Issue 74 / February 2017

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38 Bido Lito! February 2017 Reviews SOUND MATTERS In this monthly column, our friends at DAWSONS give expert tips and advice on how to achieve a great sound in the studio or in the live environment. Armed with the knowledge to solve any musical problem, the techy aficionados provide Bido Lito! readers with the benefit of their experience so you can get the sound you want. Inspired by the prolific home recordings of issue 74 cover star Laurie Shaw, we asked Dawsons’ Terry Cooper about the best way to harness your creativity with home recording equipment. FOR THOSE WHO WANT TO GO AT IT ON THEIR OWN, WHAT TIPS CAN YOU GIVE WITH REGARDS TO RECORDING YOUR OWN MUSIC AND USING MULTITRACK RECORDING AND PORTASTUDIOS? A more suitable option than a multitrack recorder for many is the audio interface and the bundles which are available. An audio interface is a little box that you plug everything into – guitar, microphone, etc. It turns that sound into a digital signal which goes into your computer and also converts it to an analogue signal for your speakers or headphones for monitoring. There are different models which have varying numbers of inputs and different types such as jack and phono. The quality is determined by the preamps in the front end of it, and the chip which converts it from analogue to digital inside it. Even if you are producing electronic music, interfaces are necessary to get the best quality and speed of your plugins. The Focusrite products tend to be very popular in the shop, especially the bundle packs which consist of the audio interface, software to record with, a set of headphones and a good quality condenser mic. It’s a fantastic package for artists who are starting out and want to record their stuff at home. As well as the Focusrite Scarlet bundle, M-Audio do a similar one for £149 which also works on iPad. The bundles are perfect for artists who use electronic drums which they can programme in rather than a live kit – with such a set-up they can do the whole thing themselves. If there is a full drum kit involved, it is possible to use one of the inputs to put a single mic in front of the drum, but you’re limited to how many inputs you have if there are other instruments involved, and also in the extent to which you can mix the drums. With a full drum kit, to give you the capacity to mix the different elements, it is better to spend a bit more and go for an interface with more inputs, perhaps eight sockets. The Focusrite Scarlet 18i20 is great for this job. Going up the range, there are also the Claret products from Focusrite which have Thunderbolt connection, providing great quality and speedy connection to Apple products. In terms of multitrack recorders, they often double up as an audio interface as well, giving you options on how you record. There are the Zoom R8, R16 and R24, which give you an increasing number of channels for recording a multitude of set-ups. Multitracks are great if an artist wants to keep it simple and straightforward – whereas using an interface with a computer can open up all kinds of possibilities in terms of postproduction. If I’m asked to advise on which home production package to go for, it comes down to a couple of things: whether they want to keep it simple and if they want to record live drums. Multitracks are great for putting down live tracks, but if a live drum is involved you will need at least eight channels and that goes for a multitrack or an audio interface. I’ve mentioned the Focusrite and Zoom ranges, and Audient also make excellent interfaces which are really high quality but aren’t as well known as some of the other brands. The Audient range can also be used as monitor controllers, with the volume configuration featuring on the top of the unit. To get demos down, interfaces and multitracks are a fantastic way to play with ideas and also share your sounds. Obviously, working with an engineer has a lot of advantages but this is a very cost effective way of getting a high quality recording. A rule of thumb is that a decent interface, as well as good mics, leads and good monitoring headphones, will set you on course and allow you to mix your sounds to a high level in post, whether that’s yourself or a third party. You can find Dawsons at their new home at 14-16 Williamson Square. dawsons.co.uk figure, sitting, glasses perched on his forehead as though browsing the Sunday papers, while his fingers do the talking. Kofi’s playing is lyrical, the melodies strong and sweet. Nancy With The Laughing Face (Van Heusen/Silvers – yep, that’s Sgt. Bilko to you and me!) sees a floating Selwyn solo underscored by guttural Hammond growls courtesy of John Paul Gard and Kofi again coaxing rich, flowing passages from his alto. It’s becoming apparent that this is a night to sit back and revel in a choice set list delivered with absolute quality. Bernie’s Tune (Bernie Miller) lifts the tempo, Kofi blasting off some fiery riffs and Selwyn’s fingers a blur on the fretboard. Beneath it all, drummer Coach York anchors the rhythm with a delicate intensity before flying off into passages of polyrhythmic propulsion as he duets with Gard. The piece ends with an Eastern flourish before Selwyn opens John Coltrane’s blues Mr P.C., demonstrating his famed technical ability, wringing clean, sharp notes from his customised Hagstrom. It is to the great credit of Selwyn and his band that they play throughout as though there were 800 people in the room. Towards the end of the set Selwyn surveys the audience, leans into the mic and says: “John Coltrane said that if one member of the audience is listening it’s like having another band member on stage, thanks Esmond Selwyn (Glyn Akroyd / @GlynAkroyd) for being part of the band tonight”. That’s not just professional, that’s downright cool. On Van Heusen’s Polkadots And Moonbeams, Selwyn is flying and York delivers a knockout solo before being joined by Gard’s gnarly, swirling Hammond. Kofi bobs and weaves like a middleweight, light on his feet, as he plays out the melodic hook of Thelonious Monk’s Blue Monk quite delightfully. The applause is sustained. It is to be hoped that the organisers of the festival are as resilient as tonight’s performers and that they continue to drop this kind of quality musicianship onto our doorsteps. Come on people, get off your arses! Glyn Akroyd / @GlynAkroyd TOY Prince Vaseline – Indigo Moon Harvest Sun @ The Magnet I arrive at The Magnet just in time to catch the gloriously overdriven tail end of INDIGO MOON’s set, and I’m pleased to see them going down so well with TOY’s crowd. On a bill of three bands, it’s always encouraging to see those playing at the beginning of the
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Page 1 and 2: FREE Issue 74 February 2017 The Ori
Page 3 and 4: WITH THOMO AND SHIMY (THIS IS ENGLA
Page 5 and 6: The UK’s museum of popular music
Page 7 and 8: Bido Lito! February 2017 7 THE GREA
Page 9 and 10: Bido Lito! February 2017 9 learning
Page 11 and 12: facebook.com/o2academyliverpool twi
Page 13 and 14: Bido Lito! February 2017 13 a game
Page 15 and 16: Bido Lito! February 2017 15 the cro
Page 17 and 18: Bido Lito! February 2017 17 The Ger
Page 19: Bido Lito! February 2017 19 Camp an
Page 22 and 23: 22 Bido Lito! February 2017 FEBRUAR
Page 24 and 25: FRI FRI FRI FRI FRI FRI SUN SUN SUN
Page 26 and 27: 26 Bido Lito! February 2017 Reviews
Page 28 and 29: entrance to the Caves of Kronia. Th
Page 36 and 37: the atkinson love folk festival —
Page 46 and 47: DIGGING A LITTLE DEEPER with Radio
Page 48: YOUSEF PRESENTS... SATURDAY 28TH JA

Issue 74 / February 2017

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