Ask a Local: Erik Wofford, Cacophony Recorders
We were happy to talk to Erik Wofford, primary producer at Cacophony Recorders, the master behind such albums as the Black Angels' latest, some White Denim, Bill Callahan, the Calm Blue Sea and (many) others. Not surprisingly, he stayed very busy in 2008, and opted to share with us the albums he worked on this year that were most exciting / gratifying for him. We very much look forward to hearing what comes out of Cacophony in 2009, but until then, here's what he's most proud of from '08:
'Til We're Blue Or Destroy This Train: For those that are lucky enough to know Will Rhodes over at Club De Ville, you probably already know how special this record is. It is quite an intoxicating combination of his songwriting and the musicianship of his closest friends. This record really reminded me how fun making a great record is. Recorded over the course of three (!!!) years, most of the songs started out as studio experiments, entirely made up in one day. The current band was formed around these songs, and has been slowly becoming one of the best live acts around. Early 2009 will see the release of this debut we've put so much work into.
The Black Angels Directions To See A Ghost: The follow up to Passover was an almost paranormal experience in of itself to make. We started the record the week that Passover came out, but did not finish until almost two years afterwards. Not so much because of dawdling, but more that they spend most of their time on tour. They know exactly what they want ...1968. The Black Angels have a way of transporting you to a different time and place. The day that Directions was released, we were all sitting on the huge lawn outside The Louvre in Paris, ready to embark on their first headlining European tour. I had never been on tour before, and was asked to come along to run sound for them. It was quite an experience that I'll never forget.
Brother & Sisters Fortunately: Brothers & Sisters are yet another transplant from another time and place, only a little sunnier and happier. Although if you really listen to the lyrics of some Bro's & Sis' songs, you'll realize that there is a bit of dark side to the lighthearted mood and arrangements. I came to work on this record because I did Will & Lily Courtney's mother's most recent solo record, which featured pretty much the whole family. Cynthia Clawson is a Grammy winning gospel artist and wanted to do things a little different than she had in the past, so she hired her son to produce, and me to engineer and mix. Through that experience, we became pretty close and Will felt like he could trust me to his most ambitious project yet. I felt like I was a member of the Austin version of The Carter Family. The record was done in true vintage fashion on analog tape all the way to the mastering, as are most of my records, but we really tried to stray away from modernizing anything.
The Calm Blue Sea The Calm Blue Sea The Calm Blue Sea have filled the void in dynamic beautiful instrumental rock music that Explosions In The Sky left when they decided to lay low. These guys have everything they need to catapult themselves to triumph. Everyone in the band is a top notch musician and bring a unique spin to the band. Jazz trained drummer, grim fairy-tale folk bass player, complexly melodic keyboards, vibrant animated lead guitar, and cool calm rhythm guitar. They crafted these tunes in their practice space for well over a year before they decided to even play a show. The record was done completely live, and fairly well documents what it's like to experience them. Languid valleys of tranquility followed by punishing onslaughts of deafening noise are par for the course, and they're just getting started. These guys have a very bright future.
Candi & The Strangers Forthcoming LP, tba: I was approached to do a record late last year that consisted of "space station cafe pop music". I guess just try to imagine what would be playing in the cafe of the international space station when it is the destination of all the future space age hipsters, and you're close. Ironically, they are friends with Richard Garriott, Austin video game pioneer who paid $30 million to go to space with the Russians in October. We always joked about trying to get him to play one of the songs from the space station, but it never ended up happening. John Constant, the songwriter for the group and formerly of God Drives A Galaxy, is currently working on the score for the documentary being made about Garriott's journey. Space music, indeed. Look for their debut record sometime in early 2009.
The Great Nostalgic Forthcoming LP, tba: Abram Shook, the mad genius behind The Great Nostalgic used to play bass/keys/sax/percussion/etc. for The Laughing. He has taken that love for all things extravagant and applied to it his new band, but put a pop sheen on it. At the heart is a little bit of Bowie and maybe some Talking Heads with orchestrated pop on the edges. The record was started over a year and a half ago and has been finely crafted by at least six different engineers. I mixed most of the songs along with a couple by Andy Sharp and Danny Reisch, culminating in mastering by myself. In the midst of working on the record, Abram and I went down to Baja, Mexico for a week long surfing/taco trip. That was The Great Escape, Great Nostalgic style. This debut record will be out in early 2009.
