Today’s post takes the reader inside a 2015 session for an album by Melbourne -based Brent Parlane Band. Brent is a singer-songwriter well-known in Australia and New Zealand. Also in the band at this time were- Trevor Reading – guitar, Co Tipping – guitar and backing vocals, Rob Hornbuckle – bass and backing vocals, and myself on drums, backing vocals and percussion.
Here is the Youtube playlist for the complete album – but can I ask, nay plead, dear reader, that if you like what you hear, PLEASE go to Bandcamp or similar and PAY Brent for his incredible compositions. He is NOT wealthy, and any small purchase would be very appreciated. Of course he has to list his songs on Spotify, Youtube etc. to get wider exposure, but everyone knows independent artists on these platforms receive fractions of a cent.
Track listing and personnel
I was a member for four years or so (the band no longer exists, Brent has retired), and there were weekly rehearsals, along with some live performances in hotels and at festivals. Brent was the songwriter and lead singer. I always listened carefully to his lyrics, as they are beautifully expressed emotions and word images. Check out ‘Strong’, for example.
He usually presented his songs (with lyrics, melody and chords) during rehearsal by singing and playing them through on his acoustic guitar, and each band member would make their own notes. Many arrangements were guided by Brent; so as we workshopped the songs we would make suggestions about groove, guitar melodies, harmonies etc. We tried not to corral ourselves into just one style, but develop each song by playing what we thought it needed. The luxury of not having to homogenize everything, or stick to a ‘formula’!
Of course, sometimes robust discussion took place. The key here was mutual respect, and willingness to try others’ suggestions. While jamming we occasionally inadvertently strayed into some legendary song snippet from somewhere in our shared past (such as the Beatles, or Tom Petty), which we found was a great way to bond and have a laugh together.
Below, next to each song’s link to Youtube, are the rehearsal demo’s recorded in Brent’s lounge room, with me playing a stripped-back kit consisting of BD, SD, HH and one cymbal, using rods. You can listen and compare the demo with the finished product.
I feel there is a lot to recommend this economical album pre-production approach for drummers, it makes you focus on the song and play only what (depending on taste and style) is necessary. Another positive aspect of the lounge room ‘unplugged’ approach is that it lets every detail of the song be heard. When playing full volume, sometimes the detail can be buried under the ‘wall of sound’. Having said that, rock volume can add excitement, there’s no doubt; I like slamming the kit as much as any drummer! If your band has to hire a rehearsal room, odds are that you are also going to hear distracting sounds from neighbouring rooms, something which we avoided.
Can I also plug the seemingly obvious here – please, all you band musicians, record every rehearsal and use it to hone and learn your part. This saves so much time (and argument about ‘how we did it last week’). I think I am now notorious for being That Guy, because in many bands I play with they turn to me if they don’t know what’s next, and I have to remind them!
In common with many similar bands, this album was self-funded; around 2015 there was some support for physical CD sales. I don’t understand how this is ever going to work in the 2020’s, an age when streaming from most platforms does not pay what artists need to survive.
Anyway, our limited budget meant we firstly tried recording at a newly-built community-owned studio, which offered a great deal because they were using us as guinea pigs to sort out any problems with the studio.
At first, band members couldn’t find the entrance to the building, due to poor instructions from the studio manager – not a good start! Eventually we were all in; drums and bass together in the main room.
Here’s a photo of my Pearl Reference kit, Steve Ferrone SD and Zildjian cymbals.
To get separation, the engineer set our two guitarists up, isolated from us and each other, in other nearby spaces. One of the guitarists wasn’t happy with the arrangement, but we tried running down a couple of songs before he refused to continue unless he could set up with us in the main room. I think we all agreed that we would capture a better performance if we were all physically together in one room (Brent’s guide vocals were simultaneously being recorded in a separate booth – he planned to re-do them at a later date). There is a school of thought that each musician with an amp will enjoy hearing the speaker sound (interacting with room acoustics) near them, rather than separated in another room.
So, once again all together, we recorded some more songs. Many ended up on the album, but we felt we could finish the rest of the songs somewhere else, and capture more exciting performances. In the end I don’t think the spill was too much of an issue after all.
Later, after some discussion, we decided to try recording ‘live’ on a stage, as though doing a performance, without an audience. Favours were called in, and we booked an audio-visual crew to film and record us on the stage in a school auditorium. These are the versions you can watch on Youtube.
What a difference! For me, I really felt ‘at home’ on the stage, and played much better than the previous session. I also think the reverberation of the kit acoustically (into the wings and up into the fly tower) gave me more encouragement, because the kit sounded fuller. We didn’t use headphones, but rather monitor speakers the same as we would use on a gig.
I used the same Pearl Reference kit and Ferrone SD, but opted for my set of Zildjian K Constantinople cymbals for a drier sound. I was very happy with how they didn’t dominate the recording too much. It’s a bugbear of mine that digital recording can sometimes capture too much cymbal detail, and get in the way of other instruments in a mix. This is not because I hit them too hard, by the way!
I wanted to mention that, whilst the song arrangements were recorded as rehearsed, I was allowed the freedom to improvise my fills, so it was satisfying that I could be creative in that area. The whole album was satisfying to record (and perform live).
Groove-wise, I was particularly fond of the cowbell pattern I came up with for ‘Footprints’; my instinct for that groove was along the lines of a Tom Petty or Keith Richards kind of guitar rock, solid but with some funky elements. Perhaps a ‘smidgin’ of swing as well.
*Thanks are due to Sam McKenzie and his location crew for capturing the performance so well, and Trevor Reading, who mixed, overdubbed and produced the album, with input from Brent and the rest of the band.
The resulting tracks –
Come On Come On
Studio Version
Demo version
Strong
Studio Version
Demo Version
Footprints
Studio Version
Demo Version
You Don’t Feel A Thing
Studio Version
Demo Version
I hope you’ve been entertained and perhaps educated by this blog, where I’ve tried to offer insights and tips from my experiences. May your recording journey be a fruitful and fulfilling one!
