Starlight Mints master new CD at Treelady

Barsuk Records recording artists The Starlight Mints are finishing up their new CD with mastering engineer Garrett Haines. The new CD, which will be titled CHANGE REMAINS, was recorded by Allan Vest, and mixed by Trent Bell at Bell Labs Recording Studios in Norman, OK.

While the release date is not firm, Barsuk records Vice President Christopher Possanza indicated the label wanted to make sure it was in stores to support a summer 2009 tour for the Mints. Their full schedule can be found here.

The band's previous CD, DROWATOWN, was also mastered at Treelady Studios. The three year gap between recordings was due to the successful placement of the band's songs in numerous productions, including several Disney animated features, and National Lampoon's feature film, The Rise of Taj.  The band receives critical praise for their unique sound.  NPR notes:  "The Oklahoma-based rock group excels at immaculately crafted songs, but also keeps a truckload of tinsel, chimes and other sparkly trimmings in tow at all times, designing entire houses of sound and then decorating them to the nines."

Harmony Central Publishes Series from Haines

Harmony Central has published the first article in a series written by Treelady's Garrett Haines. In The Recording Life Cycle, Haines outlines the six key phases of record production. The first article, posted on 29 March 2009 provides an overview of each phase. Future articles will provide in-depth examinations of each Life Cycle phase. Harmony-central.com is the leading Internet resource for musicians, supplying valuable information from news and product reviews, to classified ads and chat rooms. The all-in-one Web site gives musicians benefits not available through traditional physical retail channels and provides extensive product information.

Harmony Central Editor Craig Anderton plans to run a new article each month. The first installment can be found here.

Treelady Mastering Quoted in EQ Magazine

The April 2009 issue of EQ Magazine quotes Treelady Mastering Chief Engineer Garrett Haines. In an article 'Masters on Mastering' by Craig Anderton, Haines is questioned about which mastering tools he finds indispensable in his daily work. A photo of Treelady Studios' Studio G Mastering Suite also appears in the piece.

EQ Magazine is published by New Bay Media and can be found at news stands and booksellers everywhere.

Treelady Mastering Client in Performing Songwriter Magazine

Treelady Mastering Client Matt Woods was recently called out by Performing Songwriter Magazine as having one of the 12 best DIY CDs of the year. Even though the project was recorded at home, it was mixed at Shed 55 in Knoxville, TN, and mastered at Treelady Studios. In her "Top 12 DIY Picks" Editor Lee Zimmerman had the following praise for Woods:

"It’s only a matter of time before singer-songwriter Matt Woods finds wider recognition. His second album offers the immediacy and accessibility that major labels generally latch onto. On songs like “My Way,” “Flight to California” and “Lonely Ones,” Woods wades through one emotional tempest after another, garnering powerful, affecting performances that resonate even on first hearing.

Woods matches his commanding vocals with an ace backing band in Plan A. Together they provide the riveting, rock-solid arrangements these tunes call for—whether turning up the heat for a searing rocker or adding just the right touch of nuance to one of Woods’ searing, sad-eyed ballads. It’s that balance between frenzy and finesse that gives these rugged, restless narratives an unequivocal sense of determination and purpose."

Treelady Owner One of 36 Chosen for Global Study

Dave Viney, a post-graduate student from London College of Music, has published research on the effects of over-compressed music in a report called ‘The Obsession With Compression’. Dr. Viney was looking into the correlation between compression (the dynamics-processing type) and commercial success in popular music, which has been widely discussed in recent months and years in the music press and the wider media.

To conduct his research, he’s polled a select group consisting of 36 producers and engineers from around the world, including Treelady Studios' Chief Mastering Engineer, Garrett Haines. Dr. Viney analyzed music sales records, and made detailed measurements of the loudness of commercial material using a meter provided by DK Technologies.

"When I received the request from Maureen Droney, the President of the Grammy Foundation's Producer & Engineering Wing, I was honored and excited about the project," said Haines. "In mastering circles we often talk about the ill effects of over compression, but until now there has been limited quantitative research on the subject." Haines is no stranger to statistical research. His master's thesis written at Carnegie Mellon University's Heinz College combined econometrics, census data, and geographical information systems to analyze the concentration of municipal governments in the Southwestern Pennsylvania region.

