recording blog #4: turntable
The turntable is the least predictable part of the BEDM recording process. Sifting through rare and unusual grooved recordings from the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s, I look for an interesting sound that will take the song a fun direction. Drum break compilations, musicals, choirs, rare Latin American folk, strange stringed instruments, and Oregon field recordings: these have been the staples for the “grabs” (samples off of vinyl) of the last 4 BEDM LP’s. I always look for something unique. I don’t want the sample to distract, but neither do I want it to be completely unnoticed. I wish for it’s origin to be unrecognizable but for it’s gritty quality to shine through. These sounds served a purpose in history then were essentially discarded. That’s right…I’m recycling.
For this latest album, I chose to dig for samples right after laying down bass for each song. My main reason for this method was to avoid situations where instruments like guitar, synth, and saxophone have been recorded and I find a grab that completely changes the syncopation (distinct rhythmic accents that match up for “tight” effect) of the part, forcing me to re-record a few things and even re-edit the drums. The songs “Booomboxxx” and “We Are An Army” off of the last BEDM LP come to mind. They both contain koto flourishes that demand center stage. But those stringed leads ‘clashed’ with what was in place. In both instances I went back and reworked the parts around the performances of the grabs, all the while asking myself why I didn’t just move turntable up in the recording process. So that’s what I did this time. Generally, the grab is kind of like icing on a part: you can fudge with it’s positioning and composition a bit but you still need to plan ahead so that the flavors match.
Also, I want the grab to be fun to perform live. I didn’t just get into turntablism because of how neat digging up old sounds can be; turntable has stuck with me because it is simply a fun instrument to perform with. I see it as one of the few rebellious instruments out there too. In my humble opinion, scarcely can one truly rebel with a guitar. It’s all been done. Feedback. Bashings. Solos whilst on fire. That was all perfected over FORTY years ago! But the turntable is still accepted as a very young instrument—when viewed as an instrument at all. I once asked a Portland music teacher if he were interested in having a guest come in and show his kids turntablism to get them more excited about musical forms and his response was: “No! I’m trying to teach them about REAL music.” He responded similarly to one who judges a book’s contents by the type of word processor used to write it. A song is the product of imagination and process, tools are merely vehicles to that end.
So…yeah…this whole blog took an esoteric turn, right? As it turns out, the two parts of “Constellation” (by the way—the song is called “Constellation”) I am focusing on doesn’t have any grabs. It contains a disco beat pulled off of Drum Drops (we already covered that), thick mono synth (ditto), a blasting guitar (next time?), a bunch of vocals, and the snapping sound of a cassette deck opening and shutting in time with several tom tom drums. Please do stick around.