Tracking Days Eight & Nine, Part One...

keys = done!

we got some super sweet keyboard sounds out of Steve and Kiley at the studio here and it is definitely one of the best "new" things about this record - not that the sounds were bad before, but everything from using the $30,000 piano to running the keys through little guitar amps has just absolutely been a godsend for this new batch of songs

percussion = done!

shakers, tambourines, floor toms, etc.

Mike got a chance to bask in the sunlight as he beat the snot out of a pair of floor toms - there is definitely something about tracking in the front room and getting to see what is going on outside, on what is a very "industrial" corridor, and feeling the heat of the sun - very liberating

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that being said, Eric E's vocals are done on about 6 tracks, give or take a pre-chorus or two
keys are done
percussion overdubs are done

the rest of today (day 9) will be spent doing lead vocals and trumpet

we are hoping to be finished by tomorrow, tracking at least, but that is yet to be seen - Chad and Devin are being super cool about the schedule - in their minds, we are here to make the best record that we can possibly make and something as silly as a schedule shouldn't get in our way - talk about relieving the pressure - it is good to know that we aren't being forced to make compromises on important tracks and that everyone involved is committed to making the best possible record

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we witnessed a classic moment today right outside the studio as we were lunching on our sandwiches from Best Buns...

2 "rival" ice cream trucks hit the same street at the same time - seriously, not since the ice cream vendor at the 1904 World's Fair ran out of cups (and teamed up with another vendor to spawn the "Waffle Cone") has something of this magnitude happened in the frozen dairy product industry - it is one thing for two blue honda accords, or two white econoline vans to cross paths, but for two ice cream trucks, from different companies and ethnicities for that matter, to hit the same street at once is just b.a.n.a.n.a.s. - weird

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tonight we are looking to partake, for the second night in a row, "Half-Priced Create Your Own Pasta" night at The Luna Grill, which is in walking distance from the studio

we ventured out last night, in search of Italian food, and upon discovering that the Italian place was very much overpriced, resorted to The Luna Grill, where Steve, Stephen and Kiley had eaten days before, only to discover the miracle that is "Half-Priced Create Your Own Pasta" night - which happens every week on Mondays and Tuesdays

we are also hoping that we are not as exhausted as we have been the past few days when we get back to the condo tonight, because we are definitely behind on the newest episodes of The Office and this Thursday night may be the first chance we will have had to catch it LIVE on the air, so we gotsta get prepared

Tracking Day Seven... and Then There Were Four

day seven started off with a cacophonous jolt! - Stephen laid down the last of his percussion tracks (stand-mounted baking sheet, shakers, 7-tambourine solo, etc.) - the videos of him performing these tracks are seriously some of the highlights for the last week - gonna have to YouTube this stuff when we get home

after that we got started on lead vocals, which really meant that the rest of us slept, watched movies and did crossword puzzles in the lounge while Eric E. jumped in the booth

vocals, vocals, vocals, vocals, vocals, vocals...





vocals day 1: 4 songs down
*this is a huge accomplishment - the 4 songs with vocals all of a sudden have a new life, which is a great reward after 7 straight days of constructing these song shells bit by bit

after we wrapped the session for the day, we finally got to go to Galaxy Hut, which is a bar down the street [sic], where Nick, the 2nd Engineer from our tracking sessions at Inner Ear, also works

- (everyone here says that things are "right down the street", which is strange because you have to take the 395 to get to everywhere that we have gone and it seems like getting on the highway should negate the phrase "right down the street", oh well)

Nick's band is called The Hailing and they are super awesome, we discovered them today on Myspace and now cannot figure out why Nick downplays his band so much - definitely go check them out

a couple pitchers of Stella Artois proved to be a good finish to another long day of tracking - we will never learn though, our first night to knock off early and we go out to the bars

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Ryan and Stephen left to return to St. Louis this morning (Monday) and it was sad to see them go - Mike, Steve and the Erics are now the lone 4 and somehow the condo is still a mess

left to track is Eric E's vocals on 8 songs, Steve's keyboards, vocals and trumpet, and Mike's percussion before we start mixing, which looks to be on Wednesday at our current pace

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Sparkling "Mike" has a better falsetto than Steve