Meanwhile, in London, Dr. Viney is using his 77-page post-doctorate paper as a catalysts for discussion on over-compression, such as the reaction to the release of Metallica’s Death Magnetic album in 2008, and goes on to display the research in graphical form; there are over 300 charts.

Louder is NOT better

Summarizing the report, Dr. Viney comments, “there is no evidence of any significant correlation between actual loudness (and thus overall compression) and commercial success. Furthermore, assessments suggest that less-compressed material is more pleasant-sounding”. He concludes, “the obsession with compression tends to limit commercial success!”.

Having completed this report, Viney is hoping to establish himself as a part-time researcher for the music business. He can be contacted at dave-viney [AT] btconnect.com.

Treelady Mastering Client Charts in Rolling Stone

Audio Eagle recording artist and Treelady Mastering client Houseguest made national headlines in the January 8, 2009 print issue of Rolling Stone Magazine in the Chart Section. A top-favorite at Akron, OH Square Records, the new CD, 'Welcome, all that's Difficult.' was number 2 behind the new Deerhunter CD.  The album was recorded and mixed by Ben Vehorn at Tangerine Sound Studios in Akron. Congrats to Houseguest, and make sure to check out our favorite track 'Carla' by purchasing their new release or visiting Houseguest's MYSPACE page.

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Treelady Sponsors Hard Rock Challenge 2009

Treelady Studios is proud to return as a sponsor of the WXDX Winter Rock Challenge. Held at Pittsburgh's Hard Rock Café twenty of the region's best bands will compete for thousands of dollars in prizes, including a grand prize from Treelady Studios. The award includes a full 3 song EP package that covers recording, mixing, editing, and mastering. For more details check out www.wxdx.com

Treelady Client Somerhill Releases New Pair

‘Free Your Mind (Tara Na)’ and ‘Today or Tomorrow’ now available. On December 14, 2008, Core Media House L.L.C. released Free Your Mind (Tara Na), a new song performed by Somerhill . Core Media House released a second new Somerhill song, Today or Tomorrow, on December 28, 2008. Free Your Mind (Tara Na) and Today or Tomorrow are available on the Internet at Amazon.com.

Click here to listen to a low-fidelity clip of Free Your Mind (Tara Na). Click here to listen to a low-fidelity clip of Today or Tomorrow.

Somerhill is

• Chad Gontkovic: lead vocal; backing vocals; electric guitar

• Greg Kehl: backing vocals; electric rhythm guitar; electric guitar solo; synthesizer strings; synthesizer electric grand piano

• Bill Rose: backing vocals; six-string and twelve-string acoustic steel guitars

With Somerhill were:

Charles Constantino: electric bass guitar; acoustic nylon guitar; acoustic drum kit; synthesizer piano solo; synthesizer electric pianos; synthesizer shaker/triangle and other performers.

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About Somerhill: Winner of the 2006 Rockin’ in the Valley original music contest held by Our Town, Somerhill was the closing act for American Idol finalist Chris Daughtry in March 2007 in Pittsburgh.   Greg Kehl noted that Charles Constantino, “showed us how to turn our basic riffs and melodies into layers and layers of beautiful sounds. It was fun to see someone with so much knowledge of music in his element while we were in pre-production and in the studio.” “He’s just a musical genius,” Bill Rose said of Constantino in an interview for Our Town. According to Rose, Constantino added “multiple harmonies, different back-up vocals, different types of singing, and different instruments that we hadn’t even considered.” “The determination of Somerhill to evolve as musicians and songwriters impressed me. I enjoyed my time with the group,” Constantino stated.

Treelady Records Discovery Channel Segment

On Monday, November 10, 2008, Treelady Studios engineer Kyle Smith recorded noted author John Ventre for an upcoming Discovery Channel special. The show, scheduled to debut in 2008, is titled: UFO's OVER EARTH, and focuses on the UFO phenomenon, as well as hoaxes and the unexplained . Ventre, a native of Greensburg, PA is the author of 2/21/2012: A Prophecy, available on Amazon. Treelady was retained by Creative Differences, a Los Angeles-based television production company responsible for the program.

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