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Thursday, August 13, 2009
It's been anything but dull recording my upcoming album. I think I'll call it "Rocks In A Bucket". More on that later.
I've decided to deem this my "debut" album since it's what I consider to be the first "professional studio recording" I've made thus far. I've put hundreds of hours into recording in my own home studio set up. Once back in my college daze, I even used a professional audio recording room that I connected to the neighbouring tv studio for a couple of earlier recordings (Into The Sun, The First Dance, Generic by Sarah Jerrom). But all of these recordings are of a demo quality at best, especially now compared to the current work.
For most of my own recordings, I used a whackload of drum loops that I pieced together, sometimes using just a single snare hit or other percussive beat at one time, building bit by bit until I created a drum part that I was satisfied with keeping. I occasionally used the same technique for bass parts or other instruments or I'd record a bass line on my guitar, drop the whole track an octave using a pitch shifting plugin on the editing/mixing program I was using, and tweak that to sound like a bass guitar. I've never been truly satisfied with the outcome, but it always seemed like the best I could do with the skills and resources I had within arm's reach.
While recording at Underground Sound Studio with engineer Wayne Berge, I've pretty much confirmed much of what I already knew:
Excellent sound quality requires great sound engineering skills and excellent equipment.
Each instrument in a song must have an incredibly skilled musician at the helm. I've been extremely fortunate to have had the best musicians around record with me for this album. Nick Tripe on drums, percussion, and backing vocals. Aidan Miller on keyboards. Dave Loewen on lead guitar. Danielle Oegema on violin. At least one more musician (sax) is still likely to come.
Song choice for an album is much more than what you might want to record. You need to put your absolute best songs forward while simultaneously crafting your song choices and song order to tell the story you want told. At the same time, you also need to have enough diversity in the album to keep everyone interested and to show off your own skills a bit with songwriting and performance.
Delays are inevitable. While it can be difficult to know when they might happen, it's still necessary to plan for them.
Most importantly, above all else, the one thing I now know beyond any shadow of a doubt: I NEED HELP. Hopefully not of the psychiatric variety, but more along the lines of organization and planning.
To elaborate on how I need help, those who know me well know that I live by "Western Standard Time". That is to say that I'm not always very efficient at... shall we say, being on time? My scheduling skills aren't the most efficient and I'm not the best at planning ahead to cover future groundwork. The obvious things, like album art and design and production planning, should already be done, but I'm just trying to figure this whole thing out as each new facet hits me. I guess I'm being a little bit selfish in trying to soak in each experience individually instead of getting it all done when it should be done.
I should also have a promotional tour booked by now, but that seems like a monumental feat at this point. I don't have a regular band to go steady with yet. Until now, I've just called on various friends and musicians to join me for a show if the opportunity was available. Dating like this can be very expensive since I always want to pay these people as much as possible, even going so far as not paying myself on a few occasions just to make sure the band gets paid. I want them to not only feel aptly rewarded for their time and talents, but most importantly, I want them to have a good time playing the gig and to actually LIKE the music they're playing. If I were to "hire" the musicians I've had playing on this album as my regular backing band, I would need a helluva lot more cash flow backing me to guarantee them a decent paycheque per gig. That kind of thing simply does not exist yet. In a perfect world, these superb talents would agree to play some gigs for little to no pay (just like I'm doing much of the time). Maybe some perfection does exist somewhere in this music community. Maybe I'll be able to find some insanely talented people to play a bunch of shows in southern Ontario to promote the album this fall.
I guess this all falls under management. So, anyone want to be my manager? I can offer a cut from each gig we play or maybe offer credits from album sales. I'm open to a fair deal.
