Annette in the studio #2

Hello!

Here's another video of Annette in the studio. She's working out the vocal parts to a new song with the working title "Dance". For much of these sessions it's just easier to set up the vocal chain right next to the Pro-Tools rig and let Annette run the machine herself, skipping the middle-man (which is usually me or Kip). That way we can avoid those annoying "take me back to just before the 2nd chorus... actually it's the 1st chorus... wait you've gone back too far!!" kind of conversations that are the hallmark of making modern records!

For those who are interested in the techie side of things, this is a pretty standard vocal chain that we use- Blue Kiwi mic, into an Amek (by Neve) pre-amp, into a Tubetech compressor and then into Pro-Tools. At this stage we are trying not to color the sound of Annette's voice too much, just make it clean and hot and somewhat stable in the track. Later, we'll run it though all kinds of effects and processors to re-shape it.

More nerdy stuff to come so stay tuned!
Tony


Venus Hum sessions 2008_NYC vocal recording #2 from Tony Miracle on Vimeo.

Tracking Session Video!

Hi All,

It's Tony here with another video to document our progress.

This time you'll see Kip and his might Arp 2600 synthesizer. This is definitely one of Kip's favorite pieces in the studio. It's a semi-modular synth from the early 1970s, and is great for using as a FX box... this time Kip is modulating some drum sounds coming from his computer. We recorded a bunch of improvisations and later will pick and choose the bits we want to use... maybe only a second or two of audio will be used and the rest will wind up on the cutting room floor- but that is just part of the process! The idea is to set up a situation for the always elusive 'happy accident' to occur.

Please keep checking in... there are going to be plenty more videos to come!


Venus Hum sessions 2008_Kip + the Arp2600 from Tony Miracle on Vimeo.

Vocal Session Video #1

Here's a short taste of the NYC vocal sessions from this last weekend...
There are more videos to come, so stay tuned!


Venus Hum sessions 2008_NYC vocal sessions #1 from Tony Miracle on Vimeo.

Wrapping Up The First Vocal Sessions

Here what we look like after two days of work. Six songs written... three finished vocals.



Tony and I drove home the next morning in this lovely rented KIA something. I drove strait to Nashville after our Cincinnati arrival,,,16 hours total for me because of an 8am dental commitment.



Special thanks to Kirk, as we invaded his apartment and banished him to the living room for two days.

2nd Day Of Vocals

Kip taking a picture of Tony filming Annette singing.



Annette at work at Chessington Synth Labs



Annette laying it down.



Session...

Yesterday Tony wrote a electro dance track while I was starting this blog. Annette already had a lyrical idea but had to make it work for the track.

Our working method, so far, is to leave Annette alone as she tweaks her lyrics and melodies. So we left... I bought a shirt with a rat and a pidgen hugging. When we got back Annette had almost finished recording the keeper vocal to the song. A few o dubs and that vocal was finished.

This song does seem like a candidate for a music video.... so.... I've got some work to do in the future.

Tony wrote another song while Kirk and I went to get the evenings meal - Pizza and Gyros. Annette declared the Gyros to be the food winner of the evening.

If it sounds like Tony is a prolific songwriter and Annette can write and sing her vocals at a blistering pace... we'll that's because that's the way this Venus Hum thing works.

Ist Day Of Vocals

Annette Working On Lyrics



Tony at CSL East



Some Gear



Tony making up sounds


What we're doing.

We've been given the task of writing several songs for an ultra secret project. Tonys been writing like mad and now we sit with 5 or 6 really good songs to work on. It's a bit of a factory here.. while Annette is recording vocals Tony is writing new songs.

Tonight's menu Sea Bass and Red Snapper.