In 2025, I was looking for a producer. I found Pete. What follows is a record of our interaction. A "making of," detailing most of our journey.
We have not reviewed all of these messages. There may be bugs, or things we shouldn't have said, maybe not. If there are, I hope I find them before you do.
It’s such a gorgeous thing.
Being a real human being.EP MASTERS '26
1. Love, John Candy
2. Bless My Heart
3. Wait and See
4. Yang to the Yin
5. Reprise
6. Solo Amor
7. Don't Make Art
CHAPTER 1: THE SPARK (OCT - NOV 2025)
Friday, Oct 3
ZOOM CALL: INTRODUCTION
4:30 PM CST / 9:30 AM AEDT (SAT) - IN THE BEGINNING
Tuesday, Oct 14
ZOOM CALL: KICK-OFF/INFLUENCE DISCUSSION
4:00 PM CST / 9:00 AM AEDT (WED)
Friday, Oct 24
AUSTIN, TX TRIP (FINALIZED SONG 1)
Monday, Nov 3
ZOOM CALL: PRE-PRODUCTION SONG 1
3:00 PM CST / 8:00 AM AEDT (TUE)
Tuesday, Nov 4
Hey man - Pete here. Talk soon
Updated version of demo 8 is uploaded for you. I also dropped in the .als file in case its helpful.
On one precious version, at the very very end, I accidently captured my son's voice. That capture of his voice is at 160 bpm. I want to keep that at the end of the final version of the song. Its wholesome
Love that
Thursday, Nov 6
Last note on form. I want to double the length of Chorus A in both places, right before Verse 1 & 2. Ill spread the lyric out across both repeats of the riff.
And im open to what lyrics you like better for the chorus. Previous versions had darker lyrics there. I changed them to be more nonsensical, but I can deliver either version. Sit on it and let me know what you feel.
Ok awesome man. Working on it later this afternoon, so will make sure to double those choruses and will stew on lyric options
Thanks Pete. Sending good vibes
Friday, Nov 7
Let me know when I can get you paid for the rest of song 1 and when you want to schedule pre pro for song 2. Your newsletter from yesterday has got me fired up to get these songs done.
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Sunday, Nov 9
Everything sounds great. Got your email too. Will get everything taken care of today. (My time). I made slight extensions to the 2 early choruses, and fits well. Ill have this track back over to you, and will zip up the ableton, within the next 12 hours.
Awesome man. Perfect. Looks like Grant’s gonna track on my Thursday, your Wednesday
Monday, Nov 10
Im around for the next ~4 hours if youd like to chat today
Perfect! Jump on in 40 mins? 9:30 am Sydney time
Yeah sounds great
Tuesday, Nov 11
JEFF TWEEDY SHOW, DALLAS, TX
7:30 PM (FINDING INSPIRATION)
Wednesday, Nov 12
*Shared Instagram Reel*
Thats awesome. The john candy inspiration came from that new documentary on him
So good hey
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Here are the 3 takes from Grant. So stoked with these!! He gave us a fair bit of variation. I have some favorite parts and an idea for a comp. Let me know how these feel and any stand-out bits for you.
Thursday, Nov 13
Those sound great. The only thing I dislike is the vocal performance and I am very motivated to find a better window for that
Do you want to voice call later today?
Ok sweet! Yeah let’s grab a call today
My schedule is a little over the place the rest of today. What time works best for you?
Would u be free 20 mins from now? Or I can also do in 2 hours
20 minutes sounds best, top of the hour?
Perfect
Buzz u in 5 mins sorry
*Voice Call*
Friday, Nov 14
MEXICO CITY TRIP (FINDING INSPIRATION)
Monday, Nov 17
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Here we goooo
Drum comp and bass part idea in there now. Let me know how this is feeling. Such a fun song to play bass to
Wednesday, Nov 19
Dude that bass is sick
I love the bass, and I love it during the solo A section. Maybe we turn it up there with the drums.
The drums sound great to me too. Great work. Thats the intro I wanted, I feel were on the same frequency
So fun to see it come to life.
Incredible!
That’s great man. I dig the bass too. Wanted to give it some movement
Do u dig the Toms in the solo a section?
Yeah I did. And not necessarily when I heard the drums the first time, but this time I thought it fit perfect. I dont know if punch is the right word, but maybe power? It feels like it compliments with power well
The vocals didnt bother me near as much, although im excited to retrack it, and I want to modify the lyrics in two small places, but it feels great.
Incredible. I did a really quick mix on your vocals just with eq, compression and slap back delay
To give u an idea of roughly what the vibe could be
The vocals were much easier to listen to this time, thanks for that :)
Let me know when you want to talk next steps. Im out for the rest of today but can make time any day later this week
Soon as the slap back echo goes on there u start to croon like elvis haha
Rad, can do tomorrow at this time if you’re around.
Haha that made me laugh. Yeah, 1:30 my time?
Would 2pm be ok?
Ill be in the car, heading to pick up my kids. As long as that doesn't bother you. Ill have around 15 minutes, but otherwise that works for me
That’s all g! Let’s do 1:30
Thursday, Nov 20
*Voice Call*
By chance, do you know anyone that could record accordion? If you do, I'd love to work that into Song 2 somehow.
Friday, Nov 21
I think I know someone yep!!
I’ll suss
Monday, Nov 24
Heard back from Rhett (keys). He’s got the track and is excited to get cracking. He so knows someone who can track accordion, but also mentioned he plays harmonium and that sometimes works too for that sort of sound.
But either way we’ve got options
Ill get an updated version of song 2 done today. Let me know when we can do pre-pro
Perfect! Here’s a link for booking pre pro.
Let me know if none of these line up well for u
Perfect. Booked for tomorrow.
Yes!! Sick
They lyrics feel good. Rewrote them today. We'll need to confirm the form, but i have 3 sections so it should be close and it'll be fun to explain the accordion to you.
Rad. Is it in the folder now?
The lyrics are. Im getting to the music soon and will have it uploaded in the next few hours
Perfect
Its all in there now. Just mandolin, vocals, and some midi piano
Tuesday, Nov 25
Thanks man. Heading to bed now but keen to hear it in the morning
ZOOM CALL: PRE-PRODUCTION SONG 2
10:00 PM CST / 3:00 AM AEDT (WED)
Saturday, Nov 29
Ive retracked the mando and vocals on Wait and See, and uploaded the updated Ableton Session to the Google drive.
Let me know if you need anything else on that one right now, or if its good to go to drums
Sunday, Nov 30
Thank u sir. Back on deck today so will check it out
CHAPTER 2: FINDING THE FREQUENCY (DEC 2025)
Monday, Dec 1
I have a new idea I want to do for song 2. Its mostly the same, but I want to put a chorus at the beginning. I want to try opening with the drum machine, doing a chorus, then going to the accordion/harmonium instrumental.
Ill re demo it tomorrow morning if thats easiest.
Ok rad, yeah no worries at all
Alright, updates are uploaded. Let me know if you have any issues with the ableton session
I sped it up to 135bpm. With a bit different song form and a bit different lyrics.
I was just listening back and im slightly behind the beat for good chunks of the song. Ill slow it down a little and retrack it in the morning.
Tuesday, Dec 2
Will have a good listen this afternoon
I retracked the song at 127. It felt much better. Also slightly modified the intro, but you should be able to see and hear the changes easily. I agree the lyrics and arrangement feel like theyre working better together. Feels more like a story now, which I think is the intent with this one. I think the drum machine needs to be modified, but overall, im excited to see what this sounds like as it comes together. The mandolin is a little behind and some places, but hoping I can spend more time retracking that later.