A short time ago, I sent an email out to a bunch of friends asking for their opinions on my shortlist of potential album titles. My original goal was to take a line from one of the songs on the album to use as the title. I spent one of my 50-minute GO train commutes to come up with a list of about 12 or so lines that I thought might work. (Unfortunately, the strongest lyrics on this album all seemed to have a negative connotation to them, which I don't want for the album title.) I then came up with about 5 or 6 sort of random titles. The top two have been narrowed down to "When Morning Comes" (from the song "Getting Home") and "Rocks In A Bucket" (referencing a recent recording session). The comment that stuck with me most during this little experiment was from my friend and the drummer on this CD, Nick Tripe. With his vast experience in numerous bands, including touring and various other music projects, he seemed like the best person to ask. Plus, I knew he wouldn't give me any b.s. -- just a straight, honest opinion. He said that from the list of about 17 titles, they all seemed "schmaltzy and pretentious", except for "Rocks In A Bucket". His reasoning continued from there, but that was the key and it has stuck with me more than any other replies. Sadly, I think I have this tendency to fall into that exact trap -- to be "schmaltzy and pretentious". For some sick reason, it seems to come easy for me when I'm not thinking about it. That's why I agree with him. Plus, "Rocks In A Bucket" seems to have more "sticking in your memory" potential as an album name. Plus, it actually references something and is not totally random or made up to try to sound cool.
At a recent recording session, I was working on the intro to "Look Around". I decided at the start of this project that I wanted to have an interesting intro to the song that wasn't necessarily music-based, but maybe more like soundscaping. After some brainstorming, I came up with a few ideas of various 'sounds' that would work with the theme of the song. One idea was to grab a few handfuls of rocks and record the sound of them being dropped into a plastic bucket. I wanted that chunky "clunking" sound of an earthy force battling itself. (Now tell me THAT doesn't sound schmaltzy and pretentious! See what I mean?) Describing it doesn't sound nearly as good as the actual sound. You'll have to buy the album or the track to hear what I'm talking about. It really works well in combination with everything else going on at that moment. But that's where that title idea comes from. And so far, it seems to be sticking to the top of my list. What do you think?
It's been a long time since I've been this excited about any project I've worked on. Since the first day of recording, this has been a challenging and extremely rewarding experience. Even though we haven't quite finished recording and there's still mixing and mastering to tackle, it sounds as good as I hoped it would. And believe me, I've set my goals and standards pretty damn high when it comes to my music. Simply stated, I can't wait for you to hear it -- it's the best work I've ever done.
Sunday, March 15, 2009 NOW HERE THIS!! I am officially taking over this space for use as my own personal rants, raves, thoughts, ideas, and other 'blog' things. I figure since I've been maintaining this site pretty much on my own anyway (with thanks to Jennifer Morrison @ www.spitzink.com for creating the original lay of the land for this site) and since I need a good spot to spew forth whatever pertinent things I have to say at any given moment, I will claim this space as my personal blog. Please let me know if you have any good suggestions for blogging applications that could work well here on my site to update and maintain more easily.
Sometime soon, I'll be renovating my entire site with a whole new look and feel. For now, I'll make small tweaks here and there; I've already made a few, including the Myspace status updates widget (the blue & white box just above) and the links to other places you can reach me on the web (on the bottom half of this page). Let me know what you think -- I'd love to hear some feedback. Or just drop by and let me know what's up.
Now go check the PRESS/NEWS page for some new updates!
Dig it.......
Monday, January 12, 2009 RETURN TO STREGA WITH TROY WESTERN
In his first live show of 2009, Troy will break out new songs from his upcoming CD currently in the works. For more info, check out the event page: RETURN TO STREGA WITH TROY WESTERN
Tuesday, July 8, 2008 ANDREW'S FIGHT
On Friday, February 22nd, 2008, a 3cm tumour was found in Andrew
Middleton’s brain. It was removed the following Sunday, but left in its
wake a diagnosis of cancer almost two weeks later. Andrew’s courageous
battle to conquer the disease immediately rallied the support of his wife,
Lynn, and his two sons, Ian, 6, and Christian, 1. With his natural
charisma and inspiring conviction naturally drawing people in, Andrew’s
circle of support quickly grew as friends and family continue to donate
their time and services to help where they can. From this supportive
circle comes “ANDREW’S FIGHT”, a fundraiser to help Andrew Middleton and his family as they defeat the financial challenges they face. Get more info on the ANDREW'S FIGHT page: www.troywestern.com/andrew.html
Wednesday, June 4, 2008 Troy @ Paragon
On Saturday, May 31st, Troy landed third place in Paragon Entertainment's SINGER/SONGWRITER COMPETITION held at The Reverb/Holy Joe's in Toronto, ON. Check out the video of his song "Feel The Love" on the video page.
