Technically, the chili posing as a right single quotation mark is going the wrong way, but we’ll give the sign maker a pass for using such great color in this sign.
The food was good, but the Silver Train (Herradura Silver, Cointreau, fresh-squeezed limes, rocks, salted) margaritas helped make the night successful. They did not help the gesturing.
Taken in Austin during SXSW 2009. o
You may want to read this post if you haven’t. What I’m going to say today will only sound coherent if you have the backstory.
After our initial two gigs, our bass player left on a Mormon mission. We had known this from the outset and were actively searching for a somebody. I can’t remember how we found Jeff Hubbard, but he came by the house to talk and listen to music. This was probably October, 1989. That summer, I had lived in Oakland with my sister and her family in an apartment where I lived in their large walk-in closet under the stairs. I knew the bartender at Yoshi’s, when it was at its tinier location. I got to see a few great acts perform there, one of them was Bill Frisell in support of his album Before We Were Born. Bill Frisell was part of the downtown late-80s scene that included John Zorn amongst others. I bring up Bill Frisell because it was the tipping point for Jeff Hubbard wanting to play in Swim Herschel Swim. He was a huge Bill Frisell fan, saw the disc in my collection and Jeff felt that if I was cool enough to know about Bill Frisell, everything else would be gravy. As a plus for us, Jeff had already done his mission and wanted to play in a band that did original material.
Like most of us, Jeff was not a super ska freak or “dedicated to the scene”. Sure, I had mod shoes and a parka as well as spent a summer on a Vespa P200, but Rod (lead singer) and Rick (guitar) were by far the most versed in the genre and brought a lot of cover influence as we started up and started to write songs. Before you label me a fashion poseur, I never wore those clothes onstage. Yes, we were a ska band, but that was just the biggest influence. As you’ll see, we had other influences that crept into our music and I believe that helped us stay popular with the kids.
Our first shows featured one or two originals, the rest of the set being covers of ska classics. Over time, we’d bump off the cover songs and be able to do complete sets of all original songs. We probably should have just started this way, but people wanted us to play after they found out there was a new ska band in town.
This song, “Clueless”, was one that Jeff brought in pretty early, probably November or December of 1989. Since he wrote it on guitar, he got to play guitar on it and it shows. It wasn’t a strictly ska guitar sound or technique and the chord progression says more about Jeff’s taste in music than ska purity. I think that’s why we liked it so much and it stayed in the set list pretty much the entire time the band was alive.
Studio notes:
During the mixdown, Merkley (and I think Rod) wanted to have the guitar solo sound less “mainstream” and thought that by jacking the EQ, that would make it more alternative/punk sounding. I resisted, but not strongly enough. The engineer (Ron Saltmarsh) stopped us and said, “I’m a guitarist. If somebody messed with my tone like that, I’d kill them.” Ron was a super easy going guy and great to work with, but we clearly had crossed a line. He begrudingly took all of the meat out of the guitar sound and that explains the “back in the distance” sound that ended up on the stereo mixdown. Of the myriad things I could change, I’ve always wanted to hear this song with it’s proper solo sound intact and not butchered for the sake of trend. Would it sound too “commercial”? I don’t know and I don’t care. Alas, Jeff’s full, meaty and deliciously worshipful-of-the-Guitar solo is lost to the analog gods.
The female vocal on this one was my first wife. She’s a great singer and at the time we recorded the vocal overdubs, I pushed a bit to have her in the band as a full-time member. Merkley resisted (he had been through a disastrous break-up and I believe went through at least a few years of hating women; that’s how it appeared to me, anyway) and Rod seemed to kind of like the idea, but it was nixed when it was clear that we were coming dangerously close to the Janine character in This is Spinal Tap when Nigel and Ian quit and Janine began to manage as well as play tambourine onstage. Sidenote: There is probably a weird Janine/Merkley thing that surfaced at this time as well. Merkley is a strongly opinionated personality and he asserted himself as producer very heavily. His ideas and influence were, then as now, hit or miss. He was the one that suggested a female backing vocal for this track (excellent choice) and he was the one to power through the notion we neuter the guitar sound (not such an excellent choice).
