Anchor Baby Recordings

So much news, so little time to inform you of it!

2011-08-04T03:03:00.000-07:00

24 hours in a day is NOT enough, and I have felt that more than ever the last couple of weeks. I've been desperately trying to juggle between rehearsing/recording/gigging in three bands, recording bands at the studio, recording bands NOT at the studio, mixing said recordings, moving into a new flat in Sandgate (and trying to survive when half of our stuff still hasn't been delivered), adopting a cat (he's called Alan), participating in a photo shoot and so on...

Anyway, I've managed to find a few minutes between tidying the flat and leaving for the studio (for more tidying before Zorzilla arrive) in order to update my blog, at the request of Thom from Ruby's Wishes/Yes We Canada!

So let's start there: the new two-track recording from Yes We Canada is being mastered today by my good friend Oz Craggs, I'm looking forward to hearing it. I recorded it live early last week up at the studio - everyone in one room, amps cranked up to the hilt, it sounds dirty as hell thanks to some serious compression combined with the URS 'Saturation' plugin across the mix buss. As if that wasn't enough dirt I've then run the stereo mix through two channels on the desk with the gain cranked up into the red on the way in, and a nice bit of the DDA channel EQ which has tied the mix together nicely. You can expect to hear one of those songs on my radio feature on Academy FM next Monday (105.9), and it'll be on my website MP3 player soon too!

The Ruby's Wishes mixes are nearly finished, just one vocal bit to record and then I can finish them off. I'm really pleased with the way they sound, can't beat a '4 mics on the kit' setup either! Yes, it was just a kick (D112), top snare ('57), floor tom ('57) and a C414 (mono overhead). You can expect to hear those songs in the next couple of weeks.

Today I have the awesome Zorzilla in the studio, laying down a couple of new songs, they should be really fun to record - we're going to go for that whole Dinosaur Jr/Hum HUGE guitar sound, out comes the JCM800 then!

Loads more stuff lined up over the coming weeks, including Tony King, new Blaise Paisel recording, the largely anticipated new Chutes EP, the new Jairus EP and a cool Rockabilly band in next week!

I'm also going to make the effort to do some more 'solo' stuff - I have a little recording setup at home by the beach in Sandgate and am looking for people to collaborate with me, interested?

Cool!

This week I have been mostly listening to.....

2011-07-20T04:34:00.000-07:00

1977 by Ash! I bought this record when it came out in early 1997, I loved it then and I still love it now, and to think that Tim Wheeler and co where only 15-17 when they recorded it shows you how some people are just 'born with it'. Compare them with other bands of the late nineties (popular or not), such as Saves The Day and Braid - also fantastic musicians and songwriters. I don't want to sound old fashioned, but they just DON'T make them like they used to. Or perhaps they do, but there are SO many bands around nowadays who are willing to do whatever it takes to sell records, that the genuinely good/unique ones often get left to fester under the dark scaly underbelly of the underground music scene. Perhaps they're better off there though, with the music scene in its current state.

The reason I love this record is that it sums up everything about being young, in love, enjoying the Summer but without the hideous cheesy element of bands who sing about similar subjects (we can all think of a few). The age of the band at this point certainly has something to do with it, it's REAL. The production is AMAZING. 1977 was recorded at Rockfield Studios in Wales (also where Sepultura recorded Chaos AD, and Oasis recorded Definitely Maybe) - it was produced by a favourite of mine, Owen Morris, who is a pioneer of the 'brick walling' technique where everything is recorded as LOUD as it will possibly go! You can hear that everything is in the red, but it suits the band so well, and again seperates them from bands writing about similar subjects but having the horrible clinical 'clean' and synthetic production! What a record!

Onto to other things anyway, studio related of course:

ANCHOR BABY TV has now put it's first episode up for your viewing pleasure. It's a 100% live recording + HD video service being offered by myself and Stretch (bass player from Yamaharahara). If you're interested in something like this for your own band (location can be anywhere) then please e-mail anchorbabyrecordings@live.co.uk - you can see the first episode here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JEMAUlqLIqU and also our 'pilot' test episode here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-EpDSjpGRDU

The studio has been really busy over the last few weeks, with recordings from The Fix, Magnets, Tener Duende (live video), Blaise Paisel, Project Plenty, Ruby's Wishes and more. Plus, a load of cool bands coming up including Yes We Canada!, Chutes, Penthouse...Nice!

More news, and brand new recordings up online soon!

Rock Kent TV!

2011-06-29T09:33:00.001-07:00

I now have a video feature on Rock Kent.com which you can view here: http://www.rockkent.com/2011/06/dan-lucas-interview-anchor-baby-recordings/ - it was filmed on Sunday June 26th, in the BOILING hot studio. As you can see, I look a bit hot and uncomfortable!

