good morning! I haven't been posting as frequently because there hasn't been a lot of exciting news to report... just mixing mixing mixing and working on cover art in between.... i'm in a very disciplined routine these days, determined to mix as much as my ears will allow. The good news is, i think i'm getting close to half done. yes, it's taking a long time, because i'm being a bit of a perfectionist. but i've seen massive improvement from my 1st mixes to the 5th generation mixes that i'm on now. I gave a couple mixes to an engineer friend that I highly admire and he gave me some great feedback and ideas i hadn't considered that i'm immediately putting to good use...

I think my main struggle with making records is: a) my desire for perfection and b) my ambitious timeframes. These are two things that don't always go hand in hand. In terms of timeframes... I just want to get a lot done and in some ways i think i compare myself to other artists who have more of a label "machine" behind them... one that could be in many places at once and be completing this project with better efficiency... (ie: someone to do mixes, someone working on artwork, etc). However, i'm just one person and there's only so many hours in my day and only so long that my ears will hold up listening to a piece of music over and over... the best way to describe it is this: you know that feeling you get when you say a word over and over - or stare at it for a long time? it starts to not look / sound like a word anymore and loses all meaning? This is what i have to be on the watch for, and pace myself... make sure I don't work too long without a break... go see a movie, etc... :)

Speaking of which, saw transformers the other night, and was VERY impressed... it was really cool!

anyways, i'm off... wish me luck!

k

having some ups and downs with mixing.. it's really hard having to be so deeply involved with every single aspect of the record... and i'm sure i'm losing perspective. (the correct term is "unspooling"). anyways, lately there have been a couple areas that showed up that needed some extra guitar... stuff which i hear my friend James doing but which means waiting for him to get back into town from the tour he's on, etc... which automatically feels like sort of a setback (in the way that it means more time) but that's the price you pay to make a the best record you can. it sucks tho, because i do miss playing shows... i miss writing new songs. i might have to book some stuff to do before this record is released...in some ways i feel like i'm rotting away here in the studio.

k

listening to the mixes from the past week... (i've spent all week holed up mixing, save grocery shopping and the odd movie) and there are many thoughts swirling... i'm very excited about where it's headed but there is still work to be done. some songs seems to mix themselves, others need careful speculation about the various options that present themselves.

on the whole, i'm having a good time and look forward to sharing. :)

k

"Rodeohead" by 'hard & phirm'