Seattle

Ryan:
It's interesting to look back at the year and dig up old recordings of tracks you worked on early in the process. We had been playing this new track "Seattle" live for about a year now and have had some great response. This along with "New York", we knew we had to get them recorded. So we hooked up with Mike Scarano and laid them down one afternoon. Everything seriously went over like butter that day. Was an amazing experience!

Well, we produced it for about a week, and I tweaked with the EQ and layering for a few more weeks and put it to rest. Now after all the new recordings and excitement of the Ulrich news, I came back to this song as I always felt it was an amazing tune. Well, let me say, we have a pretty kick ass track so far! We even turned on my old temp vox (it was originally an instrumental tune) and they fit in perfecto. Or at least that's how it sounds like tonight (change mind so often due to mass loads of ADD). Anyways, I'm really excited about it and can't wait to have a final version to spread your way. May just have to release this as a single with the Ulrich tune. . .

"The Mid Decembers" on Xmas

Ryan:
So I of course was gonna try to take the night off and chill after the overload of emotional holiday parties, and as I sat, reflected, and tried to pick up the game controller for some zombie eyed fun, the second verse came to me on this latest track and I had to record it in. The song is near completion, and a great song for those mid december blues.

the lyrics at this stage:

One in Ten
Falls again
Pouring Rain
She's locked away inside your head

And it's cold
below
I know

it's time to focus farther
a positive dream
never losing matter
you concentrate to feel
She's locked away in your head

And it's cold
below
I know

And it's cold
below
I know

-

btw - mucho props to Jonas Tempel of Beatport for hooking me up with some amazingly influential gifts this year. The next one goes out to you!

tribes of the city

Ryan:
So a few quick updates:

First of all, have the next week and a half free to record! Looking forward to that. Been jamming a bunch with PEÑA's very own Mike Scarano, and getting the chops up to do some experimenting these following days.

Also, been talking with "tribes of the city", a band from latvia who is simply amazing. Same caliber as "the gathering", but with a twist. They have there own vibe for sure, and a few tracks of theirs, especially "a day in the city" are jaw droppingly good. Well, anyways, we are trying to coordinate possibly doing a tour with them in the baltic states. Would be amazing. Right now shooting for September. We'll see what happens. Make sure to watch their video above for "a day in the city"

Ulrich Schnauss got back in touch the other day and we are still good to go. He said he'd love to do the second track as well, but we'll for sure see if he has enough time. He's in such demand these days, and rightfully so. His new album is absolutely gorgeous. If you haven't picked it up yet, please do so by clicking here.

vox this eve

Ryan:
Wrote a new batch of winter blues vox this eve to go along with "The Mid Decembers". This time of year always seems to bring out the darker side. I'm not saying they are death metal or anything like that, just bleak. Have had a rough couple months and this was a good way of getting it out. I recorded them up in my attic/living area, and though I'm not feeling they are final, they are for sure a good start. Big thing for me is always trying to find that sound that compliments the overall vibe. I seem to mix on the fly quite a bit to find that element. I think with some fine tuning it could be a good track. but who knows, it may also become a scrapper, or a remix. The future is always so muddy.

Bass is funtown.

Ryan:
Enoc headed over for a good time of recording bass for "The Mid Decembers". We used live mics as well as a direct feed from the U5. Sounding super full and lush. Can't wait to figure out some vox for this one. Almost feel Ulrich could do some cool stuff to this as well. May have to hit him up!

"The Mid Decembers"

Ryan:
Woke up with a wicked hangover today and instead of spending the day sleeping, wound up writing a new song titled "The Mid Decembers" with Enoc. We jammed it out to a structure I put together right before he got here with some drum loops. So far so good!

Note: Really digging the new production style of using multiple amps on the same take. The room itself sounds stellar, and to get both the Fender Deluxe and Twin Reverb in the mix for sure gives it that much more depth.

btw - for those interested in knowing, I have been listening to Carcass - "Heartwork" a lot lately. Some of the best death metal production ever. Very inspiring!

"Breakup Breaker"

Ryan:
Opened up the project Erik started up on Sunday to start up some vocals. Have been needing to unload some stuff related to some of the changes going on. Plus it's freezing and for sure the time of year to record. Winter always seems to bring it out of us. Not sure why. But it does. . .

The song is currently titled "Breakup Breaker". Kinda an interesting play on words that goes along with a theme of confusion. Will be posting a sample for Erik to check out in a few.

Tracks sent to Ulrich

Ryan:
The tracks have been exported and sent off to Ulrich. Will move on to a new track this week and dream of what we'll get back from him every night.

Erik also brought over a track tonight we started recording acoustically. He had the full structure laid out, so I plugged in a mic and started getting it figured out. Could be a great track to dive into after "NeverChanger". We recorded it in the kitchen. My ceilings are very high and it really serves as a great space for recording the room. Very warm and open.

Max Eastley's Sound Sculptures

Enoc:
I came across Max Eastley thanks to my good friend and sound designer Cesar Davila. This is a clip from a documentary by Derek Bailey. Enjoy!

Recording 12/06/07

Enoc:

After a long time searching for new sounds and textures I think I've found what I was looking for.
I've been trying some new pedals and a new bass that I recently got. It is very interesting what's happening in the studio right now. I've recorded some new tracks for "NeverChanger" our new song. More details soon......

Bass for "NeverChanger"

Ryan:
We continued on with "NeverChanger", recording the bass & some crazy tweaking parts coming from Enoc's array of pedals. I've started exporting tracks for Ulrich and will be sending them his way shortly. It'll be like opening a xmas present when he sends the song back to us. Can't wait for that!

few days of rest

Ryan:
Resting up after some serious work on "NeverChanger". It's always good to give a song some time to sit. It's the only way you can truly be critical of your own material. Still can't wait to see what Ulrich has in store for it. We'll most likely move on to a new track soon to breathe new life into our progress, and to get some new inspirations in the mix.

Before, on "Avoiding the Consequences" we ran strong and hard, with stiff deadlines and relentless mixing and recording schedules. This time we're letting it grow organically without pushing too hard or too fast. Thus why we are running later than we initially planned. It's a new approach for me, and I'm doing the best I can to let it happen this way. I think every album should have it's own approach. I'm really starting to believe that you have to mix things up to truly give life to something new. We'll see what we give birth to this time around. . . .