Edgework...The Rough Mixes and the Making of the Album...

Well this is a mighty exciting day. I just completed recording all of my tracks in Seattle for my new full-length album, "Edgework" and am now back to settle and rest for the winter in Victoria. It has 12 songs in total, all written and arranged by myself for voice, acoustic and electric guitar, bass, loop samples, flute, glockenspiel and keyboard. It's totally different from anything I've ever heard in the indie world before and I'm very excited to share the completed project with you by the end of summer 2007.

I have spent on average, 16-20 hours each day on this labour of love ever since I finished up touring in early December, obsessively recording it in my producer's North Seattle recording studio. I recorded all of these parts on my own, with lots of Tony's guidance as I had never used recording gear or recording software entirely on my own before beginning this project. Tony taught me a great deal throughout this process and I now feel like I am well on my way to being able to be the recording engineer for my own session recording projects here in Victoria. Eventually, my goal is to set up a home studio so that I can record flute parts for artists all over the world without having to travel so much or pay for studio time as well as have the freedom to work on recording my own music whenever I am inspired to do that. It makes a big difference to be able to record when you feel like it and to be able to take the amount of time it sometimes requires to really get a part just the way you want it. With the time ticking on the clock in a paid recording studio, it's not always possible for us to get our very best out at that very moment. I have noticed how much of a difference it makes, especially when recording vocals and guitar parts as I vary greatly from day to day, sometimes even from hour to hour.

My time recording this album was a real moment of living on the edge as I had just finished touring for four months and was still living out of a suitcase which I was hating. I had just quit smoking and was totally worn out from all the amazingly overwhelming experiences I had recently gone through. The initial reason for recording these songs was to have an EP that I could send to the people I love as a gift to them for Christmas. I soon discovered that there was no way I could complete the project in time and when I came to that realization, I decided to keep working on it, record tracks that I could use for a full-length album and send those gifts out when I knew it was something that I was truly proud of.

I chose to focus on including songs that I wrote during this special time of being on the road. Songs about places that have made a huge impression on me, songs about lovers that I have met and missed, songs about how lonely and dark it can really get on your own and all those feelings that are so raw when you're living on the edge. The album includes 6 "flute loopz" which you understand if you've ever seen me live and 6 singer-songwriter style songs for vocal, guitar, flute, keys and glock mix. It also includes loop samples of instruments I have tried all over Canada, like a thumb piano I borrowed for a few nights in Berwick Nova Scotia and a vintage keyboard I tried with an effects pedal on an autumn Sunday morning in Toronto. I am so excited to share it with you as I think it's my best recording yet and I don't think there's anything out there that sounds anything quite like it. Chapter three of my songwriting journey is almost completed. : )

The two songs I have uploaded onto my MySpace page is only a small taste of what's to come. Please keep in mind that they are only the very rough mixes of my recorded parts. No effects yet, just the rough mixes of what's there so far. I have found an excellent Ottawa bassist who will be adding parts and I'm currently searching for the appropriate indie drummer. If you are interested in recording parts or have some ideas for me, please send them along. I am open to suggestions.

After all the parts for the album are recorded, the mixing will be done by Jason Jaknunas, one of my favourite sound engineers and someone who I greatly admire. You may know of the work he's done recording Trevor Tchir and Souljazz Orchestra recent albums. I also have a great person from Toronto in mind for the mastering but I'll leave that as a surprise until it's officially confirmed that he'll be taking on this project.

I know this has been a bit of a long read but I have one more very important thing to include here before I end this.

It's about the amazing people who have helped me along the way, especially over the past 6 months of my life and in particular, my producer Tony Fabris who I am parting ways with after completing this part of the project. Tony has been such a pleasure to work with in every way. He has been a good friend, an awesome producer and a great mentor. This amazing man, who took faith in my music last summer as my world was crumbling to pieces, spent many hours recording and producing "Seattle Sessions" with me and introduced me to the Seattle music world. He then gave me a place of refuge when I really needed it in December and taught me everything he could in a very short amount of time to get me working independently in his studio, spending the nights with me helping me edit my recorded parts and showing me how to use his software so that I could continue working alone in the day. He was such an amazing mentor the entire way and a good friend. I wasn't always the easiest person to deal with. None of us artists are and I admire the folks who offer to help us achieve our dreams considering what we sometimes put these people through. As I have learned in the past with my classical flute mentors, there comes a time when you know that you have grown apart from your teacher and that you now need to be set free, to explore the world on your own and find a new source of inspiration. It's now my responsibility to share all of that great musical knowledge I have learned from Tony and pass on that goodness to others who need my help.
Tony, if you are reading this, I thank you from the bottom of my heart as you have been a huge source of inspiration to me. No words can ever truly describe how grateful I am for your dedication in helping me achieve my dreams. You are another beautiful angel in my life. : )

Thanks for reading to the end folks. Please give these new tracks a listen and let me know what you think.

And now for some sleep!

Smiles from Victoria,

Rozalind