On their newest record, Jim O'Rourke recorded and mixed at their Echo Canyon studio, with Aaron Mullan assisting. Sonic Youth produced. John Golden mastered, once again. It has kind of a subdued...
Are you curious about what Mitchell Froom's been up to since he split with Suzanne Vega, and Tchad Blake moved to England? (Ms. Vega's last disc sure was great, reeking of heartbreak and betrayal.)...
This is one of those albums that took years to make, but in the end was worth all the trouble involved. In the ensuing time the band (the sister/brother band to !!!) mostly moved from Sacramento, CA...
I get handed a lot of CDs at trade shows from 'industry' types and I wish I could say good things about them, but it's usually pretty hard. I was pleasantly surprised by this disc of surprisingly good...
I've been seeing occasional Tape Op contributor Geoff Sanoff's name pop up on quite a few cool CDs lately (Boys Vs. Girls, etc) and this is the latest to grab my attention. Sparse, lonely and lovely,...
Despite all my warnings in the end of this issue about recording crazy people, I'm really glad someone made these recordings. Irwin Chusid is the author of a book of the same name, and he compiled...
In issue #27 we interviewed J about his home studio, Bob's Place, named after his dog. Here's his second album from there, and it sounds great. Big guitar solos and different sounds for each song help...
In issue #27 we interviewed these guys in Jim's "home studio", The Garage. The difference between their home studio and most others is that there's some quality gear inside and that they hire an...
One of my favorite bands ever was (is?) Mission of Burma. Clint Conley was their bassist, and until now hadn't really done much since they stopped playing in the early '80s. He leads this band,...
Nope, not recorded on a 4-track. John owns Tiny Telephone Studio in San Francisco, is one hell of a songwriter and an articulate singer. Scott Solter, John Croslin and JV engineered. Paul Stubbelbine...
How is it that a band could not exist for 22 years and then get together and not suck? If you ever enjoyed Robyn Hitchcock or the Soft Boys in the past you will enjoy this. I do. Recorded with Pat...
I've been lucky to work on a few "old time" records and I totally enjoy it. With acoustic instruments in this context it's all about mic'ing skill and capturing the right feel and great performances....
Steve Silverstein has been a Tape Op contributor for ages now, and finally he has a damn record out, by his duo Christmas Decorations, and it's cool. "Recorded with a little help from our friends...
