Palms On Fire

Great win for the Isles, coupled with a Panthers loss... 6 points clear of the playoff cutoff line.  Kyle Pamieri proving to be so clutch down the line.  Keep it going boys...

Final Mix Session...

About to head up to LA for "finally" the final mix session.  I asked Matt that we monitor with headphones today, as that will be critical for making sure we accurately catch all of the subtle (and not so subtle) adjustments I think are needed...

All Alone In NYC...

...on the night before New Year's Eve.  Relaxing with Sam's Winter Lagers and VOs in an eastside bar on 45th street. Flying back to OC tomorrow with a clear schedule for the next couple of days.  I'll be using that time to prepare for the February release of the first single.  Primary tasks will include consolidating the notes for the final mix session, going through the Grey Wolf video draft, and soft launching the website so that i can begin working on integrating the merchandising provider... also need to start thinking about a video for the second single, coming up with some ideas for the EPK, and sending a note to the guys at CLG requesting thumbnail artwork for the singles.  There will be more to think about as well, but that will set me well on my way to a productive few days.

Really crappy blackjack trip through the northeast corridor; haven't had one of those in awhile.  At least i didn't get backed off anywhere.

Was great to see a couple of Islanders wins while they're starting to play some very consistent hockey.  Hopefully this will be the impetus to launch them towards a playoff berth and another deep run...

Happy birthday, Jeff Lynne...

String files are huge...

Spending a decent part of this Saturday afternoon downloading wave files from the Glasgow string sessions.  It's a complex part of the project... properly recording an orchestra requires a variety of mic setups in different locations, and each of the location files are roughly 80MB in size.  Multiplying 10 files per song by 11 songs, well - the total amount to download is roughly 9 gigs.  And the internet connection seems a bit on the slow side today.

Got my first piece of swag in the mail from printful a few days ago; a camouflage hat with the band name and album title stitched in gold lettering.  Have to say, it looks pretty good - will be looking forward to offering these merchandise items on the website.  An email confirms two other items (a coffee mug and gym bag) have also just been delivered; looking forward to retrieving those when I get around to checking my mail later today...     

Blogger export...

Spent most of today back on bandzoogle figuring out the intricacies of setting up pages, graphics, etc.  One of the challenges was in trying to get the site to import my entire 30-post collection from blogger.com.  It stopped at the most recent 25; there was no indication of a setting on either site restricting the number of imported posts, and a help message to bandzoogle was met with the online equivalent of shrugged shoulders.  

An effective workaround was exporting all posts to a secondary blog, eliminating all but the five oldest posts on that secondary blog, and then importing the remaining content of that secondary blog (the five oldest posts) into bandzoogle.  I'm hoping bandzoogle automatically picks up this next entry as well.

One great feature of bandzoogle is functionality for selling merchandise - including an arrangement with an on-demand fulfillment center that appears to allow for realtime printing and shipping of orders on an individual basis - so that there is no inventory requirement.  I'm now stuck in the resulting nightmare of trying to determine how to calculate and satisfy any sales tax collection and reporting obligations; I'm hoping an email to my accountant will result in a favorable response in the morning...  

   .  

A Little Bit at a Time...

The process of gearing up for an album release - when you're doing everything yourself - can be pretty overwhelming the first time around.  Trying to get a little something done every day will be beneficial for my psyche.

Matt had Davey come into the studio today to record some background vocals for Snapshots, Requiem and All of Our Lives - but as I really didn't want to have to make the trek up to Los Angeles, I joined the session remotely via zoom - and it worked out very well.  That will be a tremendous option going forward, particularly with gas prices being what they are these days.   

I sent Dave at CLG a note about a week ago asking if he'd still be interested in having his company distribute the album, as he first mentioned that about a year ago.  He hasn't yet responded, which isn't a big deal - people get busy.  However, I am a little reticent to have a smaller company handle all aspects of distribution, when there are behemoths in place (CDBaby) that have been successfully performing that function for decades.  Considering how much I have invested in this project, my gut tells me that I should be going with the big boys.  Having said that, Dave has been great during the entire cover art illustration process - so I'd like to at least give him the opportunity to make a case for his company, if he does in fact still want to work with me on the distribution side.

Along those same lines, I sent emails a short while ago to both Discmasters and Discmakers regarding developing finished product from the artwork provided by CLG.  We'll see what proposals they come back with.

I also sent a note to the copyright office asking for clarification as to the best way to register the album, considering that while I own everything, I have separate dba identifiers for the compositions (Long Island Express Music) and masters (26th Street Records).  The website states they respond to inquiries within 10 business days.  Government efficiency at its finest...

Back From the UK...

Returned a little over two weeks ago from Scotland, where I travelled to witness the live recording of the string parts for the album.  I didn't really need to be there, as the sessions were run incredibly well by both Kobus (the orchestra's director) and Steve (the string arranger).  Everyone involved in the project was top-flight... the 21-piece section itself was comprised of members of both the Scotland national symphony and BBC orchestras. 

They recorded the string parts (and these were very complex arrangements) for all 11 songs in a total of 11 hours, over the course of two days.  That was a remarkable accomplishment - and it sounded incredibly good live.  I'm looking forward to receiving the comped and mixed tracks, so that I can forward to Matt for his incorporation in the main mixes...