In other news, I did my first radio broadcast on Academy FM (105.9) on Monday, which will be a regular feature at 3pm every Monday! I will be talking about local music/the scene in depth so please listen out for it, I am aiming for it to be something that people find entertaining, as opposed to me just playing music by local bands. Although I will be doing this, it will feature a lot of discussion about music too!

Word has it that the Penthouse stuff is back from mastering (thanks Oz), I am picking up my copy tomorrow and can't wait to hear it!

Dan.

Forget the gear, WHO is recording you?!

2011-06-26T02:48:00.000-07:00

Over the last 6 years I have not only recorded, produced and mixed possibly thousands of individual songs (which is what happens when you do it full time), but I have also had the pleasure/pain of mixing other peoples material, or advising 'established' recording engineers on recording/mixing things properly.

I have heard tracks recorded in a basement or garage on an 8 track tape recorder, Garageband, Audacity or Reaper - using one of two cheap mics, and they sound absolutely fantastic. And in contrast, I have heard recordings done at 'top' studios via nice Ameks, Calrecs and God forbid even an SSL Duality (£280,000 please) that sound like absolute s***!

I have a selection of work-experience students who believe that if they know the basics of recording, then all they need to do is go out and buy some ridiculously expensive mics and they will be rivaling the recordings and mixes of Kevin Shirley, Chris Lord-Alge and Jack Joseph Puig. Well, the answer to that is: OH NO YOU WON'T!

Recording and mixing starts with having a good set of ears. At my level I'm no Andy Wallace, but I have a lot of experience with recording and mixing, I have done my homework, and have enough of a good portfolio and requests from other engineers to warrant airing my views on the subject. So here they are:

YOU NEED A GOOD SET OF EARS! Reset the mix on your DAW so everything is at 0, and everything is in the middle. Can you balance the faders and pan them on a basic rock track so that each instrument sits roughly where it should be? If you balanced it so it's all guitars and no drums then you're screwed from the start, listen to Nimrod by Green Day at a low volume and see how loud the drums are! Same goes with the bass guitar!

If you can see/hear in your head the final product before or whilst you're tracking then you're off to a good start. If you can hear WHERE to go, then you can learn HOW to get there.

A good recording engineer knows how to make the best of what he's got. If you can't get a useable guitar/tom/snare sound out of an SM57 then it's not the mic that's the problem. An MD421, Heil PR30, 414, e604 is a lovely mic to have, but it won't save you if you don't know what you're doing.

A friend of mine gets fantastic recordings out of a MOTU 896HD, some mid-range mics/monitors and whatever rooms he can find to track in.

I guess the bottom line is: Don't be under the illusion that studios with expensive gear will make your recordings and mixes better!

This brings me to the next point:
Whenever a work experience pupil contacts me, I ask them to take a listen to my recordings - and if they like the sound of them I will teach them. Unfortunately, a lot of people see pictures of a nice studio and assume it would be a great place to learn/record/whatever, but again it all depends on the person working there.

Bands: If you book a studio, make sure that you have heard SEVERAL examples of work that has been recorded or mixed by your chosen producer/engineer. There are plenty of people who work in studios because they have the right qualifications, rather than being admitted to these posts backed up by a ton of great mixes and practical experience.

I would always say that learning the basics, and learning them WELL is the most important factor, who cares if you can name every mic that's ever been made?!

Just when you think things were quiet...

2011-06-15T08:51:00.000-07:00

...They pick up again, and that means a massive back-catalogue of stuff to mix. It also doesn't help that I've been ill for 10 days! Some of the females amongst you, if not ALL of you, will call it 'man flu'. I can assure you it's not, I never get ill, and this was bad!

Anyway, I'm back now - back in existence under the dark, slimey underbelly of the local music scene, and I have some more bands to tell you about:

Folkestone-based 4 piece Blaise Paisel came up to the studio last Saturday to lay down a new song - I am in the process of mixing it, and once it's done I will be sending it off to Pink Floyd man Andy Jackson for a lovely mastering job, expect to hear it on my website soon!

Sunday saw Magnets (3 of) and myself descend upon SPACE gallery in Folkestone to record some drums and guitars for another song 'Horses' on the new EP. I'm surprised we got away with it to be honest, the drums were SO loud and the Sunday-shoppers would definitely have heard them from right down Rendezvous Street! You can see a picture at the top of Andy giving his drum tracks the 'all clear'.

On Monday of this week I recorded an amazing band called ATM. They sound a bit like Pele, but with vocals and a little heavier! I will be mixing that record (3 tracks) over the next couple of days and will DEFINITELY be posting one of the tracks up on the website soon!

Friday of this week I will be the subject of a video interview for Rock-Kent.com - this will be a general feature on me as a producer/musician. Cool!

Don't forget, I have a list on my website of other services I offer within music. If you'd like to hire me as a producer but already have an engineer then please get in touch, or if you'd like tuition/my mixing skills etc. Have a read!

