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I'll be doing a "Quickies 6: In the Studio" panel-type thing at SXSW on Saturday, March 20th, 11:00 AM, at the Austin Convention Center, Room 16A. I think you have to sign up for this, so check their website for more info. It'd be cool to meet some...
I think it's for real? Is it? What is it? Why?
See Barry Rudolph's report on Treeverb
James Beaudreau is a former member of the Billy Nayer Show (1998-2003) and started Workbench Recordings - a netlabel, blog, and recording studio in NYC. They release one track every Tuesday along with artwork and texts about the creative process,...
I've interviewed and enjoyed Alan Parsons' company a number of times over the years, and a while back he even cornered me at an AES conference and videotaped a quick interview about Tape Op. He claimed to be putting together a video about recording....
Our pal Ronan Chris Murphy does this cool "TV" show on his site, http://ronansrecordingshow.com, and the most recent one is with me and John Baccigaluppi where we talk about Tape Op Magazine. I think it's a good insight into how the mag works and who...
James Goss has interviewed many independent record store owners across the country to see how they stay in business and what they sell. Every month a new store will be profiled with interviews and photos. Pretty fun. Here's the link: Vinyl Lives
So I just noticed an email in my inbox from a PR person with the headline: "XXXXX MICS FEATURED IN THE BEATLES™: ROCK BAND™ VIDEO GAME". What's next? "Shure SM57 seen briefly in a movie"? "Rob Thomas sings into wrong side of a mic in a video"? Oh...
Ina previous blog post, we saw the beginnings of this project. Damian Wagner was in issue 64 - here's a crazy project where he's amplifying the sound of the earth! "After destroying 3 subwoofers and having to completely redesign the
playback engine I...
Well, not my maker but the man behind the baby that is our RND5088 console at Jackpot! I got to spend a little time (and a photoshoot) with Rupert Neve at The Magic Shop in NYC during the AES convention last week. Thanks to Steve Rosenthal for...
I didn't do this video. But the guy who did must be spying on me. You can replace the style of music with any style, but the conversation is the same. (Recording Engineers, you can replace mastering with 'my friend has a hacked copy of Cubase.') ...
Tape Op contributor, Chris Mara, has organized an amazing studio event coming up. I wanted to go but sessions have stopped me. If you can make it, this sounds like a lot of fun.
Tape Op Messageboard Thread and instructions Welcome to 1979 Studio
Our pal Howard Bilerman will be interviewing legendary producer Bob Johnston in Montreal coming up. Should be a real hoot!
I received several CDs recently, notably the Monsters of Folk (Jim James, M. Ward, Conor Oberst and Mike Mogis) and Porcupine Tree's The Incident, that I really wanted to listen to but was unable to hear. Why? Because these promo discs were...
Remember Nino from issue #67? His new Bird and Egg Recording Studio is hosting "an open house of sorts. On Sunday, October 18th between the hours of 2pm and 6pm Bird and Egg will be open for you to see and feel. There will be wine and hors d'ouvres...
Link here for a free pass to the 127th AES Convention in New York City, Oct. 9-12, for “Exhibits Only” registration. Come on down and visit the Tape Op booth and harass us about missing issues or why we don't review your CDs or write...
Fire Extinguishers in the Studio - [Note to our EU readers. I don't know if the U.S. letter conventions apply in your locale, but the fundamental suggestions in this post are universal.]
It’s a really smart idea to have a couple of fire...
A lot of you have probably heard the term “microphonic tubes.” But have you ever heard one in action? They actually turn into little microphones. (Hence the name).
So, this week I decided to replace the input tubes on my Manley...
Here's a tip that costs nothing for materials, might be good for the environment, and can save some headaches down the road. I don't know about you, but our Postal Delivery Person insists on bundling our mail in rubber bands (gum bands for our...
Tape Op contributor and studio owner/engineer/producer Mike Caffrey recently sent me some thoughts he had about visitors to the studio during sessions. See issue 73’s upcoming end rant for the origins of this piece. -LC
"I always tell...
I recently mixed my first album entirely on my laptop. Yeah, maybe I'm a decade behind the curve but I also own a studio and have done a majority of my work there. On this job we were attempting to cut and mix a record in three days and we didn't...
