This should be an interesting show. I don't publicize these as much as my acoustic shows (or the Athenaeum shows) simply because they're like loose cannons...not sure how they'll go off. But, it should be fun. Snug Harbor is in Charlotte, NC.

The Gee Bee's is a band featuring my two brothers, Jay and Joe, as well as myself. We're trying to keep most of the material exclusive (you won't hear any of my traditional songs at this show). I've contributed two songs to the mix.

I love my iPod. Don’t get me wrong. It’s amazing that one can walk around with tiny versions of his entire CD collection, all-accessible at the turn of a wheel. It’s neat. It’s convenient. But, its advent has murdered one of out greatest pastimes: the mix tape.

The Philips Company introduced the “compact cassette” to the United States in 1964. It was originally intended for data storage and mainly “dictation” recordings. As fidelity improved, so did the quality and capacity for cassette tapes.

I remember first seeing tapes in the early 80’s. My dad would bring home boxes of these things. Most of them contained meeting notes from work. On one, he somehow dubbed Sgt. Pepper and listened to occasionally on trips. It became a convenient way to listen to vinyl.

Eventually, cassettes were king. I think 1988 was the heyday, but I could be wrong. By ’88, the walkman (a portable, hi-fi cassette player) was just about everywhere. Tape players were common in cars. Even though the compact disc was available, the technology was still a bit too expensive for most.

I remember making my first mix tape in high school, right around the early 90’s. I wanted to listen to a bunch of music that my brother had brought home from college. I didn’t like all of it, just a few of the remix cuts…all of which was on vinyl. So, I made a mix tape. It consisted of a bunch of 12” remixes, some tracks from Jane’s Addiction’s Nothing’s Shocking, and a few live cuts that I had taken off of MTV’s 120 Minutes. I played it into the ground.

Up until CD’s were more prevalent, the mix tape was still quite an effort. Hi-speed dubbing decks were available, but those were only really good for copying entire programs of audio. In order to get the master tape in the right spot, you had to REW and FF quite a bit until you found the song break. It was OK for a few tunes, but filling a 90 minute tape by hand like this took true commitment.

The CD changed the mix tape. Since the CD allowed instant access to any track on an audio program, there was no waiting to cue it up. And, if you wanted to have three or four tracks in a row from the same CD on a mix tape, you could program your CD player to play those songs in a particular order. Bam, instant mix.

With the ease of digital access, the mix tape became less of an archiving tool and more of a means of expression. They were particularly helpful if I wanted to ask someone out. The tape never sealed the deal, but it did set the mood. A given selection of songs can tell someone how you feel.

The only thing better than making a mix tape is receiving a mix tape. I learned quickly that if you’ve had a great first date with a young lady and she slips a mix tape under your dorm room door the next day, you might want to ask her out again. And, if that mix tape has “Moondance” by Van Morrison on it, you really need to stop what you’re doing, pick up the phone, and ask her out again right there. When dealing with tapes, it’s also good to remember that in the early 90’s cell phones were, at best, car phones. You’d need to use a land line to score a second date.

With a good work flow, you could have a mix tape making process down to about two hours. It took a little planning, but it was definitely possible.

Something about the instantaneousness of iTunes playlists makes the current state of mixology not so romantic. Select. Drag. Drop. Play. Yawn.

Playlists are cavernous. However much data can fit on the iPod is how long they can be. Gone is the 90 minute limit. Sure, you can smart playlist a 90 minute limit, but what’s the fun in that.

Every month, I make a new playlist for my iPod. It’s the equivalent of changing out a 20 disc changer, I guess. I’ll usually select whole albums from my favorite artists. Then, I’ll select some featured tracks that I might enjoy. All in all the list ends up being at least a day long. I do enjoy listening to my flavors-of-the-month. But, something is certainly lost in translation. There’s very little focus to the collection.

I do appreciate the newer iPod’s capacity for album artwork. But, the other half of the fun with mix tapes was the packaging. I used to make all kinds of track list inserts for these things, depending on the occasion. Rarely was the supplied card stock used.

Most of the time, when stereo cassette decks, VCR decks, and televisions were connected to the same home stereo amplifier/unit, interesting segues could be inserted into the common mix tape play out. After three or four songs, it wouldn’t be hard to dub in some of Yoda’s wisdom, or some of HAL’s laments. That always made for an interesting listening experience.

Now-a-days, because the playlists are also visual on the iPod, it often doesn’t make sense to include an audio clip unless the video is there, too. That’s really difficult to make work well. As a result, most of my playlists are music only…very few sound effects and movie dialog clips. Not like the old days.

