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I met Jayne through Robin Eaton of Alex The Great recording. She had contacted him looking for a producer to help make her record more "edgy" (that's a favorite word of Jayne's). Robin sent her to me. That first record, Velveteen Girl, we recorded at Alex The Great. We used some of my favorite studio musicians, and it became an eclectic collection of Pop songs with some creative experimentation back when ADAT's were still in their prime (multitrack machines that use video cassettes for storage).
By the time Jayne was ready to make another record with me she had given birth to two children, written a whole batch of new songs, and was ready to record with her live band. So we decided to make a record that had more of a band feel. Everyone came down to Nashville to record at The Toy Box. Jesse Newport recorded the initial tracking sessions. Steve and I recorded the overdubs at The Toy Box, and also at Steve's Hidden Music.
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Working with the band had the benefit of giving Sutures greater focus. The band had a bit of settling in to do at first, as they were not quite used to working with an outside producer. It can be a bit unnerving sometimes when someone else is jumping all over your shit and telling you how to play the song or your instrument! But these guys persevered and made it their own sound. Scott was heroic in his last minute bass overdubs. He cranked out his bass parts while rushing out the door to get back to Dayton on a Sunday night, and never flinched as I suggested new grooves. Kelly was razor sharp as I barked multiple changes at him, and sang alternate drum fills over the talk back (I'm a nice guy, but sometimes I can sound like a real dick).
We also spent a few weekends in Dayton because Steve couldn't leave town. He was a true alchemist whipping up Radiohead guitar sounds in his basement with a computer you might hesitate to give to Goodwill :). And Jayne sat back and watched it all come together, sending me her unmistakable cues as she made scrunchy faces when something went the wrong, or smiles when something went right.
She had brought with her a collection of songs that showcased her skills at writing. Some had started as sketches on a cassette with an acoustic guitar while others had been worked up as band. We worked them over. They began to breath new life. Some songs went down paths that they ultimately returned from like "When It's Dark" which featured a loop until we nixed it in the final mix. And others like "Could Have Learned" found new identity and came together nicely. Any of you who know Jayne will know that she can get pretty worked up about music. Twice during the making of this record she told me that she was ready to cry. Once when her patience was wrung out as we set up a complex recording technique for tracking, and again when she heard the mix of "Celebrate Yourself", but this time for pure joy, loving how it turned out!
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All in all it was a fun record even when it got to be hard work. Jayne told some of the funniest stories on the back porch that I've heard in a long time. I'll end with a salute to the PEC (Jayne I'll let you translate).
Your producer,
Lij
The Toy Box (studio phone: 615-262-1374)
STEVE'S THOUGHTS...
This was supposed to be a quick and painless recording.
Recording the basic tracks with Lij over the course of a couple weekends and Jayne sweeping in after to knock out the vocals. We've done it before. Basic instrument tracks for It's a Scream were all done as a band in 2-3 takes. Overdubbed over the next couple of days and finished by Jayne in, what seems now to be, remarkably little time. Kramer pushed the band thru the process with ruthless energy.
26 hours into Sutures, it became apparent that we were not going to be keeping our timetable.
Several sessions later I started to lose faith in my ability to complete this project.
I'm not a session guitarist. I have many limitations which I work around. When you do this for 20 years, you develop ways of doing things and learn what to avoid. Lij is used to working in Nashville with the creme de la creme of musicians. So there were issues.
It is not really possible to describe the pain of trying to follow the direction of an obviously brilliant musician as he spontaneously rearranges your ideas and asks you to track them. 20 different ways.
The very good thing is that Lij found great things and expanded them. Several times there were great flurries of sound; strange, twisted common ground.
So I'm happy. The CD is wonderful. The CD is finished.
SCOTT'S THOUGHTS...I have enjoyed this project since the first day I came on board.
During preproduction of Velveteen Girl, my wife was pregnant with our second child and I felt I had a duty to be a more devoted husband to my wife Tina and father to my oldest son Joel. So after many of sleepless nights and a considerable amount of hesitation, I decided to step aside from my duties as bass player and become a full-time family man.
