spun it a little, finally got past my mental reservations about writing lyrics and wrote some that imntbho don't suck butt, and I'm putting the whole thing together. Got to tweak the chorus lyric slightly, formalize an easy verse, maybe write a little bridge (more likely I'll leave that till I have a chance to talk to my bandmate), and that's about it.

I'm pretty pumped.

[Terlet Maw]

Two new songs. Then my drummer came over and we jammed for a couple of hours over pizza and beer. Just practice jams, nothing too intense. We're old.

[I'm Painting Again]

Day job 8am-4pm Recorded a good artsy screamo band 4pm-11pm..fell asleep real fast after that..

[Rigsby]

Worked more on my latest piece, mostly editing violin and percussion parts. I'm really excited about how this one's going to turn out, especially with all the contributions i'm getting from musicians i know and people from this board.

Played guitar for about a half hour and came up with a cool new chord progression to be used hopefuly in a new band im trying to put together.

Mike

Thinking about you putting a group together and your thread about songwriting, now that you've started to tell us how you're starting to put it together, how about keeping a diary thread of your time starting this group off? I'd find it interesting reading for one.

Seconded?

[NewAndImprov]

Spent the morning working on a book proposal, which is actually recording-related. Will let you guys know more details if the publisher bites.

Also spent the day emailing the rounds with my band members deciding which studio to record our next CD at:

Studio A is amazing, a beautiful spot on top of a hill in the woods loaded with 5 of everything. Like 5 LA2A's, etc. Beautiful recording space custom built from the ground up. Neve board longer than most trailer houses. Day rate includes overnight stays in the attached apartment. Nominally $1000/day, ouch! They'll cut us a deal, but it'll completely devour our budget to track there. Still, we could do it.
Downsides: Engineer has only about 2 years experience. Expensive

Studio B: Funky place on a commercial strip. Great gear, but significantly less than Studio A. Engineer has credits on cool major-label discs we like. Amek board, good pres and comps, just not as many, but enough for us. Cool, low-key vibe, nice sounding tracking room.$350/day, which is much less panic-inducing.

So we're going to try to make a decision tonight...

Worked the afternoon at the record store, bought the new Necks double CD, 2 more hours of minimal piano trio yumminess.

[DryCounty]

If anyone is interested in how that Stapes test/freight train turned out, I've posted something in the MP3 forum:

http://messageboard.tapeop.com/viewtopi ... 398#235398

[misterock]

Day job.

Hockey Game.

Wrote a new song called Adrenaline:

Unedited, unrefined lyrics:

Adrenaline 1/11/2005


I feel my heart race
Blood pumping through my veins
You really want to beat me
I wont play your game

You play my game
Because this is mine
You play my game
All the time
You play my game
Make it right
You play my game
I win the fight

Tamper with insanity
Mental illness Ritalin
In this life
I know I?ll win
Hell people
I?m American
You live a life of sin

I?ve seen what?s right
I?ve seen what?s wrong
I?ve watched them all
Screw the likes of you
Take from the weak
Bow to the strong
Staying in the middle
Is for suckers and fools

Wake up
Make a difference today
Fight back
No matter what they say
Be Smart
We?re all prey
Live Strong
In the world today

[@?,*???&?]

Mixed this afternoon. Sent out mp3 refs. Gave a guitar lesson and then went immediately to teach the 'Basic recording Techniques' class at a local college. Today was the first class of the semester these days always yield timid looks of "Is this going to be tough?" Students quiver in their boots when they hear the class average on the exams...they get the genuine piss shivers. Like engineering records is easy!

Then I fucked off and went to the pub.

[splice]

I've been recording samples of sounds in my apartment for the past few days. January has been pretty slow for me, and with this rain (in L.A.) I have'nt been up for venturing out.

[dale116dot7]

drove to work, 6:45-7:45
day job, 8-5.
cut and shaped mesh for mic grill, 5-5:30
drove home, 5:30-7:30 (icy roads - normally it's a 1/2 hour drive)
tested a mic capsule I built last week. too much high end. poor pattern. need to tweak holes in backplate. 7:30 - 8:30
tested a modded 3630 compressor. much nicer now. 8:30 - 9:30
went to sleep