Plymale
Scream
The Website of Audio Engineer John Plymale
CURRENT NEWS
Hello everyone !
2010 is off to a good start so far......
Raleigh, NC band Hank Sinatra just left Overdub Lane after an incredibly productive weekend of recording. They managed to get eleven rhythm tracks down in 2 days and now have a totally rockin' record off to a great start!
Chapel Hill, NC's Lizzy Ross has been working on her debut album with me over the last several weeks, and we are now entering the mixing phase of the project. This record is gonna really turn some heads, I think. Keep your eyes out for this one!
Columbia, SC's Crowfield stopped by a few weeks ago to spend some time with me on their way back home from a record label showcase in NYC. We recorded one of their hottest and newest songs. Former Jump Little Children bassist, Jonathon Gray, is now in this group. Keep your fingers crossed. There may be some big things in the works for these guys!
Also, Melissa Reaves just spent a day with me at Overdub Lane recording two hot new songs. She's one of the most powerful singers I have worked with recently. The all-star band on this session featured Dave Fox on piano, Scott Sawyer on guitar, and drummer Joey Barnes from the platinum selling band, Daughtry.
Superchunk has been back in Overdub Lane Studio with Scott Solter recording a new studio album on the studio's amazing 2" Analog Studer Tape machine. We're using Pro Tools as well, and getting a "best of both worlds" hybrid approach that's allowing us to easily move the project back and forth between several different facilites for over-dubbing and mixing.
Best selling authorFrances Mayes recently spent 4 days with me recording the audio-book version of her recently released Random House best-seller Every Day In Tuscany. "Mayes's affectionate and warm memoir vividly celebrates the lush abundance and charm of daily life in the Italian countryside." - Publishers Weekly
Renowned Jazz Bass extraordinaire John Brown and I are working on mixing his new John Brown Jazz Orchestra project featuring his 20+ member band, and true world class talent!
The Drowning Lovers project, which we recorded in an unconventional remote location in Chatham County, (the old Chatham Mill - a perfect environment to capture the macabre and mysterious nature of their unique sound), continues now into the overdubbing and mixing phases of the project. We recently added some stellar additional performances from Ray Codrington (trumpet), Mark Wells (organ), and Robert Griffin (piano) at Overdub Lane, in Durham, NC. Mixing is now underway...
Carlos Caro from Venezuela was also in for a unique session making considerable use of the current state of technology. His producer was involved via live video chat from Caracas, and oversaw the project in real-time, as we recorded background vocals.
And, Scott Friberg's band Boot finished recording thier new album in their home project studio and brought it to me at Overdub Lane to mix for them. It came out fabulous, and is full of some incredibly challenging musical performances!
Now if you're smart, you'll stop what you're doing and go get a copy of the new album by Austin TX based White Widow. It's called Black Heart and it's catchier than the H1N1 virus. I mixed it in Durham, NC at Overdub Lane late last year. Check out their video on my page.
And finally, my new band Bustello is putting the finishing touches on our new 8-song album due out shortly. This band features Ben Clarke (Metal Flake Mother), as well as Jody Maxwell ( Sex Police/Sea Cow/Gumption).
BIOGRAPHY
John Plymale, a North Carolina based Recording Engineer, Producer, and Mixer, fell in love with the way analog tape smelled as it flew across the heads of an old 3M two-inch tape deck when he was about 17 years old and has not tasted food quite the same since. He was a founding member of Chapel Hill's "The Pressure Boys" in the early 1980's as well as the band "Sex Police" who performed in the late 80's and early 90's.Somehow he has managed to convince scores of artists over the years that he knows what he's doing, but we all know that he really just likes hanging out with creative people and doodling around with nifty old instruments and recording gear. Now that he has a magic wand (pro tools) he merely waves it in the direction of his subjects and all their recording dreams are fulfilled. He has worked on recording projects with Tift Merritt, Mya, Squirrel Nut Zippers, Meat Puppets, Portastatic, Valient Thorr, Dex Romweber Duo, Eyes Adrift, Superchunk, Athenaeum, Gravy Boys, Claire Holley, Kim Richey, Untold, Airiel Down, Danielle Howle, Whistlestop, and many others.
John Plymale, a North Carolina based Recording Engineer, Producer, and Mixer, fell in love with the way analog tape smelled as it flew across the heads of an old 3M two-inch tape deck when he was about 17 years old and has not tasted food quite the same since.
He was a founding member of Chapel Hill's "The Pressure Boys" in the early 1980's as well as the band "Sex Police" who performed in the late 80's and early 90's.
Somehow he has managed to convince scores of artists over the years that he knows what he's doing, but we all know that he really just likes hanging out with creative people and doodling around with nifty old instruments and recording gear.
Now that he has a magic wand (pro tools) he merely waves it in the direction of his subjects and all their recording dreams are fulfilled.
He has worked on recording projects with Tift Merritt, Mya, Squirrel Nut Zippers, Meat Puppets, Portastatic, Valient Thorr, Dex Romweber Duo, Eyes Adrift, Superchunk, Athenaeum, Gravy Boys, Claire Holley, Kim Richey, Untold, Airiel Down, Danielle Howle, Whistlestop, and many others.