Over the next two years I kept in contact with Jayne and became increasingly more resolved to start playing music again. I can't put into words how it feels to be involved in a project like Jayne's. When you have played as long as I have with her band it starts to become a part of your soul that you can't ignore. I gradually became aware of this over my two-year hiatus.
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It was hard working with Lij. He doesn't care about your personal attachments to the song. He is only concerned about the finished product. The "hot seat" is a very uncomfortable place to sit and all four of us spent our varying amounts of time in that seat. The finished product speaks for itself though. Lij truly has a predetermined vision that none of us can see during the process, but comes out so magically and vividly at the end.
Sutures completes a long journey for me that began when I left the band. I still needed to prove to myself that I had one more good song left in me. Obviously, I still have many left in me (but you'll have to listen and be the judge for yourself).
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I remember hearing Velveteen Girl and being very impressed. I heard something in those recordings that I had not heard in any of Jayne's prior CDs. The hooky songwriting was there, but it was slick and very modern. I was kind of bummed that I wasn't a part of that recording.
Fast-forward to Friday, March 26, 2004, and I'm driving to Nashville to record with the band. I am very excited to record, but also anxious. I haven't recorded in a very long time. And, we had already discussed that this CD would be recorded using a click track, so I'm a little overwhelmed. I feel that I am stronger playing live, than recording. Live is more forgiving. When I play live, my tempo can vary without too much attention, but I have to be right on the money when recording. I do feel that I did a decent job of playing with the click, but I'm pretty sure Lij really tweaked my drum tracks.
I feel very lucky to have worked with a producer of Lij's talent. Up until working on the new CD, I had never met him, but my first impression was how good Velveteen Girl sounded. There are some great musical textures on the CD and the drums all sounded full and round. After I met him, I saw how gifted he is and how well versed he is with all the instruments and voices used in contemporary music. I also feel that he really shaped and molded each song as perfectly as possible. Working to find the best tempo, feel and groove for each one.
The recording process started with a few snags. We set aside a weekend to record, but didn't get started until late Saturday night. There were some computer problems that prevented us from recording all of Saturday morning and day. We finally finished recording drums around midnight or 1am Sunday morning. Scott and I both had work or school to attend on Monday morning, so we scheduled to leave at 8:00 Sunday evening, but because of the recording delay, stayed past and got home at 3:00am. Sometime Sunday morning we started worrying that we wouldn't finish what we had planned. We did get everything down that was important. I feel that I was still buckling drum cases and breaking down cymbal stands while pulling out of the driveway. Because of the mad rush to pack up, I forgot to pack my drum throne, so shipping that back to Dayton ended up being an unexpected expense.
For some reason, the second weekend is hazy to me. It went smoother and was more productive, but just as tough musically as the first. Steve stayed in Dayton for this trip. I remember the drive home was fun. I enjoyed hanging out with Scott and Jayne for five uninterrupted hours. It would have been nice if Steve could have been there, we all missed him.
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| Kelly with one of his many improvised percussion instruments... Chia Seeds |
The memories that stick out the most are: 1. The meals that we shared together. Somehow, we ended up finding great restaurants, with great food; the smokehouse, the German place and especially the Mexican restaurant. I even tried Thai food, and really enjoyed it. 2. The tough process of repeating drum phrases over and over and trying to remember all the changes made on the fly for the an entire song. There were many changes made to the songs that would take time adjusting to. Some songs would be slowed down or sped up. Some totally took on a different feel. 3. Often times, there was a feeling of "hurry up and wait", time would slip away, and I would want to keep working. But, the time was up. 4. Both of the trips home were really enjoyable, because of the company and conversation. Plus, when talking to Jayne, expect the unexpected. She talks about some interesting things.
My final thoughts about the process are positive. I am lucky to have shared this process with such talented people. I'm sad that the project is over, but we have this great souvenir of our trip; this great audio "photo album", some of which will only remain in our memories, some in photographs and some in the rejected mixes. The CD sounds great. Pat yourself on the back Jayne, Scott and Steve.