The compromise for me is having themed playlists. Rather than have a great mix tape, I have some great meditation playlists, morning playlists, or “winding down” playlists, metal playlists, or even block party playlists (with a lot of Motown). On a few occasions, I’ll make a mix CD or two, but those are really just truncated playlists. I have a few “master CD’s” that my close friends have aggrandized, but they don’t get played as much as they would have if they were on a cassette.

Do I think we should go back to cassettes? Hardly. The iPod is far too convenient for that. Not being a single guy, I don’t worry about using mix tapes to ask people out anymore. My wife appreciates the “Acoustic Foo” mix (as well as the many other playlists I’ve made for her) just fine. But, I wonder how kids now-a-days can possibly compete with the subtleties of the perfectly crafted mix tape. Maybe that’s what texting is for.

So, what are the elements of a good mix tape? Well, for one, I think the basic length should be 90 minutes. That gives you two 45 minute programs. Pacing is important. You’ll want to make sure your songs have varying tempos. Tempo conveys mood. You should have a good mix of fast, mid, and slow songs.

Personally, I like to come out of the gate with a relatively mellow song. Most of the time, when I’m getting into the car to listen to a mix tape, I’ll start the car, back out, and not get cruising until at least a song into it. I like to pepper the mix with solid singles, great deep cuts, instrumental tunes, and decent remixes.

For kicks, I made a mix as I wrote this. I made it in iTunes. It clocks in at 1.4 hours, which would fit just right on a 90 minute cassette, allowing for flips. This mix would be mainly for my enjoyment, but it also would work fine if other people were around while it was on (there’s not a lot that’s offensive, too heavy, or just not right with these selections).

1. Tom Petty – “Wildflowers”
2. Train – “She’s on Fire”
3. David Bowie – “Rebel Rebel”
4. Thom Yorke – “Atoms for Peace (Four Tet Remix)"
5. Bruce Springsteen – “Radio Nowhere”
6. Foo Fighters – “Times Like These”
7. Toad the Wet Sprocket – “Windmills”
8. Dave Matthews Band – “When the World Ends”
9. T. Rex – “Mambo Sun”
10. Tomoyasu Hotei – “Battle without Honor or Humanity”
11. U2 – “Beautiful Day”
12. The Posies – “Solar Sister”
13. Elton John – “Bennie and the Jets”
14. Radiohead – “Weird Fishes/Arpeggi”
15. R.E.M. – “Cuyahoga”
16. Miles Davis – “It’s About That Time (Evolution of the Groove Remix)”
17. Pete Yorn – “Ice Age”
18. The Killers – “Sam’s Town (Abbey Road Version)”
19. Stone Temple Pilots – “Interstate Love Song”
20. Third Eye Blind – “Motorcycle Drive By”
21. Justin Timberlake – “(Another Song) All Over Again”

Is this a good mix? Well, for me it is. The value of the mix tape lies in how much you like it; or, how well it fits the occasion. If someone said, “make me a mix of some good songs,” I could, with confidence, reply with this mix. But, I’m sure not all of these songs would go appreciated. With the cassette, one was nearly forced to listen to all of the material. With the CD and iPod, we can skip through the stuff we don’t like. I’m not sure that’s necessarily a good thing. Where’s the growth factor in that?

Anyway, I’m just thinking about the glory days of the mix tape. They were fun.

The digital age can be a quandary.

My gargantuan task of building an acoustically accurate, full range recording studio is finally nearing its end. As I write this, some very skilled carpenters are taking a lunch break on what very well be the last trade work construction day. I didn’t know this, but hanging doors is very tricky…best left to a carpenter. Trim work goes in after that. Inspections will take place over the next few days. Then, I move in.

I have a respectable rack of gear already. I use a combination of Focusrite pre amps and an Avalon Vacuum Tube pre amp/channel strip. With the exception of a few external boxes, most of my processing (compression, eq, and effects) happens in the computer.

Once the studio gets rolling again, invariably, I’m going to want to have a wider selection of pre amps. A pre amp is an electronic device that amplifies a microphone signal to a line level signal. The way the pre amp handles the signal contributes to its perceptible signature sound. There are some pre amps that have desirable “artifacts” (say, for example, from tube processing). There are some pre amps that are ridiculously clean (from having an amazing signal to noise rating). If a studio is worth a damn, you’ll usually see some kind of class A pre amp in line (the ones I tote are the Avalon and Focusrite but other’s might include pre amps by Neve, API, or Summit).

Just mixing and matching various microphones with various pre amps have provided a calculated depth to my latest recordings. It’s one of those things that is hard to judge on an individual track. But, as the tracks get layered, the character and color begins to emerge. To use a computer monitor analogy, if right now I’m able to offer 16 sonic colors, having a few more pre amps might bring that up to 256 colors.