Chutes and Ladders!

2011-05-24T03:26:00.000-07:00

I am very pleased to announce that Chutes have (again) managed to secure a 'hottest record of the week' on BBC Kent Introducing for their new single Brighten Up, due to be released via the web on June 1st, for which the event invite is here http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=173491316037548&ref=ts - it's great to see a band you've worked so closely with, who are on your doorstep and are blowing up into something bigger right in front of your eyes, well done Chutes.

The new material from Centuries is now mastered and sounding like Godzilla, smashing its way through a quarry full of corpses!

The Penthouse stuff is very nearly mixed, and once given the 'ok' will be off for mastering and popping up on the Anchor Baby website.

This week will see me doing an interview with the Canterbury Times for their 'Canterbury Tale' section, where I will be talking about my recording business, musical endeavours and bands that I have had in the studio, watch out for that soon.

In other news (non studio related) I have joined the legendary Babies Three (now sounding like a cross between Black Elk and Dinosaur Jr!) from Margate as their drummer - so as soon as we're ready you can bet your bottom dollar that some earth shattering recordings will be appearing online ;)

Off to the printers now to pick up some new posters, designed by Calfyn Ap Bryn and looking bloody marvellous.

Guitar sound of the Centuries ;)!

2011-05-17T06:21:00.000-07:00

Good afternoon, from Googies - again.

The week before last saw new Folkestone metalcore band Centuries in the studio to record two tracks, and what a guitar sound! The good old JCM800 2205 again, through a Marshall 4x12 (with Celestion Greenbacks) and a bit of help from an API compressor - it is earth shatteringly heavy! The songs are being mastered on Thursday and will no doubt be online later that day, check their video out (featuring a rough mix of the song) here:

In fact, in the spirit of videos: Check out Penthouse, a new Dover-based band who were in the studio on Sunday. Absolutely amazing stuff, and the songs are of epic proportions! I am in the middle of sending them over a first mix now. Once it is given the 'ok' and mastered you can be sure that it will be appearing on the Anchor Baby website!

And last but by no means least, Yamaharahara have finally uploaded their video for 'Ribbons' - all filmed during the recording process at Anchor Baby last October, enjoy!

And as if those videos weren't enough, NEXT week I will be filming a 'drum mic placement' tuition video, with the incredible Symon Minter playing the kit! Nice!

Other Services (not THOSE kind!)

2011-05-07T06:23:00.000-07:00

I am now pleased to offer other services via my recording business. These include music production tuition, live recording, musical instrument tuition, mixing and plenty more. Please have a look at the 'other services' tab on www.anchorbabyrecordings.com

One heavy April...

2011-05-02T06:11:00.000-07:00

Well I'm back in Googies again - the coffee is good, the Wi-fi is quick, and there's always people I know in here. If you're local to Folkestone you should check it out!

So, plenty has happened in the life of Anchor Baby the last couple of weeks. I've been in Brighton, recording the drums for the new Phoria EP (more like a mini album).

We had initially planned to book a church hall in order to capture a nice lively drum sound, with a view to recording the dryer-sounding drums in the Phoria household - however, after getting an AMAZING drum sound in Trewin's bedroom (thanks to the pitched roof no doubt!) we decided to track everything there rather than pack all the gear down again and go to the hall! With a make-shift control room downstairs, and a little help from a Beta 52, some Sennheiser e604's and a trusty SM57 amongst other mics, we have managed to capture some very nice drum recordings! Guitars and most other parts are being recorded by Trewin as I type, and then I will be back off to Brighton for some strings/brass recording and mixing! You can see a brief video clip of Trewin recording a guide vocal for Ross to track his drums to here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Xus8nd2jcA

The new single from Chutes is now finished, and has come back from the very skilled hands of Pink Floyd's head engineer, Andy Jackson - who has handled the mastering duties this time. It sounds very rich, and very analog, for a digital recording!

I have finished mixing the new Great Ancestors tracks at home, thanks to the loan of some Alesis M1's from my buddy Tom and am looking forward to those being mastered and made available on my website.

This week sees me starting to track drums for the new Magnets EP, guide guitar and bass tracks were done at Simon's flat last week - and then next week will see the recording of a single of EPIC proportions by new Kent based band Penthouse - you can definitely expect to hear THAT on the site soon!

In other news: I have an amazing new poster being designed by Calfyn Ap Bryn, so if you're local to Kent you will see that EVERYWHERE soon, as well as online of course! ;)

Cool.

- like a monkey with a miniature cymbal...

2011-04-20T04:11:00.000-07:00

The title of this blog is fitting, in the sense that it has been non-stop studio recording/rehearsing/gigging/mixing/pre-production/meetings - over and over and over and over. Today is my first day off and I am enjoying a coffee in Googies whilst updating this, ahhh...

