09/05/2017
Having been criminally quiet about work related things the last few months, I thought it would be good to give a little end of summer Isokon update.... This year has been very very busy, with some great work being put into the universe.
In old news, the Bob Weir LP 'Blue Mountain' continues to do very well, and garner worldwide acclaim, and rightfully so. The chaps continue to do some touring in support of the record, with my photos and films projecting on stage. Pretty honoured still to be a part of Bob's first record of new material in 30 years...
The Benjamin Booker record I tracked here with Sam Cohen producing finally saw the light of day in the Spring. The pleasure of hearing Mavis Staples' voice come from my monitors in front of me was something I'll not soon forget...
One exciting project is the upcoming debut LP from Clare Bowen. Clare plays the character Scarlett in the CMT series Nashville, and Josh Kaufman and I put our heads on that one for the better part of the first half of the year. We tracked here and at Southern Ground in Nashville, then I mixed it here at the Isokon.
In early summer, I ventured down to Electric Lady Studios and spent a bit with Karen O, working on her upcoming record. Danger Mouse produced the sessions, with Sam Cohen, Josh Kaufman, Jared Samuel, and David Christian playing various implements.
I also mixed a record with Brooklyn band Toebow, an amazing excursion into strange and insanely catchy artpop. we started it here last year and finally finished it this Spring. I can't say enough about this record. its mindblowingly good.
In family news, I mixed the debut record from friend, collaborator and Ultraam bandmate Jeff Mercel. The record is called Lunescapes Volume 1, and it is a beautiful and cerebral journey into the mind of someone I consider a brilliant composer. This record is stunningly beautiful, and the core of the compositions is Jeff's piano, all recorded in his kitchen, both straight piano and prepared piano. I contributed some pedal steel and Matthew Cullen contributed some atmospherics, as well as Christopher Tignor and Jane Scarpantoni on strings.
The inimitable David Torn and I have also had a prolific year... we tracked a record with Lana Is at Brooklyn Recording, as well as Son Of Goldfinger, with Torn, Ches Smith, and Tim Berne, at The Bunker. Last but certainly not least, he and I hopped a plane to Switzerland to record the new LP from Swiss math/minimalists Sonar.
The newest Jesse Marchant LP is an amazing stroke of genius, and I had the pleasure of producing and engineering that record here at the Isokon, as well as playing the first show from the record, back in April, in NYC. Look forward to this one.... it's special.
I had the awesome pleasure of mixing the new LP from my buddy Justin Hillman. Wow, what a record! Longtime cohort David Nagler did some beautiful string arrangements on this record, and the songs are incredible. Just finishing that one as I type.
I've just spent some time in the studio again with my buds Sam Cohen and Josh Kaufman, working on some of Elvis Perkins' new material. I've wanted to work with Elvis for a long time, and it was no disappointment.
And finally, I just mixed the new record from Brooklyn band Parrot Dream, mixing new material from the Walkmen's Walt Martin, just about to start mixing the new Field Guides effort, and David Nagler's newest LP will be mixing here later this month.
I have no doubt I missed a bunch of stuff here.... but one of these days, I'll do another update!
