Hemlock Echoes is the fifth Amplissima album.
Amplissima is an audio project featuring the following personal:
E Dahlfree (trumpets and a lot more), Tim Mungenast (guitar and a lot more),
Dobra Jené Ashentree (mandolin and a lot more), and me (Drake Robey in this case).
The album was recorded at Echo Bridge in Newton MA.
It was a very rainy Saturday afternoon album.
All music was improvised with no pre-planning or discussions. Which is usually the case with all Amplissima.
The jams were then cut up, collaged, edited, and in some cases added with various FX.
One jam was deemed too boring to use. Even we have standards.
I am proud of the technical achievement of this album.
There were some issues with the mastering software I use. I contacted the company and they told me to run an update which included some really nice EQ software.
So I was able to do some extra EQ work on the tracks which helped a lot.
Recently I made a choice with my mastering. I had the feeling that I was being far too restrained with what I did. Levelling things off and keeping the meters out of the red had been my main focus with mastering.
During the mastering of the Astro Al album Place Commercial Here my view changed and I was determined to bring everything out and not mind having some meters hit the red.
This album really brings that technique forward.
It will always be a special album to me.
You can hear the rain and the river. They are a part of the texture of this album.
The night after we got back from this recording session tired and dampened though we were the amazing Tim Mungenast encouraged us to record some more. This was a separate recording from Amplissima as E Dahlfree had gone home.
I am glad Tim pushed us because another really pleasing recording grew out of that session. It is called The Voice of Space and will be released later this year.
Right now Hemlock Echoes is out.
Dig the rain and the river.
Yours in sound,
Count Robot (AKA Drake Robey)