The new Chutes single is now recorded and mixed and is absolutely fantastic! I think this song will make a real impact on people when they hear it. It's catchy, with great vocals, great lyrics, it's a good length for a single and ticks all the boxes, good luck guys and gal!

Thursday this week sees the laying down of some guide guitars/bass at Simon's flat for the new Magnets EP - we're recording the majority of it in an awesome Church/Theatre over the next month, better get the old Ipod touch out for some HD filming of that...

Thursday and Friday NEXT week will see me heading down to Brighton for the initial drum recordings for the new Phoria EP, again in some church, they seem to be the way to go!

The new Great Ancestors songs have now been mixed, and they're off to be mastered in the next couple of weeks by Andy Jackson, of Pink Floyd fame - these new songs are awesome, and really energetic. I guess that's what you get when you let a band record at gig volume in the same room together!

I am still offering one to one Music Production/Mixing/Recording tuition. You can either come to me at the studio, or I can come to you.

I will teach everyone from beginners to people who are advanced in the field - You may want to just learn the basics of recording, or you may want to brush up on polishing up your mixes, learn about advanced EQ/Compression techniques, mic positioning on a drum kit etc. If you have a home/project studio I can come along and show you how to make the most out of your mics/gear.

I am very experienced within this field, and currently very active within it - my recordings have been played on BBC Radio One, KMFM, and are played weekly on BBC Kent Introducing.

I charge £15 per hour, and you can hear some of my work/read about my musical background at www.anchorbabyrecordings.com - it'd be wise to check this out as you don't want to be learning from someone who's recordings you don't like the sound of!

Contact details are on the website.

More news as and when it happens!

Spilling not only my coffee, but my latest news too...

2011-04-05T05:07:00.000-07:00

My Mother had a nickname for me when I was a kid, I won't repeat it - but it was based on me spilling everything I drank/ate. At 28 I haven't changed, and have managed to spill half of my coffee on my laptop before I've even taken a sip. So if this update ends short, it means the coffee has seeped through to the circuit board and my charred and skeletal corpse, hair sticking up even further than usual, is sitting in the corner of Googies ;)

I've had a really busy few weeks, ridiculous in fact, hence the lack of updates. Burning the candle at both ends doesn't quite cut it!

So what's been going on? I've been working on this Gospel album, with an extremely talented MD by the name of Ira Jackson. Unfortunately though we had a bit of a nightmare with the musicians on this project, and it took twice as long as it should have. But it's done now, and has been mastered by Andy Jackson, Pink Floyd's head engineer.

10 days ago I was fortunate enough to spend the day in Brighton with Phoria, doing some live demo's as pre-production for their forthcoming mini-album. We set up in their house and tracked everything live with the help of a Tascam US1800 (16 channel USB audio interface which sounds just great) and my laptop. Then we spent the rest of the evening planning out where to do the proper recording, and looks like we've narrowed it down to a lovely church hall and a cool wooden-floored apartment with high ceilings! The plan is to start work on that next week, which is something that I can't wait for. The new songs are great, very dark and have an even more textural vibe going on than last years EP 'Yourself Still'.

Also taking place next week will be the finalising of dates for the Magnets EP, another record that is going to change people's lives this Summer ;)

On Sunday 10th we will be finishing off the new Great Ancestors recording (seriously dirty!) and on Monday 18th it's the recording of the new Chutes single.

On top of all of the above Jairus have some recordings for the near future once the new song is finished, and for all of you in Brighton please be sure to check us out at the Green Door Store on Friday 8th April with the fantastic Run, Walk! We are also please to be performing at the Westcoast Bar on April 12th with Piano's Become The Teeth and Monarch, be there!

So many plans, so little time!

2011-03-02T06:51:00.000-08:00

Well I have finally managed to update my website with some more recent recordings and reviews! Check out new songs from The Ambience, Chutes, Rubys Wishes and Elephants on www.anchorbabyrecordings.com

The coming months are looking to be very busy, with brand new EP's from amazing Brighton band PHORIA and Folkestone lads MAGNETS, a gospel album coming in from highly skilled MD IRA JACKSON, the start of a mini album from folk/jazz/whatever artist BERNARD EVELEIGH, a two-tracker from GREAT ANCESTORS and loads more to be announced!

I'm getting into a lot more location recording recently, and am always on the lookout for cool spaces to use. So if you have a very dead sounding room, or a very lively sounding room, or access to a church or cool sounding space please drop me an e-mail at anchorbabyrecordings@live.co.uk

I am currently looking for a CHURCH HALL to use for recording some drum parts and ambient guitar/vocal parts on the new PHORIA and MAGNETS records, please get in touch if you know of any!

I have recently managed to obtain a bundle of URS plugins, which I can highly recommend, they sound absolutely AMAZING and since their discovery I have barely touched my Waves bundle (aside from the Waves SSL buss compressor, which I swear by across the mix). So any future recordings will feature the sound of URS, see how different they are to my current mixes!

