Know of any good 4-track(cassette) albums out there?

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earwhig

New member
Has anyone heard any good or fairly decent albums recorded entirely on 4-track-portastudio-(cassette)-boombox-hand held recorder-answering machine-ect.?
 
earwhig said:
Has anyone heard any good or fairly decent albums recorded entirely on 4-track-portastudio-(cassette)-boombox-hand held recorder-answering machine-ect.?
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eyhm no:-)

On old studio records they worked with 4 tracks, but those machines were of better quality than a cassette portastudio. These are great for quickly recording some ideas, but not for a commercial record.

Or maybe when you really want to be recognised as the guy with extremeley lo-fi sound.:) Now I come to think of it, there was a Dutch artist called Spinvis who claimed to record on cassette.... www.spinvis.nl (you can listen to some songs on that site.. But it easily starts beginning a gimmick
 
I believe that a band called Guided by Voices actually may have recorded a 'critically acclaimed' album, on a cassette 4-track, or so I have read, but don't actually know much about it.

I think it could be done with pretty good success if you had some good mics and maybe a good pre-amp, that kinda defeats the purpose, but would still be interesting. It's still true that the music is what makes the album great I still like my shitty old Kill em' All cassette that sounds like crud better than my CD.
 
Bruce Springsteen recorded "Nebraska" on a cassette multitrack. Whether you considered that good or not is entirely subjective, however.
 
Not a commercial "album",... ALL HOME RECORDINGS,...

but I formatted my stuff into CDs and presented them as such. I'm NOT commercial, and I DON'T even write my own stuff, but I have PLENTY of decent sounding 4-track cassette Portastudio recordings to check out.

http://www.nowhereradio.com/davemania/singles

Song details, dates, and recording methods below each song title.
COVER songs, mostly of Beatles', Bowie and Ramones', plus a few other choice classic rock sounds.

NOT AN "ALBUM" in the commercial sense, NOT BY A LONGSHOT, but I thought I'd drop in on this thread, as possibly being somewhat relevant. Listen at your leisure/your own risk, & YMMV.

Thanx.
 
These are great for quickly recording some ideas, but not for a commercial record.
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I do know of some kick ass "commercial recordings" out there that were recorded on a portastudio.-such as Guided by Voices and Lou Barlow of Sebedoh. I'm interested in finding out about more of these artists. Hell, if anyone out there has any albums recorded on this media they should post that shit here. I love the sound of a cassette 4-track album. It may sound stupid, but I think that there's something a bit romantic about recording GOOD songs on these or other primitive devices.
 
earwhig said:
I do know of some kick ass "commercial recordings" out there that were recorded on a portastudio.-such as Guided by Voices and Lou Barlow of Sebedoh. I'm interested in finding out about more of these artists. ..... I love the sound of a cassette 4-track album. It may sound stupid, but I think that there's something a bit romantic about recording GOOD songs on these or other primitive devices.
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Beck's "Loser" is also said to have been a 4-track cassette. I do not think your ideas are stupid at all. I have worked in tons of multi-million dollar studios around the world and I still get a thrill out of working on a 4 track cassette. I actually run a small recording school now and a big part of what we teach is finding the right tools for the job. 4-tracks can not only sound really cool, but the simplicity of the technology and the low cost can let you focus on musical creativity instead of trouble shooting a computer. Its amazing how much a high tech recording set up can kill an artists creative flow. There are of course exception where computers really brought people to new creative levels, but I have seen that to be the exception and not the rule. I really believe that some one that considers their first priority to be songwriting and performing, a 4 track cassette will serve them better than a $50,000 pro tools rig.
 
Ronan said:
4-tracks can not only sound really cool, but the simplicity of the technology and the low cost can let you focus on musical creativity instead of trouble shooting a computer. Its amazing how much a high tech recording set up can kill an artists creative flow.
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Well put Ronan! All tweak and no play makes me a dull boy, eh! I'll have to break out the old tascam again to see what I can come up with. It's a nice tool to have.
 