Take a look and let me know next steps
Rad, on it this morning.
Just saw an email from Rhett with keys come thru too.
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Man
This is the exact sound I was hearing in my head hahah. See what u think!
Yeah dude thats dope
Im excited to get the vocals updated
I still really love the bass, especially at the end
I like the ending too. I think let's do that rather than a fade out
Ok rad!! Yes I think the ending is making more sense now the organ is there too
Ive got new lyrics for the chorus, tweaks on the verses, and a tweak for the outtro verse. I think it will all come together nice.
The 2nd part of the organ solo, where he goes nuts, I think we scratch that and hand off to electric guitar right there.
But im glad he gave it to us
Okay incredible. I love the idea of a ripping guitar solo after the organ for sure.
We could even go a little bit 50s rock ‘n’ roll with it potentially
Yeah thay sounds good. Ill be out traveling on Thursday and friday, but can hop on a voice call tonight or tomorrow evening if you want to chat about next steps. Ill be back and around this weekend, but will be out in london most of next week
Wednesday, Dec 3
London! Huge
Yeah tomorrow evening for a chat would be perfect. Let me know when works best for you
*Shared Media: Found today*
I can do a voice call anytime after 5:30pm (cst), 10:30am your time.
Let’s do 6pm your time if that works for you
Sounds good. Talk then
*zoom link shared*
Can jump in here if you want
ZOOM CALL: STRATEGY SONG 2
6:00 PM CST / 11:00 AM AEDT (FRI)
Thursday, Dec 4
BOSTON TRIP (FINDING INSPIRATION)
As im sitting here today I feel like I just got lost on the form for wait and see and we had it right earlier. Tell me what you think, but it feels like it arrange as..
2 bars drum machine,
Instrumental Section 1 (Am, F, G, C), Verse 1, Chorus 1, Inst. 2, Verse 2, Chorus 2, Inst. 3, Verse 3, Inst. 4/Outtro.
Inst. 1 feat. accordiam/harmonium,
Inst. 2 feat. acoustic gtr., Inst. 3/melotron?, Inst. 4 electric guitar.
Yeah let’s try that, I’ll edit that up today. Gives room for that intro idea (whatever that becomes) over the first instrumental potentially
Yeah thats what I feel too. Ill stand by, for that edit
Friday, Dec 5
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Hey, see if I got this right.
Potentially we could do another chorus after verse 3. And with the outro are we kinda building that as a bit of a jam with the electric guitar over the top?
Im hopping on my flight back to Dallas now, and will review once im home.
At quick look, yes I think I just overlooked chorus 3 in that message. Ive always intended 3 choruses
Sorry about that. I appreciate the patience
Oh sick. Disregard then and I’ll update with a new link
So fine. I think I’ll have the lyrics out of order potentially, but you’ll be able to check for flow
Yeah no worries. I can retrack them, and im sure ill be changing them before we put this one to bed
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Hahah totally
Saturday, Dec 6
Uploading 2 different solo vibes for John Candy
Ableton sesh will the in the sessions folder and I’ll link the mp3s here. See if either of these feel good to you.
I also did some rhythm electric to try
*Shared Google Drive Link*
*Shared Google Drive Link*
1 is nasty and angular, 2 is searing and smoother
Haha dude those are rad
And the tone is fantastic
Let me soak in these and see how im feeling. It makes me want to put my electric somewhere in there too, maybe more so in section A. But I want to play in the sandbox
And I really want to retrack the vocals. I think this one is almost ready for the oven
Ive been moving into a new apartment today, and will finish moving tomorrow. I might have time on Monday to do some work, but realistically will be out of pocket Monday-Friday
Amazing! Yeah get your electric on there for sure and have a play with it all. I agree, once we get that stuff and new vocals we’re probably at mix stage
No worries re moving - that’s a lot of work!!
Your rhythm electric sounds great too btw. Thats more or less what I was hearing.
Awesome, I used the 66 Fender Super Reverb I just got back from servicing
Which took 6 months hahah
Damn thats good timing then. I bet it felt good to get reacquainted.
The only amp I have is a California tweed. Its cool, dont get me wrong, but i think the blackface tone would be more useful to me
Yeah I only got to play it for like 10 mins before it started blowing fuses too
You could probably find an old blackface Princeton that’s not crazy expensive there
Haha yeah sounds like someone sold it to you at the ideal time
Hahah yep. Literally it had sat in a barn for 20 years plus
Yeah I imagine i will sometime soon. The tweed is cool, but it just does the tweed thing and it's hard to keep clean
Sunday, Dec 7
Man Im really enjoying your guitar work. Im siding with solo 1, although I like parts from both ideas. And more than that even I though the rhythm electric you put in was perfect.
Im not sure if I will be able to get into the filed to do any of my own work until next weekend. But im real happy with this tune so far and I feel its going to be more enjoyable once I update the vocal
Great work
Incredible! That’s great man. I’m loving it too. I think I agree on solo 1. I also can do more takes with that kinda sound.
Let me know how that arrangement for Wait and See feels too. Gonna look at the acoustic for that next before drums
Monday, Dec 8
Feel free to iterate on that solo of you want, youre free to have that space and sharpen it how you want. I thought that idea there is good so feel free to explore if you have an itch.
And I will look at wait and see tomorrow morning, Im just running a day behind right now
No worries at all
Re: Wait and See. Cut out from 00:04 through 00:41, and that should be the arrangement. We have 1 too many Verse and chorus.
And I can definitely hear the mando out of time in a few places so I can send an updated version on Saturday probably.
I think with that, you can put down an acoustic guitar to fill the space between the mando and the vocals.
Then we could get the drums and bass in there, and turn our focus to the instrental sections.
Perfect! Sounds good man, I’ll work on that edit and drum pattern later today
Tuesday, Dec 9
UK TRIP (FINDING INSPIRATION)
*Shared Google Drive Link*
That was super dope. Im on the plane, almost to London now. I rewrote the lyrics a bit, finalized them, before I went to sleep and then woke up to this message so it couldnt have timed better.
A+ i feel on acoustic, clarinet, and drums. And i dont know what you did to the vocal but yeah I like that too.
A few question mark I have:
- I have a third chorus written and can't decide if it needs it or not. I think you have clarinet on the 3rd chorus section now and that sounded prettt sweet
- we have to put accordian/harmonium somewhere but it feels like the space is there for it and it should work nicely
- I had been leaning to electric guitar somewhere too, but I dont know if thats necessary anymore. The acoustic guitar sounds pretty cool.
Im digging the energy. Its like sad lyrics but poppy fun vibes
Hellll yeah dude. Let’s def record a third chorus and we can decide either way.
Definitely accordion/harmonium - so keen to hear that. I’m imagining some electric could work really nicely too, maybe grabbing that acoustic guitar melody with some trem and verb
Yeah! And then I found the clarinet super emotional. Something about that harmony
So fun to watch these things come to life
Im leaning towards keeping the arrangement how you have it, but changing the last two lines of Verse 3 to be the same as the last two lines of the chorus. So it kind of accomplishes both parts
Yeah this one took me by surprise with that verse chord progression. It was like…ohhhhhh! Ok!!
Ive been listening and I think your arrangement is right. Once I update the lyrics the story will flow and cutting that last chorus will be great to build into the final instrumental.
As far as the 4 instrumentals go, I think it needs to build. So i agree that it opens drum machine, then adds mando/acoustic for the 1st instrumental. You have the clarinet coming in on the 2nd instrumental and thats spot on.
