Carl ended up recording all of the guitar and bass parts in about two days, which were then reamped later through a Peavey, Hughes and Kettner and Mesa heads.
We were after a solid 'ballsy' sound similar to that of Evanescene or Linkin Park but will a melodic lead over the top to add contrast. Matt always made us feel at ease and welcome, even when he was putting forward new ideas suchs as melodies, harmonies and structural ideas.
It was my turn to record vocals next. I was a bit nervous and Matt saw this. He pushed me to record at my best and kept every single take just incase it could be used as a harmony or as an overdub. Matt likes to record multiple harmonies layering ooos and ahhs in the mix to beef up the tracks.
I've recorded harmonies parts before for our previous E.P. but Matt introduced me to a whole new world of what was possible with vocals. I have to say, my mind was blown just a little bit.
After two days of vocals, all that was left to do was to put on the synth tracks, which we had previously created in cubase before coming to the studio. We used a variety of plug-ins to add thickness to the synth parts but we were very pleased already with how the songs sounded as a rough mix.
Obviosuly, we couldn't wait until they were all mastered. We told him that we wanted the guitars and vocals to be the main focus in the mix, with the drums carrying the impact as if they were being played in an open quarry.
As a band, Matt helped us find new ways of tackling how we approached each section of each song, highlighting what needed to be where and what could be better. By better I mean where adding a guiaar melody or a vocal chant would really benefit the track and core structure. We always felt we had enough control but also felt like he was pushing us to make the best record possible for us and the fans.
As a vocalist, he helped me become more comfortable with my voice and pushed me into new horizons. He definitely helped us in more ways than just producing our record.
My advice to bands is - before choosing somebody to record or produce your E.P. or album, make sure that they are passionate about your music and aren't just there to take your money. Luckily, we have had producers in the past who have been into our sound and who have always wanted to add something to our band.
Matt really showed he wanted to make this record even better for us and the fans. I'm pleased to announce we have received the mastered tracks and have recorded our first music video. I have to say as a band, we are very excited about what is to come
A mouth full of matches 'Smoke Singals' E.P. will be out summer 2014. Check out the band on one of
their tour dates as their live
performance is amazing.
Download their previous E.P.
'Tasting fire' for free via
Bandcamp and check out
their social media profiles
to stay upto date with
their video release and
new E.P. release.