Meet the Band

I thought it might be nice for you folks to get to know some of the characters I enjoy playing music with.  These cats bring the thunder and the lightning each time we play, at my shows and in the studio.  I'm honored to have such badasses playing my songs.  First, we have Matty Apples.  Matty knows how to play them drums like a hurricane.  He also just got a cool haircut!  Then we have Spencer, aka Spenbé69@hotmail.com.  Spencer is a stand up fellow and one heck of a good bassist.

 

Rocking some horns for Andy Clockwise's new M.I.A. remix

I laid down some horns for my friend Andy Clockwise's new remix of M.I.A.'s 'Bad Girls.'  Check it out below...Pretty sweet!  Andy is an all around Australian badass and asked me to contribute to this dubtastic remix.  Long time co-conspiritor Mark Goodfeather supplied the trumpet and we tracked them here in my canyon cave.  Check out the super-duper-dubby-bone on the 2nd 'trombone remix' version....trippy! Bad Girls - MIA/ Andy Clockwise Remix by andyclockwise

Watch James get Annihilated in the Studio

This is footage I personally took in the studio the other night of the fiery demise of producer/engineer James Salter.  We just couldn't agree on the correct compression ratio on the snare drum so i called in the air strike.

 

Tracking Guitars

I love recording music, and i especially love recording guitars....so i'm really stoked to be tracking guitars all day today. You should hear my guitar with the set-up we have going here (and you will!).  I'm utilizing the sound that I play with on stage, splitting my guitar signal to a clean amp and then an amp that i just send my effects/ambient sound. I learned this technique from Martin Sexton when I toured with him a few years ago...Martin is a master.  He was playing solo, and it sounded like he had a whole band behind him.  His setup gave him the ability to add dramatic dynamics and texture to his sound.  (obviously his incredible talent and skill did most of the heavy lifting).  I grilled him a bit about his setup and his basic signal path was exactly what I'd been searching for.  I've incorporated my own twists and favorite sounds into it, but learning his way unlocked a new world for me!  

New Song: Pepper You're Home

Here's a song I just wrote and recorded about my new friend Pepper.  Nikole found her running down a busy street in Glendale....pepper was with another little dog, and being the kind soul that she is, Nikole took them both in.  I didn't want anymore dogs as our pup Roscoe is already a handful.  But, little pepper stole my heart and was undeniably ours as soon as we got to know each other.  My old friend Mark took in the other dog, which now sings along with him while he plays trumpet! [caption id="attachment_516" align="alignnone" width="300"] lil' peps[/caption]