We need to continue to build with the 3rd and 4th instrumental.
Maybe the 3rd features harmonium, but maybe the clarinet lives in there too.
And maybe the 4th takes what we do from the 3rd, and adds electric guitar.
Ok rad. Yeah that’ll be fun. We can also intro subtle things each instrumental, vary the bass rhythm etc so it builds too
Yeah I think thats it. Introduce them and let it build. That acoustic guitar is so perfect. Love the opening when it comes on with the mando
*in
Wednesday, Dec 10
Awesome. Yeah I’m loving the song dude. That vocal sound might be something we can use in a few others also
Really suits your voice
What you do to it for the crunch?
It’s UAD Helios channel pushed - does that sound really well. Then this other neve plugin and some compression
Thursday, Dec 11
You know, when we started this, I dont think I had any confidence that four decent songs would get created. As we started focusing on the 1st song, I completely stopped looking at the lyrics for 3 and 4. But now that song 1 and 2 feel (mostly) written, I pulled up the lyrics for 3 and 4 and feel like were going to make it happen.
Because song 2 initially felt weak to me, and after hearing the bits you've built up around it im pretty excited to get working on the next two songs.
You have a cool fucking job
Dude it’s a wild process hey. And each record you do will let you imagine more possibilities and then that opens up your writing too
So stoked with how they’re coming together
On a scale 1-10, would it be much better to do the vocals in person. Or do you think theyre okay to do remote?
If you’re looking for an excuse to visit Australia just say so
I looked up the David Rawlings show, and there's another group playing in Sydney on the 16th that I would catch too
So now the idea seems to be perculating
Hahaha. But honestly there’s a few factors;
- mic
- sound of the room
- placement/mic technique
- vocal production/the performance itself
So all of that stuff we can nail remotely, especially if we do a session over zoom/audiomovers while tracking
But in person is always a bit easier without zoom in the way. The big advantage about tracking at home is that for some people (I’m like this) it feels like there’s less pressure/you’re more relaxed
But I’d love to do in person if you’re here! There’s a slight chance I’ll be in LA in mid Feb also, so that could be an option
Let's loosely keep the idea alive for now and we'll see what happens. I extended my trip by a few days and won't start catching up on what I owe you until Sunday, if im lucky. Will touch base in a few days.
No probs at all man
Enjoy!!
CHAPTER 3: THE EP SHAPES UP (END OF DEC 2025)
Saturday, Dec 13
Im going to be back home in the next few hours. I think you've sent the ableton session for John Candy, so ill for sure update those vocals tomorrow. If you can send the session for Wait and See ill also do those tomorrow
Awesome. Yep will send this evening
Which show(s) did u see again?
I had gotten tickets to Aurora at Union Chapel. I apparently have a soft spot in my heart for norwegian female vocalists
Sunday, Dec 14
Hahah excellent. Union Chapel must’ve been incredible
I just uploaded Wait and See
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Monday, Dec 15
How is 3pm your time tomorrow?
That works for me
Perfect
Tuesday, Dec 16
ZOOM CALL: JARED MISSES MEETING TIME
3:00 PM CST / 8:00 AM AEDT (WED)
❓
Hey sorry
Any chance you've got time later today
Even just a voice chat
Yeah man!
Im free the rest of today
Would 1.5 hours work for you? 12pm my time, I think 7pm yours?
Yes that works. And sorry again, I overlooked my schedule and wasn't near my phone
No worries man!
Im here and on the zoom link, whichever you prefer
Jumping in!
ZOOM CALL: CATCH UP/STRATEGY
7:03 PM CST / 12:03 PM AEDT (THU)
Man don’t slander me is epic
It’s basically punk haha
Yeah its been on repeat, and i feel good singing most of it
When you said blues I pictured bb king lol
There's two recordings of of it, one from the 80s, and another that seems to be released on 2017
The older one feels more psychedelic, but theyre both a blues form
Ah rad
I’ll find the other one
Ohhhh! I see. Yeah this is way cleaner
There's a lot of guitar on there, which I always love, but maybe if we do it theres some keys on it. Try similar instrumentation to John Candy
Yeah some roaring Hammond would be amazing
Yeah, something to make it a little different. But I like the tempo and energy. And feel i could deliver some rhythm and the vocal
100%. It’d be a super fun addition and I don’t reckon many people would know it
It sounds like we'll give it a go. Jeff Tweedy was in Dallas mid November and they covered one of his songs. Thats the only reason I found him, and he was a dallas guy apparently
I bet Grant has heard of him actually
Wednesday, Dec 17
Thursday, Dec 18
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Also you must’ve been up super early??
Yeah forsure. My daughter came to my bed at like 4am. How it goes
Im about to send over a demo of song 3, just let me know when you want to pre-pro that
Song 3 is uploaded. Both an Ableton session and a demo
Amazing. Will listen today
How’s your week next week leading up to Xmas?
Wide open both Monday and Tuesday afternoons
Tuesday is good! How’s 3pm?
Sounds good. Setting a reminder now.
In my cal
Heading to the chiropractor so I’ll check out the demo this afternoon
Friday, Dec 19
It’s killer
So gentle and so cutting at the same time haha. The acoustic sounds fantastic too - that’s the Martin?
Yeah thats the martin on the condenser mic, and the vocal is on the dynamic mic
I hadn't played it since Oct. and back then thought it needed more, like a chorus or something, but after I got done with the demo yesterday I was thinking that might just be what it is.
But looking forward to chatting in more detail next week
Yeah man I reckon that makes perfect sense re John Candy intro. I’m gonna prep for the mix today and get the session set up
Sunday, Dec 21
I really love all these guitar parts man!!!
It adds exactly what we needed I reckon. More texture up high with those delay parts and the extra rhythm feels more like a band in a room
It’ll mix up really nicely
Yet to comp vocals but they feel good so far
Im glad you think some of its usable because I was very unsure.
I also find it funny how well you hear, and how you hear the delay. The only pedals I had are an overdrive going in, and a Keely Halo Core delay, going on in the effects loop
*Shared Photo: Keely Halo Core*
Not sure if you know Andy Timmons, but he lives here in McKinney and keeley makes a few pedals for him. This is one that he uses a lot. And I think they just did a reverb for him.
Also, do feel free to comp the guitars how its needed. You dont need to squeeze in any of my parts if they dont fit. I was worried about covering up the bass and drums, and the rhythm parts you put down
Yeah love that delay, sounds really good. Andy Timmons is a bit of a legend hey.
Im a bit spoiled, his best friend owns a guitar shop here and he plays up there a few times a year. Its generally insane watching him play.
The guitar sanctuary
Dannnng!!
On the site now
Prs heaven haha
Nik Huber are amazing guitars too
Yeah its a candy shop
Tuesday, Dec 23
See u soon
ZOOM CALL: PRE-PRODUCTION SONG 3
3:00 PM CST / 8:00 AM AEDT (WED)
I dont remember which song/part you were mentioning for banjo, but I do have this resonator guitar. It has a piezo and a humbucker. It doesn't necessarily sound like a banjo when its going through an amp, but i could mic the resonator acoustically. It sounds kind of banjo-y to me
*Shared Photo: Airline Resonator Guitar*
Oh incredible!!! Is that an old National?
Yeah I reckon it could be the right vibe even through an amp
It’ll cut thru in a similar way
Its an airline
And its got a blend knob between the piezo and the humbucker that is handy
This was for Wait and See right?
