Tall Tales & Short Stories TIM KORRY Audio Recording Blog TAYLOR Studios 2010

Tall Tales & Short Stories

TIM KORRY Audio Recording Blog Week 23 TAYLOR Studios 2010



As I crunch through the brown grass, the wicked whipping wind dances around the decay of summer’s warmth and devotion. Smelling the disintegrating fall leaves reminds me of how long the recording of Between the Sun and the Moon has endured. What was once the warm green blooming spring has now become shivery, solemn, and still. The final mixing and mastering phase will begin tonight and continue throughout the Halloween weekend. Jeff Taylor and Andy Kolp will be adjusting the sonic landscapes and introducing the proper amount of magic and focus.


I will meet with artist John Hansen to talk about the cover art tonight. His work is fantastic, dark, and dreamy…. just the right combination to represent the music on this CD. My new fascination with goth and steampunk fashion is beginning to show and will probably reflect in the rapidly approaching photo shoot. A new logo is in the process of being designed that centers around the Kanji dragonfly symbol. The dragonfly was chosen because it symbolizes depth of character, power and poise, defeat of self created illusions, living in the present, and the opening of one’s eyes. This symbolizes a shift in the direction of the music and the musician.

Mutatis mutandis.

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EQUAL NIGHT- TIM KORRY Audio Recording Blog Week 22

EQUAL NIGHT- TIM KORRY Audio Recording Blog Week 22

I started this week’s blog under the full harvest moon and during the Autumnal Equinox, a strange and powerful moon. The skies are blue, there is a slight chill in the air, and leaves are beginning to change and spin to the earth. The studio experience strangely appeared to follow right along with the shift in seasons. This adventure began last spring, the songs and accompanying experiences advanced throughout the summer, and the final creation will be ready for harvest within weeks.



More texture was added to the crowning song with a melodic ringing guitar track gliding over the choruses and waves of tribal drumming. TAYLOR Studios advised in arranging some the previously recorded pre-production symphonic lines. A little smoothing out was needed while still maintaining the songs simplicity and vibe. The following studio session resulted in a trippy reversed reverb guitar layer affixed to the final verse in “Under a Wishing Well”. Impromptu vocals sprang up out of this session as well.



I am looking forward to a much-needed vacation to St. Augustine, FL as this project comes within weeks of a finale. Ultimate production decisions will begin the second week of October. We will also be discussing the forthcoming music video. As the sun lights the moon and the moon pulls the tide, we are pulled another step closer to the light at the end of the tunnel. Between the Sun and the Moon….


Click for Pics


“See how nature - trees, flowers, grass - grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence...we need silence to be able to touch souls.” – Mother Teresa

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Artifex. Tractum. Accendo. Week 21-TIM KORRY Audio Recording at TAYLOR Studios

Artifex. Tractum. Accendo.

The song was written in the shadows of pain and fear, but now gives a sense of light and peace… Work began on the final song for the ‘Between the Sun & the Moon’ CD this week. The home pre-production tracks were used in entirety, but cleaned up very nicely by TAYLOR Studios. ‘Under a Wishing Well’ was finally emerging from the dark recesses of past tribulations and the writings that were inspired by that specific moment in time. Now the cobwebs have been cleared and dust blown away like an old book waiting to be opened for the first time.




It’s always funny to get a reaction to the title of a song compared to it’s meaning. I saw this reaction in Jeff’s face when I explained that ‘Under a Wishing Well’ is actually about being trapped under water, looking up at the sky through the ripples, under a wishing well. It’s a sort of wishing from the other side. The dreamy strings and tribal drums represent the flow of the clear illuminated water above. This explanation was not quite what he expected, but that’s how abstraction is at the end of the day. Final guitar work begins in just a few hours.



