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Spin
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The new record from David LaMotte, Spin, came out in November of 2003.
It features twelve songs, ten of which are previously
unrecorded (live recordings of the other two were
featured on Good
Tar). Produced by Evan Brubaker (who produced
Corners),
Chris Rosser (who produced S.S.
Bathtub) and Troy Glessner, it breaks new
ground for David, both in terms of production and
songwriting.
Check out Jennifer
Layton's review at indie-music.com
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| "I
feel like this is the strongest batch of songs
I've written," David says. "I'm trying
to write songs that will hold up over time,
and this is the closest I've come yet, I think."
The CD was recorded at Spectre Studios in Tacoma,
Washington, and Hollow Reed Studio in Asheville,
NC. It was a challenging and sometimes discouraging
process. "We have this cultural myth that
everything good should be easy, but I'm coming
further and further away from that idea as I
get older. Mark Twain was barely restrained
from burning The Adventures of Tom Sawyer,
and though I'm not suggesting this CD is on
the level with that novel, it's encouraging
to know that I'm not the only person who has
felt that way in the middle of a creative project. |
Evan and Chris mixing
the record |
"I
really love the record, but to get to where it is
now we did throw out about half of it and start over.
The feel just wasn't right on those songs. I think
we got them now, and it was a good decision, but it's
a painful thing to just erase this material you've
been working so hard on."
The
production styles vary tremendously, from a solo guitar
piece to an unabashed southern rock song (full drum
kit, electric guitars and lap steel), several songs
with string arrangements and one with dotar (a middle
eastern sitar-like folk instrument). "The main
thing I've learned about production is that you have
to help the song be what it already is, not try to
make it something else. It's always a mistake to try
to make a folk song into a pop song, but it's equally
misguided to try to go in the other direction. Evan,
Chris and Troy are great at listening to the songs
and giving them what they're asking for."
The new CD also features enhanced
content. If you put it in a normal CD player
it will play normally, but if you put it in
a computer you will have access to a music video
for the lead track, Miss You, guitar
sheet music for three of the songs (Spin,
Look at Me and Peter) and
thirteen extra MP3 tracks. The MP3s are the
original 'living room demos' for the songs on
the record, as well as a piano/vocal version
of Chances, which is on the CD in a
guitar-based version. |
the enhanced content home
screen |
Check out the indie-music.com
review. |
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Troy dialing in
the tracks |
Guest Artists:
Evan
Brubaker - background vocals
Kerry Cockayne
- drums
Myles Corbin - bass
Troy
Glessner - electric guitar
River Guerguerian
- percussion
Jonathan
Kingham - background vocals
Sean Halley - electric guitar
Christine
Kane - harmony vocals
Michael Manring
- fretless bass
Phil Peterson - strings
Chris
Rosser - organ, piano, Rhodes
88, dotar, Wurlitzer, bass, percussion
Dan Tyack - pedal steel, lap steel |
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And by the
way...
Sheri Lalumondier, the
graphic designer for this CD, had already started working
on the art when I called her and told her I was changing
the title of the CD. We were going to call it "Element,"
but Evan suggested Spin, and I thought it was a better
idea.
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