Xmas singing

Christmas is coming (in case you hadn't noticed from all the adverts for perfume on the telly). We had a friendly invasion in the studio from staff and young people from Henfield Youth Club. Debbie Slaughter booked them all in to lay down vocals for their planned Christmas CD. It was great fun as we were all treated to classics such as Santa Baby, Merry Xmas (otherwise known as the Shakin' Stevens one), Winter Wonderland etc, etc.

I was great fun to work with such a large group, although it's difficult to record 20 people singing when you have only 4 sets of headphones! We had the usual mixture of supreme self confidence through to quivering terror at the idea of singing, and a few hysterical giggles thrown in.

I hope you all have a great Xmas and manage to sell a sackload of your CDs on behalf of the Youth Club.

Busy Busy...

After a couple of quiet weeks the last few days have been really busy.

Ben Woodward popped in to master a track to get it radio ready. He was interviewed and had his song played on amazing FM. You can hear it at www.myspace.com/thestablestudio and you can hear more of Ben's tracks on his own page (look up "twelvestring").

We also ran some auditions for the upcoming Hurst Festival. We agreed to help find a band to support "The Gentleman's Club", a Brighton band who are headlining on 19th Sept 09 at the Hurst Social club. Well done to Syd/Matt/Owen who were selected, and bad luck to those who weren't.

Finally...I am pleased to be recording the Tall Ships. Having met them several years ago, the guys are back from living in Falmouth and have stepped up their level of performance and songwriting. So far we have the drums for four songs. Bass this week, and hopefully we'll be mixing by late September. Keep a look out for these guys...they have a bright future.

Biggus Billus

Bill Clarke is a well known personality on the local music scene. He first became known to us through his energy and stage presence as a vocalist for a heavy metal band. Based in Hurstpierpoint, Bill is now a transformed musician known "largely" for his funky bass playing and as band leader of the excellent Motown function band: "No Town Like Motown".

I caught up with Bill after another successful showcase gig at the Hassocks last weekend and posed him a few questions:

What is your favourite Motown track?

Such a difficult question as there are so many! Although my favourite motown track would have to be "I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch)" by the four tops because it's such a perfectly simple, cheesy song. the thing that really stands out are the vocals, some of the happiest lyrics sung in a way that you actually believe the singer is so completely infatuated with his love: "Sugar Pie Honey Bunch, you know I love you, I can't help myself, I love you and nobody else". No matter how bad a mood i'm ever in if I hear the bass and keys leading in to this song, I know what's coming and I'm immediately transformed into the happiest man alive. (Anyone who has watched Bill play live will know he is not exaggerating about this...the man loves to groove...J).

How do you manage the politics and logistics of a nine piece band?

It's incredibly difficult to manage the politics and logistics of a 9 or 10 piece band, the main thing that is needed are band members that are enthusiastic, reliable, talented, communicative and generally great people to spend time with. I consider myself very lucky to have members who enjoy shared responsibility, different people have different roles within the band such as Alex Dunford on Tenor Sax is in charge of the brass section and arranges any adaptations or extra harmonies on top of the brass transcriptions, Jennie Taylor one of the female vocalists is in charge of art and design for the band. Everyone have roles within the band that make my work a lot easier.

Why did you choose to play the bass? Was it because it has less strings?

No! I chose to play the bass guitar because i've always had a fascination with the deeper, darker undertones from my days of being a huge metal fan. The amount of tones and strange frequencies that can be applied to the bass guitar along with all the different techniques applicable to the instrument have given me a lifetime of joy and experimentation. The bass guitar is the instrument that hold the band together and the groove. If the bass goes wrong the whole song falls apart. Also when I listened to Pino Palladino's playing of "Get Here" by Oleta Adams I found the endless possibilities for the expression of emotion in the instrument and how the smallest amount of vibrato in the right place can bring out the riht emotions and express the message and interpretation of a song. Most of all I need to tell every bassist out there to get to know James Jamerson's work as much as possible. He was the first motown bassist and he was nothing short of a genius as every famous bassist would tell you. To find out more I advise you get "Standing in the Shadows of Motown" Book and DVD. You will never regret it.

Thanks Bill...If you haven't seen "No Town Like Motown" you should definitely check them out. Go to www.notownlikemotown.com or find them on popular social networking sites (you know which ones).

I'll post more from Bill next time I catch one of their gigs...which I can pretty much guarantee will be in the in near future.

Drumming it in to young people...

The Stable Studio provided some drumming lessons for young people during August.


