We interviewed John Cale in issue #156 around the time of his previous release, Mercy. He has just released POPtical Illusion, a collection of synth and keyboard heavy tunes that carry a heavy, and at times angry message about the state of the world. That is not to say that that Cale has lost all hope and there is optimism that we can still bring about change. POPtical Illusion was produced by Cale along with longtime artistic collaborator Nita Scott.
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...
Years ago John Fischbach, a well-established and respected producer/engineer, came to my studio to record an album that our mutual friend, Luther Russell, was producing. [See Tape Op #21.] In those days my studio, Jackpot! Recording, was a diamond...
Just a quick note about the upcoming Audio Engineering Society (AES) convention in Los Angeles. We have arranged for all Tape Op readers to receive a free Exhibits Plus Badge to the convention. This badge is good for the Exhibition PLUS all...
I got to see ex-Grandaddy Jason Lytle play a semi-secret first band-backed show (with ex-bandmate Aaron Burtch) last Saturday. Quite fun and a great set of new songs. Jasons' album, Yours Truly, the Commuter, comes out May 19 on ANTI- records. We...
head-fi: n, audiophile-grade headphone systems.portable: adj, able to be easily carried.
The record industry is about twenty-five years into a massive devaluation of its products. This devaluation is not due to some invisible calculus the way, say,...
Lots of laptops use an accelerometer to detect that the computer is falling. When that happens, the computer parks the hard drive heads to prevent them from bouncing on the HD platter. Apple calls this the Sudden Motion Sensor. On...
My pals have finally lost their minds. Apparently they wore blue ribbons to the Grammy Awards last week in protest of the use of Auto-Tune, and specifically mentioned Kanye West's new album, 808s & Heartbreak. Okay guys, I'm thinking of asking for a...
A reader just informed me that APPLE's recent Logic Pro X includes "Drummer", a virtual drummer plug-in. One of the virtual drummers is named "aidan", who apparently cannot find the CAPS key on his virtual MacBook. In Aidan's "Portland Kit" we...