A few years ago, convolution technology became an interlaced feature in pro audio gear. Convolution is the process by which an unprocessed signal is measured against a processed signal and a resultant “process” is extrapolated, recorded, and quantified. In layman’s terms, if A becomes B in a given set of conditions, with convolution technology, we can reproduce how A becomes B with out those conditions.

Convolution pre amps work exactly how you’d think they would. The behavior (and therefore, sonic characteristics) of an expensive, desirable pre amp is measured, recorded, and encoded into a less expensive digital pre amp unit. The behaviors are saved as programs. To get a signal like the expensive one, all you have to do is dial it in and press record.

As I sit here and ponder what to invest in next, I have to wonder if convolution pre amps are too good to be true. After all, what a good pre amp should do is provide a clean signal. Therefore, on the convolution pre amp, is the perceived color just added garbage? Would I be degrading my audio signal by running it through a tube pre simulator?

I honestly don’t know. I do lose sleep over this.

On one hand, a recording studio should be able to provide an accurate representation of a given musical performance. This could be best done with clean pre amps, which, arguably, I already have. On the other hand, sonic color is desirable. So, is it better to have the real thing? Or, just a simulator? Does the outcome change if the real thing costs 10 times as much as a simulator?

One product that has gotten rave reviews from audiophiles is the Focusrite Liquid 4Pre. It has four, transparent, clean, transformerless mono pre amps that can be colored to emulate 39 other pre amps, including a host of Neve’s, SSL’s, API’s, and other boutique pre amps that audiophiles love for one reason or another. Review after review, test after test, Pepsi challenge after Pepsi challenge yields a “we really can’t tell a difference” result, usually admittedly kicking and screaming that it just can’t be true. Is there a difference? How would someone (like me) who’s only used some of this boutique stuff in passing really know?

And, pre amps are about signal to noise ratings. You can’t emulate a signal to noise rating. You can make something similar to the ancillary components (warmth, grit, etc...), but sonic quality isn’t something you can simulate.

In spite of the guarded skepticism I have of this unit, its options and versatility remain attractive to me. The 4Pre is definitely in consideration when its time to expand.

Another product that is of interest to me is the API Lunchbox series. This “500 series” line allows for modular switching and swapping of smallish boxes that would otherwise take up a single rack space. Not only are they cute, but they’re also the real thing, just smaller. For the same price of the 4Pre, I could get a 10 unit rack apparatus and five or six pre amps. The advantage here is that I’d have real units, not emulations of units. The disadvantage is that I’d have less sonic options. But still, I have to wonder if the emulated preamps are merely a clean signal colored in different ways. From a distance, a Camry can look like a Lexus. But, up close, and certainly when you’re driving one or the other, you know the difference.

A third product (and the least expensive option of the three) is the new Arsenal by API stereo pre amp. This looks promising. I look forward to reading some reviews of the product. This is a simple, straight ahead clean stereo pre amp by API. There really are no drawbacks to it. It does what it says it does. No emulations. No shrinking--just a nice looking and probably nice sounding box.

Pro audio catalogs remind me of when I was a kid and the Sears catalog came out. Looking at gear that I can’t afford yet seems a lot like the times when, as a lad, I’d look at the Slave I, or the Millennium Falcon. Sure, I didn’t need the Slave I, but it did make for a nice Christmas present. Similarly, I can run a great studio without snazzy pre amp emulations or even a wider selection of pre amps. I have the gear I need. More pre amps are certainly not necessities. All things in time, though. All things in time.

We got some decent press for our Blind Tiger show. It's good to still be getting good reviews.

Enjoy!

Click here.

I like being a one-stop-shop. When I am approached to produce a project, I usually end up working well beyond the industry norms for what a producer typically does.

The question a producer has to answer is "How are we going to do this?" How will the recording go down? What instruments will be used? What's the tempo? How do I get the best performances out of the musicians at the session?

Often, a producer will double as session engineer. This is fairly common. The engineer's job is to facilitate, in technical ways, the vision of the producer. For example, if the producer wants a vocal with a lot of natural ambience, the engineer might set up a distant room mic to capture the vocal performance. The engineer is the technical guy who'll capture the sounds the way the producer wants them to be.

Less common, but common still, is the producer/engineer triple dipping as a mixing engineer. The mix engineer is responsible for putting together the multitude of tracks into a single, stereo two-track mix. Mono mixes and surround mixes are less common, but are occasionally requested. My mixing philosophy is centered around vocals; the essence of why people listen to music.

Even more rare is a one-stop shop, like myself, who will offer budget mastering services in addition to the other three. If the project is on a tight budget, or perhaps just a "demo" quality is requested of the client, I am happy to offer an audio master.

