Woodland is the name of Gillian Welch and David Rawling’s studio in Nashville, and it’s also the name of their new album. On Woodland, the duo continue to show their deep connection as collaborators. The album has a wide open sound that features their seemlessly blended and intimately recorded vocals, and the light touch of a backing band that includes drums, bass, pedal steel, banjo, and airy strings on tunes like "What We Had" and "Hashtag". "Lawman" and "The Bells and the Birds" have a lovely somberness, and the album as a whole has a "live off the floor" feeling to it that we hear less and less of these days. Woodland will stay in our "recently played" column for the forseeable future.
We interviewed Gillian and Dave back in 2001 for Tape Op #85.
Tape Op is a bi-monthly magazine devoted to the art of record making.
By Justin Douglas
When you hear a particularly moving piece of music, and you get that little chill that runs from the top of your scalp down your spine, that’s a specific network in your brain logging that music into your memory....
I recently have been digging through the Tape Op archives looking for writing, reviews and stuff we can post online. And I just found this snippet of hilariousness from Issue #7 in the Fall of 1997. Oh man, maybe I shouldn't post this... all...
Here's a guest spot from our pal Larry Devivo. It didn't quite fit a reply for Tape Op letters, but it's a great story and I wanted to share it. -LC
There is a new microphone made called the Lucas CS-1. This mic is the brainchild of Terry Manning...
Guitarist Michael Belfer passed away March 20, 2022 from a series of compounding health issues. He was a friend and my bandmate in Black Lab back in the late ’90s. His unique playing and sound was an influence on players such as Sonic...
I didn't do this video. But the guy who did must be spying on me. You can replace the style of music with any style, but the conversation is the same. (Recording Engineers, you can replace mastering with 'my friend has a hacked copy of Cubase.') ...
When we ran a page featuring senior contributor Garrett Haines' "Building Troubleshooting Skills" in Tape Op #84 I never expected to get the kind of replies we did below. The Letters section for upcoming issues was too full, so I'm posting these...
I often think about the relation of commerce and art. It's a convoluted one, but necessary. How could one continue to create the best art possible if they were destitute? They won't - they will be focused on survival instead. A recent...