I’m still shocked at the passing of Martin Phillips of The Chills. He made a number of songs and albums that truly inspired me and many others. Please check out the interview I did with him in 1997, and listen to his song “Pink Frost” if you’ve never heard his music. You’ll find the beauty and sadness of this song quite fitting. It’s one of many great songs from a great writer. -Larry Crane
Tape Op is a bi-monthly magazine devoted to the art of record making.
by Alex Maiolo
One of our patron saints of recording, Mitch Easter [Tape Op #21], turns 70 today. That's almost irrelevant, as this treasure of a human should be celebrated every day, but it prompted me to write about his impact.
Like anyone,...
Tape Op contributor and studio owner/engineer/producer Mike Caffrey recently sent me some thoughts he had about visitors to the studio during sessions. See issue 73’s upcoming end rant for the origins of this piece. -LC
I always tell...
Steve Daubenspeck and Greg Freeman are Ancient Farmers and their new album is called Seventh Heaven.
Greg Freeman was featured in Tape Op #1, and had previously recorded two albums for Tape Op founder Larry Crane when he was in the band Vomit...
I just received the first promo cassette in a long time from Odessa Records' Shit Horse. Alright! Wait, what year is it? Fucking A. I have a cassette player in the basement, and I could go down there, grab it, plug it all in and give this a...
My pal David Lowery (Cracker/Camper Van Beethoven) has been doing a cool blog called 300 Songs, telling stories of how songs came about and other crazy stories. The most recent one is about the late Don Smith, who produced and engineered a bunch of...
Larry Crane adds an update to Marc Alan Goodman's orginal review of the Burl B80 Mothership.
Marc Alan Goodman says in his original review, “It's rare to find a single piece of gear that elevates not only my entire...
A huge thanks to everybody who participated in the Hurricane Sandy relief auctions we posted last week. Thanks to you and our advertisers, Sound Toys, Avenson Audio, Dangerous Music, Placid Audio, and Universal Audio, we raised $42,578...
Brian Charles and his friends at Zippah Studios are recording in the style of past hits, and then detailing how they did it. It's a weekly series. The latest post, in which they take an original song by Aaron Perrino (The Sheila Divine, Dear Leader)...
Hello Friends of Tape Op!
We have some fantasic gear giveaways happening right now. Who doesn't need a bundle of excellent plug-ins or a new interface?
Eventide Elevate Mastering Plug-in BundleArturia Studio and Plug-Ins