I met with a couple of artist and friends in my ‘Backyard Zen Garden’ late on a Friday afternoon around a chimenea fire with swirling incense in the air and cold German beer in the cooler (Yes, that’s the combination). Local artists Thom Fell and John Hansen were in attendance and in prime conversational contour. I wanted to talk about creating an image for this upcoming CD & website, but something more primal and honest came out in its place. The exchange was delightful, raw, honest, and controversial. We talked for hours about life, beliefs, and the future. We had real conversation on art, textures, styles, etc…everything is built on art. “Creatives need to step up and show the way”, exclaimed Thom as he also acknowledged that artists need administrative help... Ha! That was funny, true, and close to home. “Who will be the next Picasso, Warhol? How do you change history? Is it possible to build a real and constructive (not destructive) artist community?” The fire burned on both figuratively and literally as raccoons chewed on corn around the perimeter. We continued the conversation until almost 2AM. A real feeling of artistic community and enlightenment began that night with three people of different backgrounds and approaches to art in it’s different forms. This wildly raw and candid evening ended with a spontaneous prayer… and unexpected but fitting way to end such honest conversation. I look forward to continuing the conversation …



See pics here




The Art of War Sun Tzu: It does not take sharp eyes to see the sun and the moon, nor does it take sharp ears to hear the thunderclap. Wisdom is not obvious. You must see the subtle and notice the hidden to be victorious.

æquinoctium -TIM KORRY Audio Recording Blog-Week 20 at TAYLOR Studios

æquinoctium

The change of seasons is slowly penetrating the stratosphere as we head into week 20 of recording. We are not only seeing the light at the end of the tunnel, we can feel it. Drum loops were meshed with properly toned V-Drums. A sort of funky Duran Duran with a heavy groove jazz kit was worked on for several hours. Drum loops are great if used in the proper style along side an actual drum kit. Heavy power and soul can be achieved with real sampled drums alongside of musicians playing authentic percussion. I am looking forward to working with more world instruments, musicians, and loops in future recordings.

Outside the studio, we took a field trip back to the Bristol Renaissance Fair for a final dusty fall-like weekend. We were regaled with the magnificent and hilarious sea shanty tunes (ya man, I dig sea shanties) of my friends The Bounding main. Hanging out with fellow musicians and their families, we drank up the welcoming atmosphere as we walked closely below the looming shadow of the coming fall.

I had left the studio with the possibility of a sitar or bagpipe addition to the song ‘9Sticks’. I found, on returning, that Jeff had worked up a majestic and distant bagpipe arrangement in the breakdown section of the song. The segment was reminiscent of a John Paul Jones/”Over the Hills and Far Away” voicing and vibe. Perplexing mathematical equations were calculated in order to produce the correct amount of tonal magic on this track. The astronomical change in the season is marked by the position of the earth and sun. The recording of 'Between the Sun & the Moon’ should be completed by the autumnal equinox.

“Creativity comes from awakening and directing men's higher natures, which originate in the primal depths of the uni- verse and are appointed by Heaven.” - I Ching

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TIM KORRY Week 19- Under A Wishing Well Recording Blog TAYLOR Studios 2010

TIM KORRY Week 19- Under A Wishing Well Recording Blog TAYLOR Studios 2010


Posted on September 1, 2010

Walking off a hazy pathway in search of the next step, I feel light as a feather but stiff as a board. Changes in the studio dynamic and the elusive “light at the end of the tunnel” become revealed. My mind races… full of possibilities… Drums and percussion are nearly completed and production has commenced. Jeff had tightened up the loops and programmed the drum settings for the almost finished ‘Light as a Feather’. The ‘Hey Jude’/Black Crowes/Procol Harum sounding finale had been lifted to majestic heights thanks to the Bonham-like drum fills and sweet leslie of the Hammond organ.



I learned that TAYLOR Studios had made the decision to include an extra song on the CD due to a phone call earlier in the day. Some encouragement from outside sources had set the scene for the release of an instrumental that’s been bangin’ around my head for the last decade, just recently conjured and performed. ‘Under a Wishing Well’ will be the sixth and final song on the ‘Between the Sun and the Moon’ CD and the first instrumental I’ve made public.



A recess from the studio setting inspired another trip on the vintage pedal pusher for a shiny summer spin. Soaking up the sun and fresh country air on the White River bike trail is a great break from the confines of a darkened studio. Bridges, vistas, farmlands, and towns dot the plains of this southern WI stretch of limestone. Riding down the old railroad bed straight into the heart of Americana, I was transported back to a simpler time at the restored Pedal & Cup Depot, now an oasis on a sunny August afternoon. The idea of it all doesn’t sound very rock band like, but sometimes just a rocking chair on an old porch can be extraordinary.