Alex from Lindfield is an advanced drummer, at the age of 16, and gave up his time to pass on new skills to young people from Hassocks and Burgess Hill.

We started off on Djembe drums (single African drums), as a warm up and to get to know members of the group. We then split up into beginners and intermediates. Both groups learnt paradiddles and fills, as well as drumming along to backing tracks and click tracks.

All who attended the first session continued the full course (except Justin who went to Australia…are we really that bad!?!).
Anyone out there interested in drumming and percussion, get in touch!

(Pictured are Alex and Louis)

Summer update

Dear folks, this is what we have been up to over the past few weeks:

I have invested in some great percussion gear which will allow us to run some drumming workshops. I have 3 Djembe drums and a cajon to add to our congas/bongos and other percussion. Watch this space or get in touch for more details: thestablestudio@yahoo.co.uk

We spent three days at the South of England Show, Ardingly. Again a great time was had by all with great performances by young people, along with workshops for graffiti skills, golf, football and more. The weather was warm and dry, and the Crocs stand round the corner did good business with all the youth workers.

We are planning a "Mid-Sussex got Talent" competition (ripping off who...no of course not!). There will be heats at youth centres and a final at Clair Hall Haywards Heath in October. Contact the Beacon Centre, Hassocks for more info.

We looking at a possible charity gig in the summer, this will hopefully be outside. Watch this space...

The Open Interview...interview

In order to give a bit of in depth news about some of the bands that use the Stable Studio, this week I popped in to meet "The Open Interview" as they were finishing their practise. They were up for a bit of banter so I fired some random questions at them to test their intellect and gain an insight to what you may find in their fridge.

Where does the name "The Open Interview" arise from?
Matt: Well to be honest we picked three random words, well two really 'cos you can't count "The" can you? [I don't know Matt, it is a word last time I checked.] Anyway, tho it started out a bit randomly we came to realise that it was quite apt to us, as an open interview is one where you can't answer yes or no, and we are a band which doesn't always look for the easy answers.

What music are you listening to at the moment?

Syd: Incubus.

Owen: Velvet revolver.

Matt: Taking Back Sunday and Brand New.

How do they influence your sound?

Syd: I write most of the music so we use a lot of timing changes.

Owen: My drumming is pretty much the same as Velvet Revolver.

Matt: I write all the lyrics.

Owen: I write at least half...

Matt: Both those bands write lyrically, their words are well thought out and crucial to the song.

What is you favorite cheese?

Matt: Gouda.

Jez: What about Brie?

Syd: Brie is quite screamy, so probably a mature cheddar from one of the best farms.

Owen: What's the one with a church on?

Jez: Cathedral City?

Owen: Yes that'll do.

Sam: Edam probably.

[I really think you guys need to push the envelope a bit, go and try some Dolcelatte ].

Who is the laziest band member?

[Matt points to Syd, Syd points to Owen.]

Matt: Syd doesn't get up until the afternoon. [Syd throws a wobbly and says he's not the laziest, Owen is too lazy to argue and gets voted the laziest].

Where do you see the band in three years time?

Owen: Here.

Syd: The most famous band in the world.

Matt: Hopefully we'll have a van and be playing gigs further afield, not just Brighton. [I like it Matt, ambitious and practical].

Anyhow time is short as these guys do work pretty hard [plus Owen is usually late], so I leave them to practise a bit more.

**Aug 09. This band have changed their name (again), they are now to be found under the name "Beezart" from Beethoven/Mozart. Nothing like "modern music" eh lads?**

Drum and Bass

On Wednesday evening we started recording the mixes of our regular DJs: Fraiser, Simon, Sam plus Paul the Youth Worker. We ended up with a 40 minute mix of them each playing a short set. Recorded to Logic Pro then remastered onto CD. We are looking to expand the skills of this group by utilising Logic to match the beats and gradually create our own tunes by dragging in loops and also using software and hardware synths to allow more individual expression, rather than it sounding like a demo for Apple Loops!

We are looking to release this first recording as a podcast, and once compositions are up to standard, get some vinyls pressed.

Exciting times!

This weekend we are running a music technology workshop (providing I can find a band who are looking for a free recording), and in the evening there is a young band who are doing a recording courtesy of one of the dads who are paying as one of them is having a birthday! Lucky them.

Late evening may pop down to Belushi's in Brighton where Bill's Motown band are playing at 10.30pm. Well worth a visit...

Open All Hours (and all weathers)

This is the snowiest we have been in Sussex since I was a kid! I braved into work on Monday and got the Berrymeister to take this shot of me in front of the studio.

