Decisions, Decisions...

We wrapped up recording at my home studio the week of October 23rd. A few vocals, some stylophone stylings (another good way to get the squirrels out of the garage), and a couple of last minute arrangement nips and tucks and all was ready to mix. So the big, bad truck came and took all my gear back to Looking Glass, where we set up shop for an 11 day spree in which time I'd attempt to mix as many songs as possible. We had 16 or so to choose from, and it was our aim to finish what we hoped would be 12 songs intended for the album. The remaining songs would be mixed in the next available window of studio time and used as bonus tracks/B sides/etc.

In the end we mixed 14 tracks. So, which 12 would be on the album? Always a tough choice, so DB will mull that one over in the next few weeks before we need to commit for good. On 'Earthling', we changed the order a few times, and at the last minute an intended B-side, 'The Last Thing You Should Do', ended up on the album. So, I'm under no lasting impression that the tracks or the sequence we pick this week will be the final choices.

We began with 'London Boys', as it was quite familiar and also fairly simple as far as arrangement and instrumentation go. Surprisingly, it was a quickie done in about 4 hours or so - which was odd because the first mix usually isn't a quickie, it takes some time to plug things in and get acclimated. This set the template for the process: get sounds together, set up a decent rough mix, then STOP - don't go too nuts trying to tweak it out (other than making sure key parts were prominent). Finally, add a couple of effects here and there but for the most part use the natural ambience of Sear Sound and leave it at that.

I was really happy with the way the BBC mixes had turned out - on that project, I had to do two 48 track mixes per day so I had no other option but to go on instinct and not think about things too much. So I decided to go with the same plan this time out. Luckily, both the BBC and 'Toy' were recorded and played well, so repairs and other Band-Aids which would have slowed down the process weren't necessary.

When you sit in front of a pair of speakers for hours on end, you can lose objectivity and get lost in the minutiae of all the individual tracks, so it was important to take a lot of breaks (read: caught up on a lot of email). I got around this a bit by premixing the drums in the computer so that only 4 faders on the desk were taken up with drums. This was psychologically important as well - the kit became just another instrument instead of taking up a bank of faders on the desk.

We timed it so that DB would show up and offer an objective ear to the proceedings when I was around 90% finished with a mix. He'd always have one or two major comments before we'd commit to a mix. In typical style, he'd pluck something out of the air that had gone completely over my head.

We had a bit of company dropping in during these sessions. Sterling Campbell was around for many of them, offering moral support and watching the mixing process. Emm Gryner dropped in on the way to see a Ron Sexsmith gig at the Knitting Factory (she'll be opening for him on tour). Eric Jaimes from Ultrastar filmed us playing one of the new songs 'Afraid' for a crummie for BowieNet. David's assistant Coco would stop in daily. On one day alone we had Damien Loeb (artist) Ben Stiller (actor/comedian) and studio owner Philip Glass (composer).

All were really in love with 'Uncle Floyd' by this point, so we knew it had to be on the record. We followed the example of 'Afraid' from the previous week, so David went off on his own to complete the lyric while I started mixing the track. By the time a had a decent rough mix, the lyric was done! Of course he sang around 95% of it in the first take - it gave my assistant Hector and I the shivers. It's ended up being a favorite of anyone who's heard it so far.

For 'Uncle Floyd' we employed a chorus of people rounded up on the spot - Sterling and Holly Palmer, Coco, a couple of the Looking Glass staff, and a band called Stretch Princess who happened to be recording in Studio B with Pete Keppler, our tracking engineer at Sear Sound. Whoever was in the building with vocal cords got hauled in.

As far as gear goes (caution: boring gear talk about to begin..) since we were at Looking Glass we had the 10 channel Neve 1073 sidecar at our disposal, as well as the Neve 33609 and 2254 compressors, a UREI 1176, a Lexicon 224XL and 300, and a few Lexicon PCM-42 delays. I had my API's, Distressor, Space Station and Massenburg. Many thanks to Pete Keppler, who lent me an extra Distressor. Looking Glass just took possession of two LA2A reissues, which were used exclusively on David's vocals and were fab. A little EQ from the SSL as well (not that much though....!) and that was about that.

Of course we mixed while the election took place, taking frequent breaks to find out who was leading and where. It turned into a surreal evening, what with states bouncing back and forth from candidate to candidate. Emotions ran high in the control room as we tried to figure out what was going on and who was really winning, and the positives/negatives of voting for Nader. We figured it'd all be sorted out by the time we woke up the next morning. But no...........

And now, on a plane bound for Los Angeles, it all seems a bit surreal. I have to thank my assistant Hector Castillo for being one step ahead of me at all times, the studio for keeping it all working (no tech problems whatsoever, no brownouts this time) Pete for recording the thing so damn well, and David, Sterling, Emm and Co for their good humor.