As with the previously shared track, I’ve done some extensive work on the EQ as well as trying to find a balance between purity and compression so that the sound is as true as possible while also being consistent with aural expectations of today’s ears. God, does that sound pompous.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
o
Prologue
In the fall of 1989 at BYU, I formed a ska band called Swim Herschel Swim along with my drummer roommate Rich Hillquist, lead vocalist (and tromboner) Rod Middleton, bassist Russell Cluff and guitarist Rick Anderson. I wrote a bit about Herschel in 2005, here. It should be noted that the Merkley mentioned there has since let his light out into the world a bit more than I was aware of then and has released a book (warning, NSFW) as well as created a sizable and well-deserved following on flickr (warning, NSFW).
I recently discovered digital files (copied digitally from a DAT) of the stereo “master” used for our first cassette released in 1991. Over the next while, I’ll be sharing these tracks along with a little bit of needless tidbitery. This is mostly a selfish endeavor and I’ll ask most of you to bear with me as I exorcise a segment of my glory days. I’ve used Logic Express to mess around with EQ as the frequencies tended to the treble. I also did some widening, compression and other enhancements to fatten the sound and get it closer to what it sounded like when we played live. I’ve tried to stay away from the George Lucas tendencies to create a new reality with the sound and structure. I’m still blown away that 18 years later, I can do this work easily and quickly in the comfort of my home with a computer and a $300 off the shelf application. At the time we made these recordings, one piece of pro gear was around what I paid for my computer. A good studio would have a few rackfuls of pieces of pro gear and cost at least $100/hour.
Minor Audio Nerdery
In the fall of 1991, we had survived the dreaded summer break and added a saxphonist, Sam Reisner, to our lineup. At our first big gig of the fall semester, we had a great take from the door proceeds and decided to take very small individual payouts and pool the money to record. We recorded these songs live over a two weekend period and then came back in to record vocals and add sweetening. The all the recording was analog and the studio was super inexpensive. I believe we used a 16-track and mixed down to analog stereo and DAT (digital audio tape, for the uninitiated). We sent the DAT off to be mastered and I can’t remember if I duped the DAT or I had the original DAT to make the files that I used to remaster these songs.
Forgive the performances as we didn’t have the time or budget to do retakes (for the most part). These are single take performances with minor overdubs. Even the vocal overdubs are single take performances. I can’t believe we made recordings like this back then. And that I’m using the words “back then” is doubly painful.
This first post is a long one, the following posts shouldn’t be quite as long.
Ever since I returned from England in 1986 as a Mormon missionary, I had wanted to start a ska band. I figured we might not get a label deal, but it would be a hell of a lot of fun and we’d be able to play a lot as the music is extremely danceable and features horns. I’m a big fan of horns.
In 1988, drummer Rich found a duplex to rent that featured a sizable basement for rehearsal. For two semesters after we moved in we had a couple of different bands and the basement was key in being able to rehearse. Those first two bands were cool and all, but personal and creative differences forced splits at the end of each semester. It was difficult to sustain a band for longer than a semester in Provo. The first, Room 13 was a cover band that spanned late 80s britpop and alternative genres. I think we had 3 shows. The second, Scuba Bus, was a whiteboy soul funk cover band that featured a freshman bass player who would later become one of my closest and lifelong friends. Scuba Bus played three shows, clearing the rooms at two of them. Imagine a less tight, pre-Blood Sugar Sex Magik Red Hot Chili Peppers and a super white Truth & Soul Fishbone sans horns and that was Scuba Bus. I’m sure Rich has a cassette or two of those shows. Rich is a fantastic archivist.
In the spring of 1989, I met Rod Middleton, who was acquaintances with Rich & I’s roommate Bill. I don’t recall how, but toward the end of that semester, Rod was sitting in our living room talking about ska. Rich and I said that we needed to get together in the fall of ‘89 and see what happened. Rod knew Rick (who was a bass player by trade, but wanted to play guitar in a ska/reggae band) and I believe that Rick and Russ (who Rich and I had played with prior) had been talking as well.