Wednesday, February 20, 2008 Catch Troy’s first live radio performance!
Troy will be a guest on CFBU Radio 103.7 FM on the program "LIVE IN THE RHYTHM HIVE" on Thursday, March 6th. Listen to Troy’s first radio performance sometime during the show, starting at 9:00 p.m. For more info, check out CFBU’s website: www.cfbu.ca.
Sunday, February 17, 2008
Yesterday, Troy played the first of what will hopefully be many shows at Strega Cafe in St.Catharines, ON, with Carly Manley opening the night. The turnout was tremendous, resulting in a packed, 'standing room only' night before the show had even begun! It was said that this could very well have been one of the busiest nights in Strega's history!
Thursday, July 26, 2007
Updates and additions have been made to the 'photos' page and the 'music' page. The videos from the 'music' page have now been given their own place to hang out on the new 'video' page. Go have a look!
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
Troy has been invited to take the stage this Saturday, June 30th at the old TOWN THEATRE in St.Catharines. For more info, check out the 'press/news' page for the official press release with info about this and Troy's upcoming S.C.E.N.E. performance. Also, check the 'shows' page for event listings.
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
Fresh on the heels of playing the Highland Creek Heritage Festival in Scarborough, ON, Troy has been confirmed to be taking a stage at this year's massive S.C.E.N.E. Music Festival in St. Catharines, ON. The festival is a one-day, all ages event featuring over 145 bands across several venues celebrating independent music. Check out the shows page for more info.
Monday, May 7, 2007
For the first time, a free full-length download of a recent performance at The Cameron House in Toronto, ON is now available on TroyWestern.com. Check out the debut of Troy's new song Ravenous Fear Monkeys, as well as the backing grooves of saxophonist Dan Kurek. This limited-time download also includes excellent performances of Troy's popular songs Say You Will, Into The Sun, and So You & Me. To get your copy of the show, head over to the downloads page.
Monday, May 7, 2007
A news/entertainment television show called "The Source" featured an interview with Troy. The full interview is now posted on the music page.
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
"Say You Will" is currently one of several songs by various talented bands from southern Ontario being featured on JobGym.com. Falling under the umbrella of The John Howard Society of Niagara, Job Gym is a non-profit organization aimed primarily at youth for employment assistance.
Sunday, April 1, 2007
Guest saxophone player Dan Kurek will be joining Troy for his show at The Cameron House this Wednesday, April 4th in Toronto, Ontario. Check out Troy's 'press/news' page for more information and the 'shows' page for event listings.
Saturday, February 24, 2007
Troy is currently seeking out some talented musicians to help with his next full-length studio CD recording for the very near future. While some musicians have graciously accepted the offer to play, scheduling challenges might require a few people be available for each instrument. Please if you have any info for the following:
* Violin * Tenor Saxophone * Baritone Saxophone * Trumpet * Flute * Piano / Keyboards * Bass guitar (stand up and/or electric)
Tuesday, November 28, 2006
If you live in the Niagara area (Ontario, Canada), turn on the local community channel, cable 10, and check out Troy's interview on their news magazine program called "The Source". It is currently airing in the loop for the show and will likely repeat for the remainder of the week. The interview will be posted on TroyWestern.com soon.
Monday, September 18, 2006
TIMA NOMINATION
(Toronto Independent Music Awards)
Troy has received a nomination for the Toronto Independent Music Awards under the category of "Best Classic Rock".
The awards show takes place on Thursday, October 5th, 2006 at The Phoenix in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
This show is open to anyone who would like to attend.
September 22, 2006
The launch of the newly designed TroyWestern.com website. Check out the new look. If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to send an email to
Live Performances
Check out the shows page for more information on live performances.
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