MB Studios

Home

In addition to the loads of mixing, editing and tracking I’ve been doing, I’ve also been rehearsing and preparing for THIS, an interesting evening of jazz, voice loops, classical voice, and poetry. I’ll be singing with James Hall’s group and then heading to the amazing niche studio, Okatven, to track James’ debut album of original songs. Trombone, piano, drums, and voice. Check it.

 

At it again, back at the church! When I told Phil about the space I have access to and the organ we could use, he began to salivate and quietly mumble to himself, which caused some concern, but when he came to from his wide-eyed stupor, we immediately made plans to record some overdubs in the space. Throughout the day we tracked organ, snare drum hits, vocals and piano. Hearing that organ sing late into the night is something special. Check da pics.

 

The much anticipated debut full length, Manastery, from slop-pop rockers, Manbourine is dropping today! Manbourine recorded their album at Mother Brother Studios almost 2 years ago. I enjoyed working with Ben Benjamin and Rick Rick Rizulli, because they were down to experiment, and I’m always keen to those kinds of collaborations. Manastery is loud, raucous, beautiful, fuzzy, sentimental, bitter, funny, provocative, and intelligent. Manbourine will be releasing the record tonight at Muchmore’s in Brooklyn with Vensaire and Talkfine. Congrats, boyz.

 

More drums this weekend with ma man, Phil Cohen. Phil has been recording his 2nd full length album with me and it’s been a fantastic time. Next week we’ll be putting down organ tracks at Mother Brother Studios’ exclusive sanctuary space. I’m good n’ friendly with the administration over at FPCNC, so they let me use the space AND THIS BEAST! Drum pics!

 

I’ve been occupied recently tracking drums and percussion for Jeremy Bass’ album. So, here’s some shots of that. I figured out that my phone camera has a timer, hence, this fine montage. We’ve been collaborating with Jeremy’s friend, Pete, in L.A.. Pete used to play bass with Dweezil Zappa in Zappa Plays Zappa, so…he’s nasty good.

 

 

 

 

 

A great online music industry publication, SonicScoop, recently ran a feature on Mother Brother Studios. David Weiss, the founder, is an incredibly generous man. It was nice to speak with someone who took a genuine interest in the studios’ artistic endeavors. He highlights my exclusive access to a particular sanctuary in CT that holds endless acoustical possibilities, both traditional and avant-garde, for artists or ensembles. It would mean a lot to me if passing visitors would check the links and read up on some MoBro. Thanks to all!

 

So, my girlfriend’s nieces (12, 10 & 7) are very talented. Their personalities are so distinct and enjoyable that you can’t help but instantly love them. They each play instruments and had in their minds the idea to write a song for their parent’s anniversary. Of course, I thought this was a fantastic idea and got right to work composing the framework for the song. I wrote out flute and drum parts for the eldest and youngest, respectively, and let the middle one do her own thing (she’s a bit unyielding) on glockenspiel and my MC-303. The end result is a funky, somber groove (complete with adorable lyrics that the girls wrote) that is fun and meaningful. They’re super excited for the unveiling of all their hard work! Unfortunately, I couldn’t take any pictures of the youngest; working with the girls is a two person job…PICS!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Heyo! My man Phil Cohen stopped by the studio on Friday with his extraordinarily talented friend, Ramsey Khudairi. Ramsey was recruited by Phil to play some mandolin and fiddle on a handful of tunes for his upcoming album. This kid was a monster. We basically recorded as many takes as possible, focusing on  more subdued strumming ideas to all out shredding. Sifting through all the takes will be tedious, but I won’t mind listening to Ramsey’s playing over and over again! Pics!

 

 

 

 

 

 

On Thursday, Yokel and the Heavyweight hit the stage at Cameo Gallery in Brooklyn. Frontman, Chase Cailouette has been working on his album at Mother Brother Studios. I banged on some drums and new guitarist Jonathan Linden brought the blues. Great show!

 

 

 

 

 

 

“To suggest is to create; to describe is to destroy.” ~ Robert Doisneau

It’s all the same for me really. A melody painted with a brush, a catchy hook supplied by a splash of paint, an innovative soundscape found within the calming, rainbow-kissed lake of a Chagall, a broken heart displayed within an abstract mess of hot colors, or is there madness in a Mondrian? Music for the eyes, I’d say.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Well, another great weekend session with Phil Cohen. He brought by a really cool guitar, an ol’ Dane Electro surf guitar with lipstick pickups (encased in metal). The guitar is actually plastic! The sound we were able to capture was gritty and large, which I guess is the antithesis of the typical sound produced by this kind of guitar. Convention is a suggestion here at Mother Brother Studios. Really excited about this album! Next up: mandolin, fiddle, drums and ORGAN. Check the pics…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Last night, Phil Cohen and I had a late night session getting started on the last two tunes for his debut album. I’ve started to use my Grampian mics a lot, especially the 600 ohm model. They provide a narrow low end and a decent amount of warmth and fuzz that ends up being a really great texture to blend in with other clean signal mics. Phil is a really great live performer and for this session we focused on a solo acoustic song; vocals and guitar simultaneously. Worked out great!

Finally got around to recording an original tune today, or the beginnings of one anyway. I love my space echo and I tend to use it on everything, vocals, instruments, mixing, etc. It can add warmth, clarity and a sense of space and acoustic. In this case, I split the signal from my LDC giving me both a clean and effected signal. A fast repeat rate and low intensity added just the right amount of gentle reflection. Werd.

Recently, Davis Baer stopped by the studio to continue work on his album. We wanted to capture an old, warm guitar sound for one of his songs, which he describes as 50′s R & B, but with a touch of 40′s Doo-Wop. So, naturally I reached for the oldest mic in my collection: A 1960′s Grampian DP4/M Dynamic. These are designed to be lo-fi, so I paired it with a modded SM57 (which happens to be the most versatile and best performing mic in my collection) and BOOM! Some old, warm-fuzzy. 

 

 

 

 

 

The lovely Kate Bass singing live at the Metropolitan Room, NYC.

 

DEBUT: DawnMother. Recorded and mixed at Mother Brother Studios.

 

Another tune released by DawnMother (CT)

Recorded and mixed by Matthew Vitti at Mother Brother Studios

Mastered at MD Sounds

 

Video by Amanda Bloom of The Selkie

Music recorded, mixed and mastered at Mother Brother Studios

 

Debut Single From DawnMother (CT)

Recorded and mixed by Matthew Vitti at MB Studios

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kate made the TOP 10 SELLING Albums on Bandcamp!!!

Listen to this amazing tune!