Murdocks Forthcoming LP, tba: I don't usually do three piece power pop records, but I jumped at the chance to do this record because of the depth and character that Murdocks bring to this genre. Simple catchy songs, great musicianship, and a yell that would shred even the strongest throat. Each person in the band brings a great defining element to the destruction that Murdocks ensues. We might have spent as much time flying remote control helicopters in the thirty foot tall live room as we did tuning guitars. Needless to say, the guitars sound awesome. We got in a little trouble on this record by writing more parts than they can pull off live. That seems to happen a lot these days. Their record will come out in mid 2009.
The Pons In The Belly Of The Giant: The Pons recently changed their name from Lalaland, so this pretty much counts as their debut record. The breadth of this record is astounding. From dark moody numbers to blazing rock & roll to light hearted pop, The Pons never lose their emotional connection with the listener. Although not a concept album, the songs flow together with a cohesion that doesn't happen by accident. Not all is serious about The Pons, though. They usually come to the studio armed with practical jokes to unleash upon the unsuspecting, such as chattering teeth under your coat or a giant radio controlled spider under the equipment racks. Always fun to be had in the studio.
What Made Milwaukee Famous What Doesn't Kill Us: Yet another sophomore album bestowed upon Cacophony Recorders. This time around they wanted to expand their palette to suit the finely tuned songcraft of all in the band. Compacted into a month and a half, this record consumed all who touched it. Chris Michaels of Sparklehorse and Living Better Electrically was tapped as producer, and I manned the controls as engineer and mixer. We tried to do things all over the map on this one. Sadly, the song we spent the most time on didn't make it to the final cut of the record. It was a great whirlwind of a song called Fan Club, complete with dive-bombing crescendos, dubbed out drums, grand piano percussion, vocals sung through a fan and I think even a megaphone. It really didn't fit on such an already diverse record, so hopefully it will see the light of day. The record was a great experience.
Workers Forthcoming LP, tba: Workers is yet another band that decided to change their name this year. Formerly known as Your Black Star, this three piece is from Louisville, Kentucky. The songs teeter totter between U2/MBV ethereal to straight up rock and roll. These guys know how to drink, and how to rock. We usually have a constant rotation of bourbon, lone star, and fine red wines courtesy of the wine expert lead singer. After the dust settles, I'm always surprised by how huge of a sound three people can make. On the last night of the record, we had a little fireworks show in the street, which was reported as gunfire by neighbors. As I was driving off, I see three cop cars speeding back towards the studio. The longhaired drummer was handcuffed as the other two were separately interrogated. After finding out about them being just regular good ole boys from Kentucky, they sent them on their merry way. The result of this mayhem will be released in early 2009.
Honorable Mentions:
The Octopus Project Wet Gold: Great new material, some of which actually expand on their newly found vocal talents. Soon to be released.
Low Line Caller Hi Def Soft Core: One of my favorite local groups. This started out as an instrumental band and evolved into a force to be reckoned with.
The Lemurs Million Little Bits: These guys are another force to be reckoned with. Most bands wish they had as much rock as these guys have in their little pinky.
The Laughing Jungle: The third "L" in the Austin triumvirate (low line caller, lemurs, laughing). Their second EP expands upon their love of all things tribal and otherworldly.
Okkervil River Stage Names Bonus Disc: One week after Okkervil River finished their Stage Names record, Will Sheff and I made a supremely stripped down version of the record. I thought it was amazing that after going through as arduous of a process that record was, he could have the clarity to see those songs from another perspective.
White Denim Exposion: White Denim came by for about a week to do some tracking with me and Martin Crane from Brazos. Like working with The Octopus Project and The Lemurs, White Denim do a lot of recording themselves. I enjoy a good collaborative process. It's always a good learning experience for me.
