Friday, January 23, 2015

Pyrite Parachute's One Week EP is Now Available!



"Music without Borders"


Jason and I had the opportunity to contribute to a great new EP by an amazing Birmingham band: the One Week EP by Pyrite Parachute. In their own words, Pyrite Parachute embraces "music without boundaries," a sound that includes "jazz, blues, rock and country." You can find the EP here and read the release announcement here.

Our involvement came about when Keith Weber, PP's drummer, asked me to fill in on bass for the Cuko Rakko Music and Arts Festival in spring 2014. We had a great time, and the band asked if I could also contribute bass to a new EP. Excited about the opportunity, I also volunteered to mix and master. Recording and post-production lasted through the summer of 2014.

Everything Live


If you've read our blog, you've noticed that Under the Rose recording projects aren't terribly spontaneous. We plan everything out for months ahead of time, use click tracks and drum replacement (for more distinct tones, not for "cheating"), and generally record a lot of takes (sometimes 10 or more) of each instrument to get the most precise sounds we can.

Pyrite Parachute embodies the opposite philosophy. As Keith said, "I think the most important thing is that we didn't try to emulate a big commercial studio. We didn't obsess to a click track or the things that we didn’t do quite perfectly. We recorded live and kept the best take. Playing off each other is integral to our sound and I think that energy and enthusiasm shows in the final product."

The entire recording was done in a garage. Jason helped get the overhead mic placement just right for the drum kit. Bass, keys, and even guitars were recorded directly, eliminating noise and bleedthrough. (Incredibly, the guitar tones were actually crafted using digital pedals!) The only overlays were some Hammond M111 parts, a few other keys parts, a few of my bass parts, and some vocal parts.

I mixed/mastered the tracks at home on my Sony MDR-7506 headphones. And in fact, I've never had an easier time mixing a project. The tones were clean. These musicians know how to complement each other, and the instruments never compete for space. After a little EQ, some compression, and a bit of reverb, the EP was pretty much done.

Upcoming Show!


We are thrilled to be playing with Pyrite Parachute at the Nick on March 21. More news soon!

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