So recent activity around Anchor Baby includes a cool band coming in by the name of The Taints, pictured at the top of the page, outside the studio - Like the Libertines with a kind of Sheffield sound too! And this coming Sunday an acoustic live session from Ruby's Wishes on KMFM, to be broadcast at 1:20pm and also a short interview with myself and the band! Make sure you tune in!

On top of all of the above, I have now been asked to join Tener Duende, the Folkestone based Gypsy Jazz/Flamenco trio as their bass player, to replace the amazingly skilled Chester Boyd who is off to Uni in September. So lots of practising to do!

The other short stories...

2011-02-04T04:54:00.000-08:00

Back to recording news then:

Kuulama were in last weekend recording their first demo, and it's sounding great! The Selmer amp (pictured with beloved ribbon mic) really worked out well for that WHO-style "CLAAANNNGG!!!"...See a short video of the guys in the studio below:

I am extremely happy to announce that shortly the guys from Phoria (and myself of course) will begin work on the follow-up to their very popular EP 'Yourself Still' with a new six-tracker! THe recording will start over the next couple of months and won't be done in the studio this time, but in various locations around Kent and Brighton, including houses, apartments overlooking the sea and a spooky old manor house!

Towards the end of the month I will have the AMAZING Great Ancestors in to record two brand new songs, I can't wait to capture the sheer energy of that band. Then it's the recording of the Jairus/Monarch split (I'll be doing both bands tracks for the sheer fun of it).

6th of March sees the beautiful Ruby's Wishes performing an acoustic set live on KMFM, and an interview with the band and me about the recordings and plans for this year.

The Ambience album 'Colour in Silence' is FINALLY finished!

I am also offering music recording and production lessons, prices from £15 per hour - I will teach beginners or people with experience, just let me know what you'd like to learn and drop me an e-mail at anchorbabyrecordings@live.co.uk

Exciting times!

A lesson in over EQ'ing, and other short stories...

2011-02-04T04:16:00.000-08:00

Over the last couple of years I have tried to steer away from over EQing, unless I am mixing something recorded by someone who DOESN'T apply the 'get it right at source' approach - there are plenty of them out there!

Now it's a known fact amongst my friends and clients that I'm not too much a fan of 'the music technology course', this is due to a number of reasons and based on a string of work experience pupils who have been studying for two years, THINK they know it all and in actual fact have to be re-programmed by me and start again! Now, if you've done one of these courses you'll be taught how to 'fix' things with EQ. For example: "Boost 40hz on the kick for a bit of sub, cut at 400hz to reduce that boxy sound, boost at 4.5khz for a bit of click and then further at 10khz for a bit of snap". Experience has taught me that you can very rarely rely on ONE mic to achieve your sub, weight, click and snap and also brings me onto the main focus of this blog entry: PHASE issues.

EQ tends to introduce distortion and phase shift. So when you EQ something, certain ranges of frequencies become out of time with the rest of the frequency content. Basically certain frequencies will lag behind the others. You can often notice things like this on snare drums - the close mic on the snare could be perfectly in-phase with the overheads and you have a nice weighty snare sound. As soon as you start EQing radically you are in danger of the phase inverting - the snare may sound fine on its own but as soon as you dial in the overheads you're left with a very thin sounding snare! If you have to EQ things, it's often best to keep the Q's narrow and boost a few frequencies a tiny bit as opposed to something like 3k on a steep shelf by 12db to brighten a snare!

So, that's lesson 1. Lesson 2 goes back to the point I was making earlier about mics. Let's suppose you've started by getting a kick drum to sound as good as you possibly can in the room (VERY important, if you haven't done that then don't bother reading on!).

You are better off using a mic to capture the weight and depth your kick drum (I usually use a Heil PR48 for the kind of music I record) and then another mic to capture the snap (an AKG C1000 works out well for this if you want a bit of life too, or a Shure Beta 91 boundary mic - VERY snappy!). Blend the two signals to taste, a bit of SUBTLE EQ on the way in if necessary and you should have a good solid kick drum recording, ready for very little processing in the mix. You've recorded your weight and your click and snap already, so no need to go screwing things up with EQ, and your recording as is natural sounding as can possibly be. But with multiple close mics be aware of PHASE issues again, get it right!

In summary, the lesson is always the same: Do whatever you can in the room before you even look at a mic, then pick the RIGHT mic, or the right combination of mics to capture it! Keep things subtle, and don't give me any "But I don't have a massive mic collection" nonsense - the answer to that is "Learn to use what you DO have to achieve the results above!"...You'll be a better engineer for it.

Radio, Radio, Radio!