I have noticed online that there is a "Stables Studio" in Eastbourne which is interesting, but they don't have pics up so I'm none the wiser as to whether they are a decent set up or not.

I have trialed a new mastering set-up method which is to record the mix direct from the studio G5 mac via the TC Electronic Finalizer, then the Drawmer 1969 compressor (or vice versa, sometimes I use the Drawmer first) back into Logic pro on my Macbook pro. This chain gives a professional result and also the ability to dirty recordings up a bit. I worked on Pecker demo which I play bass on, you can hear it on: www.myspace.com/peckergroup , tho at the moment he has earlier version up.

Even when I master it to full volume I still find that on myspace recordings don't sound as loud as I'd like, perhaps this is when it gets converted to mp3.

I am looking forward to recording the Ethnics soon, and will get a chance to use the new Allen and Heath ZED 16R desk....

Thanks for reading.

Today/Pecker/engineering and playing

Fun day at the studio. Matt and Syd are rehearsing with us, with their drummer Owen and Sam on keys. They are really developing their sound. I love watching people who still understand the joy of being in a band and are open to new ways of working together. They are aiming to promote a gig, with them headlining, on 30th Jan at the Beacon Centre.

The next serious recordings planned are firstly with Mike (AKA Pecker) and then possibly with Ben Woodward, or The Ethnics.

Pecker I have known for a good few years as he occasionally volunteers in the youth club (although he soon twigged it was a good way of getting cheap rehearsals!). I have always been impressed with his willingness to work with new people and try new things. Firstly he rehearsed with vocalists and did free shows at old people's homes (how cool is that?). More recently he has been playing with an African band and playing his own folky/surf/acoustic material with Adam on drums and me on Fender Jazz bass.

He has a voice which a professional vocal coach, Julie, thought reminded her of the talking heads...it's unique with a husky, mature quality. The songs are great, using Spanish and French (from basic phrase books!) along with some well crafted poetic lyrics in English. The guitar is as close as folky acoustic guitar playing ever can get to riff based songs. My favourite songs at the moment is the mellow "Mary Bosk", "Don't Put Your Arms Around Me", "Le Professeur" and "The Girl From Mount Lasser". You can find some of them on myspace, but it's worth waiting a couple of weeks as Mike is going to post the live takes from the pre-production sessions which will be of better quality.

Pecker I am convinced will record well through the new Allen and Heath desk, and particularly utilising the Drawmer 1969 compressor. I am not sure how well I'll adapt to the dual roles of playing bass and engineering the sessions, but it's something I did before when I was first discovering the joys of home recording. It certainly keeps you busy as you need to worry about getting the desk, compressor, mics and computer set up, then as soon as hit record you have to worry about playing the right notes, in the right order! If that's not enough then the next challenge is to try and put some musical expression into what you are doing. That's not as straightforward as it seems for someone like me, who's approach to playing an instrument is roughly equivalent to banging a nail into a piece of wood. Minimum complication, the less moving parts the less can go wrong...get the picture? I'm not someone blessed with finesse when it comes to guitar, the best written review I ever got was in the local paper: "well crafted songs delivered with vim and vigor" that just about sums me up. This time the songs are rather more crafted as they were written by someone else, so that bodes well.

Equipment...

I went to collect my new mixing desk from TSProfessional today. Guess what...It wasn't ready. I was so frustrated. That is blinking typical, I tend to get so excited when I am get to get my hands on some new gear. Then get disappointed when it doesn't work.

This time it is only a minor snag and the equipment should be with me by the end of the week.

Introduction

Thanks for taking the time to read my first post. I am a qualified Youth and Community Worker, and studio/live sound engineer. I am based in Hassocks, near Brighton

I am passionate about music and have started playing bass in a band this year. I have purchased some gear to record some high quality stuff this year. I want to work with local musicians to realize their dreams and sell some mp3s on the internet. I am currently looking at the indiestore.com and tunecore.com, the first of these sells your music and takes a percentage and the second acts as a middleman and puts your music on itunes/amazon for a flat fee.

Week to week I manage bookings and equipment at "The Stable", and also look to create affordable opportunities for young people to experience new ways of making music.

I am currently studying for a BA Hons in Learning and Development at Brighton University.

My next update will be to tell you about my new equipment:

Allen and Heath ZED 16 firewire desk (analogue mixer that links to computer)

I am planning to buy a Drawmer 1969 valve compressor, to improve the front end of the recordings.

I will tell you more about the musicians I am currently working with.