Back in the studio, ‘9Sticks’ is next on the list for rhythm arrangement and experimentation. A reverse reverb was added to a Southern rockin’ blues guitar riff, played over the top of a classically finger picked nylon stringed intro. That’s a mouthful, but the bluesy psychedelic stringing sounds as if it’s “sucking through a vortex” according to the producer. Dreamy, slinky, and enticing…this may be the song for the upcoming video. Further audio exploration is on the horizon in this next coming week. Now begins the phonic production passage…

Purple grass below.

Black-eyed Susans stand taller.

The sky is endless.

Liza Taylor

Click here for Pics

RETROGRADE- Week 18 - TIM KORRY- Audio Recording at TAYLOR Studios

Mercury Rx


The full moon is up. The drums on ‘Retrograde’ are nearly complete. We pass through the cycle of mercury in retrograde. The stage is being set for the next phase. Talk of the next step beguiles us.

A birthday party was held, for a friend from Belize, more extravagant than some wedding receptions. The good people of Belize and Columbia do not fool around when it comes to festivity. Food, drink, live music, DJ’s, and dancing were everywhere under the moonlit tent. The night was intoxicating and pleasurable, but somewhere beneath the luminous sky, things diverted into delirium and uncertainty. The bizarre tropical rain that soaked me to the bone at the previous nights jaunt to Milwaukee’s Irishfest was unusually unyielding, but the strange events continued on this clear nebulous night. After arriving back home, a glass patio table spontaneously shattered into tingling square crystals. House keys were misplaced, spare change jangled to the ground, and a sitting Buddha tumbled to the turf as a chill swelled in my twilight filled backyard Zen garden. The once vigorous night became unnerving and unhinged. Maybe there is something to this retrograde phenomenon. Communications, progress on projects, and relationships all seemed to beset with blockages. Well, this is ironically what the song is about…


Luckily the next sunny day, seeing The Red Hot Chili Pipers and Wolfhounds back at Irishfest, outshined the last two days of peculiar experiences. Tis always a great time with friends and great entertainment…


Back at the studio, the last guitar tracks for the project were recorded. The nylon stringed finger-picking intro to ‘9Sticks’ was crowned with a trippy Southern Rock blues lick. Drum tones formulated, loops refined, mixes introduced. The stage is being set for the next phase. Talk of the next step beguiles us.

Psalm 34:7

The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them.

See Pics Here

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The Moon (Storm before the Calm)- TIM KORRY-Week 17- Audio Recording at TAYLOR Studios

Keith Moon is alive and well and living inside the upcoming EP ‘Between the Sun & the Moon’. No, it’s not about Keith Moon, but a few tunes give a direct “hats off” to the drum legend. TAYLOR Studios brought this specific sound to the title track during the recording sessions this week. A ferocious double kick and tom barrage support the unrestrained guitar crunch, deep down bass pump, and retro Beatle-esque harmonies. The middle build up section of the song also contains a wicked John Bonham style stomp.




Jeff produced a magnificent string arrangement on the song ‘Always’, mostly completing the tune. We could not make it past the solo guitar tone sticking point altogether. Apparently I am hearing something that the other people in the room are not. Every studio situation involves a bit of give and take after all, it’s just a bit draining and I’m feeling the strain towards completion. After an ardent and fiery discussion we paused for a light and amusing dinner at a place called Barnacle Buds. This seemed like a great place to unwind outside along the waterway. At one point, we actually broke into a three-part harmony of a Beatles song at the table (which is a good thing unless you are in church or something). This created a minor disturbance in the rowdy dinner crowd, but was a much needed catharsis and regeneration of focus.



We all agreed that some of the final drum bits would be executed and sorted out without the writer hovering over the console. This means a little break for me and less pressure in the studio for a spell. The word in the studio is that we may be finished with this CD in the next two weeks. As we advance into this next week, plans are made for upgrading and revamping my personal studio. I am very much looking forward to working on future pre-production in a substantial soundproof space.

For Pics Click Here

“I told people I was a drummer before I even had a set, I was a mental drummer.”-Keith Moon

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