2011-01-26T10:33:00.000-08:00

Another two of my recordings, by two different bands (Chutes and Delta Sleep) were played on BBC Kent Introducing last Sunday. In fact, the whole Delta Sleep EP has been played weekly (one track at a time) since November. That brings the total to over 10 bands so far in the last 9 months on Kent Introducing alone. I am very proud that the bands passing through the studio doors are making an impact and also proving that Anchor Baby Recordings works with good quality acts!

More Radio play this coming Sunday where you will be able to hear 'Earthquakes' by Ruby's Wishes being played by Adam Dowling on KMFM, which will be followed by an acoustic 'live session' at KMFM on Sun 6th March, as well as an interview with the band and myself - be sure to tune in!

On other news, the Mecurials recording is now mixed and sounds great. Fantastic lyrics and performances from Bernie and Paul!

The Ambience album is FINALLY being mastered on Friday 28th by Oz Craggs, and has been 10 months in the making! In order to celebrate I will be putting one of the tracks up (along with Ruby's Wishes, Elephants and Chutes) next week on the website MP3 player!

Even more news: I will shortly begin work on the new Magnets EP, which is being planned at the moment. This will mostly be recorded at various different locations around Kent, including a spooky old manor house that has a perfect room for a really lively drum sound! There will no doubt be a few teaser videos from these sessions one they get under way, so look out for them!

Dan.

Anchor Baby TV!

2011-01-16T04:54:00.000-08:00

Last night, due to a no-show at the studio (no more bookings without deposits!) I decided to make some videos in order to show you what's going on around the studio, what kind of equipment we have there etc. The first is a video about how I usually mic a guitar amp, for some weird reason the audio and the video are slightly out of snyc, but you get the idea! The second video shows you some of the amp collection, enjoy!

I know, I know...

2011-01-09T09:21:00.001-08:00

...I said I was going to be updating this thing more regularly, and I haven't - but I will now! From this moment on I am a new person! Actually, I did join a gym today, and am aching all over as a result, but that's nothing to do with music, or the studio - so let's hold that thought. Perhaps I'll put some photos up when I'm a muscle-bound warrior, carrying a dead Buffalo over my shoulder and eating an Eagle in a bap.

The ELEPHANTS farewell EP (I Won't Forget You, You Won't Forget Me) is now finished and will be available soon via Alcopop Records! It definitely captures the bands live energy. It's catchy, and downright dirty sounding! It also features a cameo appearance by me, playing piano and other percussive instruments.

In December new Folkestone-based band indie band CHUTES (feauturing ex members of ELEPHANTS and ADANO LIES AWAKE) entered the studio to record their new 3-track EP. It's sounding great in its early mix stages, I'm really happy with the weight in the low-end of the mix, God bless working with a sub.

November saw another amazing new Kent band entering the studio. They are all-female, amazing musicians and called RUBY'S WISHES. One of their songs will be up on my website soon, but if you can't wait for that please check out their bandcamp page at www.rubyswishes.bandcamp.com - they sound like a cross between Smashing Pumpkins, X-Ray Spex and Elastica and are seriously incredible! I have been working very closely with this band on the production side of things, excpect to be hearing much more from them very soon.

The Christmas-themed single from local punk band FUCK THAT! (featuring me on drums) is now available to download for free from www.fuckthat.bandcamp.com - check it out if dirty, energetic, and lyrical controversy is what floats your boat! In fact, here's a video of us at Tinseldayer II, on December 18th:

JAIRUS have been working on the recording of Pink Floyd's classic 'Sheep' during rehearsal time in October and November, I have finally managed to get it mixed thanks to the laptop, and it has now been mastered by Pink Floyd's head engineer Andy Jackson at Tube Mastering. You can download the song for free from www.jairus.bandcamp.com So that just about brings us up to date. I have lots planned for 2011 already and will definitely be updating this page a few times a week, so get subscribing if you're interested in what's going on! I will also be chatting about general recording/mixing techniques etc, so if you're into that side - get subscribing!

Dan.

Thankyou for the old sounds!

2010-11-12T10:59:00.000-08:00

It is with great sadness that I announce this:

Elephants, one of the few local bands who have made an impact on the national music scene have decided to call it a day. They have done very well these last two years with slots at the Radio 1 Big Weekend, two BBC Maida Vale sessions and numerous tours and showcases.

A 'Farewell' EP is currently being mixed by me, having also been recorded and produced by me at Anchor Baby. The aim is to get this ready for the bands final show at Tinseldayer II on December 18th - THE best local music event this year!

In other news, I have had more great bands in the studio over the last month or so in the form of Blue Train, Surgery Without Research and the VERY WELL REHEARSED function band Counterfeit Notes! I have also had the pleasure of recording a pianist who played for the Queen for 11 years!

November and December are looking exciting, with album demo's from Cats and Cats and Cats, a new EP from Bellingo, the Elephants farewell EP and the brand spanking new single from local punk supergroup ;) FUCK THAT!

