Producer and composer Keith Obadike came into Mavericks to record a very intersting project in early September. Four musicians (cello, drums & laptop, trumpet, and floortom feeding effects through contact mic) read from a score of visual symbols that looked, to my eye, someting like electronics schematics. The scores were actually combinations of Nigerian / Cameroonian symbols, various historical western musical notations and some contemporary architectural symbols. Each player was to interpret the score as they saw fit, but with a generally agreed-upon approach. There were about 30 pages (I’m guessing here), and each player tried to stay on each on for about 2 minutes. The result was a widely dynamic improvisational piece. With two takes, one was 66 minutes, and the next ,whcih Keilt “conducted” was 33 minutes. From a recording perspective, I went for transparency, using mostly condenser mics. I also put up three room mics, as Keith may be doing a 5.1 mix of the pieces for possibly synchronization to an animated film.

A nice push for the recently released album Happier Than You, which I engineered, co-produced and mixed for Jesus H. Christ. I can see why NPR would cover this record, as the tunes are intelligent, witty, literate isights into the travails and mini-dramas of modern life and love. Check out the podcast here.