lost highway

Yeah, I always find it curious that I live in a country where so many people find buying houses and cars on credit with interest is a "step up", but getting pinched a little harder on their taxes to reform health care, or make overdue steps in environmental responsibility is "damage".

Rock against climate change. What's not to get?

If you're looking for one decent channel for a mic preamp, and you need some compression the Focusrite Platinum Trakmaster is totally usable. Its got optical compression on it, and I still use it after years, and I have some stuff that is much nicer. If you are interested in recording with more than a mic or two at a time and you want something to grow into look up Sytek. The MPX4aii has four channels, can be found used for 6-700 dollars, and is a phenomenal piece of solid state mic preamp. Steve Albini has championed them for years. I've got two of em and use them on drums and bass guit

AGIB YHF WTA SBS ST BT AM I had a really weird moment in Wilco fandom when one of my buddies put on Being There when a few of us were drinking beer and hanging out. I'd always thought of it as this daring, ambitious step forward for them (Misunderstood) sprinkled with new American classics (Far, Far, Away) and then I realized listening front to back how tepid that album is. I think AM and BT are more 'dad rock' then anything else they've done. Total MOR hum along easy going pop/classic rock with a few moments of undeniable brilliance, but to me as a crafted piece of art that I can interac

"Prolific?" I don't think this word means, what you think it means.

I'm wondering where the tech savvy fan is that will post this as an album of mp3's when it's finished. I want them for my Ipod because it has come out wonderfully.

It's ok. Pretty versatile. Decent on everything, but only decent (except snare where it excels). If you're just recording yourself with a little interface, a SM57 will not be a source of trouble. Working with condenser mics can be really fun, especially if you're new to the biz. You can find really affordable mics made by MXL that sound pretty good, will be better for vocals, and can still do electric guitar depending on the model. Only catch there is you need a mixer or a preamp with phantom power. The other alternative to the SM57 is an old Electro Voice mic. You can find EV RE10's

That's Tchad Blake, I think it's a really cool sounding record. Do you have an adjective to describe whats so bad about it? I find the O'Brien produced stuff to sound a little to glossy.

What's so great about long-career rock bands like Pearl Jam, is by the time you turn in your sixth album any fan's hierarchy of albums, or songs that they respond to starts to turn fractal. They're like finger prints, everyone starts to approach the band their own way navigating a catalog of over a hundred songs. That said I think the best Pearl Jam albums are easily Riot Act, Binaural and Vitalogy. Riot Act might be the best. I suppose that makes me weird around these parts. That and I think Ten is awful. One listen in and Backspacer sounds fun, serviceable, solid, and forgettable. M

You know, all of that said- I realize why I post less on here lately. I sometimes feel as a Wilco fan, it's nice not to come around here. I love listening to the band, I love talking to a lot of you about the band, I love getting a heads up about new side-projects, recordings, tours, etc. But, sometimes wading through a lot of tepid whining about the band is not worth the time. I could just listen to them, or something else, or make my own music (or insert any preferable activity). This is not written to antagonize anyone, I'm sure there's a good percentage of folks here who feel the sam

Yeah, I've heard mixed responses on those things from people 'in the know'. They kind of sketch me out. You can definitely pull power tubes from an amp and effectively make it quieter. I would definitely check with a tech to make sure you do it right, but you can cut your wattage in half by cutting your power tubes in half. This will allow you to drive the pre hotter, while using less volume, and not injecting some other company's attenuator in the chain between your amp and its speaker.

Well an EV RE20, or a Shure SM7 can be a cool bass drum mic. But not in a 'modern' kind of way. Think more Ringo, or jazz kick sound. Those mics are great because they are good guitar amp mics, great bass amp mics and great vocal mics. Other good kick mics AKG D112, a little more modern sounding, but not that 'hyped' sound if you place it outside of the kick. You can also get a pretty modern rock/metal sound if you place it inside towards the beater and embellish it with some eq and compression. Another popular choice is the Sennheiser E609. That has a slightly more aggressive frequen

I disagree, they have more integrity than most animatronic acts out there right now. People always say "They're not as good as Country Bear Jamboree"- but who the hell is, that is playing currently? Sure, the 60's/70's Disney stuff is irreproachable, but if I want some solid G rated music from moving puppets I know Henson and Walt aren't going to be there to give it to me. I go to Chuck's to eat some pizza, and hear if there are any new songs in the set.