Yeah exactly
I just uploaded a new Ableton of Song 3. I added a distorted guitar at the end, with a sped up tempo going from 115 to 135 (i think)
See what you reckon, if thats the direction. I have no idea what vocals might go on that, but wanted to see what the guitar part might do
I can't tell how that might mix, but immediately I feel like I want to hear drums and bass with that
Wednesday, Dec 24
Incredible. So keen to check this out
*Shared Photo: Current Situation*
I think I agree with the chorus idea you had for song 3. Ill just steal the last line from each of the verses and it comes together nicely has a repeating motif. Ill redo the demo for song 3 to marry it with the lyric idea and resend. It feels like its going to work well
Merry Christmas in your time. I just uploaded a new version of Ableton for Song 3, and a demo. I formed out the distorted bit and added a repeating lyric motif. Im not sold on the vocal approach, but see what you reckon on the arrangement. The transition between the two bits might need some help.
Epic man. Keen to hear
Merry Christmas!
Thursday, Dec 25
Hey another Christmas present for you, but I did song 4 and uploaded both the Ableton and Demo to the drive. Im happy to pre-pro that when youre ready, but i know we've got a few other things moving right now so no rush.
This one feels straightforward, but im always ready for something left field if you get any ideas
Friday, Dec 26
Lovely! Awesome man. Back on deck tomorrow
Sounds good. And even better because I want to give you a different option for the chorus lyrics on Song 3. I will upload a new version in the next few hours.
Then I swear ill leave these things be
Sunday, Dec 28
Epic! Loving the guitar sound from the first version with the 335. Is that the RAT?
I think it’s worth trying with power chords too. The open chords almost feel too ‘happy’
For that section
Working on these today so I’ll send thru some ideas
For Day Without Pain, I could jump on a pre pro call tomorrow if you’re around?
Im wide open tomorrow
There are 3 distorted bits in there, OLD, Op. 1, and Op. 2.
Are you referring to Op. 1?
Or the OLD version?
OLD
It’s the gnarliest
Okay, good to know. And just this feedback is sensational. Ive never gotten feedback from someone with your ear so its fun to throw things at you and see how you'll respond.
Sadly, neither of them are the rat. For some reason the rat needs a really odd power cord that I apparently dont have
*Shared Photo: Chase Bliss Brothers Overdrive/Fuzz*
This is your culprit. With channel 1 set to high gain on the dip switch.
Oh man yep Brothers is so good
Incredible unit
Im a real sucker for the whole Chase Bliss story
But yeah, brothers basically replaced every drive pedal ive ever tried
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Same!!! I need to get a blooper again
Only thing I’ve found that I now use more is the Vemuram stuff. But that’s cos I don’t need presets etc
What if it’s something as crazy as this?
Yeah thats badass.
Haha ah that was so much more punk. The drums and guitar really bring that to life
The soft kind of vocals feel like they'd be easier for me to do. The scream attempts didnt feel natural to me
Amazing! Yeah something about the high vocals make it feel like a payoff without trying too hard
Drums we can get feeling more ‘real’ too. Those ones are just cut up splice loops
I feel like whoever drums on that is going to be pumped.
Also, im assuming thats your guitar part? And if so, can you comp that whole part?
I want to say that that sounds very Green Day, but i could be talking out of my ass
Yep I’ll jump in and play the rest of that bit
It’s very green day yes
I think we keep the sound quite raw rather than more modern pop punk
Im sure i could learn the play those bits, but I've never really played like, as of yet. But I love that contrast between the two parts.
Quite a little Easter egg hiding in there for the listener
Haha yep it’s out of nowhere
In the best way
Gives us good range for 4 songs.
Let me know if you want to hop on a call tomorrow. Im open all day
Yeah I wonder if Grant still has his 80s tama kit
That’d be perfect for this
Yeah let’s do it. 5pm your time?
Yeah sounds good
Monday, Dec 29
Do you have a link?
I do sir
ZOOM CALL: PRE-PRODUCTION SONG 4
5:00 PM CST / 10:00 AM AEDT (TUE)
*Shared Google Drive Link*
I might’ve gotten too carried away. See what u reckon.
Tuesday, Dec 30
Thats pretty cool. Definitely sounds like chili peppers which i enjoy.
I want to retrack the vocal and will likely do that today
And I may tweak the lyrics to try and fit a bit better
Ill run with this and see what happens.
Any chance you could chart what you did in the chorus? I need something to look at as I play along
Rad, yep absolutely can do this morning
*Shared 2 Reference Charts/Media*
Let me know if that doesn’t make sense
Also if it’s TOO chili peppers we can keep the parts but record it with a different energy/vibe.
I dont think it can be too chili peppers, I mean theyre a pretty awesome target if the song gets associated that direction. I just never imagined that was doable, but yeah, the song certainly sounds that direction.
Im learning whats possible, its fun
This ep. will keep them guessing
Amazing! Hahah yes definitely it’ll be a journey
Did you upload the ableton? I havent checked yet, but want to reattack the vocals
Yep it’s up there
Pete Frusciante
Hahahah
Me in the mirror at 16
Amazing dude can’t wait to listen
And yeah way more space with this kinda arrangement too. Not as much strumming
Wednesday, Dec 31
Oh and happy new year btw
Also, im practicing this progression more and i think I found something more fitting. Let's not worry too much about the guitar I put in there, just yet. I like what you've already done and I dont want to finish that unless I find something that feels natural to add
CHAPTER 4: THE NEW YEAR & NEW SOUNDS (JAN 2026)
Thursday, Jan 1
I do think I will add that Roky Erikson cover to this EP. Initially, I thought I'd try and play it similar to how he does it, but ive been having a shit go of putting that rhythm down on guitar and it sounding just as good, so I started trying to find creative ways to approach the cover instead. And I think im going to put the rhythm down on mandolin. Turns out I can capo the mando on the 2nd fret and the chord shapes get very easy. So I think we'll build the cover from that base. And maybe have you do electric, me do some electric, and get some keys on it too. There's lots of space for solos and its just a repeating 12 bar blues.
Yeah that’d be super fun. I like the idea of bringing the mando into it. Have u listened to Uncle Tupelo? They have this Americana with almost punk and bluesey crossover. It’s wild (edited)
Yeah uncle Tupelo is where Jeff Tweedy started
Man whisky bottle is so good
Him and his bud from high school. Then they broke up. Jeff formed Wilco, his bud did Son Volt
Frikking LOVE this new vocal on day without pain!!!
The pre chorus bit is perfect
I reckon a bunch of this guitar will work great too
Hahaha the amount this song has evolved
You sound way more relaxed vocally on this take
I think every vocal take is getting me closer and more comfortable, even across the songs
I went back to see about adding a pre chorus bit, and did not particular like the vocal take I did the night before, but I did enjoy the effort I had done to experiment?
So I just tried to build from there
But yes I agree. This one has evolved nicely. I really enjoy being surprised by them
And im liking the vibe of 2 separate guitar voices, where neither has to over work, but bith kind of distinctly fit around each other nicely
Yeah it’s honestly the best way to get 2 guitar parts happening on a record. Have 2 different players. It never feels as effective when it’s just one person overdubbing
Also, as im sitting here listening again its nice to mention that your bass playing sounds great again
Friday, Jan 2
Epic. So glad. Very fun part to play haha
I think title for song 4 is changing from "Day without Pain" to "Be Gone"
Just a heads up
Ok rad. Waiting to hear when Grant is able to track for us too
Keep me posted if you need anything from me in the meantime
Saturday, Jan 3
Legend. Sorry I’m a bit slow to respond this weekend. My mum’s getting married on Monday - hilariously at 70 years old. So we’re prepping a couple things for that.
https://youtu.be/5ArDkQJbVcE?si=QnHCwJwMbXdVt0ST
This is worth a watch if you haven’t seen it
No apologies needed. And yes, thats amazing for you mum. Love has no expiration date. There's got to be a good song or story in that, somewhere.
