AUDIO ALCHEMY
Various Artists (Ubiquity)
I was ready to dismiss the whole trip-hop/dub whatever thing as a waste of time until I heard this stuff. You can tell there's people out there who have been listening to Byrne and Eno's ...Bush of Ghosts and Sly and Robbie's old dub experiments (check out Reggae Greats). Hell, I even heard some Pink Floyd samples from The Wall at one point. None of these artists have made a huge name for themselves yet, and somehow the songs flow together well like a real album, so check this stuff out for some amazing work.
BETTIE SERVEERT
Dust Bunnies (Matador)
The third album from this fine Amsterdam combo finds them in the Bearsville Studios of Woodstock, NY, with Bryce Goggin behind the board. Now, I really, really like the first two Bettie albums, and I listened to them a lot and turned folks onto them, but I got real tired of that voice-through-the-flanger trick. I don't know if it was the producer or the band but Jesus, turn the damn thing off! Bryce is an excellent engineer, check out those recent Pavement records that he "engineered" for proof. (How come no one ever produces a Pavement record? Look for the answer in a future issue of Tape Op.) Anyway, he helps give the Serveert family the best recorded sound yet with clearer dynamics and more distinct instruments sounds...not to mention no damn flanger on the vocals. Yeah, I've been listening to this a lot, too.
THE REVELERS
The following is an excerpt from an article by Mike McDonald — a portable recording studio owner (Big Toe) in Cleveland.
The Revelers are a rare treat: A band in the true sense of the word. An "us against the world" attitude pervades everything: their beer selection, their songwriting, their dress, their live shows, their equipment, their van, and their ideas about recording. Andrej and Joel both sing and play guitar, Tommy drums, and George plays bass. Whenever we spoke about recording over the past few months, it always reminded me of a Tape Op article. Hence, the interview.
Mike: Let's see... You guys have recorded on 24-track, 16-track, 8-track analogue, 8-track ADAT, and cassette 4-track, unless you've done something else I'm not aware of, which do you prefer? Do you have a preference at all?
Joel: I don't know... There's certain things that I like about all the different recording experiences.
Andrej: (Laughing) You're the perfect guy to answer that question! "There's certain things I like about everything."
Joel: Ummm... Ahhhh...
Mike: Well, you seem to like your 4-track recordings more, from what I understand.
Joel: Yeah!