I recorded my bands first cd, Raymond Carverland, on a tascam 4-track. It got great reviews in Alternative Press and Magnet. This was like 6 years ago. A lot of folks tell me they still like it a lot. All I hear when I listen to it now is tape hiss. But I'm hard on myself. I wish I had had better mikes at the time more than a better recorder. You can listen to it in its entirety at www.soutrane.com. Just click on the music player on the top right hand side. I think if the music is good, and you have good mics, you can do a real good job on a cassete 4 track. The problem with most cheap 4-tracks is the lack of xlr inputs. I suppose if you were/are good with wiring, you could make those 1/4 inch inputs into xlr's. I never tried it though. A lot of great recordings made 40 or more years ago were made on less dynamic equipment than your modern cheap 4-track. But, they often had nice mics and good source material(the music).
 
The cheapest 4-tracks were never "good".

The better 4-trackers usually have XLR inputs, unless you're thinking vintage-80's 4-tracks, which were mostly pre-XLR designs,... with 1/4" inputs, but were high quality 4-trackers, nonetheless. I'm thinking mainly of the Tascam 244, 246 and 234, there, with that comment, fyi.
 
It still blows my mind that Sgt. Peppers was recorded on a 4 track. Not a cassette, but still...it goes to show it's not the number of tracks but how you use them and who's using them.
 
On Sgt. Pepper,...

TWO 1" 4-tracks were used, with a clever combination of "bouncing" technique, to an effective track count of about 9, to the best of my recollection. Read about it in George Martin's books,... "All You Need is Ears" and "With a Little Help From My Friends".

[I can't remember the exact track count, but it was well over 4, using bouncing between two machines, and the full details are in the books].
 
Any info on McCartney's first LP? That's gotta be the first home-recorded Gold Album.
 
I had read Sir Martin's section in Behind The Glass a month or so ago and must have missed that. Still a great feat with 8 or 9 tracks, but no longer relevant to this thread. Sorry about that folks.
 
Still relevant!!!

I believe the most detail is in the book, "With a Little Help From My Friends", a book solely dedicated to the making of Sgt. Pepper. Thanx!!!;)

Likewise,... "McCartney",... 1"-4-track, produced at home. Good one!;)
 
Check out Iron & Wine's first album. And it IS an album--an album is an album by virtue of the artist calling it such and not predicated by pop industry standards.

It's called The Creek Drank The Cradle. There are some clips on the site. If you like downturned, guitar and voice ala Nick Drake type music, you should run and order this man's ALBUMS pronto. (Although his first four track album made such a splash, he got a record contract and his second album is a full on studio affair.) Both albums are very good in their own way with the one constant being this fellow has a lot of talent and writes beautiful music. Goes to show you that good songs and talent shine through any medium.

He recorded The Creek Drank the Cradle alone. It's a bedroom masterpiece--and a real inspiration to home recordists like us.

http://www.ironandwine.com
 
Much of the earlier Guided By Voices albums were recorded on 4-tracks in the basement. Alien Lanes is my favorite: really great Brit-inflected power pop, rock and oddity stuff. Short but great songs.

Some of Marshall Crenshaw's early stuff were demos he did at home. Great stuff with bass drum sounds made by hitting a microphone wrapping in towels...recorded in his apartment in NYC, trying not to disturb the neighbors...
 
The machine that Bruce Springsteen used is/was a Tascam 144. Badly Drawn Boy's love for "the Boss" inspired him to get the same machine. I believe he used it for his first record. I have read that Elliott Smith recorded his first record using a cassette 4-track and an SM57 only. Ween also recorded their album "The Pod" on a cassette 4 or 8 track machine.
 
A Reel Person said:
I believe the most detail is in the book, "With a Little Help From My Friends", a book solely dedicated to the making of Sgt. Pepper. Thanx!!!;)

Likewise,... "McCartney",... 1"-4-track, produced at home. Good one!;)
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The first McArtney album was recorded at Morgan Studios at the same time that Abbey Road (the album) was being recorded. The Album "Abbey Road" was started on a four track (I want You) but then they used the first 8-track for the rest of the album. Paul recorder at Morgan under a phoney name. Although Paul used his 4-track Studer Recorder in his home for some material, he did the formal recording at Morgan.
 
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