I am also selling a guitar amp head (pictured!). It's a Selmer Treble n' Bass SV series 50watt valve head - from 1973. It has the original valves in it, and has recently be re-finished in silver tolex, so it looks amazing!

These amps are fast becoming collectors items and are being sold on E-Bay for anywhere up to £500. I am asking £400 for this one as it's immaculate. If anybody is interested please e-mail me via the website www.anchorbabyrecordings.com

2010 so far...

2010-10-24T03:57:00.000-07:00

Hi all,

For those of you who have seen the website, you will notice that it's had a complete overhaul - new music, new reviews, new photos and a serious re-wording! Please have a look around (www.anchorbabyrecordings.com) and listen to the MP3s which I have tried to keep varied. There's some ambient/experimental stuff (Phoria), some acoustic folk/indie from Keith James and Klaus, some hardcore/punk/indie from Jairus, Yamaharahara and Kid Pang, pop-punk from Ocean Skylight and rock/nu wave from CWB!

2010 has been a really busy year for me, getting off to a great start with the new Tortilla Army album 'One For The Living' - and I am glad that my recording/production service is finally reaching a point where I don't have to pay to advertise!

I have recently had the likes of Elephants (www.myspace.com/fullyelephants) in the studio to record and mix their new creations since the line-up change, it's sounding a lot more energetic than their older material and will potentially be mastered by Nick Zampiello at New Alliance East, who previously mastered the Jairus EP 'Build My Gallows High'last year!

Other recent clients include:

YAMAHARAHARA (www.myspace.com/yamaharahara) - an amazing new band from Folkestone, similar in style to Meet Me In St Louis with female vocals.

CWB (www.myspace.com/bandcwb) - Female fronted alt/rock from Canterbury, AMAZING songs.

KLAUS (www.myspace.com/klaussaysbytherecord) - Finalist in the Orange Unsigned Act 2009 on Channel 4. Beautiful acoustic indie!

I have also had the pleasure of recording and mixing Surgery Without Research, Fuck That!, the new Jairus version of the Pink Floyd song 'Sheep', Ocean Skylight, The Dead Ends, Cats & Cats & Cats, Blue Train, The Ambience (album finished soon!) and many more.

2010 will continue to be a busy and interesting year, with future recordings booked including Counterfeit Notes, Jairus and more!

More news very very soon!

- Dan Lucas

August news!

2010-08-14T08:23:00.000-07:00

The Phoria EP is finally finished after 3 months of serious hard work! It sounds beautiful, epic and like the band do live - mission accomplished! Thanks to Oz Craggs at Hidden Track Studios for a superb mastering job too...very shortly I will have some of the tracks up on my website for your listening pleasure.

In the coming weeks there will be exciting new sessions starting for Ocean Skylight and Klaus, plus the final mixing sessions for the new Ambience record, and the Cats & Cats & Cats three tracker!

I have recently had some new photos taken of the studio, and the website will be getting an overhaul very shortly with new MP3's, new pictures and a whole load of new info and services on offer.

If you are interested in recording with me, get booking soon!

July 2010...

2010-07-29T05:55:00.000-07:00

Hi all,

I thought I would be updating this more frequently than I have. The reason for the lack of updates is actually because 1) I moved into a new flat (in the very plush Earls Avenue in Folkestone I might add!) and 2) I have been ridiculously busy with recordings and mixes to catch up on. So, what's been happening in the world of the Anchor Baby?

CATS and CATS and CATS:
These guys have been in to track some demo versions of their new album material. It's much more energetic than their previous stuff, and I am pleased to be working with them, more info on this as it's finished!

PHORIA:
This AMAZING bands' new EP is now finally mixed and ready to be sent off for mastering. Imagine it sounding a bit like Elbow meets Coldplay meets Sunny Day Real Estate. It's dark, beautiful and very very awesome!

THE AMBIENCE:
Nearly there with this album. It's 11 songs of reverb-smothered experimental indie, circa Manchester in the late 80s/early 90s - some of my favourite things about this record are all of the little interludes between songs. They are things that have just kind of happened in the studio. For example, there was one day where Joe (singer) was passing around his I-Pod with the new Brian Eno synth app on it. We had it plugged into the desk, and I was recording it for some reason. Just as everyone was having a go at making ambient synth noises, the trumpet player was doing his warm ups in the live room. I had a stereo pair of room mics set up (trusty old Rode NT1s!) so I hit record and what we've ended up with is a really unique sounding kind of avant-garde bit of music! Smother it in reverb and hey presto, two songs linked together!

KLAUS:
I was lucky enough to witness Klaus performing his amazing acoustic set at a gig in Folkestone a couple of months ago. After a brief chat it turned out he's a fan of Jairus and we arranged a day to record back in June. He laid down two songs, "Note to Self" and "Don't Kiss Back" in as many hours - and I am pleased to say that I have now mixed them and will be making one of them available on my website very soon!

