Cut of the Month is FLASHES OF QUINCEY and their song "Friends". When they approached me to record I listened to some demos and this song was among them. I remember hoping I could record THAT song. I really love the vocal harmonies. All of the different sections to the song remind me of epic Alice Cooper songs. Not that the music reminds me of Alice but I like the multi part song. There is a passion to this piece which really does it for me. You listen and tell me.

First half of the month I was still in France with a side holiday trip to Italy. The mastering for CALI's record was done at Translab which had a great studio connected to it with movable doors and iso booths. They had several analog machines, a nice mixing console and a sweet spot in the middle of Paris. The mastering lab also had a record cutter which made me drool. So we finished the record and now we just have to wait until February for this pop machine to be released. The 3rd promo video is out though as is the single, which you can hear/see here

http://www.calimusic.fr/

When I got home, jet lag hit me super hard and then we got sick over the holidays. So I thought about turkey with a high fever. That was nice.

Shortly after that I did a tape transfer for Susan of LUMINOUS FLUX. This was a band I had recorded many many years ago. Susan is doing some really neat new music now and wanted to remix, sample, etc her older music. The analog machine was fired up and it surprised me how great these recordings are. It also made me realize how unstable the digital medium is. I can always play back an analog session but several digital session have just disappeared. It's really wrong, but whatchagonnado?

WIZARD PRISON played a great show with the crazy people from San Francisco - Anti Ear, Hans Grusel, Bran ... (pos), Loachfillet, Shariface, KroB and Head Boggle. The show was fantastic and completely entertaining. There were many technical problems on my end with my equipment rack but it made the whole set take on a new life that was weirder than before. This reminds me, we have some new videos up on the You Tube, if you care to have your eyes removed.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ukeCTmM9vbk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XnvveJ0ixIo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMJlFLLkSV4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ucLwo7EgNWU

We put the final touches on the HYPATIA LAKE record, which is another one I can't wait for you to hear. This blend of Flaming Lips, Black Sabbath, Neil Young and Sonic Youth...wow!

I blew a few minds at a lecture about acoustics that I gave at the University of Washington's Audio Production Outreach Program. I really love teaching and this class in particular, was admiring my soft shoe routine like they had never seen it before.

The month rounded out with a little SUN CITY GIRL re-visitation to things old with a new view. That's all I can say. --