SNOW! (&C.)...

Ah, snow… It is snowing furiously outside as I write this (I am inside); if it keeps up, I’ll go for a walk and take pictures. Snow was not fun when I was a kid in upstate New York; unless you liked skiing (I didn’t), 6-10 feet of snow on the ground for six months at a time got old really fast. It was a source of income for a kid—we didn’t make our money mowing lawns in the summer, we made it shoveling out walks in the winter, over and over again.

Since moving to Oregon in 1972, I find I enjoy snow; here, it doesn’t happen much, even in the eastern part of the state (where it’s cold, but also dry), and doesn’t stick around long when it does. On the balmy Oregon Coast, it almost never happens at all, so this is a nice novelty. I learned how to drive in the snow, but it is nonetheless nice to not have to go anywhere. Tomorrow, I have to go somewhere—caller class the far side of Portland, and the Thirsty Lion gig downtown—and I hope things will be quieted down enough so that’s possible.

Listened—finally—to the Sedona Fire album, The Spark, and it is extremely well done. A nice mix of original and traditional tunes, some of which we’ve played at the Rapture Room sessions, and some that we haven’t (and should). Their rendition of the old traditional “Wild Mountain Thyme” is, I think, the best I’ve ever heard. The last CD I actually bought was over three years ago (Delonde Bell’s Phoenix Door, also a great album), and I’m glad I got this one.

I believe the whole album was recorded in the Rapture Room, with Michael and Sedona’s equipment, and the result is extremely professional. Accordingly, I’m really interested in how they did it, and (of course) whether any of that professionalism could be applied to any of my stuff. I’m going to have to try recording on the computer—I’ve resisted it for a long time, but the Tascam is finally wearing out, I think: it’s got a persistent buzz I can’t get rid of, even when I record at deliberately low volume and then boost the amplification in Audacity. And the Tascam, like a lot of my equipment, is irreplaceable; it’s not made any more--hasn’t been made in years, in fact (yes, TEAC, the manufacturer, does have new versions, but they’re less portable and don’t do as much).

One thing one can do in Audacity (and in its more sophisticated, more professional competitors) is layer tracks, and it would be fun to do more of that. I can hear parts occasionally by odd instruments (“Ooo, I could put a trumpet there,” and such), and I know people who play those things, and even know where they hang out sometimes.

I know people who play accordion (regular and “Cajun squeezebox”), autoharp, cello, dulcimer, fiddle, flute, harmonica, marimba, mandolin, melodion, saxophone, electric and standup bass, trumpet, exotic and regular drums, and a variety of odd wind instruments, and they’re all very good at what they do.

And lest I get too consumed by my producer role, it’s important to remember that sometimes, minimal is better. When I did the Santa’s Fallen album, I was excited to have some of my songs done by a full band—but Dick Ackerman told me he liked the me-and-solo-guitar renditions of some of those songs (done on a 2003 album I gave away as Christmas presents) better. On the next album, I probably want to have one or two songs that have minimal instrumentation. (Another album? Yes. I’m going to be insistent about having an album out every year, taking my own advice: if you have a small fan base, supply it frequently.)

Which songs? Don’t know. I really don’t know which songs ought to go on the next album; I was going to ask the fans that—and then maybe ask them as well, “Okay, what instrumentation do you think would be good with that?” And see what kind of advice I get.

Caller class and Thirsty Lion Tuesday night; audition with Jane for the Hoffman Center talent show Wednesday night; music Thursday, Friday, Saturday (the Hoffman talent show), and Sunday. I suppose I should dredge up “Love Trails of the Zombie Snails”; it’s my only snow song (it’s about Antarctica).

Joe