BLOG: Recording in Chicago with Steve Albini, part 1

It’s 9.23 am Chicago time on Monday 29th December 2008. We tried to write our first blog last night as promised but we were all so studio fried, all that could be written was pure nonsense and it was much more fun to be playing with the studios many cats!! (cont…)

After a surprisingly easy flight, a joyous reunion with our vibe man Gareth at the airport and a bit of a row with a Mexican cab driver we finally arrived at the studio.
The place is amazing with vintage gear older than your mum, and the most amazing set ups its not hard to see why bands travel from all around the globe to record here. At this moment I’m sure I see Gareth and our singer Chris sharing a loving embrace out the corner of my eye!

We made it! They let us in the country! We shared a victory meal and beer before bed all excited about starting our first session.


Day 1

We roused around midday (Chicago time) and sauntered down to the studio. This day was mostly spent playing with vintage amps, drums and all sorts trying to find our sounds. This was a pleasant experience. Russ quickly found his thunder drums, utilising a beaten up old snare drum from the 20s. A past drummer found this for 30 bucks at a flea market hanging on the wall as a decoration. I’m sitting with Russ now who has just learned the true value of the snare…5 grand!!!

Between Chris, Gareth, Albini and myself we put together the most insane guitar rig you have ever heard. I now know what Zeus feels like whenever he takes a dump and it feels good people! Trev took a little longer to perfect his bass sound, this didn’t come as a surprise from the man who has spent the last 4 years building the famous ‘la bete bass’. It was worth the wait, as the bass is now pumping harder than a mule on your mum.

We sound checked with an old tune She Got The Bomb. This was lot of fun, and if we get time we may record it as a b side.

Steve Albini is such a relaxed funny guy that it’s easy to forget that he’s a massive legend who has recorded some of the best albums in history. Pixies, Nirvana, Pj Harvey and recently, Iggy Pop and The Stooges. Watching him slice and splice, mix and fix and build that legendary drum sound was exciting, I never thought I would ever get so pumped watching someone mix drums! It’s truly an honour to be here.

We managed to get 2 basic tracks done and then we retired for the evening. 2 down, 9 to go… 


Love
Jak, Kingskin