Kristen and I have been so blessed by everyone who has helped us record Kristen’s new full-length record of worship songs we wrote together, which we’ll release on CD and mp3 Tuesday, April 1. We’ve told you about our group vocalists, special guest duet vocalist and some of the other album details, like the song titles. But today I want to talk about the people who often go unsung in the music-making process — our recordists (engineers) and mixer.
In the photo above you see (left-to-right) Phillip Miller and Eddy Morris, our brothers in Sojourn Music. We recorded this album in Eddy’s Ear Candy Studio, with Eddy as chief engineer and Phil as his assistant. Ear Candy is the studio where Sojourn recorded albums like Before The Throne.
Eddy and Phil are excellent musicians in their own right, but for this project they used their recordist skills to give the band and Kristen a great live sound during the tracking sessions. Their feedback on arrangements, performances, and everything that was going on in the studio was invaluable. These guys know music inside and out — from the songwriting phase through the recording process.
After tracking the ten songs, we sent the music to Paul Mahern for final mixing. Paul is a Grammy-nominated engineer who has mixed the last several Sojourn records, including The Water And The Blood. He’s worked with many artists over the years, including legends like Willie Nelson and Iggy Pop. More recently, Paul has worked with Over The Rhine and John Mellencamp. And, Paul mixed the 2007 multi-platinum How To Save A Life by The Fray. Needless to say, we were excited to work with him.
He didn’t disappoint. Ours is a very well-mixed record that clings to our aesthetic of real, “live” music without a lot of studio trickery and computer-generated sounds. You’ll be able to hear the drums, guitars, piano and other instruments, played gorgeously but in a way that won’t detract from the vocals (meaning, you’ll be able to hear the words and sing along).
We can’t wait for you to hear these songs. The musicians and recordists helped us convey the full-range of emotions covered in these songs — everything from lament to joyous celebration. God has placed us right in the middle of an amazing community of artists with which to work. To say we’re grateful is an understatement.