"Amiable Ben" lyrics

I though you knew
That I’ll be good
No appropriation
Cause we were new, the only ones
And I lived near you
Our fields were close between us (two)
And one day when the sun was high
My breath got stuck
I lost my eyes
My land was gone!
I was surprised it was you

I lay down the tracks
For you? I won’t
It ain’t right
Cause jewels I owned were colored black
I lost my right for a while

But You
You don’t know it’s a hit drive

I bet you’ll drown me
But don’t let go
This is how I know
I can fix it right
When darkness appear
Hold onto me
I’ll dry your tears
Who’s Amy?
She’s a friend of mine
We love to watch the sky during night
But now I’m lost
She aint coming back
Are you my love?
It’s a one way track on it’s own

I lay down the tracks
For you I won’t
It ain’t right
Cause jewels I owned were colored black
My thoughts were stoned for a while

But You
You don’t know it’s a hit drive

For now I’ll close my eyes 

Cymbals

 

"Strawberry Salesman" lyrics

I wanna be held again
(Have) A stairway to my past
Cause when I look up at clouds
They never seem to last

So I’ll lit a fire
And burn my photographs
I wanna be something
I can’t understand

The moment I felt so nice
There were no questions asked
My breathing was fine within
I never thought you’d lie

I really can’t grasp the fact,
Theirs not to reason why,
theirs but to do and die
Like treacle for my eye

So I’ll lit a fire
And burn my photographs
I wanna be something
I can’t understand

Well I don’t mind
I don’t care
I just found
A strawberry salesman’s mind

Can I be held again?
I wear a crown of thorns
Confused as hell today
A rumbling sky to descend

I wanna grow old again
Have a story to be told
Cause when I look up at clouds
They never seem to last

Recording "Look Out From Schmidt"

Interview

 Klicka på länken nedan för att läsa intervjun:
"Intervju med EP-aktuella Uppsalastudenten Jacob Douglas"

http://www.direktpress.se/uppsalatidningen/Bloggar/Musik/2013/November/2013-11-251/

Look Out from Schmidt - extra play

Here it is, listen to my new EP, Look Out From Schmidt. /Jacob

New Singel! - Strawberry Salesman

Listen to my new singel Strawberry Salesman.


www.facebook.com/jacobdouglas

Daniel Johnston -cover

Listen to my new cover of Daniel Johnstons "Like a Monkey in a Zoo". Recorded and performed by Jacob Douglas.

Demo recorded on a Teac 80-8

Normandie, new demo song from Sonjagon was recorded on a Teac 80-8 tape machine. Picture below tells us even more; 4 mic inputs via TL Audio 5001, and 4 mics via Tascam m-216 to half inch tape machine Teac 80-8. Return on the m-216 and bounce directly to quarter inch master Teac x2000m. Later on the vocal tracks where recorded digitally and the mixes where done in pro tools. 

This is me (Jacob Douglas) mixing.

Sonjagon live in studio

SONJAGON - BELOW THE SEA



Sonjagon - Below The Sea

Mixing: undemocratic or a way to avoid mass hysteria among the tracks?

Mixing music is about volume and paning whatever you participatie the mainstream or the alternative music scene. Music is an artform which you can not take away, and not the fact that people like it regardless of sound quality. If the volume and panning is not in place along with the recorded song's intention, the mix is not gonna be complete.

The importance of a finished mix is to be aware of the song's intention. A mix is completed when (especially) the volume of the instruments and effects (and panning) is in phase with the song's intention.

Defenition of Intention: purpose or attitude toward the effect of one's actions orconduct

Ask yourself next time when you insert a compressor, gate or you actually make a crucial decision in your mix (like for instance you dont do anything except set your faders), in what purpose you do that?

!

New song: Action Rock

Automation is your friend; buy a four-track

Dont be afraid to really grab on to yours faders and parameters during the recording and mixing stage. Mixing is much about levels and panning in relation to the band/ artists intentions. Anyhow, sometimes a simple tweak with just one knob may improve your recording, for example:

Attack on compression When recording the lead vocal use two microphones, one close and one further away in the same room. Connect a comressor on the close microphone and take some dB's off. Since the dynamic range on vocals usually are to wide a little compression can do much, but try to leave the ambience mic whitout compression. When the singer hits the loud notes, the close mics compression starts to work and at the same time the ambience mic goes up instead of being pushed down in volume. So if you want to bring up the ambience sound whitout to push the fader up when the singer hits the loud parts, just bring down the attack on the compressor during parts you want to have a more roomie sound. Try it on drums to.

Threshold on gate If the advantage is there to record the drums in a bigger room, spare atleast one microphone for ambience. Seeing that the snare drum commonly is the loudest, gate the ambience microphone so only the reverbation comes up in volume when the drummer plays. Then sometimes, during a more heavy or solo part in the song, bring up the threshold almost as the gate would stop working or be bypassed. The result can be a very creative way to get variations in the song, but can also be unfavorable so be careful.

