So when asked to be a guest editor for MAGNET, my initial reaction was that my inner 18-year-old self might flip out so much that I might have nary a word to say. However, I persevered and was immediately filled with some of the memories of growing up in the proverbial “sticks” in the ’90s. Starting there and moving forward to the present day, I accumulated a list of people, movies, music, food, poets and other stuff that, although not exhaustive by any extent, it gives an insight into me, my music, the band, inspirations and interests. At the very least I would hope that a few of these things may also be viewed as recommendations that could steer people toward becoming acquainted with a few new people, and things that I find dear. It goes without saying, I appreciate the opportunity to “preach from the pulpit,” so to speak and air my opinion on so many different things. Normally people only care about what I say about my music or music in general, which can get tedious. So thank you, MAGNET, for providing the platform to impose my taste on others. Really and truly, I hope someone finds something in here that they, too, can enjoy.
There’s this local microphone company here in Portland called Ear Trumpet that was started by a gentlemen by the name of Philip Graham. Philip was so kind as to lend us a bunch of his microphones to use on our record, which was exciting considering a couple of them were prototypes and we had no idea how absurdly nice they were. All of Ear Trumpet’s mics have a very distinct aesthetic that lives somewhere on the spectrum between steam punk and antique-store oddity. They all have women’s names. I started using the Edwina model as my stage microphone, and it’s been a joy to use. It truly has become one of my favorite things. It doesn’t feedback, I love singing through it, appreciate what it brings out in my voice, and it gets such exciting responses from sound guys. The second I break it out to do a sound check and the front of house guy doesn’t know what it is, a tense conversation usually begins until we plug it in. Some serious recording/audio folks out there I’m sure are already familiar with these mics, but watch out. They could be a big deal really soon. They have even made a few appearances on late-night TV as of late. The best thing about them is they are made by a guy in the basement of his home who is passionate about his craft and is loving what he’s making, and it’s evident in the final product. That’s how stuff is supposed to work, right?
Video after the jump.
