recording diary - recording 2019 is complete

wednesday horsemouth wandered down to howards and howard played him the new version of blue crystal fire - ok horsemouth is convinced (job done - no need for horsemouth to be playing on it).

then howard presented him with a thwocking great boof ...baff.... beat for turn your heater on - this made horsemouth’s job of recording a guitar part much easier because he is no longer the main source of rhythm and timing on the track (which is now some kind of cumbia) - all this was recorded very quickly, organ on the choruses, root note bass, horsemouth’s vocals - done (except for most of howard’s vocals which will be done later).

then they had a general tidy up adding tambourines and shakers to whatever would bear it - the odd acoustic guitar (on pagodas) to warm it up ad pull it together. howard added harmony vocals to ride on (which isn’t ride on really).

they the had a general tidy up for real where howard loaded up the acoustic guitar, the lap steel and the banjolin and horsemouth loaded up with the harmonium in a rucksack and off they went to horsemouth’s. (the bass, the tambourines and shakers he’s going to have to pick up another time, the nylon strung guitar he’s leaving round howard’s).

they then went off in search of beer with the entirely predictable results you know...

horsemouth is now listening to musicians of bremen volume four (demo CD) and has been doing on repeat almost since he got it.

the new version of blue crystal fire rocks (good job howard), horsemouth is most pleased with his bassline on blindspot,

confiding in the evening star just needs some sorting out of the slide guitar parts and the level of horsemouth’s vocal needs to come down, the chorus guitar part to be found, but it’s sounding good already (the only real test).

wonky (the crooked timber) has arrived without the guitars - it still sounds good, ride on (which is not ride on) sounds good, the harmony part howard added should probably come up.

on broadbury down lifts a poem by the reverend sabine baring-gould (with a few tweaks), the question is where to have the vocals begin to get the most atmosphere out of the backing, the first verse first take horsemouth thinks he has got it in the right place (but the second take is in the wrong place), for the second verse the two takes are in the same place but it should probably start later (there’s room). there was also a guitar part that could do with coming back up. the outro needs some work (but there are plenty of possibilities).

the trumpet shall sound (fka. harmonium) - probably lose horsemouth’s ‘snoring’ vocal (or turn it down very low). sounds like an outtake from a horror movie.

on the humming of the summer galleries horsemouth just drivels on bluesily to howard’s humming piece - he should have tried a waltz-time interlude - it’s pleasant enough but horsemouth doesn’t know if it merits its full length.

japan sounds like an outtake from a children’s tv show (featuring morris dancing, japanese shamans and fish).

katy cruel has survived the guitar pile-up. with the guitars thinned down to the steel string and the resonator (ok there are some lap steel swooshes) the rhythm track works. perhaps horsemouth can persuade denise to sing on it, what it probably needs is violin.

primitive american pagodas sounds a bit muffled and lashed together (and strangely like king crimson doing pretty) but really it’s ok, it just needs the ending sorted.

painbirds sounds tough and focused, the organ could probably do with coming up, it’s a good organ sound it doesn’t need to be hidden, the instrumental verse guitar could probably do with coming up a little.

punchdrunk blues sounds great. sand storm - another horror movie outtake. again horsemouth busks along on guitar. at the end the guitar is left to itself (probably cut/fade around 4.24).

turn your heater on (cumbia) horsemouth doesn’t know yet - he doesn’t have all the vocal tracks, the uke is turned down, the melodica isn’t on there yet. it sounds nice and big with the organ on the choruses. (darn it horsemouth forgot to put on the slightly bigger chords for the second go around on the chorus - ah well).

am I born to die? is the one that doesn’t make it. that’s a lot of tracks. nothing will happen with them for a while.