This Blog is dedicated to what type of equipment we use on a session.

West Valley Highway ( County / Honky-Tonk )

WVH first recording session took place from Dec. 4th 2004 to Feb. 20th 2005.

Drums: Boot’s drums kit is a 3 piece custom made Jerry Garcia Kick and Floor tom with Ludwig snare. His high hat is now green with oxidation over the years and when he set them up I commented that we should clean them to bring out a more responsive ring but the way he played and the tone he got from older drum heads and unpolished cymbals was a well balanced classic sound, sometimes new isn’t always better. We set his kit up on a throw rug over the hardwood floor for that warm room feel. The snare had two mics on top a Shure SM 57 and on the bottom an AKG 414 by doing this you can blend a great snare pop. Boots always plays his snare at a forward angle this technique is perfect for a consistent solid side stick sound. On the kick we used an Audix D6 close and to the bottom. Floor tom and ride we placed a Sennheizer 421 on each and the high hat a Neumann KM84 close to the bell. For overheads we had two Rode NT2 closer to the kit for an older style sound. We put a Neumann U87 about eight feet back to capture the reflection and warmth of the hardwoods and the twelve-foot ceiling. In all for this session we used nine mic’s for the drum Kit.

Bass: Tony plays a 1978 Fender tobacco sunburst fretless P-bass with strings that have not been changed in over two years. Tony wanted an upright bass sound so we lined in straight to a DI box and flat EQ’ed his tone. These first five songs where a live recording between the bass & drums tracks, I believe there are no more than two or three takes from each song and we picked the best and built upon them. On a couple of songs there was only one take. When it sounds good, it sounds good.

Bass: Corey is now the bass player for WVH and his recording session we used both a stand-up bass ( cow gut 4-string ) mic’ed with a Cole Telefunkem M16 tube Mic and a Avalon 737SP mic pre. For his electric parts he used a Jones “longhorn” bass we ran that through the Avalon 737SP also.

Lead guitar: Mo has what many guitar players are searching for, his own style & tone. His guitar techniques are complementary to the clarity Telecaster sounds of yesterday but distinctively his own I will even venture to say influential to future guitar players. In sessions I often work with the guitar player on trying an array of different amps, guitars & pedals with Mo it was totally different, out the gate he knew the sound that he wanted and all we had to do was find the correct mic to capture that sound. Mo brought in his stage Telecaster and backup Strat and on one song he played a Danelectro baritone guitar (drop down tuning). His amp is a mid-60’s Fender Super Reverb 4×10 blackface. We set it up in the live room on the carpet close to and facing the hardwood floors for a large room / concert hall sound. After testing four to five different mics and mic placements we ending up using and blending together a AKG 414 & Shure 57 close cab with a Neumann U87 six feet back on the hard woods. The AKG 414 is the dominant mic tone in the mix.

Banjo: McBee picking on the track I’m That Man has a great “ Grand Ol Opery “ vibe. We placed him on the hardwoods with a U87 six inches away from the body of the banjo. The tone we received was a blend of his old banjo drum skin and a flat EQ on the pre-amp very close to the way we recorded the bass. McBee now uses another banjo so you will hear a slight difference in the tone on the other songs.

Vocals: We recorded vocals two ways 1). In a 5 x 5 vocal booth mic facing a diffusion plate and vocalist four inches away from the U87 for a bold upfront sound. 2). Open live room on the hardwoods vocalist four inches away from the U87 for a warm room feel both ways we ran through a Avalon VT 737 SP for analog tube depth.

There is a new music magazine in Seattle called Seattle Sound Magazine. WVH has a great half page write-up from Don Slack ( KEXP, Radio ) I highly suggest you run out to your local magazine rack and purchase a copy. The review is in ” March. 2006 Vol. 1 Issue 1″

We’re excited to release this new portal into the place and the people of Fastback Studios in Seattle, WA. Now you can check in and see what’s happening in the studio as well as keep up-to-date on special deals and openings for future recordings.