this is the last day. of tracking. shane is rolling up cords. actually we are through tracking. since shane is rolling up cords. nothing left to track. but it is still today. the last day. you will not see us anymore for a while. we will be here but you will not see us. it has been fun. really. later we will go over to bwack’s apartment that is downtown. on the 6th floor. of a building located on 6th street. i like that. “i live on 6th street on the 6th floor.” we’re all just kind of sitting around. sad and happy. while shane rolls chords. shane just said, “i remember i put it somewhere. i told chris, ‘this is where i’m putting the lock’. and now i don’t remember. we go through this every time.” “it’s probably where we put the diagram of the truck.” says chris. they don’t know where they put the diagram of the truck. “oh so now it’s my fault?” “no. i’m just sayin that i remember distinctly saying, ‘this is where i’m putting the lock.’ so we would remember.” they don’t remember. we’re all just sitting around. sad and happy. while shane rolls cables. in the book by jonathan safran foer that i told you about, near the beginning of our time together here at the barn, there is a character who has lost the ability to speak. one word at a time. they have left him. the last word he could say was “i”. then nothing. he carries a blank note book around to write things in so people will know what he wants to say. like if he finds himself in a cafe and he wishes to request a bagel he writes on a blank sheet in the notebook, “i would like a bagel please.” but each day the notebook fills up. and he must then turn back through the book that is filled and point to phrases already written. each day a new book. empty. to be filled. his home is filled with books that are filled. he has the word “yes” tatooed on his left palm. he has the word “no” tatooed on his right palm. this saves pages of the empty book. “would you like cream in that?” he displays his right palm. “will that be all?” he displays his left palm. when he is excited and begins to clap it is the sound of yes and no coming together. when it is night and the month is december and there is harsh wind outside and his hands are chilled by the air it is yes and no rubbing together that bring warmth. i am glad that this is the last day of tracking. i am sad that this is the last day of tracking. we’re all just sitting around. while shane rolls chords. sad and happy. yes and no. they are rubbing together. i want to put my hands into yours and say thanks for coming along. this is the last day. shane just said again, “i’m still looking for the lock. i remember saying ‘here is where i’m putting the lock.’ where is the freakin’ lock!?!!?” i have the lock. i don’t want them to go. i want them to go. yes and no. i want you to stay. this has been fun. it is over. happy and sad. this is the end. yes and no. later we will go to bwacks. at the end of the night i will extend my right hand. shane will extend his right hand. they will meet. our right hands clasping. we will do the shake-hug. our right hands will be clasped together shaking. no. our left hands will come around each other as we half hug. embrace. our left hands will pat each others back. yes. our right hands will stay clasped. “thank you.” “thank you.” sad. happy. yes. no.”don’t go.” “but we must.” “but i have the lock.” “why?” “don’t go.” “but we must.” “it is the end?” “it is the beginning.” “of what?” “of everything.” “here is your lock.” “thank you.” “thank you.” “yes.” “no.” “it has been fun.” “happy.” “sad.” “it is the beginning?” “yes.” “so this is it?” “yes. up until now.” “what is coming?” “everything.” “thank you.” thank you. 10:06 pm:
Editor's note: This post had 160 pictures of people who attended the hoedown on May 10. I have made the executive decision not to include them in this archive. http://emprise34.xanga.com/2005/05/12/376/
wow. the hoedown was so ridiculous. it was incredible to have so many of our friends in one space. i just made an edit to my earlier post, the one that included the location of the hoedown, so as not to diminish the significance of our time together by having others who would perhaps arrive at a little later date. it was magical. truly. thank you. if you came and you happen to read this. thank you. i can’t wait to go through the pictures and see your face. to read your name. i will smile. it was magical. you fit the moment perfectly. cinderella some might say. i hope you could feel the weight of it. i could. it will be something i hold to. to look through the pictures and see your face and read your name and i will smile. it was magical. the pistol was there! could you believe it?! i couldn’t believe it. the pistol was in my freakin yard! did you see the smoke coming out of the barrel? smoke. from meat. coming out of the barrel. no way. in my yard. we will look through the pictures and see your face and read your name and we will know that what we do in some way or another means something to you and we will smile. thank you. you sounded amazing. really. it was the smile on your face that could be heard. i stood downstairs while you were upstairs and i listened to your voice coming through the speakers mingling with all our friends’ and i shook my head. i could not believe you were upstairs in my barn. singing. with me. and all our friends. you sounded amazing. i shook my head and smiled. thank you. i will look at your picture and see your face and read your name and i will weep. thank you. in the words of little richard, “… that’s this one right here
it is official. we will now have the pistol smoker joining us for the evening. if you don’t know about the pistol smoker then it is unfortunate. it is a bbq smoker that is fashioned in the shape of a pistol. it will be with us tuesday night. you simply must taste meat from the pistol. it is a thing to behold smoke pouring from the barrel while meat is cooking to perfection. it is optical, olfactory, and gustatory stimulation. it is too much to take in really. we couldn’t have you come over for the evening without getting a little food in you. so hoe down and bbq. i could not be happier about this. see you soon.
this is an invitation. we have been thinking of you during this whole recording and although we have truly felt that you were a part of what we have been doing with the webcams and all, there has still been distance. so here’s what i propose – tuesday at precisely 6pm we will be gathering as we always do every evening at 6pm upstairs in the barn for the hoedown. we would like to invite you to join us. in the barn. for the hoedown. in person. you see we need to record some friends of ours having a joyous time singing along with us and we think it would be just perfect with you there. so here is the deal. come to the parking lot on the corner of xxth and xxxxxxx in waco texas. a fellow by the name of ben will be waiting for you there. you will see ben. you will see the barn. you will see the dr pepper house. we will be upstairs awaiting your arrival and then we will sing together. we will have a hoedown. now you can’t stay. you will have to leave. you cannot reside with us forever and ever. but for an evening we will have some times for sure! so you are invited to join us tuesday may 10th at the barn for the hoedown to record with us for the new record. it will be fun.
