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Setting
Levels
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Edited
by Paul "Pro" Pearson,
Ph.D.
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Australia, New Zealand, Ratdog, Allman Brothers, Phil and Friends, Widespread Panic, Jerry Garcia Band...I'd say I had a pretty good month as far as traveling goes...
Thanks this month to Yossi Pollak, offering his
story on becoming the taper/archivist for one of
NY's most distinctive jambands-Inasense. Their
recent release (link to last month's review
section) on Desert Rock Records, entitled "Get
Your Shinebox" mixes American jamband flavor with
traditional Israeli music and Hebrew texts.
There's some definite potential for transcendence
in the combination...And here's the man who has
captured the magic for posterity:
Archiving Inasense I first heard Inasense in October 1998. They were playing at the famous Nightengales' in NYC, and I had heard good things about them, and I was in one of those moods where I NEEDED to hear some music. So, I went down and checked it out. One thing about me that you should know-in addition to being a big jam music fan (I go to an average of 2-3 shows per week, often more), I'm also an observant Jew. However, I have never really been very impressed by the majority of "Jewish" music. Listening to Inasense that night, I was struck by the synthesis between the two worlds that are most important to me. The band played many inspiring originals, but what really hit me was the covers. The Dead's Scarlet>Fire, then Dylan's Tangled Up In Blue, segued right into a Hebrew song by Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach. This was something else!! I have grown to see Inasense as a kind of Jewish Santana-integrating both the American musical world with their own history and culture. The result is staggering-a music that sounds like nothing else I've ever heard. After that night, the band was playing again a week later, on Halloween. That night I went armed with my trusty analog tape deck. At the time I had only been taping for about 6 months, only on analog, and only by patching into other people's microphones or the soundboard (though I had been trading for about 5 years). I asked the band if I could patch into the soundboard that night, and they said sure. When I asked if they wanted a copy of the show, they said yes. So, I saw them a few times in those next few months, and always sent them a copy. They were always very appreciative. In April, I got a call from the lead guitarist in the band, C Lanzbom. He told me how much they appreciated what I had done, and he first wanted to make sure that I was always on the guest list from that point forward. He then said that he had an idea for getting the band known. He wanted to know if I would become the band's official taper and archivist, and distribute tapes through their website. I decided to accept the offer, and I immediately became part of the band "family". I am not paid for what I do for the band-it is strictly volunteer work. We discussed the best way to make and distribute the tapes. We particularly were concerned about making the best quality tapes to put the band's name on. We decided that the best way was for me to upgrade to DAT, and to buy a set of microphones. The band's budget is relatively small, so we agreed that I would purchase the DAT recorder, and the band would purchase the microphones, provided I could find a suitable but inexpensive set. After researching for a while, we decided on the Sound Professionals microphone system, which has turned out to be a high-quality system at a fraction of the price of most microphones. Although conceivably I could have recorded from the soundboard at any show, we were concerned because Inasense sometimes plays small venues that do not have soundboards. We were also concerned about the inconsistency and sterility of a soundboard mix in small venues. Since then, I have recorded about 60 Inasense shows, in the span of about 14 months. I have become close friends with the members of the band, and often go with them to other band's shows. Often they will pick me up or reimburse my travel expense so that I can attend shows outside of New York City. They often discuss sound and setlists with me, and we joke that I know their music better than they do. The band members and their families have used the tapes I have made for fun, for self-criticism, and even to a point as demos (they have released 3 studio albums, but it was important for certain venues or labels to hear the band live). I have also acted as guitar tech, and even jammed with them (I am a guitarist) on stage at shows. My greater task has been trying to spread the music of Inasense as much as I can, and to turn people on to them who have never heard them before. I use a Sony D8 DAT recorder at Inasense shows. I also usually run my D6 analog deck to make an