Singer, Songwriter, Collaborator
Here’s a drawing I made for my song/clip giveaway project, “Songs From the Ballroom” (see link below left) – a kind of phantom album cover for an all-digital, non-simultaneous, open-ended collection of rare & unreleased tracks. In the thick of making it, I thought the illustration was starting to look nearly as grandiose as I hoped, but in the light of day, it’s just as silly as all of my pictures. Still, I’m really excited about it and wanted to share.
Soundcheck at the Pantages. Photo Steven Cohen.
Update on Dan and Matt Wilson live Pantages/BLB album project. I’m either suffering badly from “the Ikea effect” (we love those little tables and bookshelves way more because we put them together ourselves with the little screws and pegs), or this is turning out to be a really special document. I’m in love with a lot of the versions of the songs. Here’s what’s happened so far.
The song sequence. Both shows had the same setlist, except for the encores. My hope was that between the two shows at the Byrant Lake Bowl and the Pantages, we’d have one great version of every song we did. I was thinking we would almost end up alternating between the two shows on the download sequence – a song from the BLB, a couple from the Pantages, etc etc. But in fact, almost all of the versions from the Pantages were better. So it’s going to be mostly Pantages versions sprinkled with the occasional BLB version, all in the same order as the set list of the shows.
What to leave in, what to leave out? For our last download album, Matt and I adopted a “warts and all” approach, just quickly mixing the tracks and making them available in about a week and a half. That made sense, especially because the show was just the two of us onstage, simply playing our songs. This time around, because multi-instrumentalists Ken Chastain and Andy Thompson performed with us, I thought it would be worth being a little more painstaking about the mixes and versions. It’s still a live album, but we’ve removed some of the more egregious warts. Those of you who feel an attachment to the huge wrong note I played on the piano during “Reception” will be sad to hear that we’ve edited it out, using not-very-digital methods which REO Speedwagon or Three Dog Night probably used on their live albums way back when. However, other than that and a few other doozies, there are lots of precious wrong notes that we have left in. Mostly because, in the end, most people don’t notice those things and aren’t bothered by them.
One song had an insurmountable technical problem which I won’t bore you with except to say that we had drummer Ken Chastain re-record the drums on it. You’ll never guess which one. So don’t try. I won’t answer.
Mixes. Brad Kern took our live multi-tracks and mixed them. I’ve made my comments, Brad has addressed them, waited for more comments and addressed those. Although it would be funnier if all of my notes were requests that Brad turn my voice or my guitar up, in fact it was mostly less-juicy stuff about the balance and tone of the instruments. Now the mixes go to Matt and we’ll see if his comments are all about turning his voice and guitar up. I somehow doubt it.
Meanwhile, other parts of the download package are still in progress. Photographer Steven Cohen took a big batch of pictures during our rehearsals, soundchecks and the shows, and has put together a nice package of them. Steven also went out on a limb and directed a video shoot of the two shows, and the clips are turning out beautifully. But they’re taking more time than he or we had hoped. Still I think having them in the download will be worth the wait.
There are also a handful of fun and sweet rehearsal recordings that Matt and I made while preparing for the show and I’m hoping we can include a few of them with the album.
Getting close! I can’t wait for you all to hear and see what we’ve put together.
(Me and Ryan Hewitt, last day of mixing, still having fun.)
I’ve been spending many an afternoon in a studio down in Venice, CA, with engineer/producer Ryan Hewitt, who is mixing my album. Or, actually, unless I have some wild notion of changing something down the line (unheard of!), he has mixed it. It’s done. I’m very excited about the results. You’ve heard Ryan’s work if you’ve listened to either of the last two Avett Brothers albums, “I and Love and You,” and “The Carpenter,” which he recorded and mixed under the guidance of producer Rick Rubin; or if you’ve heard “Give Up the Ghost” by Brandi Carlile, or “I’m With You” and “Stadium Arcadium” by the Red Hot Chili Peppers. No, he hasn’t made me sound like the Chili Peppers, thank goodness. But he has made my album sound really, really good. Moving forward, however slowly!
I’ll keep you up to speed (such speed as there is) as this wonderful process enters its endgame.
People of Los Angeles! I am going to play some songs with my longtime pals and collaborators, jazz trio The New Standards, at Largo on February 27th. TNS are upright bassist John Munson from my bands Semisonic and Trip Shakespeare, Steve Roehm who is all over my last album “Free Life” on the vibes, and my youthful rock idol Chan Poling of the Suburbs on piano. I produced their first two albums. ‘Nuff said.
I’ll probably sing three or four songs, including at least one with our mutual friend John C. Reilly, who is also guesting on the set. Lucy Michelle from Minneapolis rounds out the bill. Lotsa talent and good vibes at Largo. I can’t wait.
Dan & Matt Wilson Concert Preview in City Pages, January 29, 2013
My brother Matt and I talked with the City Pages about our upcoming shows at the Bryant Lake Bowl and Pantages Theatre. Read about our love for the Twin Cities, our admiration for Prince’s selling tickets to his drummer audition, and of the complexities of having siblings in a band.
