Headed to the Great White North!!

Well, after 25 years in the Army somewhere, somehow I have managed to make someone confident enough in my abilities and I have been given the honor of being an Army Exchange Officer to the Canadian Army. I am  excited because not only are we given this wonderful opportunity, we will be able to build our dream home and the  home of Indian River Studios will be built! I am still so grateful to my amazing wife A, because she has been so supportive of my profession and never has complained with some of the less than desirable  postings we have had. This, in my opinion is a huge reward for her because now she will finally be able to have her own home not an apartment like she has lived(she is after all from NYC :) ) There will be many pictures posted and when the studio is open a ton of great music coming from it! have a great weekend all!

E

Indian River Studio South is closed!

Well, sometimes things happen for a reason, good bad....there is a reason. This past weekend we had a ton of bad weather here in the south well low and behold...my studio got flooded. Being in the military we move around alot and in my current assignment we have been living in a beautiful old home on FT Benning. Unfortunately with old homes comes old plumbing. On our particular street whenever there is a heavy rain the sewer backs up into the basement bathroom and in turn flooded out my studio!! The good news is that I was able to move my gear out prior to any of the water getting to it. Seeing how we will be moving to Canada in a few months I have decided to close Indian River Studio South until we get up to canada and are able to build the permenant Indian River Studio in our Adirondack Mountain home. In the mean time I will mainly do guitar overdubs on "Detroit". Once we are set up in the north I will hopefully get the vocals done and post it for all to enjoy. I hope everyone has a great week and will post again soon!

E

Technology

I have been playing guitar for the better part of 35 years now and I have to admit, sometimes I miss the old days of plugging in and playing. In my studio Indian River, I have a vast array of new gear. I am amazed at how I can sit there by myself and in a few hours accomplish what used to take days and in some cases weeks in the past. I do not need any bandmates with the magic of plug ins(drums, keyboards, etc), this does however lead to a sense of boredom at times. I made the switch to going total digital in my set up. It is fun not to have to worry about tape machine heads lined up or cleaning them or splicing tape all the things I used to do in the past when recording. I do miss the days when you basically would use a little reverb and maybe some compression on your guitars. When I play live I generally use only reverb and maybe a little chorus but other than that I am not a fan of a ton of signal processing. My latest piece of equipment is the Presonus Faderport. This one piece of equipment is the size of a small notebook and can do the same amount of work as the old 24 channel consoles. I have to say I really love it and don't know how I ever worked with out it! It does look kind of strange seeing only one long throw fader instead of 24 or more. Again, I am amazed at how technology has made me my own band.

Happy New Year!!!

Well, 2010 is coming to a close and 2011 is fast approaching. I just want to wish everyone in the North Country a Happy, Healthy and Prosperous New Year! To my wife A, I love you more today than yesterday, but less than tomorrow! Thank your for a fantastic year and many more to come! I love you with all my heart and soul!

E

Merry Christmas to all in the North Country!

Well, it is that time of year. The snow is falling the hustle and bustle of Christmas shoppers can be witnessed in everytown and in 24 hours from now people will be with their families preparing for the festivities of Christmas. I love this time of year when I am with A in our home relaxing and spending quality time as we celebrate the miracle of Christmas. I know that I am truly blessed to be married to such an incredible wife who supports my profession and also my passion for music. So, I want to wish everyone in the North Country a very Merry Christmas! To my beloved wife A, you are the best Christmas gift I could ever hope for. Your love and just everything about you makes every day Christmas for me! I love you!

E

The making of Detroit

Every once in a while a song takes hold of you and really drives you to be better. Better as a writer, better as a musician and better as an engineer. Last night I had an amazing session at Indian River Studios working on "Detroit". I was amazed at how this song is taking shape and really challenging me as a musician and writer. What I originally heard in my head has translated into something much bigger than I thought it would be. of course, I have found some spots where the lyrics need some polishing but other than that this is a song I am really proud of and excited to finish.

E

A new Song

In my last post I wrote about my experience in Detroit a week ago. Out of this has come a song which I can honestly say I am really proud of. I took it from the point of view of a man who moved there to make a better life for his family and now is scared of what the present has become and what the future might bring. The picture is of the old packard plant in Detroit. The picture has a special meaning for me because when I married A, she was chauffered to our wedding in a 1939 Packard Limo. I am going to go into the studio over the Christmas holiday and record this new song. Once it is done I will post it.

E