LACRIMOSA - all-analog all-acoustic folk rock

Hammerstone

Hammerstone

Out of style
You guys are right, this does take more guts, doesn't it?

Anyway, here it is, I'm finally putting it out officially. Recorded on Scotch 203 using my Teac A-2340RS tape deck, and I did everything myself (except for a little EQ/mixing on a song or two). I have cassette copies. Please go have a listen!

Lacrimosa | Joseph Irvin
 
Not much. I mixed this digitally using a Yamaha 01v console, so I did my best to find the cycles with the loudest noise and drop the dB on those, but I didn't use Dolby or DBX or anything else. I think those kind of noise reduction systems are in fact quite generic in how they target tape hiss, and end up sounding pretty terrible - they just destroy the high-end frequencies. In an A/B comparison, I'd always favor NR off.

I'll admit the recording is a bit noisy, and that's mostly my own fault due to learning everything on-the-fly. There's more room noise than I'd like, and either my tape deck or the mixer I used as a preamp (Behringer Euroback) added extra noise. And my mic placement could have been better. I think this definitely counts as a lo-fi recording, but if nothing else, it was a good learning experience for me, and I'll do better next time. Still, I'd rather it sound like it does than slapping some blanket-all NR on top of it. Anyone can do that on playback if they want to, but that's up to them.
 
Dbx (for me) has been a revelation, to my ear it does not cut the highs like Dolby B&C. Three dimensional silence and sound, practically ZERO tape and surface noise.

*Your first track's piano has an unusual sound to it, was that intentional?
 
I guess I'd try DBX out if I had the option...maybe if I ever get the chance to release it on vinyl. Going digitally, if I had mixed in the box, I probably would have had access to even more advanced NR.

All the piano parts are recorded at half speed. That wasn't the plan originally, but the piano was out of tune, so I had to come up with a way to mask that a bit. It certainly gave me ideas that I used on subsequent songs and hopefully made it more interesting than it would have been otherwise. I got the idea from reading something about the Strawbs recording "Vision of the Lady of the Lake," because Rick Wakeman's piano was out of tune (and they didn't notice until way later) and I think they put it through a Leslie to make it less noticeable...
 
Apologies guys, I hope you don't find this obnoxious. I was hoping more people would give me some feedback...
 
Well guys I hope you're ok with a little more shameless self-promotion. I've been nominated for best album of the year in a contest put on by one of Colorado Springs' local arts communities (also nominated to best photograph). I would greatly appreciate it if you guys would have a listen to all the nominees and choose the one you like the best.

Voting!!! | The Redheaded Zombie Show
 
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