Approaching ‘Home’
After making ten or so records over the last (gulp) fifteen years, I can tell you with confidence that this is the best part: just before you hit the studio. The actual process is excruciatingly repetitive, tiresome, and even a little bit boring — punctuated, of course, by life-changing epiphanies.
I’m approaching this record differently than ‘Crash Site,’ or any previous recording, really. I’m rehearsing with twice next week with the band (though we’ve played some of these songs for years). Then we’re recording everything (acoustic, drums, bass) straight to tape.
Overdubs (additional tracks) could be anything: from additional acoustic guitars, arpegiated electric guitar (clean Rickenbacker-type sounds, little to no distortion for the most part), to piano, bongos, djembe, shakers — whatever. Plus, of course, vocals. Enough of them, I hope, but not too many.
Then add in the electronic sounds. That’s Kevin’s skill set, and I’d be remiss not to call him on it. So I’m anxious to see how it works for us. I think that our previous experiments, most notably the “Summer’s Gone (Electroland Remix)” and our cover of the Phil Collin’s chestnut (ha ha) “Take Me Home” were a little rough. That is, they sounded like an acoustic guy and an electronic guy trying to work together. There is that danger here again.
And as I’ve mentioned, there will be a guest or two. Leroy Justice front man Jason Gallagher will add a bit of alt.country flavor to “Radio.” And I’m counting on über-cellist Julia Kent dropping some of her melancholy magic onto “New York,” at least.
In the end, though — or, as it were, the beginning — who really knows? All I can tell you is that I’ll do my best, it’ll sound as good as possible, and I’ll keep you up-to-date — with pictures and video and stuff — right here on these pages. And it’ll have one or more — or all — of the following tunes (plus the perfect bonus track):
California
Intent On St. Paul
Never Be The Same
I’ll Be Waiting
Hollywood Arms
Radio
Shiver
Annalia (Come Back Home)
Stay
New York
