The Remainder of the Equation

Well, we’re back home and the mixes are nearly done. I say nearly, because we’re all taking a week to listen in a variety of places to see if we can pinpoint and resolve any remaining mix issues. I know the list has grown progressively shorter for me. I’m very excited about where this project has gone. We listened to the whole thing about three times on the drive home, and then compared it to the pre-mastered versions of What it Is, and we were pretty stoked. We feel like we’re evolving as artists.

So, what now stands between this moment and you having a copy of our new CD / MP3 Download into your hot little hands / iPod?

Mastering. Mastering is a bit of voodoo. On paper, it’s process of getting the levels consistent from track to track, applying a final round of EQ and Limiting.

In the real world, it’s something more than that. A good mastering job makes everything feel “finished.” When Brian heard the mastered version of What it Is, he made the following statement, “Everything just sounds bigger, like the sound is wider than my speakers.”

[Edited for content... our mastering situation is now fluid, but shall be swiftly resolved. There's more than one engineer on the planet, friends.]

Then comes artwork. We’re privileged to have a world-class photographer working with us this time, and even better because he’s a friend and all around great human being. Anacleto Rapping, or Mike Rapping as he’s known around these parts, has shot some amazing photographs of some very famous and not-so-famous people. Spend about 10 seconds on his website, and you can see why we might be excited. Last time, we purposefully avoided plastering our faces on the CD cover. This time, we’ve realized that we need to create a link between us and the music that we’re selling, and part of that is putting our faces out there for people to see.

After that, our very own Corey will put together our visual design and it will be off to the duplication house and internet distributers.

And then what?

Stay tuned….