I did a search and found little on the board about this new record. I'm listening for the first time and I gotta say,if you like Eureka, and Bad Timing, you'll definitely like this. Some very solid and engaging percussion (like we've come to expect) from Mr. Kotche here. Long overdue I say, way to go Jim.

I've probably said this in variation too many times, but I still can't ever get over just how cool SBS sounds. I have never heard a record that sounds the way that it does. On sonic terms it has loads of what I would call intimacy and integrity. You can wear those guitar tones like a wool cap. That coupled with the optimistically somber tone of the majority of the songs. It's the ultimate winter morning album.

I think what was suggested was that the ultimate worth and effect of an album is not often clear until years after it has been released. Therefore consensus is not complete until that digestion time has happened. Seems a reasonable way to look at it to me. Sky Blue Sky looks different to me now that it's aged a bit and has a newer album stacked on top of it.

Ok, you're right, Desire is classic. Ah how analogies break down. I think the Marquee Moon-> Adventure one was better. I might like WTA better than Planet Waves, which is a weird thing to think about, and probably irrelevant. More what I was getting at is this: great artists create uneven catalogs that have nooks and crannies different people love for different reasons. There are people out there who would rather listen to Neil Young's Reactor, or Arc, or Shocking Pink over something like Ragged Glory. I don't agree with them, but none of those are Harvest. And the fact that we're pe

Wow! A lot of people dumping on it- can't say I feel the same. I thoroughly enjoy the way it sounds the way it sits in the speakers. What's interesting is I would say that about every album starting from YHF on, and none of them sound quite alike, production/sonically. I think the meticulously interwoven arrangements are a good combination of instantly appealing and lastingly interesting. I like the sense of celebration it has. To be more critical: the rhyming of 'sad', and 'glad' on Everlasting was nothing short of unfortunate. I don't hate that song, but it's definitely a lesser part

Get your isolation going first, then you can get the acoustics you want. If you have a smallish room with a bunch of hard surfaces you will want to deaden it a bit. This is easier than all the building materials you will be using to build up your walls. Throw down a rug, make some absorbing wall hangers, think about putting some on the ceiling (best thing for it is Owens Corning 703 which is insulating fiberglass in a rigid board form). Good for you. Having a nice creative space is good for your brain. I've been striving to have my own 'Wilco Loft' type haven in my basement.

That was the mellowest I've ever seen Chan Marshall. She barely said a word, she just dance and sang the whole time. Last time I saw her she hardly finished a song and told a bunch of crazy stories. Chrissie Hynde still has the same voice she did on the classic records. Very cool.

Definitely hang around over at Tapeop. There are a lot of helpful folks. First thing you want to do before you buy a bunch of expensive 'sound proofing' material is understand this: materials used for sound purposes can be separated into two categories, acoustics, and isolation. Foam, bass traps, carpet are more important for acoustics, how it sounds inside the room. Mass, mass, and air are more important for isolation, how little the neighbors here. The most important materials for isolation are easy to find: insulation and drywall. Double walls are better than single walls, but more e

I think you may have missed the current nature of independent music. If anyone cares enough about your music to steal it than you've already done something awesome. Some people work for years making great stuff and can't even get anyone to steal it, let alone listen all the way through on myspace. If someone stole your song that would be sweet, that is an achievement. Also I think Jeff Tweedy might tell you that it doesn't matter what JT says about your songs. You shouldn't worry about what he would say, think of what Gregory Kollins has to say about your songs. That is how JT got goo

No, no. You'll have to excuse me if I sounded pretentious. Most folks don't gather the subtleties of phase as it is relegated to dorky engineers such as ourselves. That would be a trip, if Mr. Jim Scott let that slide by. Could be an MP3 thing, but maybe not at that resolution. I listened to this the other day, and forgot to listen for the snare.

I think a new Loose Fur wouldn't be impossible. Just difficult. It's that trick of getting three busy guys (one of which lives across the world) to find time in a studio together for a week or more.