INSTRUMENTS

Truro show 2012

instrumentslab@gmail.com (INSTRUMENTS) — Thu, 13 Sep 2012 20:56:00 -0300

Outdoors in Mineville

instrumentslab@gmail.com (INSTRUMENTS) — Tue, 4 Sep 2012 11:26:00 -0300

Torches, fireworks, and a rising blue moon.

Colours

instrumentslab@gmail.com (INSTRUMENTS) — Fri, 3 Aug 2012 14:20:00 -0300

Nice colour scheme for future consideration.

Tour vehicle packing

instrumentslab@gmail.com (INSTRUMENTS) — Wed, 1 Aug 2012 16:13:00 -0300

The cheat sheet. Gear fits one way, and one way only.

Sundial

instrumentslab@gmail.com (INSTRUMENTS) — Thu, 26 Jul 2012 15:18:00 -0300

Stereo Memory Man guts

instrumentslab@gmail.com (INSTRUMENTS) — Thu, 26 Jul 2012 14:51:00 -0300

A stupid pedal that I continue to use for some reason.

Gutted with Grace: A Truro Compilation

instrumentslab@gmail.com (INSTRUMENTS) — Tue, 19 Jun 2012 12:31:00 -0300

A compilation of new generation (the next wave or two beyond our generation anyway) bands from our hometown of Truro, NS:

<p>&amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://guttedwithgrace.bandcamp.com/album/gutted-with-grace-a-truro-compilation"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Gutted with Grace: A Truro Compilation by Gutted with Grace&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;gt;</p>

And a really interesting article about Truro that reinforces my thoughts that there actually is something about that town that spawns a disproportionately high number of creative people.

Dan said to me in email after reading the above linked article, "If you call what we had going in the 1990's a scene, it's amazing how many of us are now full time employed doing something directly linked to what we doing then", which is, I believe, the crux of it. Something about that town raises creative people that actually take the reigns and make their life about their art. I think that is rare.

Jeff Torbert

instrumentslab@gmail.com (INSTRUMENTS) — Mon, 18 Jun 2012 22:51:00 -0300

Watering the vegetable garden in front of the studio today reminded me of this great album by Jeff Torbert.

Olivier Jarda

instrumentslab@gmail.com (INSTRUMENTS) — Thu, 14 Jun 2012 11:10:00 -0300

Thought I should draw your attention to the new album by Olivier Jarda. Great voice, really smart lyrics:

<a href="http://olivierjarda.com/album/good-luck-cartel">Good Luck Cartel by Olivier Jarda</a>

And here's a super performance video from Southern Souls:

Recording Bass Guitar

instrumentslab@gmail.com (INSTRUMENTS) — Fri, 8 Jun 2012 22:45:00 -0300

Photos of the mic and board setup.

Drum mic setup

instrumentslab@gmail.com (INSTRUMENTS) — Wed, 6 Jun 2012 22:30:00 -0300

Omnis in the Jecklin disc, and e609 on the kick.

And the corresponding preamp and eq settings on the Toft ATB16. Kick on channel 1, Jecklin pair on channels 2 and 3.

Halifax math-post-avant-hardcore compilation

instrumentslab@gmail.com (INSTRUMENTS) — Wed, 6 Jun 2012 16:38:00 -0300

We are included on a new digital compilation released today. While the Halifax music scene has spawned a bazillion compilations, if I am not mistaken I believe this is the first to focus on the mathy / posty / side of things.

Download the compilation for free here.

From the press release:

"Over the last 20 years, Halifax has become known for a very particular coastal music scene, churning out explosions of slick, melodic indie-pop. Yet below the sheen of the limelight, Halifax has also been home to an underbelly of angular and aggressive music that has excelled on the fringes. Bands such as The Plan, North of America, and Equation Of State carved out the gritty niche for others like Contrived, Slight Return, Attack Mode, and Radarfame – paving the way for a new generation of musicians embedded in the history of start-stop rhythms, atypical time signatures, and dissonant guitar riffs.

How Did We Even Get Here? is a compilation of bands steeped in this tradition. Whether it’s the onslaught of the mathiness provided by VKNGS, the Fugazi-esque post-punk of The Wides, the hardcore-inspired riffs of fRAME, or the post-rock soundscapes of Force Fields and Kuato, this collection of songs is a testament to the enduring dark cloud that lies beneath the silver lining in the Halifax music scene."

Mic placement for the bass cabinet

instrumentslab@gmail.com (INSTRUMENTS) — Wed, 8 Feb 2012 10:10:00 -0400

Ghosts

instrumentslab@gmail.com (INSTRUMENTS) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 10:15:00 -0400

"There may be a sense in which all events leave some mark upon the universe, at a level not yet reached by our instruments (but possibly, in very abnormal circumstances, by our senses: Is this the explanation of ghosts?)" - Arthur C. Clarke, The Tyranny of Time, Horizon magazine, July 1962

An excerpt from the studio maintenance log

instrumentslab@gmail.com (INSTRUMENTS) — Fri, 25 Nov 2011 10:19:00 -0400

The Sony / MCI JH-24 2" tape machine was not recording properly on track 9. These are my notes detailing the troubleshooting process, and eventual solution.

