Recording and Willie

     This past week has been a busy one for me. As most of you know, I've been working on a my new EP recently. Last wednesday I went to my friend/producer Gabe Nicholson's house to record the final guitars. This wasn't my first time recording guitar, but it was definitely more nerve racking than before. The whole sound of this album is more acoustic based, meaning my acoustic guitar is the only one you'll hear. There's no electric guitar covering it up, or loud drums. I'm in love with the simplicity of it. With me being a perfectionist, I wanted my guitar tracks to sound amazing since everything is centered around them. Some songs it only took two takes, and others it took thirty minutes to an hour.

     If you're wondering what that instrument is in the picture below, it is called a melodeon. I had never heard of one until Gabe pulled it out and said we should use it on one of the songs. So I took it home and played it for hours until I came up with a few simple things. I learned the hard way that if you don't take a few breaks from playing it, you get light headed. We definitely had a few laughs while recording it. (Fun Fact, Gabe found the melodeon at a junk store!)

     Thankfully, we always have snacks. Gabe knows me too well. I've actually begged my parents to let me move in with him and his wife, Amanda. Needless to say, it hasn't worked yet…

     Finally, five hours later, we had finished recording everything. It was tedious work. Even now, six days later, I still have a bad case of guitar shoulder. I don't really know if that's a thing but my shoulder is definitely still killing me. The best part of it all was the finished product. I'm extremely proud of everything we did; it's getting so much closer to being finished!

     On a different note, at the end of last week my parents surprised me with tickets to go see Willie Nelson on Saturday. All of you that know me, know that's a big deal. If I had one celebrity crush and/or hero it would be Willie Nelson. I had, at one time, expressed that I was afraid I would never get to see him live since he is getting older. When they told me we'd be going to see him after my show that morning, I totally freaked out.
     When we got there I was so excited I couldn't contain myself. Willie's son, Lukas Nelson, opened for him. My mind was blown from the moment he started singing. He sounded like a younger Willie, but with his own unique style. His guitar playing was a whole other story. He was amazing. Plus he was good looking like his dad  (I now have another celeb crush). He played for about an hour then he came back out with Willie to play rhythm guitar. I would definitely suggest looking him up.

(Willie Nelson and Lukas Nelson)

     When Willie came out I honestly felt like crying. We all have famous people we look up to. When you're a kid there's a few artists your parents or grandparents listen to. You see them on TV, or hear them on the radio. Willie Nelson was one of those for me. He's always been a legend. When he came out and started playing 'Whisky River' it felt so surreal. The guy I thought I'd never get to see in person, was standing on the stage right in front of me.  He played one hit after the other. Since he is 80, you could tell he doesn't have the breath he use to, but the one song he still sang the same was 'Always On My Mind'. I will never forget that moment. It's one of my favorite songs by him and it gave me chills.
     At the end of the night I was on cloud nine. I had to beg my mom to let me get the t'shirt I ended up with.

     All in all it has been a wonderful week. I'm one step closer to finishing my EP, I've had several amazing shows, and I got to see a country music legend. For an 80 year old, Willie has still got it (and he's adorable). Hope you all have enjoyed this post! Feel free to share your stories of seeing a legend you look up to!

Roll me up and smoke me when I die.


xx Carson

Home is where the studio is.

     Hey guys! Just thought I'd catch you up on what's been going on lately. About a week ago I was in the studio recording two new songs, which I'm SUPER excited about. For anyone who doesn't already know, I love being in the studio. Ever since the first time I was lucky enough to get to record a demo, I've loved everything about it. Not only has so much great music been made in it, but so many amazing artists have worked there for hours at a time to perfect their music. The atmosphere is so laid back. Not to mention I learn something new every time I go there.
     Some of you guys might not know what happens when I go to record, so I'll try to break it down.

Most of the time the full band production is already done, which means just the vocals are left to be recorded. I'm so thankful for the amazing musicians that have played on my songs. The music is normally recorded wherever the session players are ( California, Tennessee, Texas etc.). Every time I go to the studio it's different. It depends on who you're working with. Most of the time we walk in and take a few minutes to catch up with everyone. After that we get down to business. I go into a separate room from the sound board, put on my headphones, and run through the song once so we can get the volumes right, then start to record the real thing.

     Once I've gone through the song about four times I go back to the main room where everyone is. I tend to joke around a little and talk before we are ready to do the vocal comp. I bet some of you guys are wondering what that is exactly. Vocal comp. is when we go through a little section of the song at a time and pick the best parts of the four times I went through the song. It can be quite a tedious job. Some artists leave it up to the producer or engineer to do it, but I can be a perfectionist, and I like getting a say in how I sound in my songs. Once we're done with that, I either go back to the recording room and record the backing vocals, or we're finished. Sometimes it can take hours, or even days. I honestly wouldn't mind having to work in the studio for weeks.

     Like I said I learn new things every time I go to the studio. Sometimes it's musical stuff and others it's stuff about me I never knew. For example, this past week I've learned that I love the technical side of music. Yes, it can be a pain when you have to go through every little detail of a song, or you might be editing something and the computer decides it doesn't want to work, but I could see myself working on that side of music one day. Maybe a producer, or audio engineer? I don't know, but it definitely makes me think. I know right, that sounds scary! Haha. I guess everyone learns new things about themselves every day.
     I know I'm probably leaving a few things out on what happens at the studio, but like I said I'm still learning. Plus I think I'm lucky if you guys are still awake after reading this. I hope I'm not too boring and y'all enjoyed reading it. I'd like to quickly thank everyone who helped with my songs! They sound amazing, and I can't wait for everyone to hear them. Keep your eyes out! I'll hopefully post something again soon.

xx Carson