And I will check out the video
Crazy how poor of a quality that interview was and I just sat here for 45 minutes glued to him. Dude is amazing
Definitely. That would’ve been a good wedding gift haha
Yeah wild isn’t it. I was thinking the same thing. I’d watch him talk about this shit for hours even on a terrible vhs with shitty sound. So inspiring
Crazy thats he's 55 now
Nuts. I guess they’re looking older but they still seem young
Monday, Jan 5
Back on deck!! Will send thru an email with updates now
Forgot to say, dates I mentioned are all Aussie aka in the future
Just read through and everything looks good. You could bill be all the way through wait and see if you want to.
Tomorrow im busy from 4:30-6 cst, but can otherwise hop on a call
And pre pro for dont slander me i could probably do anytime that day. I will get a demo done before friday
Amazing, thanks man will get that sorted. Tomorrow wanna do 6:30pm your time?
Yeah thats perfect
Hope the wedding was a good time 🥳
Boom
Man it was so nice to see. Second marriage for both of them and they’re so happy
Tiny service and very fancy lunch
Haha kind of funny that theyre old and it was a lunch thing
Unless you guys always do lunch weddings, otherwise its probably normal
Tuesday, Jan 6
Well they have to nap in the afternoon hahah
Haha yeah for sure 🤣
My wedding was like all day and evening too
But no alcohol hahah
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Lots of fun with this bass line
I’d like to try re doing the acoustic and see if it feels better with the drums.
I even wonder if the main guitar line in the intro/instrumental could be on twangy electric like an old western vibe
Im listening this morning and enjoying. The bass sounds great. Very fun. The drum comp sounds good. I like the 3rd verse(?) where everything drops out for a moment. I think a good choice that changes things up.
The clarinet still sounds monumental to me. I love it.
With the drums and bass, I definitely want to retrack the vocals. There's some lyrics that are sticking out to me that I want to change, and I feel like with the bass in there it'll help guide my vocal some more.
If you want to retrack the acoustic, and send it over, ill retrack the vocal on top of all of that.
For the remaining bits, I'd been thinking to work on the harmonium, but im not sure if we need that now. Im kind of leaning towards us filling the rest of the gaps with electric guitars.
If you want to put down some electric with your acoustic, ill take that and retrack vocals and maybe fill in whatevers left with my electric.
I think this will tie us into that EP theme of two electric guitars living throughout the songs
And we can chat in more detail later today
Im also not against the harmonium, and happy to still see how it fits.
Ok rad. I’ll try the acoustic this morning. Let’s get your electric and vocals down and then we’ll have a good sense on whether we might need harmonium too
I frikken love the clarinet too. So unexpected haha
*Shared Google Drive Link*
ZOOM CALL: PRE-PRODUCTION DON'T SLANDER ME
6:30 PM CST / 11:30 AM AEDT (WED)
Wednesday, Jan 7
*Shared Media*
Ended up reamping your Strat for this one
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Here’s where I got to tonight
I reckon the vocals are rad. See if you can guess which song I referenced for your lead vocal sound
Grant loves Be Gone btw
It always makes me happy to hear him enjoying them
Hes the first person other than us that gets to hear them
Thursday, Jan 8
(message deleted)
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Ok here’s a few things I tried to create more contrast throughout. See what you think.
I reckon it’s worth trying those vocal bits you’re hearing, but none of those have been bugging me at all either
Dude your solo is SO good btw. My fave part in the song
Also, just came in from Grant: *Shared Google Drive Link*
Just got the latest invoice paid up, so let me know if it doesn't come through.
If the Ableton Session for John Candy is in the drive, I can retrack those Choruses and Verses tonight or tomorrow
I normally find myself mixed on the solo. I enjoy it, but always question if its to simple. But am happy to hear that you feel it works
I will check out these bits from Grant and give the John Candy mix some listens. And I have the vocals for Wait and See done, but need to put some guitar bits on it before I send it back over.
That John Candy mix sounds rad. Loving it.
Dont make art sounds dope. Both Both Be Gone parts sounds good. Ive only done 1 listen, but my gut is saying the 2nd one. Im guessing maybe the 1st was more straight up? But they both sounded perfectly great
Thank u for this also, saw that came thru
*Shared Photo: Mic settings*
I just realized that every dynamic pic performance you've gotten has been like this. I just flattened it out. Let me know if youd prefer it back. And let me know if you want another go at John Candy with it flat. Im fine accepting it as a limitation if you are
Friday, Jan 9
Oh that’s completely fine yeah. I’ve done vocals both ways. It honestly probably sounds better like this anyway cos u always apply that eq curve in a mix
This may sound silly, but your my only resource on this. Any reason why I shouldn't release content on this version of John Candy? Im making a pseudo lyric video right now and thought I might just post it
Saturday, Jan 10
Sunday, Jan 11
Awesome man, excited to hear wait and see. I’ll listen later this evening. Jo my wife just got back from china so I’ll be properly back in the studio tomorrow
Oh also, will put Theo’s voice in John Candy too!
*Shared Google Drive Link*
also, where should Theo’s voice go at the end of JC?
I was thinking even after the keys stop, but see what you reckon
That kind of worked though, what you sent
Oh yeah perfect, will try that
Monday, Jan 12
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Thanks for sending. I will listen tonight but am heading to bed so will retrack these bits tomorrow.
Perfect dude
CHAPTER 5: GENRE HOPPING (END OF JAN 2026)
Tuesday, Jan 13
Mellotron pass
If you get that wrapped up today send it over. Was planning to do vocals and redo the guitar this evening
Rad I’ll upload now
What key do you advise for soloing on this, A Minor?
I played a bunch of mandolin on it earlier but didn't like anything I put down. It didnt feel like I was adding anything useful.
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Yeah A Minor will work nicely. The solo sections are in C major really
Were you playing root notes or thirds of that chorus?
Single notes starting on C then B then C then C
So a bit of a mix
Okay let me play around and see what happens. I thought if I could find a mandolin bit it would carry this Alt Americana theme across the songs
Totally. I think the mellotron elements will also unify the sound a bit cos that’s on the other tracks too
Yeah thats a good point. Ill retrack these bits and send it over within a few hours.
Perfect
Coupe of surprises in there
Also wanted to mention, on Wait and See, love the very end with the guitar feeding back almost, then ending in time with the drum sticks clacking. If you did that purpose it was masterful detail
It’s actually me click the fuzz pedal off hahaha
I left it in so it felt live
Damn thats funny. But yeah, I love that part. Its very gratifying to be invested in the fuzz then have a clean snap to back to clarity
Awesome. Yeah I love shit like that. Puts u in touch with the human on the recording
You can't teach that stuff either so good call on leaving it in there. Youre a master
Hahah you’re too kind
I did vocal and mando on Be Gone and have uploaded it back to you
Wednesday, Jan 14
Perfect!
Thursday, Jan 15
*Shared Google Drive Link*
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Here’s a vocal comp/mix with some bv ideas I had too. Plus everything balanced a little better
Stoked with your vocal now
Awesome. Yeah I was trying to remember where this track even started lol
Mainly just wanted to make sure the backing vocals sat well with u
Yeah the backing vocals sound good. It gives it a contrast away from my direct vocal.
