Sep 1, 2011,
By Blair Jackson
There have never been so many ways to have a hit. Take Christina Perri’s surprise 2010 smash “Jar of Hearts.” On June 29, 2010, Perri was an unknown 24-year-old singer/songwriter living in Los Angeles. Originally from the Philadelphia area, she’d knocked around L.A. for a couple of years looking for a break, moved back to Philly near the end of 2009, wrote the emotional “Jar of Hearts” during her time there and then returned to L.A., where she worked as a waitress by day and did some recording.
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Aug 1, 2011,
By Blair Jackson
It only seems as though Beyonce has been a superstar forever. Since her days fronting the hit machine known as Destiny’s Child in the late ’90s, she has conquered the world with her four solo albums—selling 75 million records and picking up 16 Grammys along the way—triumphed on a succession of increasingly extravagant tours, been praised for her acting in several major feature films, launched successful fashion and fragrance lines, and become one of the highest-paid commercial spokespeople in the U.S. Her latest album, 4, was an instant smash when it was released in late June while she was on tour in France; two days after it came out, she headlined the Glastonbury Festival in England in front of 170,000 people. She’s beautiful, talented, independent—and driven.
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Aug 1, 2011,
By Barbara Schultz
Nothing says 1980s L.A. like The Go-Go’s on the radio. Those sweet, bright, infectious songs were the perfect soundtrack for a sunny day—still are, though 30 years have passed since one of rock ’n’ roll’s first all-female bands released their debut album, Beauty and the Beat. The Go-Go’s formed in the midst of L.A.’s late-’70s punk scene. None of the founding members—Belinda Carlisle, Jane Wiedlin and Margot Olaverra—were professional musicians. They were friends who bonded over shows by bands like The Germs and The Dickies.
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Aug 1, 2011,
By Barbara Schultz
Country Music Hall of Famer Tom T. Hall was pleasantly surprised when singer/songwriter (and former Mix Nashville editor) Peter Cooper said that he and Eric Brace wanted to produce a remake of Hall’s 1974 album, Songs of Fox Hollow. It had been unlikely enough when Hall wrote and recorded a hit children’s album at the height of his career success, “And I’d never even heard of someone redoing a whole album,” Hall says. “But of course, I said, ‘Yes.’”
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Aug 1, 2011,
By Mike Levine
From the breathy smoothness of Diana Krall to the growl of Tom Waits to the screams of Linkin Park’s Chester Bennington, no two singing voices are quite alike. For producers and engineers, the challenge is to find the most flattering way to capture a particular singer’s sound. But successful vocal recording requires more than engineering skill; you also need psychological chops. Coaxing the best performance from a singer is often a lot trickier than selecting the right vocal chain.
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Aug 1, 2011,
By Sarah Benzuly
Producers Alex Fitts and Matt Penttila, under the nom de plume KickDrums, had to turn the mirror back on themselves. The same critical eye and creativity used to create beats and tracks for the likes of 50 Cent, Kid Cudi and John Legend was put into play for their own release, Meet Your Ghost. While working on other artists’ material, the duo began to build the songs, fusing hip-hop tones with rock melodies. Working in their own personal studios in New York City, the two would mostly swap tracks with each other, coming together to work in Fitts’ space ...
Aug 1, 2011,
By Sarah Benzuly
When Smashing Pumpkins lead singer Billy Corgan came into Coldwater Studio (Beverly Hills), he had 30-plus songs but whittled that number down during a month of pre-production for their upcoming album, Oceania. “The studio is situated in a guest house so we were able to jam in a comfortable room with lots of light that faced a pool,” says studio head engineer Kevin Dippold, who works with owner/producer Kerry Brown. “When Billy was happy with a particular arrangement, we’d move into the studio section of the guest house to do a quick acoustic guitar demo. ...
Aug 1, 2011,
By Matt Gallagher
Singer/songwriter/pianist Vanessa Carlton’s fourth studio album, Rabbits on the Run (Razor & Tie), marks her first collaboration with UK-based producer Steve Osborne. “After my last record [Heroes & Thieves, 2008], I was out of juice,” Carlton says. She found creative rejuvenation in listening to the music she grew up with, on vinyl. “I loved those records! It was clear: This is how I want to make my records.” She describes Rabbits on the Run as “the most clear-minded and pure reflection of my sense of music that I’ve ever been able to achieve. It’s also the most collaborative because everyone was so clear about what it was going to sound like.”
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NAMM 2011: Fairlight CMI
State of NAMM 2011