The Nashville Highrise Variations (rough mixes)

I spent the weekend in Nashville, holed up in The Toy Box, the recording studio my longtime songwriting and production partner Lij ingeniously crafted out of the small garage in his backyard. (Good precedent for such a thing; this summer Mitch Easter reminded me that The Drive-In where he made the first R.E.M. recordings was his parents' garage, hence the name.)

In the studio: Three Fried Men, as we style ourselves when we are working on band songs for Poetry Scores. The poem we are scoring this time around: The Sydney Highrise Variations by the great Australian poet Les Murray.

In the band, this time around: Lij, mostly playing drums, but also acoustic guitar, organ and piano, with background vocals and whistling; Matt Fuller, in from Los Angeles, mostly playing acoustic guitar, but also electric guitar and drums, with background vocals; Dave Melson, mostly playing bass, but also acoustic guitar and background vocals; and me, singing and coordinating.

Special guests: Marc Primo, who engineered the sessions when Lij didn't; and Roger Moutenot, the historied producer (Velvet Underground, Roseanne Cash, Paula Cole, Bill Frisell, John Zorn and the last fifteen Yo La Tengo records), who dropped by for a beer and sat in on drums for one track.

I'll be blogging about this session for weeks, I suppose, but for now let me just post up some rough mixes. Please note that, thus far, we have done almost none of the things to these tracks that one does to a song to finish it. We have not compiled ("comp'd") multiple takes into one to edit out the rough spots, endlessly tweaked the tones and effects, or (in most cases) added color instruments, solos, or background vocals.

These are just the best live takes of the ten tracks we worked on, with a few dabbles at background vocals and color instrumentation, quickly pulled together in rough mixes and dumped to disc for the drive home - and to share with the other musicians (Tim McAvin, Heidi Dean, John Minkoff, Chris Voelker, Adam Long, Carl Pandolfi, Eric Hall) who will be needed to complete them.

I am throwing these rough mixes up here so those particular folks can hear and download them - and so anyone can follow the gradual construction of our poetry score to Les Murray's great poem The Sydney Highrise Variations from its barest foundations.

For maximum fun, follow along to the lyrics (the poem) as you listen.

Free mp3s

“Far above the tidal turnaround”
(Chris King, Lij, Les Murray)
Three Fried Men

“Transients at speed”
(Chris King, Lij, Les Murray)
Three Fried Men

“Inked in by scaffolding and workers”
(Matt Fuller, Chris King, Les Murray)
Three Fried Men

“On its vaulting drum”
(Matt Fuller, Chris King, Les Murray)
Three Fried Men

"They docked at apogee”
(Matt Fuller, Chris King, Les Murray)
Three Fried Men

“Hot-air money driers”
(Matt Fuller, Chris King, Les Murray)
Three Fried Men

“In the land of veneers”
(Matt Fuller, Chris King, Les Murray)
Three Fried Men

“The C19-20”
(Matt Fuller, Chris King, Les Murray)
Three Fried Men
(With Roger Moutenot on drums
and Les Murray on vocals)

"The cantilevered behometh"
(Matt Fuller, Chris King, Les Murray)
Three Fried Men

“Breath of catching up”
(Chris King, Lij, Les Murray)
Three Fried Men

Come back often for more pictures and stories from this session and to follow the progress of the score!