immediate copy for the band at the show. My microphones are made by Chris Carfango at The Sound Professionals, which are Audio-Technica 853a mic bodies, usually used with cardioid elements (though I also have interchangeable hypercardioid elements for outdoor shows and other larger venues. I also have a Sound Professionals battery module with a bass rolloff (to give the mics more headroom without distorting). These mics are placed in a specially produced gooseneck T-bar with a shockmount, which gives me a lot of flexibility in mic placement. I use a larger stand than the average taper's stand-a professional studio boom stand made by On-Stage Stands. This allows me more height and flexibility in the mic placement as well (i.e. placing the stand on the side of the stage with the boom bringing the mics up right in front of the band.) I also have a Flying Cow 20 bit A/D converter (which I can only use when I have an electrical outlet) and a Mackie 4 channel mini-mixer. This allows me to boost the signal going into the A/D converter as well as giving me the opportunity to run soundboard/audience matrix mixers. I also have an Acer CD burner on my computer and a Midiman Dio 2448 digital sound card. As a general rule, I just run my audience mics, placed as close to the band as possible while still picking up the PA signal for vocals and reinforcement. Often the stage monitors provide much of that as well. However, more recently I have begun to mix the soundboard with the audience mics. This has been difficult to do in some places. I have found that unless the mics are right up near the stage, then there is a distortion or phase cancellation that makes the tape relatively unlistenable. However, when I am able to put the mics close to the stage, I have made many tapes that are practically live album quality. The show that is being offered was made by running my microphones directly into the house mixing console. The sound engineer at Mexicali Blues Café, where it was recorded, set up the Aux Sends on his board for my mix, and allowed me to adjust it as I needed. This, combined with an incredible performance by the band, made for a very high-quality recording. Check out the Blue Sky teases during Sugaree!! I think that the best tapes that I make are certainly the nights that the band plays at its best. However, other factors include the sound of the band in the room, the amount of crowd noise on the tape (a little bit it good for realism-but not so much that it disrupts the music), and my ability to place the mics correctly and adjust the mix if necessary. I have been especially lucky to hear many songs long before they appear on an album, and become intricately familiar with them through their evolution. The best moments taping for me come when I can accurately reproduce a show that is emotionally and spiritually fulfilling to attend. I don't consider myself an expert taper by any means, but this experience has given me the opportunity to tape in many different situations, some ideal, and some far from ideal. I have learned to always have a spare roll of duct tape, to make sure that everything is taped together, and that ANYTHING can happen to a rig when you're not paying attention. Most importantly, you never know what being nice will accomplish-that is how I got this "gig" in the first place, and it proves true at every show. Although I am going to Israel for a year and will have to take a hiatus from working with the band, I have had an incredible time, and I will look forward to working with them more when I get back. Comments? Have a topic for 'Setting Levels'? Want to put in your $.02 on taping, trading or mixing live music? Send me an email...
Pro This month, Yossi offers up some tasty Inasense for your spiritual pleasures...and he's sending it to you himself. I've already had an aural sniff, and it's yummy. Rules: 1>Be a good trader and 2>Follow Yossi's rules... Contact info: The 5/22/00 show from Mexicali Blues will fit on 3-74 minute CDs or 1-90 and 1- 100 minute tape. You can send them with return postage to me, but please email me before you send them so I know how many to expect. And, if you have any tapes of Inasense from before 1999 or from outside of New York City, please let me know!! I need to add them to the archives.
Yossi Pollak http://www.inasense.com Inasense-My tape distribution website is linked there, but it's at http://www.compwiz.nu/inasense. (Note: This website shows Inasense tapes for sale. This practice, and the prices, have been approved by the members of Inasense. I will ALWAYS be happy to trade or fill blanks&postage for Inasense shows. This has simply been a service to those unfamiliar with the institution of tape trading.)
http://www.soundprofessionals.com (my mic system)
Pro is back from his trips down under, fighting all who rob or plunder...check him out at www.strangepleasures.com.
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