STATIONS IN THE VALLEY:
New band from the ex-Secondsmile boys. This record is in the final stages of mixing, only a few tweaks to go and then it's off to mastering! There's some really great parts on this record, and I managed to do some guest piano playing too! looking forward to sitting back in a few weeks and chilling out to the finished article!

CHARLENE HUSKINSON:
Two more days in the studio of mixing should have this 10 song album of female-fronted brutality under wraps. Really pleased with the guitar and drum sound on this record, the trusty Hughes and Kettner Tri-amp really shone through this time around.

That is all for now, more updates, more frequently from now on!

- Dan.

Phoria fun...

2010-06-21T06:16:00.000-07:00

Below you will see an amusing video, featuring Tim Douglas of Phoria - having an enjoyable time with my classic 'Les Paul through a Marshall JCM800' setup.

From the dark and slimey underbelly of the underground-band recording scene!

2010-06-20T15:17:00.001-07:00

This is the very first of many posts to come, and will probably be one of the longer ones due to a lack of previous online insights as to what exactly goes on out there in Monks Horton, a small village just outside of Folkestone - for those of you who don't know.

I will start by taking you back to December 2009, a wonderous month for myself and Marcus (co studio-leasing guy) where we were lucky enough to find a beautiful DDA DMR12 88 input analogue desk (designed by Dave Dearden who now designs Audient consoles) which currently has pride of place as the central hub of our control room. In order to make the installation an extra special occasion we refurbed the control room, treating it to a new carpet, new paint and some nice furnishings too - so anyone who remembers the old thread-bare carpet of the Astra/Absolute/Barewires/Anchor Baby/Quantum Leap (insert whatever other studio name here) days can be safe in the knowledge that it has been laid to rest.

The desk itself was in perfect working order, having just been serviced (although oddly enough none of the VU meter bulbs were working - perhaps a dodgy fuse) and it sounded absolutely fantastic - especially after our ears had adjusted to the somewhat brittle/non-responsive EQ of its predecessor - a Soundtracs Virtua digital console, and before THAT a Soundtracs Inline analogue board (which to its credit actually worked out pretty well when the Kid Pang and Keith James records were tracked through and mixed on it). I only wish we'd had the beloved DDA when Jairus recorded our EP last September, which was tracked through the Virtua and mixed in the box.

Skip past Christmas/New Year and into January:
During a VERY snowy weekend I had the Tortilla Army lads in to record their new album (out now and called 'One For The Living') - a really really well rehearsed band and top bunch of guys. Due to severe weather in Monks Horton (the entire village got snowed in) we ended up spending the night in the studio, and carried on recording throughout the night until 10am the following day. Due to time limits I had to continue mixing through the night (not advisable if you want a good sounding mix) whilst the lads slept on the control room floor around me - I can remember watching the clock ticking past: 1am, 3am, 5am, 7am. In fact, I was petrified of listening to the mix a few days later due to the circumstances under which it was mixed, but to my pleasant surprise there were only a few tweaks to be made. A few weeks later the mastered copy (Thanks Oz) was in my car stereo and sounding HUGE! Great album release show too...

So, since January I have had some incredible bands through the studio doors, including Delta Sleep (new EP out soon), Stations In The Valley (new band from the Secondsmile lads), The Blues Shift, Klaus, Facades and one of the best bands I've ever heard: Phoria - a new band from Brighton.

Phoria really are something else - I discovered them at the Dirty South in Lewisham when I went to see Tener Duende (awesome gypsy-jazz trio) back in March. I knew as soon as I saw them that I had to record them, so a month or so and a few Myspace messages later they were walking towards the studio doors to record their new EP for a week, armed with a suitcase full of food and some wooden bear that they take everywhere with them. A few weeks (and some stray cats, marmite sets, location recording in a ballroom and country house, out of tune pianos) later and we're putting the finishing touches on the mixes, then it's off for mastering. This record will be something TRULY amazing by the time it's finished. Expect to see plenty more of this band very soon!

In other exciting news, the Jairus EP 'Build My Gallows High' has had some rave reviews from Rockmidgets.com, Rocksound magazine and Terrorizer magazine. Comments so far have mentioned how huge and beefy the production sounds, thanks guys! We are also pleased to announce that we will be playing alongside Sepultura, Glassjaw and a whole host of other amazing bands at the Hevy festival in August.

Well, that's about it for the first blog. The studio is going from strength to strength, and has now been treated to a lovely new set of windows all round. The sun is out, the garden is mown and there are plenty of exciting bookings lined up for the Summer.

I will make an effort to update this blog daily, so if you're interested in what's going on - or may be considering recording with me then please keep checking the blog out.

- Dan Lucas.