Nya Heep-plattan. Det rör på sig!

DAY 1 RECORDING THE NEW CD
Well we are all settled in nicely at the studio arriving the night before. The equipment arrived at 5pm along with us all, so everything was on schedule. All except for Trevor who only lives an hour away so he came in the next day. Christos got straight to work to get everything unpacked and in position and then we had a take out Curry with some Red Wine and then a bonding visit to the local Pub which just happens to be 100 yards up the road from the front door of the studio. How convenient! The next morning we had a big English Breakfast and began the process of Recording. It took some time to get the equipment in the right position and miked upcorrectly whereby we had as little spillage as possible because we want to record as much of this as live as possible. Trevor joined us at 1.30pm just in time to get his bass sound sorted and we started playing. There were many more adjustments to be made to get it just right and there was plenty of sitting around waiting until in the control room Mike Paxman was a happy puppy. There is a good feeling and atmosphere in the main studio (The Chapel itself ) and it was very important that we all had eye contact and that we found the right sound balance between those wearing headphones ( everybody but me ) and then we started. The first song up is written by Mick and Phil and is a full on rocker so it was nice to start with a song with that type of energy. In one run through and 2 takes we had the version we wanted and the control room was full of excitement. I doubt whether they will all be this quick but what a fantastic way to start. We all seem at home here at the Chapel and feel we have made the right choice in Studios after much deliberation so we finished the day with a quick celebratory drink up the road in the pub and off for an early night. Well it was Midnight.

DAY 2 RECORDING THE NEW CD
An early start after breakfast and a quick listen to last nights song and yes it still sounds as good as it did last night so ´Appy Days! Russell is warming up and we will start recording a new Mick and Phil song. I am just using one of my own old Marshall 50 watt Amplifiers and a Marshall Cabinet 4 x 12? that Joel Richardson from Marshall kindly lent me, as my speakers are knackered. For guitar I am using my Black Beauty Les Paul and this will be the mainstay set up for the entire album. I am using a Jim Dunlop Cry Baby Wah Wah, a Marshall Guv?nor and a Boss Chorus as effects and that is it. I tried out a couple of other guitars with Christos earlier this morning my Gibson SG, Tobacco Sunburst Les Paul and a Dan Armstrong guitar and they sounded great. So I have a few options should we need them. Trevor is using an Ampeg Pro 2 Amplifier with an Ampeg 4 x 10? cabinet. On the floor Trevor has a Boss Graphic,Chorus,Delay and an Octave Divider but he has not used any of them yet preferring to use the direct sound. Phil is on a Hammond B3 and 1 x Leslie Cabinet and Russell is on his own Mapex Drum Kit and Sabian Cymbals. Bernie is in the control room singing guide vocals. Well Song number 2 was recorded in 3 takes and is very exciting. There was some more Bass Equipment put up for Trevor today. He used his Peavey Amp and a Trace Eliot 2 X 15? along with the 4 x 10? Cabs. We decided to do the third song which took a little time to get the arrangement right. We had tried to get a more direct arrangement but found that the original way the song was played in Rehearsals was perfect so we went with that. Once we had cracked that we put the track down in 2 takes so we are right on schedule at the moment. For this track I used the Tobacco Sunburst Gibson Les Paul which fit the song perfectly. At the end of the session the Sky Satellite TV was out so we could not relax and watch any TV after the session. Trevor and Christos played on the Play Station ( car racing ) and are not talking to each other this morning. Joke! The rest of us had a couple of glasses of wine as the pub was closed and we had a chat and then off to bed.

DAY 3 RECORDING THE NEW CD
Listened to yesterdays songs and all is good. I tried out a couple of more amplifiers. We tried a Diago Tone King which is made by James Kitchen who also made my pedal board. Then we tried a Marshall reissue Blues Breaker lent to me by Joel Richardson at Marsahall. They both sound great and will be used as we go along. The next song is another one of Mick and Phil?s so it is heads down and off we go. This way of recording is really fun to do and I really think the vibe is all over the tracks. We generally try playing the song as it is rehearsed and then we get a feel of how we can better the song adding or subtracting parts until we are all happy. Then we start laying down the track for real. This one took 3 takes and we took the first take as it had the best overall feel. It is very powerful and we are all pleased with how it is sounding. We will probably start rehearsing another one up this afternoon ( one of Trevors ) and then have a little dinner and then start to record it. While we are hard at work Christos has been repairing and setting up guitars ready to be played. He even repaired one of Mike Paxman?s guitars which was made by Roger Griffin especially for him and he is delighted. Well Trevor?s track sounds great and the energy going down is fantastic. Mike Paxman is doing a tremendous job and he even stands with us in the studio amongst all of the noise and joins in with the vibe and directing us. This is a first as most producers do not leave their chair in the control room, but we all love Mike?s hands on approach. The results thus far are keeping us on a high and it is time for a couple of relaxing beers and a couple of glasses of wine. We can?t wait to start tomorrow!

DAY 4 RECORDING THE NEW CD
Trevor´s song ended up sounding great once we had ironed out a lot of the parts. He had adjusted a lot of the song differently to the way we rehearsed it in rehearsals and it made the whole song a lot stronger. In the end it was mega and I used a Marshall 100 watt with 1 X 4 X 12? Cabinet which has been modified for me by a guy in Germany and it sounds wicked on his song. We were all very very happy with the way it turned out. Trevor wanted to drive home last night as he is only an hour away but we were fogged in so he couldn?t so he had to stay and join us for a couple of well earned relaxing drinks at the end of the session. Well today we are still hard at it and getting great results. Today we started on another Mick & Phil song which is a power ballad. We spent some time getting the arrangement right and all the parts in the right place and recorded it in 3 takes. This way of working really captures a great feel on each song because if you keep recording over and over again the edge is lost. We spend the time getting everything just right and then push the record button and everything jumps up a level. We work on the arrangement and also the way things are miked for the maximum sound and so far the results have been stunning so we will keep on doing it this way. As the saying goes if the car ?aint broke then don?t fix it. I tried my home amplifier a Tech 21 combo and it had a wicked sound that we will use later on, probably for some solo parts. Russell has already cracked a cymbal today such is the power he plays with. Trevor and I went for a walk today and froze our nuts off. Boy the weather has turned cold. We felt we needed some fresh air as being cooped up in the studio for 3 days is no good for you. Yesterday Bernie went shopping while we were working on arrangements and now our supply of Red Wine, Beer and other such goodies are waiting for us after a good days recording. Christos is still pulling my guitars to bits and giving me a heart attack each time as I see the necks ripped off etc but in the end they play beautifully so I am thankful to him for that. That way we get no buzzes on the recordings. We are just about to start another song after dinner so I will carry on the report then. I am back again. This is a Mick and Phil song in a typical Heep shuffle. A couple of run throughs to get the energy level up and it was done in 2 takes. Amazing stuff and so exciting. Tonight we will look at another song before we finish the day to try and get the arrangement up and running so we can start it tomorrow. Another Mick and Phil song that will probably be the epic song of the CD. Job done and it is time to relax before an early night.
What a great day!

*Det verkar vara en platta mer lik Sea Of Light än Sonic Origami*Bandet verkar vara i gott mod, vilket är bra.
*Det blir minst EN power ballad.
*"We are just about to start another song after dinner so I will carry on the report then. I am back again. This is a Mick and Phil song in a typical Heep shuffle." - Göttans med en Heep-shuffle på plattan.