Over the summer of ‘89, Merkley moved into our rehearsal space and took it over. He had painted crazy shit all over and made the room look less like a set from a horror movie and more like a creative space with his detritus strewn about. We were going to throw him out, but he agreed to give us back our rehearsal space and we agreed to have cheaper rent because the rent stayed the same and we just split it four ways instead of three. Sweet deal all around.
Rod and I were marching band nerds in high school and as the band was forming, we talked a lot about powerful horns and how the first notes a marching band plays have to be loud enough to peel paint off cars a quarter mile away.
One of the first songs we wrote as a band that was Swim Herschel Swim material was this song, which features a very pep band horn line with a kind of minor key modal bridge that would set the tone for most of the music we’d write over the next four years. The original bass player, Russell Cluff, left on a Mormon mission shortly after we previewed this song and was replaced by Jeff Hubbard on bass. More about Jeff in subsequent posts.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
Direct Download: MP3, 320kbps fixed; Swim Herschel Swim, Baby B, 1991
o
Taken in Austin. I believe this is the side of the building that houses Guero’s wonderful sloppy Mexican food. Great margaritas. Better company. o
In the winter of 2002 and again in 2003, I saw today. I saw that Heather would, if she chose, be a published author. In 2004, she really hit her stride and her talent has blossomed. She works very hard to publish good things and make people smile every day. Four years ago in 2005, before I quit the day job, Heather started working on a manuscript outline to shop to publishers. All of that is in the past now and I’m thrilled at the job that Simon Spotlight has done to get this book out there.
Today, I’m bursting with pride and love for her as It Sucked and Then I Cried hits the streets. We’ve been through a lot since the process started, but we’re alive, together and happy (but tired).
Heather, you are the most talented person I’ve ever known. Matched with your astounding work ethic, you deserve every bit of praise and success. I’m flattered that you chose me to make this journey. I’m flattered to know you and I hope that this success continues for all the hard work and personal sacrifices you have endured to make it happen.
Take care of yourself on the road, baby!
To you, dear readers, thank you for your support. I thank you every day and today is no exception. Your support of Heather and our business endeavors over the years has been nothing short of astounding. You helped make this happen. o
Walking back to the Austin Convention center on 6th caught this from the hip. it’s a touch blurry, but has really nice texture. I think Heather’s lawyer is going to have a talk with me about Lightroom. o
(The above photo does not reflect actual current sewage line condition.)
Plumbers just left. Sewage line is cleaner than a whistle and roots have been bladed and treated with a chemical to keep them at bay for a couple of years.
They ran a camera (an expense we were happy to pay) to determine condition of the line and for us to figure how budget for the next possible disaster. They found that the line is in excellent condition. Whew.
Now we just have to get Heather through this book tour as a pregnant woman. It’s going to be a pull for her, if our recent SXSW experience is an indicator. We spent one night out late and it impacted the rest of our trip.
Still, I’m going to savor the remainder of this 70°+F day and flush with impunity after waiting the 1-2 hours for the root killing chemicals to kick in. o
From the whirlwind New York trip a couple of weeks ago. Or whenever the hell that was.
I amped the blacks and got this crazy number lit down. I kind of like the weird monochrome with hint of color on the edges.
I’m still a little nervous because the plumbers come back today to run a camera down the line. Here’s hoping it won’t be as expensive this time. Also, we are looking into possible laxative/softeners. Just in case. o
There is a plumber in our house right now. He is running a cable into our indoor “clean out” that is “at the bottom of our stack”. Things are draining, just hearing some weird gurgles and seeing some random backflow now and then.
I’m very hopeful that we’ve caught it in time. Very hopeful.
I’m tempted to live blog the plumbing. I’ll spare you the details. I’m sure there will be updates. o
UPDATE: Plumber just left. Coming back tomorrow to flush the line and run a camera down it. Will hopefully be less expensive than the last time we did this. The drains are running tonight, so that’s good, right?
Taken on 6th Street in Austin.
Yes, I tweaked the colors. It’s just life, people. It’s what happens when Lightroom and I get together. o