The best book I've read on mastering is Bob Katz's Mastering Audio. I recommend it for anyone who is interested in recording a CD. It's a great primer for what mastering is and why it is important for commercial audio.

The goal of mastering is to create a seamless, consistent listening experience for one continuous piece of stereo audio. When an album is created, it is common that all of the tracks aren't tracked and/or mixed the same. A solo acoustic guitar track and a full, slammin' band track aren't going to have the same EQ curves. And, yet, so many records now a days have these night-and-day moments. Mastering is the stage at which the EQ's get matched up. A critical listening environment is essential for a successful mastering job. Mastering is also the place where "loudness" is determined. If you put on a CD that came out in 1989 and one that came out yesterday, you'll hear a big difference in relative volume.

When I'm asked to create a master, I use a program called Peak LE. It's just a two track editing suite. I primarily use the Ozone 3 plug-in to assist in matching eq's within the audio program and setting loudness levels. I can also create crossfades and establish a sequence in Peak. I love the program.

Occasionally, I have clients who ask that I deliver the master to a replication plant. This week, I preped a master for John Gillespie. He's replicating a CD he recorded with me earlier this year. It's called Always Falling. It should be out this fall.



Preping a master is fairly simple. All the hard work is done. It's a good idea, if you're using an entirely computer based system, to burn a fresh master with no other programs running and no internet connection active. This will prevent burning errors. It's also a good idea to have a "verify disc" function at the end of the program burn. This will ensure that the data have been transfered properly to disc.

I like to listen to masters in a non-critical setting. This gives me a realistic picture of how a record will sound in the real world. I'll typically listen to the production master, just once, on my home stereo. I'll also burn a separate copy for importing into iTunes. Then, I'll listen to the master as a compressed audio file (mp3 or AAC). After all, iPods and ear buds are how 90% of music is experienced now-a-days.

Some replication plants are tweaky when it comes to master disc specs. The company I sent this most recent master to requested that no ink, what so ever, be on the master disc. They claimed that ink corrodes the aluminum face of the CD and can corrupt the data. I've never seen that happen, but I wouldn't want to delay the production of the master. Also, they prefer paper sleeves to jewel cases. I don't have a problem following instructions. It is a good idea to have an understanding of how a replication company wants the master. This will invariably speed things up so the client can get his CD's faster.

Producing audio is a blast. I like to be a one-stop-shop. I also like to have just a hand in some element of the production process. The music business is a specialized industry. There are studios that only specialize in mastering, mixing, or even just tracking. Whatever your goals, it's great to find the fit that's right for you.

On July 19, 2008, Mark and I played the Evening Muse in Charlotte, NC. The Muse is one of my favorite clubs to play in. In spite of perhaps 20 or so less than usually attend our shows at this venue, we had a great show. Thank you for attending.

Lately, I've uncovered the value of recording EVERYTHING we do. From rehearsals to live shows, recording allows our shortcomings to be readily apparent. Conversely, when something works, it's completely obvious. I recorded our set at the Tiger two days prior. An analysis of that set helped me realize some of the vocal and guitar problem spots that I've been having of late. Holly thinks I over analyze things, but I'm almost positive that a thorough study of Thursday helped Saturday's set.

We played an oleo:

I'm Still Waiting
Hey, Angel
Flat Tire
Falling to the Ground
What I Didn't Know
She Alone
Sad Songs
Two Shadows
Baby, I'm Your Man
God Lives in My Backyard
Automatic
Telling You I Love You
Another Day in Paradise
Walking on Broadway
Sour Milk
October
Away
You All Everybody/See You Tonight
Gravity Affects Me
Plurabelle
Sweeter Love

The set must have been over 90 minutes...probably more like 100 minutes. Probably the only two surprising songs were "You All Everybody" (the Driveshaft cover) and "Sweeter Love," a song that we've only done a few times acoustically.

Monty Chandler took some really nice pictures, which can be seen here.

All in all, the set felt relaxed and solid. In the playback, I only hear a few things I might have done a little differently.

Athenaeum will be doing a full band show on August 16th at Charlotte's Amos' Southend. See you there!

The console I'll be using in the new room arrived today. I'm using an Argosy console--they make really nice looking workstations. They're made out of acoustically friendly material, too. I'll need to leave my gear out of it until all of the inspections and trim work have been completed. But, it was worth taking a day to put it together properly.

A Thursday night when VH-1 is running their latest Rock Honors show isn't the best time to play an opening acoustic set, but this occasion wasn't too bad. I had a great time playing with Civil Twilight, a band originally from South Africa. Mark and I played an acoustic duo set. We played at Greensboro's Blind Tiger.

