Process

This was a recent writing session with the band Dragonfly. We were working on a collection of 10 new songs, mostly written by singer/guitarist Miki Singh and guitarist Peter Parcek. It was a 2 week session in which we recorded basic tracks during the first week and overdubs during the following week. The sessions usually went for 3 or 4 hours a day, in which time we would usually tackle 2 or 3 songs. For each song, Miki & Peter brought in a rough sketch of the changes and the arrangement, and the band worked out the details together. We forced ourselves to come up with parts on the spot and record them, even though the parts may end up changing later on. The pressure to come up with parts quicky has really proven to be an effective way for us develop songs. Working on this number of songs in such a short period of time can be difficult, though; I have to be very conscious of what I've played on earlier songs in the session, as it's really easy to just fall into playing similar parts from one song to the next.

Location

Recording with Dragonfly is unlike anything I have ever experienced. The studio- 'the Dragon's Lair'- is located in St. Barths, FWI at Miki's house, just a few steps from Gouverneur- one of the most beautiful beaches in the world. Basically, the "live room" is a stage built in an open-air bungalow, situated roughly 100 yards from the ocean. A snake runs from the stage to another nearby bungalow, which is closed off and acts as the control room. In front of the stage is a beautiful patio and swimming pool, which is convenient; when the summer sun becomes too much, we just go for a dip!

The "Live Room"

The Control Room

Recording

In the control room we have a full Pro Tools rig, plus a bunch of outboard gear. We're very lucky to have Ducky Carlisle working with us as engineer/producer. Ducky gets world-class drum sounds, and does it fast. He is a great drummer too, which ends being a huge bonus for me. I often bounce ideas off of him, and he is always great at helping me sort things out. Whether it's a drum sound, a tuning issue, or a drum part, having his input is invaluable.

Ducky

Drum Kit

Though I ordinarily use Gretsch drums, the studio kit there is a DW:10x13 rack tom, 14x16 floor tom, and a 18x22 kick. There are a couple of different snares: 5x14 Ludwig Supraphonic, 5.5x14 Yamaha Absolute Maple, and a 6.5x14 Pearl Steve Ferrone. For cymbals, there's a selection of various Sabian's, which are great! The kit is close mic'd, plus there's 2 overheads and a room mic about 5 feet in front of the kit.

Or course many of my Vater sticks came in handy. Steve White's Hitmaker, Session, Splashsticks and misc. mallets and brushes get quite a workout on a session like this and always sound and feel great!

The biggest obstacle we have when recording at this studio is isolating the mics from the outside noise. The wind, ocean, nearby beach-goers, and crickets (yes, crickets...) are all sounds that we have to figure out how to deal with. We've already made 2 records at this studio (Edge of the World and Blind), and occasionally you can pick up little hints of the ocean, or maybe some crickets... but for the most part, you'd never believe that these records were made outdoors. Ducky comes up w/ very creative ways to get rid of this stuff... or he just uses it in the mix!

Already out on Sony Music/India, look for the US release of Blind this Fall. Visit our website at: www.dragonflyband.com

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