What were the first records that made you aware of the recording process?
C: The Jellyfishbabies! They made a record when we were still in high school.
J: They had a record out by 11th grade. I just remember being so impressed. It was expensive to put out a record back then [1985].
C: They recorded it at Centre For Art Tapes in Halifax, Nova Scotia [www.centreforarttapes.ca]. We ended up recording there too. Jay and I were in a band before Sloan called Kearny Lake Road.
J: That was our first real experience in a studio. It wasn't super high fidelity.
What was your first experience that brought the recording process into focus?
C: Well, I remember that it made my vocals sound awesome when doubled. That was an eye opener. Prior to that I felt really smart when I started planning out what I was going to do ahead of time. Going from 4-track to a real studio was a sad process of going from feeling like I knew how to do everything to feeling like I didn't know how to do anything. I really appreciate the professionals involved. I know enough to realize that they really know what they're doing.
J: We did the Kearny Lake Road recording at Centre For Art Tapes. We did the second one in Chris' basement with a 4-track. We thought the 4-track stuff sounded better than the first record, even though it sounded rougher. It made me realize that you can make something cool, even at home.
C: I would say this is well before we ever touched a compressor or a limiter. We just used the natural compression of the 4-track.
J: But not knowing what made it sound good. Not having the concept of "this is compressed."
What 4-track did you use?
C: I had a Tascam with six inputs. I had another 4-track prior to that though. It was stolen out of a car. For better or worse, the next record was done in an actual studio with a guy who loved reverb. Naturally there was a lot of reverb on that album!
J: It was done in 1989, in Fredericton, at Reel North Recording. It was in someone's home — a guy named Lloyd Hanson. He was in cahoots with a label called DTK, who wanted to put out our record. A guy named Peter Rowan, and his wife Dawn ran DTK. Peter went on to co-manage Sloan in the early days, and he also worked with Eric's Trip.
C: The record we made with Lloyd sounded slicker. J: We wanted to use reverb to sound like Fugazi's [13 Songs]. He was like, "Yeah, I can make you sound just like that." Of course it didn't. Those Fugazi records were so huge sounding, and we were recording in a tiny room that was dead. I like dead rooms now, but at the time we wanted that huge sound and digital reverb wasn't the same thing. That was a good learning experience.
What was the best recording experience you've ever had?
C: The last record [Never Hear the End of It]. We're still working on the new one [Parallel Play] and that's going well too.
J: We set up our practice space to record. Now we have no time constraints. We can experiment with drum sounds. If we waste an afternoon, who cares?
C: I'd much rather have [more] time than fidelity. Another good experience was making our first record, Smeared. We felt like we were a part of something big happening. Nirvana and My Bloody Valentine were making records that we loved. We felt they probably had influences similar to ours. Our next record, Twice Removed, seemed like it was going to be exciting. We had major label money and we were in New York City, but I hated the whole process. I hated receiving the money up front for a product we were supposed to create to make people happy. I hated working with [producer] Jim Rondinelli. New York was great but everything was so expensive. I wanted to live cheap so we could actually make a little money. Everybody kept saying, "It's someone else's money. Just spend it!" Even now I have a hard time getting my head around that concept. Growing up I was taught to save money. I loved hardcore, Dischord, SST and the indie aesthetic. Spending money wildly made no sense. There were numerous guitars and pieces of gear around. I'm not a fan of that kind of excess. I was just happy using my own bass. Some people can make the best of the situation where they have everything they want. I prefer to make the best of the situation I'm given.
J: Henry Hirsch [Tape Op #56] was involved with that studio though.
C: He was definitely a fan of old recordings and vintage gear. Jay and I were really into Plastic Ono Band at the time. We were insistent, "We wanna make that!" Henry said, "If you want to make that record here's what you have to do: You guys all have to play together, in the small room, not the big one." Jim Rondinelli was losing his mind. He was saying, "No! Don't listen to that guy!" We ended up only doing one song that way. We didn't actually record with Henry, but after his speech we recorded "I Can Feel It". Patrick has always been pissed that we kept the take where Andrew's hi-hat clasp comes undone. . I think it was the first take, actually. He always wished we had redone it. Henry was great. He called Eddie Kramer [Tape Op #24] to ask how he got that bass drum sound on Led Zeppelin III. Kramer was nonplussed, "Leave me alone. It was a mastering mistake!"