Thursday night's are prime temporal real estate for me. I don't like to stay out too late. My wife and I went out to dinner at 8 pm at Sticks & Stones. This place was really nice. We ordered a pizza called the Firecracker, a concoction with anchovies, bacon, and peppers. I found out later that all of the pizza varieties are named after Ryan Adams songs.

Mark and I converged on the Tiger right around 9. We did an interview with Yes! Weekly, a local magazine. I look forward to reading this article. It'll be good to have some recent press, too.

After a quick soundcheck, we eventually hit the stage at 10:30. We played for 47 minutes. Our set was

I'm Still Waiting
Hey, Angel
Flat Tire
Falling to the Ground
Sad Songs
Two Shadows
Baby, I'm Your Man
You All Everybody/See You Tonight
Walking on Broadway
Gravity Affects Me

I enjoyed the set. This set was the first time we played "Falling to the Ground," a song I wrote back in 2003. Also, "Baby, I'm Your Man" made it's first appearance in a club show at this set; we had played it at a few weddings. Also, we played the Driveshaft song, "You All Everybody" as a tag in to "See You Tonight." Great song. Driveshaft was a great band. It's a shame that Charlie died.

All in all, it was a great Thursday. Civil Twilight rocked. I wish those guys the best.

Today, Chris hooked up the lights in the cloud. I am very pleased with how things look. The project is truly nearing completion.


I have some trim work to do next week, but the room is looking really good with the halogen lights.


Here is the front of the room. I like how the light brings out the subtleties of the fabric work on the front wall.

Today, I spent a few hours listening to demos, home recordings, and studio out-takes of a band that I'll be producing at the end of August. The band has been called Fleeing Suburbia--check out the link for some of their MySpace stuff.

A few years ago, I went to Florida to write a few songs with Jenna, the group's singer. We came up with a great tune called "Isn't That Beautiful?," which we recorded completely at my studio. Off and on, with a few trips to OH and a few trips to NC, we've written a few other songs together.

My rationale for pre production is fairly simple. My job as a producer is to bring out the best in the material that's presented. That can mean lots of things, like suggesting instrumentation, rhythm parts, guitar tones, etc... Before getting into tonal considerations, I prefer to work out a solid song map.

The first element of a song map is establishing the tempo. This is perhaps the most important role of the producer. One false move to the right or to the left of the slider and all you do could be for naught. I remember during the recording of "Superhero" for Dirty Wake, the Collapsis record, we ended up completely re-tracking the song...all because it was too slow. That, and there was a hat pedal squeak that I couldn't live with.

The second thing I like to do is have the band lay down some scratch tracks. Unless the band has been out playing lots of shows (a minimum of a month of straight playing and coming in to track right after that), having everyone play at the same time isn't usually the best use of time. The lead vocal and main accompanying instrument is sufficient.

Next, I set up markers in the session, to notate where specific events happen. These are labeled as "intro," "verse 1," "pre 1," "chorus," etc... These are great for later on. There's never a better time to take the time to get organized than at the beginning.

Fourth, I look at the session events and the intervals between them. Depending on the goals of the band, at this point, we collectively decide if anything needs to be cut or added. If a band is going for a commercial sound, there are certain considerations I know that HAVE to happen to make it more commercial. Those things include how long it takes for the lead vocal to appear, how long it takes for the chorus to appear, how long the song is in general. If a band doesn't care about commercial ends, that's fine, too. It's always better to make these edits before the music is recorded. Personally, I like how the Cure's "Fascination Street" goes on for a few minutes before the vocal appears, but that might not be what the band wants.

If I'm brought in as a co-writer, next, I would look at chord structures and lyrics. For some artists, commenting on these things is a big no-no. For some, this is welcome. With chords, I look for variance within the parts of the song. With lyrics, I look for accuracy and purpose. With both considerations, I always ask if what's present is the best musical or lyrical choice. If there's a tweak that seems obvious, I'll address it. When in doubt, I always defer to the artist, though.

Finally, I plan an instrument list. If I need to hire musicians (which is very common with singer/songwriter sessions), I'll line them up ASAP. If I need to track down loops, I track them down. If I need to rent gear, I get it on the books.

The goal of pre-production is to get organized so that the studio can be a place of execution and completion. There's nothing worse than paying $30 to $100 per hour to figure out what needs to happen in the studio. This should be done ahead of time. Armed with a clear tempo map, event structure, and instrument list, a studio session is sure to go much more smoothly than it would if they weren't present.

Please let me know about your pre-production successes on the message board.

The latest podcast is available for download.

I'm glad that I've been able to keep this up. It doesn't take too long to put these things together, now that I've figured out how to run Garageband and the H4 Handy Recorder.