The line I sing right before the last chorus, "love is the key, the thing that sets you free" feels weak to me. But I think thats the only lyric really sticking out to me. Ill leave it to you, if you feel its fine or of you have any idea there.
Haha "fix it in the mix"
Hahah
I love the line. Maybe just needs a take with more energy for that one line
I’ll see what else is there
I trust your ear and feel im biased. Let me know if you need anything else from me on this one
Ok perfect.
Think I’ll get this and Wait and See prepped for mix then look at Don’t Make Art
Sounds good. Ill look at Dont Slander me tomorrow, most likely. And we can get started on that.
As im listening more im enjoying your backing vocals. Its an effective bridge across a few of the parts, and i think it works especially well behind your solo section
And i love the, be gone Be gone Be gone parts
Amazing! Yeah it feels like it gives your vocal more weight cos of the contrast between high and low
Friday, Jan 16
I just sat down and listened to all three tunes one after another. Each one has nice little surprises. And it helps make the wah and the backing vocals pop even more, after listening to the other two songs that have neither.
Really love the backing vocals during your solo section on Be Gone. Fits very well
Hell yeah! Stoked to hear.
Saw Lumineers last night
Damn thats looks like one hell of a show.
*Shared Photo: Andy Timmons trio*
Andy Timmons trio for me
It was cool. I’ve seen them before at a smaller venue which I preferred. My bud is one of their tour managers
Oh mannn this must’ve been insane
So jealous of your access to great music over there
Yeah i bet they were great to see at a small venue.
Im at Andy Timmons now and its always a bit jaw dropping, hard to explain. Incredibly loud for 3 people
I imagine this is the closest ill ever get to seeing something like Jeff Beck in person. Just casually insane
I love that he’s using that setup - 2 Suhr amps. So proper
Getting rare to hear that in person now. Always modelling
Sunday, Jan 18
I made a new song yesterday and uploaded a demo to the drive. Its called song 5
Its pretty straight forward and written in a blues form. Felt like it might have legs.
Take a listen and see what you reckon
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Yeah this is sick!!! It’s a bit like if Radiohead did a blues song
Dark atmospheric blues
It was a happy accident, but when I got done I thought, I wonder what this would end up as if we did it up with bass, drums, cleaned it up, and figured out what to do with the solos
Definitely. Could almost be a Beatles white album kinda vibe
Loose and colourful
If we do a blues tune this little collection of songs will certainly be free, raw, slightly eclectic, and genre-hopping. And im cool with that
Monday, Jan 19
Yeah almost gotta have a blues on there
Tuesday, Jan 20
Wednesday, Jan 21
Thanks man, excited to check this out tomorrow. I think it’s a good instinct to try something other than balls to the wall electric guitar. So will approach it with that in mind
*Shared Google Drive Link*
What if we did something like this?
Super quick, but I could write a full part that evolves a bit more. Then your mando will work awesome on top, and we could do kick drum and percussion if we wanted as well
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Here’s what I’ve sent over to Rhett for piano. I kept the 2 Martin tracks and had the Taylor just come in for the part in between verses with a transistor radio kinda sound
Treated your vocals with some slap echo too.
Thursday, Jan 22
Rad. Gonna get into mix mode on Be Gone
Cool. Godspeed.
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Friday, Jan 23
Saturday, Jan 24
Sunday, Jan 25
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Here’s an alt mix, vocal down and acoustic up at the start. See how this feels
Pre pro tomorrow or Tuesday?
Im wide open tomorrow
5pm?
Sounds good. See you then
Hell yeah
After A/B'ing these mixes, i believe i prefer the latest mix
The acoustic sounds great
And I know you said the bass part for this song took you awhile to find, but I must say job well done. The bass part is really well done. Lots of fun parts to listen to but the bass is always right there taking care of everything
Sick!! Ok great. I like this balance. Vocal feels more glued in the track. Thanks man, love the bass too.
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Here’s a Be Gone mix too. Biggest changes will be some automation throughout. I also used a really tight delay and room on the vocal. The delay gives it a bit more energy
Monday, Jan 26
ZOOM CALL: PRE-PRODUCTION SONG 5
5:00 PM CST / 10:00 AM AEDT (TUE)
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Uploading a fresh session into here
Tuesday, Jan 27
Rad, excited to check it out today.
Also, I was beat boxing and whistling during your solo and just realized i forgot to clip it out. Haha please omit that
Hahahah excellent
Wednesday, Jan 28
Rhett had to duck out on a run of shows so is tracking for us Monday
That all sounds good. And no rush from Rhett. Just let me know if you need anything in the meantime. Im around
Thursday, Jan 29
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Briefing Grant on Bill Withers drums for song 5 too
Sounds good. Ill send my thoughts on the Be Gone comp shortly, been listening on repeat and enjoying it. And at one point was thinking how much I was enjoying his drumming so send him love
Epic. Yeah I thought the same thing today haha. Such a great performance
Legendary. Thanks man. I do like the last chorus resolving too. It’s a nice touch. Kinda ties the song in a bow
Friday, Jan 30
G’day hahah. Perfect. Getting back into town today
CHAPTER 6: FUZZ BASS (FEB 2026)
Sunday, Feb 1
Monday, Feb 2
I just realized Rhett was in American Aquarium
Ah I didn’t realise either. He’s the reaaaaal deal
Wednesday, Feb 4
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Rad, yeah we should have drums later today for Song 5. I’ll get into the guitar on don’t slander me today and tomorrow. Then let’s catch up over the weekend and we can set a deadline to work towards. Early march is totally doable, there’ll just be a few things like artwork, distribution etc you’ll wanna get moving on in the meantime too
I can run u thru some simple options for all that stuff
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Here we go! V1 is more of that Bill Withers vibe, V2 is a little more raucous. I’ll play some bass along tomorrow too, but let me know if one of these grabs you more
Thursday, Feb 5
And yeah fully. I want to wake up to Rhett playing piano in my house every day lol
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y85fXmbNm7Q
If u need an excuse to get a resonator
I figured I’d record my takes today. This isn’t perfect but I think it’s a vibe. I did some clean without fuzz but I kinda dig how unnecessarily raucous this is haha. Let me know how this feels to sing over
Oh dude thats great. My favorite flavor always seems to be fuzz. And this makes me want to get a P bass
Weirdly vid goes out of sync I’ve just noticed. But you get the vibe haha
Im all for it. And with how simple the song is, form wise, that vibe will add a texture that isn't on any of the other tracks
Yeah and it lets whatever’s on top be kinda spacious. Cos the low end is full as
Oh cos I used the wrong video hahaha
Send me whichever video is right and ill use it for content at some point. Also, thanks gor sending christ Whitley. Never heard of him before but he's got an interesting story I see
If youd like to be grounded into reality know that my son just pooped in the bath tub over here
Hahaha incredible. He heard the fuzz bass and just went for it. Yeah fixing now. I might post up a little clip today too if you’re ok with it
Chris is interesting hey! I found him thru looking up the catalogue of this producer Craig Street. I reckon the first Bon Iver album was inspired by that record in a major way
Yeah feel free to post whatever youd like to, im all for it. And feel free to tag me
Awesome. I’ll create a videos folder in the drive and record more stuff too
I dont know how it sounds as a 3-piece, but maybe for the solos, between bass and drums, we can cut the guitar part and I can try to solo over a whole section
With that bass, I feel there could also be space for some kind of keys work too. I guess I just need to hear it together and we can go from there
Yeah that’d be sick. So it feels like a real live ensemble. And keys could be amazing
*Shared Google Drive Link*
I love it. Excited to work on it from my end
Hell yes. Glad I had the big muff plugged in hahah
Yeah im glad you went for it. I should have taken more videos when I tracked my parts. Haha I might make some dummy play alongs to create some content pieces. Its a good idea
Yeah that’s a good way to do it. I found a hilarious setting in obs by accident that stretches the video too. Looks ridiculous
*Shared Google Drive Link*
I did about 10 takes of this as well till I got something solid from beginning to end. Feels like we could build on this one potentially
Friday, Feb 6
Don’t make art and Don’t slander me commits are both uploaded in the folder as sessions for you now too
Saturday, Feb 7
Yo I’m at a gig but will listen this afternoon
Sunday, Feb 8
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Oops I meant comp the bass on Song 5*
*Shared Google Drive Link*
There u go! Ended up digging most of the bass take I sent in the video. Just a few bits I replaced cos I went a bit off the rails
Have u listened to much REM?