Fader Riding When changing the volume on tracks in DAW programs, set the track i write mode and change it in real time by yourself along the song plays. Try not to play Microsoft Paint in your Pro Tools, press play and grab the fader! Best way to be familiar to actual fysical contact with faders is to buy 4 track and the bounce/mix down in realtime to a 2 track casette deck which every family have.
When recording with a 4 track your mind really start to work properly. Since there is no automation, editing or so called practical tools that can help, you start to prevent "after editing" already in the recording stage. Fuck the editing tools, spend the engery on yourself, you are the best plugin tool.

Automation in Pro Tools.

Tascam 244, a good way to practice mixing and learn to prevent "fix in the mix" as there is no editing tools.

The Mid Side-Stereo (Introducing the MS Matrix)

The mid-side stereo technique provides a "fake" stereo image, considers it as being comprised of central and side elements unlike the actual positioned right and left image like the XY-technique. It is the side signal that contributes to the stereo width which most of the cases takes its signal from a omnidirectional or figure eight pattern microphone. The side microphone use two channels, one panned left, the other panned right with the polarity reversed. The mid signal is mono panned center.

Position the mid side microphone in front of the stereo subject. Be aware that omnidirectional pattern can also be used as mid-microphone instead of directional mics. Make sure that the side-microphone is bi-directional (figure 8 pattern) and is so called “coincident pair” with the mid microphone, I.e. as close as possible. The front of the side microphone (phase-positive) should be pointed 90° to the "left".

The AKG C24 have two identical capsules (e.g. o + 8) which makes it ideal, but not necesarry m-s choices.

So, finally, the m-s stereo method eats up three channels on the console; one panned center, one left and right with the polarity reversed. To avoid this situation the MS Matrix is a must. Instead of adjusting the stereo field with two faders with exact amount gain, the MS Matrix do it with just one knob; Side. You figure out the rest, look at the picture below. If using a console, you may use the the MS decoder on the channels inserts. Otherwise pre amplifiers out to MS Matrix in, then Ms Matrix left and right out to tape machine.

The MS Matrix, also works as a pre amp.

"Coincident pair"

The mid side-setup.

The akg C24 with two capsules, ideal, but not necessary M-S choices.

Drum recording

Recording drums in large rooms is fun and endangered, but easy to revive. There is not much sound from the room itself nowadays in recordings. What really makes the instrument is the acoustics of the room together with the instrument itself. Something that is forgotten today when recording acoustic instruments is the sound reference among todays artificial soundscape; how does in fact a drumset sound when your are standing in front of it? If the drummer is proficient with a functioning drumset in a proper room there are no worries. The only job that is left for the engineer is to put up mics and press record; easy!

This room on the picture is not dead, it is very live and alive. These days, engineers have made compromises in their choices of acoustic environments. 

8 mics, 5 close, stereo overhead and one room.

Female Drummer

Static drumming is often referred as girl-accompaniment and the majority of drummers are guys. Well, whatever. In 2004 Autolux released their debut album Future Perfect wich is great.. The drumming by Carla Azar is immutable, kittenish and very whimsical.

Read this interview with Carla Azar by Tom Tom magazine.

Autolux last gig in Stockholm was great. One vexatious thing however the ride cymbal was risky close to the floor tom.

Carla Azar in Autolux.

Recording electric guitar

Recording electric guitar using two amps and one room microphone can improve your recording. In the picture below there is a Fender Twin amp that delivers much mellow mid stomach with much dynamic and the little bad as Orange Tiny Terror which compress the signal into a classic rock sound. When using two mics its important to check the phase in mono. In this case it was necessary to phase reverse one of the mics but it ended with them being separated in the mix that is panned left right. The room mic was parallel with the wall to take advantage of the boundary effect. Usually the room mic is placed on the floor. Later delayed the room mic around 22 milliseconds in the mix to attain the room's grumble but still interesting tone.  

AKG D112 on the Twin and Sennheiser MD421for the Tiny Terror.

The delayed Swedish microphone SE Electronics X1 as room mic. To the right many RCA cables.

Beyerdynamic M160 looks like dynamic but ribbon?

Despite the fact that this microphone looks like a ordinary microphone with a dynamic construction, this is an unique double ribbon microphone with hypercardioid polar pattern. Usually ribbons are bidirectional meaning that they pick up sound equally well from both either side of the microphone. However, the M160 is worth mentioning. Works on acoustic string instruments, amplifiers, drum overheads and is brighter than most ribbon mics.

Beyerdynamic M160 with a hypercardiod pattern.

The standard pickup pattern of a bidirectional microphone (red dot) viewed from the side above.

Magnetic Tape

Recording on magnetic tape.4 microphones via TL Audio 5001, and 4 mics via Tascam m-216 to half inch tape machine Teac 80-8. Return on the m-216 and bounce directly to quarter inch master Teac x2000m.

Two tape machines from top, Teac x2000m, Teac 80-8. Console Tascam m216.

اچھے دن تمہیں پریشان کرے گا

Chavez

Klassisk stereoinspelning på 1/4 tums band

Teac x2000 och TL-Audio 5001 rör preamp. Ljudet blev väldigt bra så att rumsklangen avslöade för mycket. Viktigt med bra rum.

Gert Palmcrantz

Här är en bild från en intervju jag gjorde med Gert Palmcrantz med Didrik De Geers handbyggda mikrofon.