I had been doing a second stage of loudness maximizing up until this month. I liked what it did for the spoken word stuff, but the featured, mastered tracks ended up sounding a little too crunchy. I know the right way to think about podcasts is to think of it as a broadcast, but I want the quality to be as good as an mp3 can be. So, I'm not doing the super loud final versions anymore. This latest podcast sounds nice on my computer speakers and my stereo.

Please feel free to comment in the message board. Thanks for tuning in!

The prep work for constructing this last acoustic treatment took much longer than the actual hanging. Wes and I cut the 705 panels on site. Tony and Brian (the carpenters on this project) cut the wood in their shop in Durham, NC. It was productive to have two parts of a project going on; we worked off of the same design plan.

The grid was laid out on the floor, first. Then, once the eye hooks were secured to the joists, the grid was raised and secured. This particular wood is fairly light, but it is durable and attractive looking.

IC rated light cans were placed in specific places into the covered 705 panels. Then, the panels were placed into the grid. For access to the ceiling utilities (lighting boxes, hvac return, smoke detectors, etc...) the panels easily pop out. Initially getting them into place was a little tricky, but once they are there, moving them isn't too hard.



The ceiling treatment greatly improves the acoustics of the room. Having all of the walls treated with just one set of parallel surfaces isolated one mode. This made the room sound a bit strange at times. The ceiling treatment completes the acoustic vision of the room.

The last step in the ceiling work will be the connecting of the lights to the junction boxes. That's just a few days away.

In his masterpiece The Master Handbook of Acoustics, F. Alton Everest writes "glass fiber usually used in the acoustical treatment of audio rooms is in the form of semi-rigid boards...These semi-rigid boards of glass fiber do not excel cosmetically, hence they are usually covered with fabric. They do excel in sound absorption" (p. 190, Fourth Edition).

Wes Lachot designed a great control room for me. I'm thrilled to have spent the day with Wes working on the final acoustic treatment for the studio. The ceiling treatment, or "cloud" as it is called, involves the use of these itchy, smelly boards of fiber glass. We cut them to a custom design and then covered them with fabric.

It was a long day of measuring, clamping, & cutting. Tomorrow, we'll be laying in the panels into a custom grid. Gosh, this fiber glass stuff really does itch.

"Don't Wo--rry..."

As the last syllable pushed well into high-tenor Ab territory, Mark turned to me. He said "Maybe instead of tuning down a half step, we'll start tuning up a half step from now on." We usually have a good time when recording together. Yesterday (July 8th), Mark asked me to sing some background vocals on his song "Calling Saturn."

"Calling Saturn" is one of the eight tracks on Mark Kano's forthcoming solo album, which, is well underway in production. For fans of Athenaeum, this is a super-must-have-can't-wait-till-it's-out record. There's a preview of a different track on Mark's Myspace page.

I heard a few different demos of this song over the years. I think it originated back in 2003. There was an acoustic demo that was completed sometime in 2006. This album version seems like a hybrid of those two gems.

The song is the infamous "Plurabelle" tuning (DbAbDbAbAbEb). And, the background vocals are really, really high in pitch.

"Calling Saturn" is a great tune. I can't wait for you to hear it.

I know this movie came out nearly two weeks ago (as I write this), but, I finally got around to seeing it. Wall-E (in addition to having one of the best websites for a movie, ever) was a really enjoyable movie for me.

Pixar, with the exception of a few movies, has generally produced films that I've thoroughly enjoyed. At face value, the incredibly sophisticated computer animation is pure eye candy; and, kids love that stuff. Underneath, there's a larger story that even the best well read of adults could appreciate. Wall-E joins many of the other films in this regard.

Wall-E is set 700 years into the future. The Earth is full of trash and a lone robot continues to do it's job: cleaning up the Earth. Humans have left Earth for a "five year" cruise on the Axiom mega-cruise space ship. The trip has turned into a 700 year venture. The cruise ship is furnished and run by Buy N' Large, seemingly the only corporation on Earth at the time of the ship's departure. Without giving away the plot (which is really good), there's a lot of great twists and a satisfying, happy ending.

Wall-E presents a bleak picture of the course of humanity. Once we see humans on board the Axiom, we see them in hover chairs in a virtual, isolated reality. They consume all of their food in liquid form "in a cup." They are all obese from not having to work, or better, even do any basic life tasks--computers and robots do it for them. It kind of made me wonder, is this the course we are headed for?

The visuals are stunning. I think this is the most visually pleasing of the Pixar films. The voice of Wall-E was credited to Ben Burtt, who came up with all of the original, vintage sound effects in the Star Wars saga. Hearing Wall-E's voice and watching his eyes are worth the price of admission.