morning number 20 at the barn:
1. i could not sleep last night 2. we have a temperpedic mattress 3. i have been sleeping good 4. not last night 5. all i could think was 6. tomorrow 7. is number 20 at the barn 8. 20 9. we call solley twenty 10. or did for a while 11. http://www.davidcrowderband.com/news/articles.php3?id=000110 12. (thank you gnuattitude) 13. that’s not why i couldn’t sleep 14. it just came to mind and i thought you would find it funny 15. no the reason i couldn’t sleep is 16. because if it is morning #20 17. then that means that we only have 18. 8 more 19. days 20. left 1:21 pm: this morning began about the same time as yesterday, with the same intent. vocals. sing a song. that’s all i wished to do. simply sing a song. jack was here sitting at the table, stringing his guitar. i told him. “this morning i will sing a song.” he said, “that’s fine.” and so i went into the blue room to sing a song. “do not move.” i began to sing. it was not good. i stopped. i called jack who had just loaded his gear into his car heading to the church. “jack. i can not sing the song this morning. i will have to wait. i tried but it was not good. come back. play your guitar. i will have to wait.” so i wait. for the voice to settle. for the moment to rise. i wait. play jack. play. 3:50 pm:
today i received the following email: —–Original Message—– From: [email protected] To: [email protected] Sent: Wed, 4 May 2005 15:13:42 -0400 Subject: atomic theory discussion [email protected] has sent you this message! ———————————————————-- “neil bohr’s 1913 model of the atom redefined the way that physicists and other scientists would consider the nature of matter. although bohr’s model was indeed a compromise of the popular ideas of the day, it marked a turning point at which the phenomenon of subatomic activity could be more acutely considered and partially explained. so, how does considering the progression of man’s ideas related to atomic theory shed light on other aspects of human experience? how can we use the lessons of the scientific community to further our understanding of other phenomenon? can the ideas of neil bohr set an example of how we can understand far greater phenomenon?” tim wow. this morning was overwhelming. i awoke to a large saw in my upstairs hallway. the house is being remodeled and the tools are loud. very loud. this saw looks like a sword fish and the operator was jabbing it about the place with little concern for himself or what it would begin to tear at. it was beautiful and loud. there will soon be stairs where he was cutting. nice. i didn’t get to the barn until like 10:10am which was late for me. i was to sing this morning so it was better to get a slower start to things. “rescue” was the song. i have been a bit worried about it as it has a large role to play at the end of the record. it is a very personal song and one that holds a lot of emotion and sometimes it is a difficult thing to get this into your voice and skin. but it was all very present. it is a wonderful thing to feel. i know a few people who are unable to feel anymore. life has just taken it out of them. so i sang. and i felt it all. i am glad. the third verse we did a pass with a geek mic (ok here is an aside as i have used this same term in reference to drum micing and perhaps some other places that i don’t currently recall. here’s the deal. a geek mic is, hang on, i’m going to ask shane how he would describe it…”when you’re looking for a sound from a traditional source that you would like to have an option of presenting in a less than traditional manner, you chose a signal path that consits of either a mic or compressor that, distorts is not the word i want, ummm…(he holds his finger up) warps the sound a bit. yes.” so this signal path for the third verse of rescue was my sitting on the couch singing into a copper phone (made by the bass player of the polyphonic spree) into a danelectro nifty 50 mic’d with 421 into neve1272 into the purple mc77. i am so glad to feel. i think it’s all there…
11:33 am: it is a new day. the photographs went well yesterday. the folks that did it are a couple from austin. they actually both grew up in my hometown of texarkana tx. we were all quite comfortable. we were able to shoot 5 different sets so surely something will be worthwhile. we’re still using some photos from our first shoot for can you hear us. it would be a good thing for them to go away now. this morning bwack is back tracking drums for “you are my joy”. last night we finished up drums for “come awake”. mike d will get in here later today and get the bass down for both. then perhaps i’ll sing another vocal or two. we’ll see how things progress. since we’re back to drums i’ll now let you in on the signal path for our drum micing: yamaha sub kick – amek 9098 mic pre inside kick mic – akg d112, chandler channel, urei la3a snare top – sm57, telefunken v76 snare bottom – sm57, presonus m80 the two snare mics are being combined in a custom summing box then out of that into an la3a into a 9098 eq hat – sm81, amek 9098 micpre eq toms are top and bottom mic ev 408s all through presonus m80s, alan smart c2 compressor, tl audio tube eq overheads – rode nt 5s, langevine dual vocal combo room mics – rode nt2s, aurora gt q2 mic pre eq, dbx 160x compression geek mic – blue baby bottle, presonus m80, squashing the living out of it with a dbx 119 an old home stereo compressor from the 70s. it rules. sounds like the room is on fire. everything that is to be digitized goes through radar s-nyquist for analogue to digital conversion then into a protools hd rig. we’re clocking with a lucid genx6-96 2:01 pm:
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Crowder Blog archiveAn archive of Crowder's blog posts, 2004-present. Posts come from the following blogs:
emprise34.xanga.com (2004-October 2009) davidcrowderblog.com (October 2009-2010) crowdermusic.com/correspondence (2012-2015) Archives
March 2018
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