A good experience during an otherwise bad one?
C: We made a record that we're all proud of, and it's everyone's favorite, so there's that. If any of the songs on One Chord To Another had been given the Twice Removed treatment they might have been more widely appreciated. One Chord To Another was made on a much tighter budget, so we had to plan everything out.
J: I think you're attributing too much to the fact that people might like Twice Removed because it's "slick" and I want to rebel against that idea. To me it's about the music and the time-frame when people got into it. It stood out in an era of Smashing Pumpkins and Pearl Jam sound-a-likes. I think people who like one over the other have an association with it that goes beyond the actual music.
C: We think our latest record is the best one we've ever made, but we can't compete against the way someone might feel about an earlier record of ours because of everything else that might have been going on in his or her life at that time. Oftentimes bands that have been around awhile have to fight hard against that kind of nostalgia as they release new records.
J: You have to fight for the listener's brain space and shelf space. Twice Removed, One Chord To Another and Navy Blues are probably the core of most people's Sloan catalog — if they have one.
How did you stay organized during the 30-song undertaking that comprised Never Hear The End Of It?
C: There was a board that had color-coded push pins, the song names...
J: There was a slip of paper with the song title listed on it, the key the song started in and the key it ended in.
Right, because most of the songs ran together without breaks...
J: Yes. Every band member had a pin color. That way we could see who had what number of songs and how the songs could fit together in a running order. It was the best way to visualize how to put the album together.
C: I made slips of paper that were the same width but different lengths, based on how long the song was when we went to sequence it. That way we wouldn't put too many short songs, or songs by one person, in a row. Songs that were alike in some way were able to have distance between them on the record.
There's a similar experience on Between the Bridges where the songs flow seamlessly as well. Did that inspire you to do the same on NHTEOI?
J: It's much more extreme on NHTEOI. I think in both cases it's homage to bands we love. [The Who's] "A Quick One While He's Away" or [The Beatles'] Abbey Road.
All of the band members contribute to your albums. Does the band complete demos first and then collaborate?
J: I start with demos at home. At first I'm usually a little precious about how it's going to go. I'll get Chris to play bass because I like the way he plays; he comes up with great ideas. When Andrew plays drums he's great He has a distinct style. When Chris plays drums I get all of these references — Motown, Keith Moon or whatever — and he asks me what I think [as he offers them up]. Patrick and I generally don't play on each other's songs. Chris is really good about it. He'll come in with an idea and a structure. He'll say to Andrew, "How about playing piano on this one? Just come up with something." Andrew can be free on it. I can do that sometimes, but Patrick and I tend to stick to our original ideas a little more than Chris does.
C: I feel like there are two processes: "Beach Boys" and "The Beatles." The first is, "There's a sound in my head." The second is, "Anything goes." The "Beatles" way is the best way to behave, so that's why I choose do things in that manner. The alternative is the Brian Wilson way, which will make you go crazy because you'll never get it exactly right.
So, you get the most out of collaborating?
C: There's a romantic side to collaboration. I feel like I have everyone in the band somewhat pegged, but there's this little victory when a surprise happens. I do come in with an idea. I know how the song has got to go, but if someone has an idea of how the snare should sound I'm open to it. We keep each other in check. Everyone in this band has his strengths.
J: We're also lucky to have [touring musician, multi- instrumentalist] Gregory MacDonald with us now. We just got a piano a few weeks ago and I'm having him play the piano parts on my songs because he's better than me. It would take me four hours to get a take. He's like, "What do you want? Like this?" He's done in 15 minutes. Andrew's freer about things and Gregory will copy what you want perfectly.