Remix complete

instrumentslab@gmail.com (INSTRUMENTS) — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 16:01:00 -0400

MCI JH-24 in action. The tracks were recorded and edited in Samplitude, then transfered to 2" 16 track with EQ via the Toft console.

Reel of 2" ATR Magnetics tape, labelled as per Archive standard practices, of course.

The track sheet.

Toft ATB16 repair

instrumentslab@gmail.com (INSTRUMENTS) — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 16:05:00 -0400

If only it was always this easy to find the point of failure. Note opamp cracked in two. When (and how!) the frig did that happen? Unfortunately that was not the only bit needing fixing today, and the others were not so easy.

Remix in progress

instrumentslab@gmail.com (INSTRUMENTS) — Tue, 1 Nov 2011 17:08:00 -0300

Recording drums for an upcoming remix project. Note Jon's huge monster kit. Monster I tell you

Hobo with a costume

instrumentslab@gmail.com (INSTRUMENTS) — Tue, 1 Nov 2011 00:06:00 -0300

"A dark sense of humour and a zeal for the post-apocalyptic inspire Jason Johnson’s work." - The Coast

Our good friend and collaborator Jason Johnson is featured in The Coast. Jason made the collage that became the cover art for Assembly Room.

Apps to try

instrumentslab@gmail.com (INSTRUMENTS) — Sun, 18 Sep 2011 15:56:00 -0300

Moog filter thing
DDP player

Band name of the day

instrumentslab@gmail.com (INSTRUMENTS) — Sun, 18 Sep 2011 15:54:00 -0300

Professional Music Band Incorporated (or Limited)

Hurricane

instrumentslab@gmail.com (INSTRUMENTS) — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 15:48:00 -0300

Though I really liked June of 44 at the time, as a Nova Scotian on the cusp of another hurricane season all those 1990’s mid-western nautical themed indie rock records now seem rather ridiculous.

Clock live at Messtival

instrumentslab@gmail.com (INSTRUMENTS) — Sun, 21 Aug 2011 17:11:00 -0300

Special thanks to Devin Peck from Kuato for capturing this live video of us performing Clock at Messtival on August 13th.

A Long Day

instrumentslab@gmail.com (INSTRUMENTS) — Wed, 1 Jun 2011 23:29:00 -0300

A few days ago we recorded a version of the Nomeansno song "Long Days". Here's a little photo journal of the process:

Recording guitars and bass in the live room. Hacked Traynor cabinet with a 12" up top powered by a Traynor YBA-1, and a 15" on the bottom powered by a GK 400RB. Heil PR40 for bass and an older ShinyBox 46 for guitar. An Oktava MK219 (further back in the room) was also used on guitar.

The studio is wired to allow you to play guitar from the control room with your amps and cabinets in the live room. I take my pedal board into the control room with me so I can tweak on the fly.

The Oktava MK219 was used for guitar and the main vocal track, but it started making some squelching noises later in the day. Here it is on the workbench with the body apart. The XLR connector was loose, no other obvious damage. I've been thinking about sending it to OktavaMod for an upgrade anyway so perhaps now is the time.

The Sony / MCI JH-24 2" tape machine. This is a 24 track machine, but I put the 16 track heads on it. Sounds much better and I like the limitations of 16 tracks. ATR Magnetics tape, 15ips at 500 nwb/m, IEC eq. The electronics drawers are open because it appears a mouse has been hanging out inside recently and I'm about to vacuum it out.

A view of the MCI electronics. This is where you make all the alignment adjustments.

The Toft ATB16 console just after the final mix. Jawbone Jambox up top courtesy of our old pal Chris McKillop, who had a hand in designing it. Very useful for checking mix balances.


The track sheet for Long Days. The drum mic was indeed messed up on track three, so we just used the kick mic and the left side of the Jecklin Disc pair, making the drums mono in the final mix. I actually prefer mono drums in many cases, but the Jecklin Disc pair did sound great until the mic started acting funny.


The final mix on the ATR-102. ATR Magnetics tape, 30ips at 355 nwb/m, AES eq.

And here's the track:

<a href="http://instrumentslab.com/track/long-days">Long Days by INSTRUMENTS</a>

The Ant Records Video

instrumentslab@gmail.com (INSTRUMENTS) — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 23:39:00 -0300

By popular request, we present the legendary Ant Records video, in all its VHS glory. Featuring The MOTES, Sixtoo and the One Inch Punch, Richard Terfry (Buck 65, Stinkin' Rich), Motornerve, Robert Nelms, Chris Beckett (Buckett), Chris McKillop, a whole lot of rocket launches, and too much chicken fighting.

Produced by Ant Records (the pride of Truro, NS) from footage shot between 1994 and 1997.

I have to admit that I am truly happy to be able to make this available for the all the people who asked about it over the years. There's some ultra-rare and embarrassing footage in here, among much hilarity and some bizarrely transcendant musical performances. Enjoy! - JL