I haven't gotten out to the movies as much as I hoped I would this summer. Of the three movies I've seen, Wall-E has been my favorite. The other one's were really good, too. I remember reading that there was skepticism as to how good this movie season would be. It's been pretty good so far. I don't know much about movie awards, but I'm sure Wall-E will do well.

Just before one of the more important shows in my career, I had a panic. "What if I break a string?" In August of 1997, I played one of my first label showcases. A few label reps (with signing power) had already introduced themselves to me. They were brief, but were "looking forward to the set."

In my brief experience (at the time), I thought that changing strings right before the show was also a bad idea. The way I had been doing it, I needed to let the strings stretch for at least a day before playing them with confidence. With an hour to go before show time, I was surprised to look over to Ryan (the newest member of Collapsis at the time) and watch him change his strings. I asked him, "Aren't those going to go out of tune?" He just shook his head. I obviously didn't know much about changing my strings. With less than an hour to go before the set, I learned one of my life's most valuable lessons.

Strings are dynamic. They will change with the temperature, the player's skin acidity, and the force of the player. The trick with changing strings is to anchor them properly in the tuning posts. Also, you don't want to take the bridge off of your guitar (this is mainly for Les Paul models), although the ease of cutting all six strings a few inches from the bridge is tempting. You'll want to keep the tension constant on the neck. Also, brand and gauge plays a factor. All of this is important. Follow these steps the next time you change your strings and I bet you'll have a more reliable and enjoyable strum.

First, select the appropriate brand of string. This is partially a matter of taste. Partially not. I've tried just about every kind of string out there. My brand of choice is D'Addario . I don't know why I like these. I also see just about anyone who is serious and successful with the guitar using these strings. They are an industry standard. Use them.

Second, select the appropriate gauge of string. This is different with different applications. If you are a metal player who does a lot of double bends and whammy bar dive bombs (I wish I had THAT gig), you'll want to use a gauge of 0.008 or 0.009. String gauge is notated by the thickness (in inches) of the high E string. By high, I mean pitch. I disapprove of when the bigger E string is called "high" because it happens to be higher in position than the other E string. I like to be consistent, so I call the "high" E the one that's higher in relative pitch. I prefer 0.010 or 0.011's, as it's the most common for straight ahead rock. I like 10's when I'm doing a lot of soloing, 11's when I'm doing a lot of chunky rhythm stuff. Acoustic strings are generally thicker, 12's & 13's. The gauge of string should be matched to the neck tension. This is best done when the guitar is "set up" by a luthier. You should have your guitar "set up" when you first get it and occasionally throughout it's lifetime. This is the best time to set the proper string gauge for that particular instrument.

Third, set up your guitar string changing station. You'll want to put a few folded towels out on a table (or, you might have a snazzy string changing station with a neck guard). Also, you should have a chromatic tuner (I recommend the Boss Stage Tuner), a 1/4 inch instrument cable, a string winder, and a string clipper. Place your guitar in its comfy station. Make sure the neck is secure and not under any tension from being at an odd angle.

Fourth, start with the "low" E (that's the big E string). Unwind the old string slowly. Once a bit of slack is revealed, you may either cut the single string or unravel it through the tuning key hole and bridge hole. It's your choice. I prefer not cutting and unwinding naturally.

Fifth, select the new string. Pass it through the bridge hole (underneath the guitar for Fender's, through the bridge for Gibson's). Pull it along the body of the guitar, over the neck, and through the tuning peg.

Sixth, pull the string so that you have six to eight inches of slack. Ideally, you'll want to have no less than two wraps around the tuning peg and no more than three wraps. This provides the right amount of tension and play for the string. A good rule of thumb is to pull the string above the pick-ups or sound hole so that a half hand length of slack is available.

Seven, lock the string around the tuning peg. This is the trick that will allow you to play a gig right after changing your strings. You'll want to check the string once through the tuning peg, wrap it around one half time, and then pull it across the head and away from the guitar. If done right, you should be able to pull on the string over the pick ups without it slipping. With Fender guitars, you don't have to do this. Fender tuning pegs are self locking...all you do is push the string through the top of the peg.

Eight, begin wrapping the string with the tuning machine. By hand is fine, but a string winder makes this go faster. Shoot for no less than two wraps but no more than three. If you don't have a gig that night, less than two or more than three is passable, but still risky. Less than two doesn't provide enough stability for the string--these often break. More than three adds too much slack to the tuning peg, causing the string to constantly slip out of tune, at least for the next few days. Wrap the string until you reach the desired pitch, as notated on your chromatic tuner.

Nine, repeat steps 4 through 8 with the remaining five strings. The strings will stretch as you put them on. Just continue to tune the strings as you change them.