STUDIO PICS
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PLYMALE SCREAM RADIO
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What are people saying about John Plymale
Krist Novoselic (Nirvana/Eyes Adrift)
We brought the finished tracks to John Plymale in North Carolina and he mixed it and added sheen. He used a lot of old compressors and tube stuff to rough it up, I like to balance analog and digital. We used some old amps - I used an old Ampeg flip-top - and some old ribbon mics. Just a few years ago, a record that sounds like this would have been impossible for this price.
Mac McCaughan (Superchunk/Portastatic/Merge Records)
I'm always looking for an excuse to record versions of songs I love, and I'm always looking for an excuse to work with John Plymale (who's recorded and mixed both Superchunk and Portastatic records), so when I was approached about doing this, and to benefit such important research, I was eager to take part and am honored to be a part of it.
Katharine Whalen (Squirrel Nut Zippers)
I was working on some songs with Greg Humphreys and he told me about the Songs For Sixty Five Roses Project. As a parent and friend, I wanted to contribute in any way I could. My heart goes out to John's family and the entire CF community.
Tift Merritt
Songs for Sixty Five Roses has been a really special project for me. John Plymale is an old friend, and through the Children's Hospital at UNC Chapel Hill, I've understood just a little bit about just how much Cystic Fibrosis needs to be gone from this world. This track was pretty special to me musically, too. It reunited our band from a few years back, a band that still remains close and knows how to get to the heart of things.
Shorty Brown (Squirrel Nut Zippers)
Though some of this album (Bedlam Ballroom) was done at Kingsway, we also got to try out Mitch Easters new studio in NC. What a treat. Andrew Bird did some beautiful string arrangements on this one. He seemed to be reaching new levels. But he always was. Besides Mike Napolitano, we had the beautiful John Plymale working with us. I still dont know if he ever gets in a bad mood, but I sincerely doubt it.
this month's
FEATURED ARTIST
Turn Page
My Studio Guestbook
Some of my studio Visitors
Alternative Champs
Jake Armerding
Athenaeum
Han Benink
John Brown
Jonathon Byrd
Caitlin Cary
Collapsis
The Connells
Corrosion Of Conformity
Mike Cross
Dillon Fence
Elizabeth Edwards
Alejandro Escovedo
Eyes Adrift
Far Too Jones
Nnenna Freelon
Mike Garrigan
Gran Torino
Gravy Boys
Hobex
Claire Holley
Peter Holsapple / Chris Stamey
Danielle Howle
International Orange
Jump Little Children
King Wilkie
Lantana
Meat Puppets
My Radio
Mya
Nikki Meets the Hibachi
Portastatic
Kim Richey
Roman Candle
Dex Romweber Duo
Shandon Sahm
Coach Dean Smith
Songs for Sixty Five Roses
Squirrel Nut Zippers
Superchunk
Two Dollar Pistols
Untold
Valient Thorr
Viva La Venus
Weekend Excursion
KatharineWhalen
When Cousins Marry
Whistlestop
White Widow
Tony Williamson
Cardinal Family Singers
Casablanca Quartet
Cheick Hamala Diabate
Clarissa
The Cliffhangers
Jason Harrod
Snatches Of Pink
Cheryl Alexander
Frankie Alexander
Terry Anderson
Bahlooka Roux
Balsa Gliders
Billyclubfest
Brother Sean
Bullwinkle Gandhi
Ray Codrington
Chip Crawford
Grady Crumpler
Halley DeVestern
Doombunny
The Dave Fox Group
Friday's Veil
Geezer Lake
Gladhands
Glorydive
Grasshopper Highway
Gravity's Pull
Cole Guerra
Dug Hampton
Hank Sinatra
Brett Harris
Gordon Harris
Airiel Down
Henry Acrobat
Hobart Willis and the Back Forty
The Hollows
Hulabilly
The Hushpuppies
Danny Infantino
John Thursday
Freeman Ledbetter
Bill Leslie
Mark Lewis
Debbie Liske
Looking Back
Bo Lozoff
Mandorico
Marat
Martin & Johnson
Jim Mathus
The Mayflies
Will McFarlane
John McLaughlin
Measurement Inc.
Nancy Middleton
Naugahyde Chihuahuas
The Never
Parmalee
The Popes
The Pressure Boys
Prevalent Heroes
Purple School Bus
Regatta 69
Taylor Roberts
Mary Rocap
Tyson Rogers
Runaway Cab
Rylo
Scott Sawyer
See No Weevil
The Sex Police
Slipjoint
Southwing
Janet Stolp
Straight 8's
TheTrout Band
Baron Tymas
Vibrant Green
Jack Wilkins
Mark Williams
Ben Wingrove
STUDIO STORIES
arranging in the studio
recording "Tell Me What I Did"
John Plymale
making a rough mix
for Brother Sean
more stories coming soon...
Plymale's FAVES:
Overdub Lane
Pandora Radio
Merge Records
The Pernice Brothers
Kitchen Mastering
Cats Cradle
The Splinter Group
Songs For Sixty Five Roses
Bustello
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