Monday, Feb 9
Raddddd. Excited to hear
Tuesday, Feb 10
Wednesday, Feb 11
Thursday, Feb 12
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Friday, Feb 13
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Saturday, Feb 14
I emailed you through an edit of the lyrics too, none of that has to stick. I took a few liberties with some of the lines so it might not totally make sense with what you’re trying to say. It’s mostly just to try to stick to the similar phrasing throughout
Sunday, Feb 15
*Shared Google Drive Link*
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Here’s a version of don’t make art with a bass part and a bit of mellotron choir. I tried cello too but it’s a fine line with this one. One element too many and it ruins it
Distortion on the mandolin in song 5 is great too btw
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Yeah just made those edits to don’t make art, way better
Following up to the re: distorted mandolin topic, the more im listening the more i enjoy it
Sick, yeah I think I like it too. I basically ride the level of distortion so that it increases in the solos. So it feels like we get an extra lift there
More than anything, there propobably isn't a better opportunity to use distorted mandolin
And yeah def Song 5 works as a title. ‘Surrender’ feels a bit lame anyway haha
Exactly
Im laughing at how this song came to life. Amazing to see happen
Seriously hey!! Such a frikken vibe. Itll be an incredible one to discover on the ep
Imagine how many we could come up with if we were in the same room with Grant too hahah
CHAPTER 7: AND DISTORTED MANDO? (LATE FEB 2026)
Monday, Feb 16
Just dipping the bass out for a second to mark that new verse
I’m pretty sure I love the distortion on the mando. I’ve literally never heard it done that way
I like the bass idea, from what I can tell. Seems like a good way to aid the form of the song, since its just a repeating idea. Seems like it helps say, "this is the next section"
Yeah sorry that recording is terrible hahah. Who would’ve thought an iPhone recording of a mix would sound bad??
And yeah, the more I listen to the mando the more I like it. And the tone is one thing, but I really like it as an idea that were comfortable standing behind.
Maybe mandolin players will hate us but im fine with that lol
Maybe mandolin players will hate us but im fine with that lol
We can be the bad boys of blue grass
Helmberger’s Bad Boys of Bluegrass. It’s like a Beatles white album mandolin
If the Beatles and Billy Strings had a baby
Oh shit dude I have another idea let me bounce quickly
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Special focus given to verse 3
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Special focus given to verse 3
Yeah mandolin playing the single pitch in verse 3 for me really creates the tension between the chords underneath. Also keeps the rhythm going which I reckon it needs in some way. And yeah love that, I’ll try ducking again in v 2
This might be overkill, but maybe do try a duck also on the last lyric, Verse 3, "you know i love you too". A quick final duck and then everything comes back for thay final instrumental
Yeah that’s sick!! Jsut did and sounds awesome. It top and tails it
Haha cool. Also, duck every other syllable 🤣
lol
Also just hearing drums only under ‘you know I love you too’ is so sick
Also just hearing drums only under ‘you know I love you too’ is so sick
Dude I love grants work on all of these tracks
Mando mic is the ear trumpet yeah? Same. He’s quite literally the best
Yeah. The ear trumpet has been on all of the mandolin parts you've gotten. And acoustic guitar stuff
Yeah super good. You should be able to use that live too. Do u pkay any harmoncia?
No, but maybe I should learn
Mainly wondering about solo amour. Could be a natural addition in the breaks. Dylan style
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Here’s where I got to with it today. Vocal is mainly take 2 and feels great to me. I put a little tape slap on your vocal as well.
There’s some very subtle room verb to make the guitar and vocal sound like they’re in the same space, then they’re running thru the same compressor too so there’s some glue happening there
Here’s where I got to with it today. Vocal is mainly take 2 and feels great to me. I put a little tape slap on your vocal as well.
There’s some very subtle room verb to make the guitar and vocal sound like they’re in the same space, then they’re running thru the same compressor too so there’s some glue happening there
Tuesday, Feb 17
Listening to Solo Amour a few more times and its a sneaky little tune I think. A good end to the project.
Hey what bpm does the DMA reprise need to be?
Yo u can just leave it at 120. I’ve got those exports so it’ll line up
Wednesday, Feb 18
Yea I think the harmonica as a texture is fantastic. We just need to find the part. I think keep jamming along and try different ideas, I’ll reach out to my friend who plays too and see if there’s a way they can record remotely. They’re in Brisbane so I just need to figure out the setup
Thursday, Feb 19
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Let me know how this is feeling. Automated the vocal so it shouldn’t get lost anywhere, but let me know if there’s any places that feel too quiet. There’s a little tape echo on it to give it more length too, not 100% if I’m enjoying that yet.
Friday, Feb 20
I’ve got an idea for a video for this one too
So great to see. I bet the energy was amazing
Crazy good songs
Perfect! I reckon that’s a good note re the bass. And we can always do a version with no choir and compare
I was going to name the project something else, but im leaning now towards making "Dont Make Art" the title track and calling the project that
Rad will listen later today. I think Don’t Make Art is a great centrepiece and title for sure
Saturday, Feb 21
Sunday, Feb 22
Monday, Feb 23
*Shared Google Drive Link*
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Im on a call thing now, but will listen when I can. I did listen to your message and want to say im all on board to try and find a place for Harmonium. Will listen soon.
Easy! Sounds good
I’m gonna make lunch
I’m gonna make lunch
Tuesday, Feb 24
Also don’t make art vocals are perfect
Nice work
That’s gonna mix up great
Nice work
That’s gonna mix up great
Wednesday, Feb 25
Have u listened to John Frusciante?
Not anything outside of the peppers. Where should I start?