Finally, clip your string slack at the neck. It is not a good idea to let these strands of metal fly about. Clip them less than an inch from the tuning peg. You can also wrap them in individual circles, if you are going for flair. It's better to just cut these, though. Really, don't not cut the ends. They can put your eye out. Seriously. Metal strings can stab the skin without forgiveness.

If you follow these steps, you'll notice that your guitar plays more in tune and that the strings have a nice twang to them. This is a great window for playing your instrument. A gig or a recording session would be a wonderful treat for your guitar just a day after this great event.

Needless to say, we got through that gig back in '97. My strings didn't break, but they did slip out of tune throughout the set. Conversely, my partner's guitars sounded great, in tune and very professional. He taught me this string changing method and it hasn't failed me yet. We even got our first record label offer after the set. Unfortunately, the label folded the next week. There were more gigs and more showcases, though. From that point forward, I was able to play with confidence...all because I knew how to properly change my strings.

Eventually, if one is not opposed to a carnivorous lifestyle, a southern gentleman is invariably exposed to one of life's treasures. Ribs. Mmm. What better delicacy can be enjoyed on Independence Day?

I prefer pork baby back ribs. Some folks like beef ribs with a bunch of BBQ sauce. Some find meat repulsive. Some find it's eating morally offensive. To each his own.

I've been slowly perfecting my own rib recipe. It's a fusion of a Memphis style rib preparation and eastern North Carolina mustard based ribs. Today is the final test of what I think will be my best batch yet.

The thing I've liked about Memphis style ribs is the dry rub. No one is quick to give away their ratios, but most of these rubs consist of 50% sweet paprika, 15% brown sugar, and the rest is an oleo of salts, peppers, dry mustards, and powders. The real secret is in that remaining 35% window. I tried a rub that was 50% paprika and 50% brown sugar and the result was decent...the ribs tasted as if they were coated in candy, but it wasn't the pizazz I was looking for.

My rub for today's recipe consists of the sweet paprika, brown sugar, and equal parts kosher salt, fresh ground black pepper, hot oriental mustard, celery salt, cumin, and cayenne. We'll see how it works out, but I have a feeling this will be a great batch.

The rub is only half for me. I used to be opposed to the mustard based BBQ sauce native to eastern North Carolina. Something about it didn't seem right to me. In April, Mark and I played a wedding reception in Columbia, SC that was catered by a mustard based BBQ restaurant. Something about that particular experience flipped a switch in me. I found my self liking the mustard sauce better.

On my last rib excursion, I tried a sophisticated mustard sauce...spicy french mustard, honey, sugar, and apple cider vinegar. It was fair. I'm thinking the real secret to good mustard sauce is keeping it simple: basic, plain-Jane mustard, white vinegar, etc... For whatever reason, this seems to taste better.

And so, the second part of my rib recipe consists of (optionally) pouring the mustard sauce over the ribs just before they are served. Enthusiasts of both dry rubs and mustard sauce would probably find this offensive. Well, it works for me.

On Independence Day, July 4, 1776, King George III wrote in his journal "Nothing Important Happened Today." Well, in addition to the American rebellion against the English Empire, the date is often celebrated by many a back-yard cookout. At one of those cook-outs, one man and his family shall enjoy a nice plate of ribs. That is, if the grill doesn't run out of gas.

Be safe! Be well! Enjoy the holiday.

It's been quite a long time since I've made a traditional blog entry. For that, I'm not necessarily sorry. But, I wonder if anyone really reads this blog anymore, seeing as how it's been about two months since an entry.

I've kept up the twice-a-month podcast, which, to me, is a more sophisticated form of blogging.

One thing that I'm doing (again), which bares a mention, is that I'm training for my third marathon. I made some training mistakes on the first two. I feel like the third time will be a charm.

The thing that made me want to run a third marathon was just the pure enjoyment of the race. I'm not going into this one thinking that it will fix any of my problems. It won't make my music better. It will be fun, though. That's a good enough reason for me. The marathon I'll run this year will be through Washington, D.C. It'll be great to run past the monuments and just have a good time with the run.

I like having new shoes. Having a dedicated set of running shoes is key if you want to avoid injuries. I have a running partner who is much faster than I am. I hope this brings my time up to a respectable level--we're shooting for 4 hrs and 30 min. The last couple I ran had a few pace runners about. I'll be sure to track one of those 4:30 balloons down.

Living in Greensboro makes training very easy. I heard somewhere that Greensboro has one of the highest acreages of parks and greenways in North Carolina. I can think of several miles of lush greenways a stone's throw from my house.

And so, we're in to week two of our training. Training days make for a great morning. The summer has been kind in the early hours. The milage is around 15/wk right now, but it's sure to go up soon.

I'll see you on the trail!