I pulled short straw and had to go pick up the take out tonight (take away for our UK readers). The radio was set to NPR, so I let it alone. The announcer introduced a new segment called “Listen to This,” that features famous musicians...
Why did I think I could set up my home studio in a couple of hours when it took four months to move Jackpot! to a new building? Tomorrow's shopping list: Solder, S/PDIF cables, etc... I'm amazed at how tangled and messy this quickly got. All I...
So here it is. The fateful letter that relentless talent scout and A&R honcho John Baccigaluppi sent to my band Vomit Launch back in 1988. Little did we know that soon we'd be holed up in his studio making records, and less than a decade later...
I thought I'd seen it all until I heard about collectors that pass around bootlegged copies of the test tones and bias pads from all genres of artists and albums. From an article in MOJO this month:
"Sorting their collections by "tones at head" or...
All around great engineer, and good guy, Ronan Chris Murphy has a few episodes out of his new Ronan's Recording Show. Some studio tours, gear reviews and a look at the SwirlyGig drink holder! Check it out.
Larry’s intro to issue #71 was one of his most important notes for engineers in a long time. It’s easy to press play, but not pay attention to the audio hitting our ears. (Have you ever read a book and found your eyes are scanning over...
If you want to stay in business you need to record all kinds of bands, including those you don't care for. (This is actually a shock to some people. It is. They don't last long, and their refusal to work with anyone except bands they hand-pick is...
I.R.S. Actually, its an acronym for the Internal Revenue Service. And for our Non-U.S. readers, please enjoy the fun.
I recently spent December through April undergoing a multiple year audit or our studio’s financials. I want to share...
Sick of this economy and its doom and gloom? Sick of bands saying they don’t have money to record? Sick of top 40 radio? I have the answer: do something about it.
Support independent musicians by going out and purchasing CDs from bands...
Our pal, Howard Massey, has a new book out, Behind The Glass Volume II. Volume I was a real treat, and Howard also co-wrote Geoff Emerick's excellent Here, There and Everywhere: My Life Recording the Music of the Beatles. There's a ridiculous amount...
Al Kooper produced this band in the '80s. They really knew how to argue - with him, with each other and probably with anyone in a ten-mile radius. Al edited out the music and kept the wonderful conversation, releasing it on one of his limited (300...
"First off, I really enjoy reading Tape Op. I have read it since I was in 8th grade (2001)."
I never imagined I'd get an email that began like this. I will be 46 in May. Tape Op entered its 14th year in April. Jackpot! Recording Studio is over 14...
My friend, sts is the Program Director and an instructor at The Rock ’n’ Roll Camp for Girls. They’re currently building up their recording program, Rock Camp Studio and the "Recording Engineer Track" studies and are looking for...
Our busy friends over at the Future of Music Coalition have released a study, “Same Old Song: An Analysis of Radio Playlists in a Post FCC-Consent Decree World”. Check it out - basically the major radio stations owners - Clear Channel,...
So you just drop a microphone to the bottom of an 800ft hole in the earth? Damian Wagner (issue 64) checks in with Tape Op.
"I've just returned from a two week audio expedition to Brazil. I was in Brazil to test nine microphones, cables, speakers...
I just stumbled across an interview I forgot I did. Snarky answers and all. Man, I'm a jerk sometimes. All the time?
Okay, so that's not the most original headline ever. I check the MySpace site once every 6 months and see old notes from friends about things that happened ages ago. Sorry. Oops. But what really drives me bat-shit is seeing ads like "Learn Audio...
I was amazed today to be informed that phonograph cylinders are still being manufactured. Madame Pamita dropped us a line a while back and surprised us with some cool music recorded on Cylinders by Peter Dilg, of the Edison Historical Site, and it...
I'll be shelling out a lot of bucks for this on Sept 9th. Billboard reported this today...
"All 14 Beatles titles, along with a DVD collection of the documentaries, will also be available in a stereo box set. A second boxed set, "The Beatles in...
So my wife runs the fabulous PantyLine Press, and she scored a sweet interview with Rick Allen (of Def Leppard) and his partner Lauren Monroe to talk about the music they are working on and all sorts of other stuff. She posted a shorter version on...