Set to start mixing a record for Austin Gibbs that was recorded by Nate Barna. Please take the time to check Austin out….www.myspace.com/austincgibbs and look for the record to be released in the near future. Super talented guy, I’m stoked to become a part of this project…In the meantime, come check him out live tomorrow night at the Martini Ranch w/ Dear and the Headlights…..

Matisyahu did a radio takeover of FM/1039 where he got to DJ his favorite jams on the station for over an hour with his guitarist Aaron Dugan. He then played a couple songs live right afterwards. I was there to capture the performance. Matis and Aaron understand what it means to play live and kicked a couple improvised versions of songs from the new album. That’s what this type of performance is all about and they gave us something different from the album which is always cool. Matis let loose on some beatboxing in the middle of both songs and Aaron did some improv parts as well. I recorded these guys three years ago for the same type of thing and this time I think they definitely had more fun and seemed more relaxed. Two super nice dudes and I’m really digging the expanded musical direction on this latest album. Check it out if you have the chance: www.myspace.com/matisyahu
Audio from this session to come soon, but in the meantime you can check out some video at www.fm1039online.com

Franz Ferdinand stopped by FM/103.9 to record a few songs acoustically while they were in town on tour with Green Day last Saturday night. I’ve always liked these guys and I was hoping that they’d be cool when they actually showed up….I was not disappointed. Super cool guys and their playing just killed it. We did 3 songs (Ulysses, No You Girls, Take Me Out) together including their first big hit ‘Take Me Out” which they told us they’ve never done acoustically before. I was impressed at how tight these guys played together and how well they sung without any effects or headphones. Just great musicianship which is always a pleasure to record and their whole entourage was a pleasure to deal with. If you haven’t had a chance to check out their new record (Tonight:Franz Ferdinand) then please do, it’s awesome. More about the band here. Audio on my myspace soon…..

The Bollox had the vinyl release party for their debut self titled album last week at the Marquee Theater. They played with the Keltic Cowboys to celebrate the event and everyone had a super good time. The limited edition vinyl was released in the three colors of the Irish flag: Orange, White and Green. The vinyl release was a joint effort between Operation Records and May Cause Dizziness Records and you may click the link for either to get info on how to get your copy…but don’t sleep because I know this was a super limited run like maybe 250 total of all 3 colors? Click here for more info/show dates for The Bollox.

All photos courtesy of Josh Bassett

Blue October was in town last week on tour in support of their latest record “Approaching Normal.” They swung by the studio before the show to record acoustic versions of 3 songs from both new and old albums. We did their latest single “Say It” as well as a couple of favorites from the past including “Hate Me.” I got to meet these guys years ago while I was working at the Edge 103.9 before their first single broke big. They came by the station and actually played a showcase in the board room for a handful of employees late one friday afternoon. I remember being thoroughly impressed because these guys gave an impassioned performance despite the meager disposition of the board room and the lack of a full audience. Shit like that goes a long way with me. You would have thought that there was 10,000 in the audience by the effort they put in that day. Their single “Hate Me” ended up being huge and I’m always curious to see bands again after they’ve enjoyed some success to see how they’ve changed. The guys came in, remembered playing the show in the board room years ago, and were super cool this time around as well. We got set up and they knocked everything out in one take. It was especially fun to record their fantastic violin/mandolin player…..the tracks came out great for a live performance. I will post audio soon. Blue October’s latest record “Approaching Normal” is currently out on Universal Records and is available everywhere. It’s worth checking out if you have the chance. Find out more about the band here.