Our 2nd EP: It's Clear
So we’re nearly there... we're on the verge of producing our 2nd EP, which we've called (cue the imaginary drum roll): It's Clear. For those of you on our mailing list, you’ll know a little about the progress of it as I’ve mentioned it a few times recently, but for those who aren’t, here’s an opportunity to find out more…
More of the same?
If you loved our first EP, Mariana’s Café, I think you’ll love this one too. There are 5 songs again, each with their own distinctive charm, whilst (we think!) still retaining the unmistakable character of The Bustling Tram Society.
We believe there’s a great mix of styles in there, and we can't wait to start getting your feedback - but all in good time of course!
A bit more on the studio we hired
We booked a few days in April and May to get all the tracks down. This time, we headed down the M4 in search of Crescent Studios, just outside Swindon.
It‘s a beautiful and newly created studio run by Damon Sawyer and managed by Dermott Clarke. I recorded with Damon a long time ago, in a studio far, far away from Swindon (well not really, in Reading actually).
When I recorded with Damon before, it was when I was playing in a covers project. I really enjoyed working with him because I felt he pushed us to do better - not to just go through the motions and play the music how we always played it (a pitfall I found easy to fall into when playing cover songs, especially one's I'd played 100 times before in pubs and at functions).
What I love about the studio itself is the sumptuous live room and separate drum and vocal booths, which make it possible to record several of us at once. That might sound like it should be obvious, but many studios simply aren’t big enough to cater for that type of set-up.
And if you ever chat to Damon, you'll find he loves to tell you about all the incredible gear he has in there – and it looks and more importantly, sounds exquisite. He’s amazingly passionate about what he does and the results speak for themselves.
So how did the recording go?
In a nutshell: really well! It was the challenging experience that I think we all expected and there were a few ups and downs along the way, but I'm confident that by the time we get the finished masters, we'll have something we can all be incredibly proud of!
It's Clear
We're aiming to have the single ready to release in the summer with the full EP following on later this year. If you’re on the mailing list, you’ll be the first to hear about it!
So what's next?
As I’ve mentioned elsewhere on our website, the larger plan has always been to record a 2nd EP, then add a few choice covers so that we can get out and play a few shows for you.
That reality is edging closer, so stay in touch to be kept up to date on how that’s progressing and then later this year we should be able to tell you about a few shows that I know you won’t want to miss! It’s exciting times for us and we hope you look forward to having a listen soon!
Saludos
Dave
