Two little surpises at the studio today

[Bob Womack]

It was a busy day at the studio today. The first client was in for audio post production on a video piece. The surprise was the score of the piece. I took one listen and said, "Hey! I know that music!" Back in April of 2010 I did sessions with an artist who played the Arabic Qanun (pronounced Kah-noon').

You can read about those sessions and the instrument, HERE. So here we are six years later and the score music I recorded is finally being utilized in a program! Yahoo!

So on to the second piece of work: I got an email asking me to retrieve a folder full of .wav files that are the multitracks for a song and begin the preliminaries for remixing the song. I tracked down the files, loaded them into my DAW template, and took a listen. By the time I got the thing unpacked and organized and entered the "discovery phase" it became clear that there was lots of work ahead. Once again the drum kit was simply not cutting it and the song was desperately in need of some guitar. First I added some drums to make the rhythm section churn a little better. Then I slipped home, picked up the kit I would need for the sessions, scoffed some Chinese food for lunch, and beat feet back to the studio for the official session report time of 12:30.

After a quick consultation with the executive producer I spent the next three hours learning the song, writing the parts, and laying them down with a Telecaster and Carvin TL60T. I used the Tele to build outboard stereo parts and then shifted to the TL60T for the "magic third" part in the center. The Wilkinson trem allows me to gently wobble the middle part against the other two that makes the whole rhythm section sparkle.

American Standard Strat and Carvin TL60T with Roland GK-3 pickup

I'll probably lay in fills and leads tomorrow if the schedule allows. So it was a busy but fun day.

Bob

[Bob Womack]

The second session on this one was today. I overdubbed acoustic rhythm guitar, both strummed and fingerpicked. I also overdubbed the electric lead and fills. It's coming together but the big challenge will be to tame an unruly bass that sounds like it was EQ'd to taste, making the lower octave jump but the higher octaves pale by comparison. Perhaps I'll try a multi-band compressor.

Bob

[gfsark]

Seems like fun. How about posting a clip? Don't need the whole piece because it's probably dedicated to another purpose...but I'd like to hear what you're describing.

[Bob Womack]

Let's see what I can whip up with the razor blade...

Bob

[Bob Womack]

All right, I've removed the voices and tried to give you the highlights in a short, roughly edited clip, HERE. The mix isn't finished and it isn't mastered. It is copyrighted so please, use for educational purposes, as in listening, only. This is a score piece for a video.

Bob

[KevWind]

Originally Posted by Bob Womack

TL60T for the "magic third" part in the center. The Wilkinson trem allows me to gently wobble the middle part against the other two that makes the whole rhythm section sparkle.

American Standard Strat and Carvin TL60T with Roland GK-3 pickup

Bob

Bob being new and just thinking about getting into electric guitar
when you say "Wilkinson trem" is the bar simply not connected in the pic ? And what is the electronic gray box thingy on the Carvin ?

Really like the clip very upbeat

[Bob Womack]

Originally Posted by KevWind

Bob being new and just thinking about getting into electric guitar
when you say "Wilkinson trem" are you referring the gray electronic box thingy on the Carvin ? As I do not see a bar ?

The gray thing at the bottom of the Carvin is the control box for the Roland GK-3 synth pickup (not used here). The Wilkinson is the brushed stainless bridge. The bar is in the case in this pic.

Bob

[KevWind]

Originally Posted by Bob Womack

The gray thing at the bottom of the Carvin is the control box for the Roland GK-3 synth pickup (not used here). The Wilkinson is the brushed stainless bridge. The bar is in the case in this pic.

Bob

Thanks you wrote your reply as I was retyping my question as I saw the round hole in the bridge and figured that was where the bar connected

[gfsark]

Bob, thanks for the clip. I like the track, it's quite upbeat and the guitar/fills do nicely. Should benefit the video, I should think.

[Bob Womack]

Thanks for your kind words, guys!

Bob

[Bob Womack]

And now the downside of this kind of work: the main guitar lick I came up with for this song is now an earworm bedeviling me and I'm turning it over in my head thinking about how I could have improved it. First world problem!

Bob

[Bob Womack]

Mix finished and accepted by the client and on to a new song.

Bob