Blog newsflash Summer 2014

Newsflash update

Sophronie's EP Eye's Wide is now out....

Available to buy on iTunes, CDbaby soon or in CD format direct from us......

visit Sophronie's website

How I recorded and produced 'Eyes Wide'

Sophronie first ventured into the studio around xmas 2013 bringing her guitar and collection of songs to make a demo recording. This first session was enchanting and on hearing her track "Eye's Wide' my ears pricked up and I had this strong image of Summer festivals, sitting around a campfire with friends and staring into the night sky. After discussions and negotiations the team decided this would be a great debut single. Sophronie's original recording of Eye's Wide is also include on the EP with two further bonus tracks.

I felt this had to be a really organic recording, natural sounds and capturing the essence of Sophronie's lyrics and painting that picture her song conjured up in my head. This arrangement was also going to have to sit in the current market place in the pop/folk genre.

I recruited Paul Boniface to play drums and briefed him that we needed a light summery sound with loads of natural woodiness. I wanted a cycling riff running through the track provided by Cassius Smith Frazer's banjo to give some movement in the arrangement. Sophronie and her brother Rohan played guitar and Sophronie added her Ukelele. The foundation track was recorded live against a carefully set tempo provided by Logic Pro X. Nothing was quantised as I wanted to retain a very human feel with a bit of looseness.

Next I added the vocal parts using our Rode NTK mic though the TL Audio valve channel. I then had the skeleton recording of the arrangement down. Handclaps and tambourine were added as they always help a track to roll, these were recorded live with a Rode NT1a microphone.

I felt that the track needed a little bit more solidity and managed to grab Jazz Pianist Pete Rosser when he was at the studios. He laid down a lovely textural pad of accordion which kept strongly in the organic vain I was after. To add more depth Thol Mason came in and played recorders (big ones and little ones....) to glue the whole track together. Thol then added various parts on Violin again recorded with the Rode NT1a. He played harmonics, suspense sound effects and his lovely melodic solo, picking up on Sophronies vocal melody. I added a very subtle bass part to lend weight to the bass drum and Niks added some Cello parts from our Nord Electro 3 keyboard.

I had all the elements ready to mix but decided to get Sophronie back in just to make some final additions to the vocal tracks. I then mixed and remixed over a few days until the picture I'd originally had was there. Sophronie's vocals had a little post production gloss added and very careful use of reverbs and compression to bring it all together sonically. Niks and I then tinkered with some mastering to the overall stereo mix until the whole track just sounded complete.

Sophronie's follow up single is in the final stages of production and I'm excited to be working on the album this August (and the xmas record....)