Nashville, TN (May 20, 2014)—To attain the classic “API sound” at his home studio in Nashville, singer, songwriter and producer James House rented API’s The Box from Blackbird Rentals to apply summing to his latest album’s final mixes.
With a resurgence of his country music hits from the 1990s, House is keeping busy with a new album which was just released, and a sold-out 16-show tour throughout the UK. Tracks for Broken Glass/Twisted Steel were recorded at Ben’s Studio in Nashville to two-inch tape through a classic API 3232 console. The tape was then sent to House’s home facility, Dream On Studios, where he recorded the vocals and guitar overdubs and mixed.
While at Ben’s Studio, House heard tracks that were cut for an early demonstration of The Box. “It sounded like classic, warm API,” recalls James. “I’m a big fan of API in the first place, which is one of the reasons why we cut at Ben’s Studio.”
Noting the design and layout of The Box, James appreciates how the small-format console is portable, yet creates a classic API sound. “Without it, I would have had to rent a studio with an API console to sum the record. With The Box, I was able to rent it for two or three days and take my time summing and getting all the versions of the mixes. The size and design fills a gap between tracking in a commercial studio and in a smaller home studio.”
House recalls that the 16 summing channels were a key factor that drew him to the console, as well as the overall quality and clarity it helped him achieve: “I just A/B’d the record with one of my earlier records, and it has a punch and presence that I love.”
“I knew The Box was a smart idea,” he said. “The mixes gelled exactly like we hoped they would.”