To record only water is a good starter, then shadows collide
Then it gets weirder
Let me know what u think
Then it gets weirder
Let me know what u think
Bringing him back up again reminds me of that video you sent where he's just talking and chain smoking. Hes really interesting
All social media should just be replaced with that video
CHAPTER 8: THE FINISH LINE (MAR 2026)
Thursday, Feb 26
Curtains is also a frikking amazing album
We got harmonium
*Shared Google Drive Link*
I think the ep needed this track
In this form haha
In this form haha
Yeah thats great. Honestly not too far off from what we were trying to get out of the harmonica
But a better type of ambient texture
But a better type of ambient texture
If the ableton is uploaded I can retrack the vocal tonight
Yeah exactly. He’s got a few licks in there that are very harmonica-esque too
I’ll upload momentarily
I’ll upload momentarily
Gonna get into mixes today
Yeah i think this vocal is the last item you'll need from me
Bitter sweet to be done with this part, but looking forward to seeing it all polished up
Bitter sweet to be done with this part, but looking forward to seeing it all polished up
Yeah that’s crazy
Good work dude
You’ve definitely delivered on these
Good work dude
You’ve definitely delivered on these
We've come a long way since mid December. I was looking back and I dont think we started on songs 3 and 4 until January. Then added these last two, which surprisingly strengthened all of it
Yeah it’s been full of surprises this record hey (This message was edited)
I’m excited to hear the first demos of everything against the finals haha
Hahaha not me
I vividly remember the first fledgling demos. Nightmares
I vividly remember the first fledgling demos. Nightmares
Hahahah not at all.
Can’t have been that bad, listening to what we have now
Can’t have been that bad, listening to what we have now
*Shared Google Drive Link*
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Forgot to tell u, I played Wait and See to my friend Tim who’s in the band Middle Kids. He loved it. Said it reminded him a little of Bill Callahan
Oh dude I love middle kids
I used to jam them a lot in like 2019
I used to jam them a lot in like 2019
Oh sick. If u saw them live I would’ve been playing with them around then hahah
Haha dude. Was that Ryan Adams?
That might have been how I found them. I feel like they opened for someone I saw
That might have been how I found them. I feel like they opened for someone I saw
Yep exactly that
Haha dude. Insane. That means i actually have seen you before
Were getting ready for bathtime over here. Ill listen to this mix intermittently and will try to track those vocals after the kids go to bed
Fuck that’s hilarious dude
No worries at all
No worries at all
Also, if you feel im being overly critical on any of those parts feel free to talk me off the ledge.
Sounds good. I will likely track both of these vocals tomorrow during the day and you'll have them when you wake up
Perfect
John Candy (for vocals) is the file you want
*Shared Google Drive Link*
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Also there’ll be the reverse vocal in there too. I turned down your solo a bit, and moved Theo’s voice. See if those parts feel closer now too
Also, updated track names:
1. Love, John Candy
2. Wait and See
3. Don't Make Art
4. Bless My Heart
5. Yang to the Yin
6. Solo Amor
7. Reprise
1. Love, John Candy
2. Wait and See
3. Don't Make Art
4. Bless My Heart
5. Yang to the Yin
6. Solo Amor
7. Reprise
Ah sick. Love it
Solo Amor ableton session is done and uploaded for you.
The dishwasher was running in the other room so of that bleeds through at all let me know and I can retrack tomorrow
Friday, Feb 27
Ahh sorry. Should mentioned, if you’re dragging a full track in like that, make sure you turn warp off. Then you just leave the tempo at the default 120 and track on top of it.
Yang to the Ying: *Shared Google Drive Link*
DMA: *Shared Google Drive Link*
Reprise: *Shared Google Drive Link*
No notes on any of these. These sound great to me
Amazing! I went pretty hard on the grunge factor in the reprise
Figure it should really feel like it’s from another record altogether
Figure it should really feel like it’s from another record altogether
Haha yeah I loved it. Sounded like it was fun
So fun haha
I keep trying to decide which is my favourite
I keep trying to decide which is my favourite
Yeah i feel thats a good sign. Means that theyre each worth a listen, by themselves
Definitely. We’ll have to do a deep dive into all the lyrics too
I need to formalize the lyrics now that theyre all done. Theyre scattered around at this point.
Solo Amor is just a bunch of notes scattered around on my desk
Hahaha amazing. Take photos
I need to get a film camera tbh
Also need to try this video concept for don’t make art
I need to get a film camera tbh
Also need to try this video concept for don’t make art
Man it’s a sad song. It fucking gets me
I think its the best one, the music is straightforward and conveys the emotion so clearly, and the lyrics are almost 100% sarcastic
And the last lyric, fun, my voice kind of breaks in this desperate way. I love it
Yeah that’s the bit haha
Listening to Middle Kids this morning. I got my first guitar at the end of 2017, which must have been around the time I saw yall and she was playing a strat-left handed and upside down. That was like the coolest thing I'd seen. Haha its too funny the things that inspire us
Yeah she’s a maniac the way she plays hahah. I love that
*Media omitted*
Saturday, Feb 28
Monday, Mar 2
Tuesday, Mar 3
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Here we go!
Here we go!
Thursday, Mar 5
On deck and mixing tomorrow
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Also, so stoked with the new John Candy vocal. Whole mix is sitting way better for me
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Friday, Mar 6
Im around for the next few hours
Free for a zoom now?
Yeah
FINAL ZOOM CALL
5:58 PM CST / 10:58 AM AEDT (SAT)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N1J2OkCPqk8&t=708s
The energy in this
The energy in this
Saturday, Mar 7
*Shared Google Drive Link*
Yo, link above is all the final mixes. They’ll be a bit quieter than the last batch because there’s no limiter on there pre mastering.
There are 2 John Candy’s, with and without Theo.
I also wanted to try an alternate mix of Be Gone which I’ve put in there. In bouncing them all I wasn’t 100% on the drum treatment in mix 1. See what you think. I’ve got both versions saved.
There are 2 John Candy’s, with and without Theo.
I also wanted to try an alternate mix of Be Gone which I’ve put in there. In bouncing them all I wasn’t 100% on the drum treatment in mix 1. See what you think. I’ve got both versions saved.
For track list I had:
Love, John Candy
Be Gone
Wait n See
Yang to the Yin
Reprise
Solo Amor
Don’t Make Art
Love, John Candy
Be Gone
Wait n See
Yang to the Yin
Reprise
Solo Amor
Don’t Make Art
Uploading guitar videos here: *Shared Google Drive Link*
Sunday, Mar 8
Uploading now, can you confirm I’ve spelled everything right?
Love, John Candy
Bless My Heart
Wait and See
Yang to the Yin
Reprise
Solo Amor
Don’t Make Art
Love, John Candy
Bless My Heart
Wait and See
Yang to the Yin
Reprise
Solo Amor
Don’t Make Art
Looks good
Hell yeah
https://www.tunecore.com/en-au/pricing
From what I’ve been told, the top tier of tunecore is the one to go with for support
From what I’ve been told, the top tier of tunecore is the one to go with for support
Monday, Mar 9
Thanks for sending it.
Also, I feel like mastering is going to send the invoice to you, so please keep an eye out and pass it along when you see it
No worries at all, I’ll look out for it
Wednesday, Mar 11
Just obsessively checking my email to see if masters are done
Yeah same feelings here. Ive had to stop myself from messaging you and asking if you've seen anything yet. Haha
Just emailed you the link from Brian!
I haven’t heard yet, I’m out at the moment
Haha too funny. I was going to go to bed but got the urge to listen through the songs, just finished then saw this message.
Hahaha incredible
That’s actually perfect cos you’ll hear the difference straight away
That’s actually perfect cos you’ll hear the difference straight away
Ive paid the invoice. And will download to listen. It looks like we can request revisions if we need to, will you be sure to take a listen and verify if you think anything needs to be revised?
Yeah soon as I get home the neighbours will be hearing it haha
I’ll msg u once I’ve listened a few times
Let me know how them feel to you
I’ll msg u once I’ve listened a few times
Let me know how them feel to you
Will do. Im going to start listening very soon. And yeah, perfect timing on my end
Thursday, Mar 12
EP HAS BEEN RELEASED
5:00 PM CDT / 9:00 AM AEDT (FRI)