One Track at a Time
On the road again – currently on my way to Red Deer, Alberta, and just got back from New York City a couple of days ago. But while out, I decided to take a moment to write about what I’ve been up to on the recording front.
I was also thinking to myself that it’s been a fairly unusual period as far as my creative energy goes. I’ve had a lot on my mind, and feel like I’ve constantly been distracted and pulled in a million directions. As a result, I’d rather felt as though writing and making music was slipping.
However, my own recordkeeping suggests:
- That’s not accurate, and
- I’ve got a lot of music to look forward to that I created, and it says things that I want to say (and that I hope helps give you voice as well)
Back in March, I started keeping a running diary of the songs I was tracking for a new album. Just short notes at first—what I played, what pedals, amp, etc I used, whether a part felt right. It was meant to help me stay organized and to remember how to replicate something if (when) I had to go back and fix it.
But a few months in, it’s clear I’ve been doing something more: documenting a process. Not just what I recorded, but how the album has grown—through trial, play, and unexpected decisions. And moreover, it has given me a proof point to myself that I am doing something, that I am making progress, that I am on a road, and should really keep going to see where it goes.
Now, with the summer rolling in and a few rough mixes loaded up for listening on the road, I thought I’d try to capture where this record stands and how it’s gotten here.
It started easy … apparently
The first session was “Everything is OK”, laid down on March 23. Basic drums, compressed Telecaster guides. From there, I moved quickly into “The Bad One,” using a drum loop and the Dean Cadillac (see Panorama-era Cars for an example) for a brighter tone. That track has gone through quite a few layers now: cleaned-up verse sections, 12-string accents, and eventually some acoustic textures and a finished bass line (direct in, all picked).
By April, I was working on multiple tracks at once. “Have a Good Day” got its foundation—drums and a Gibson ES-335 through a Wampler Tumnus pedal. “Have You Read the News” came next, with funkier drums, acoustic guitars in stereo (the Yamaha 6-string miked at the fingerboard), and both clean and heavy electric textures for reinforcement. That one’s still on the edge—might want to try some fills, but I’m letting it breathe for now.
And then the problem children came along.
“YEG” gave me structure problems early on—I tried a distorted 12-string, realized it clashed with the form, then rebuilt the structure entirely and brought back the LPS with new distorted parts for the choruses.
“Fall in the Right Direction” started off murky and over-complicated. The original drum loop (a dirty loop I tried from a new company) had too many fills. So I swapped it out for a Seattle pack favorite I’ve used a lot: “Smashing.” That changed everything. The groove locked in, and I could finally hear the mix open up. I added a solo using my old “The Paul” —boosted with a JHS Notadumble pedal (really cool story on this circuit), gritted with that Tumnus, voiced with wah. It’s now one of the songs I’m most excited about.
Other songs came together smoothly. “Shallow” had strong guide guitars from the start (grungy ES 335 through a Tumnus again), and got rhythm and lead dirty Tele parts in June, plus acoustic overlays and finished bass in early July. “No Jim No” got clean doubled Tele parts and a Martin (my trusty road guitar) acoustic layer that added the warmth it was missing.
And now, what to keep? What to toss?
On July 5, I found an old sketch labeled “Timer.” No idea when I recorded it—maybe last November—but it caught my ear again. It’s now on the revisit list.
A couple others are circling: “And God Laughs,” “What’s in a Song?” and “Checked in to Hell.” They’re not officially in yet, but they’re close. I added them to the visual tracking map I’ve been keeping, which helps me see the big picture across songs and elements—what’s tracked, what’s pending, what’s quietly forming.
Then on July 9, something clicked while reviewing mixes. I realized I had completely forgotten about “Wayfinding.” That one needs to be in the mix. It belongs with this group. On the other hand, “Half a Love”—a song I thought might work—just doesn’t feel like it fits. I’m letting that one go.
Maybe.
The road ahead
I’ve burned some rough mixes for my travels—first a CD for the car (old school) and then MP3s for the phone. It’s something I do often—listen while the world moves outside the window. It’s how I know if something’s working: if it holds up while I’m in motion.
I already spent last week listening to all of this, and there is definitely promise here. However, I’m also hearing every single place where I am sloppy, poorly constructed, trying too hard, and not hearing on the tape what I’m hearing in my head. But that’s all part of the process too.
And none of the vocals are on this at all yet, either.
Thanks for following along. This one’s coming together slowly, but surely.