Richard Marx has just finished producing for the country bandEmerson Drive, including the single, “Fall Into Me,” with engineerDavide Cole.
All of the vocals, guitars and keyboards for the new album (whichwill be released later this year) were tracked at Renegade Studios, a5,000-foot facility that Marx built several years ago on his 5.5-acreChicago lakeside property. Marx relied on a Mackie HUI, which he usesas a front end to his Pro Tools|HD system.
Emerson Drive’s Danik Dupelle plays guitar and sings high harmonies.Tracking his vocals at Renegade Studios was a bit of a challenge,according to Marx. “Danik, like all of the guys in the band, is aphenomenal musician. He’s also a very good singer, but he’s got a verybright voice that tends to sound a little brittle. We’ve got to be verycareful with the signal path when we track his parts. We experimentedwith Avalon and Manley before deciding to bring him into Pro Tools withthe Daking mic pre. I’m not sure I can give you a precise explanationas to why, but the Daking just gave us a warmer sound than the otherswe played around with. As a producer, you’re using your ears to answerquestions most of the time: Why choose that amp head or one plug-inreverb instead of another? At any given moment, you go with what soundsbest.”
While producing other bands, Marx is also working on his own work;in fact, Marx said that he is about 80% done on his new solo album.”I’m really excited about this project, for several reasons. For onething, it reunites me with Bruce Lundvall, who signed me to my firstdeal. Bruce is the president of EMI and Blue Note, and the new recordwill be released on EMI. I’d describe the style as being somewherebetween Coldplay and Avril Lavigne. It’s edgier than my last severalalbums. I tend to write in a style that reflects whatever’s on my CDplayer at that time. I love Coldplay, and the sounds on Avril’s recordare fantastic. Of course, all of the melodies are mine, and hopefully,there’s a constant in what I bring to my performances that my fans willwant to share.”
