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DocWu's Other Blog

Another place on the web from the Doc

Posts tagged with "podcast"

Happy Fourth of July (Independance Day)

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Well, I've been remiss in not getting a podcast out sooner, but finally got one done today.

It's the Ghost Riders at the Sprotsman's Tavern from a couple weeks back. The recording turned out really good and I hope everyone enjoys it. It's the first country music I've featured and I won't pretend to be a Country Music expert, but I know what I like, and I like these guys music.

This is the first podcast I've put up that really shows off the new recording gear I'm using. I recorded four tracks and had a ball being able to play around a bit with tweaking each track.

I did a recording of Peter Case (also at the Sportsmans) the same way, but unfortunately, haven't got approval to publish it yet. (He asked to be able to review the recording first.)

The Sweatin' Like Nixon podcast also used the new recorder, but I only had two tracks to work with. (Two mics.)

But anyway, I have the podcast all done. The file is uploaded to the host. (Libsyn) and I'm in the middle of editing the blog entry at the wnypodcast site and apparently, I've broken the Internet. All of a sudden, everything is going either very slowly, or not at all between here and the server.

Other sites are working, - hence this post - but I'm sitting here inches from the finish line to posting the podcast :-)

Some previews of what's in the works for the Buffalo Live! Music Podcast:

Thought - a really talented group of musicians based in NYC, but all from this area. They played at the Rhubarb Picnic I caught Sweatin' Like Nixon at and I want to feature them soon. I do need an interview, but we're going to attempt a telephone interview soon. A BLMP fisrt!

Toy Box Heroes - I don't remember where I first heard of them, but had been checking their music out on MySpace before I met them at the Music Is Art festival. They invited me to do a podcast of their CD Release party at Club Infinity. They're energetgic (understatement) stage act with a hard-driving rock sound. I expect these guys to go far!

Gravity Thieves - I met this band at the Memorial Day picnic that Scott of
All WNY Radio put on. They played a great set and have allowed me to put it in a podcast.

John & Mary with The Valkyries - Another show at the Sportsman's. They played there as a rehearsal for their show at the Great Blue Heron Festival and I finally got to do a podcast and interview with them. I've been a fan of theirs for years. AS you may know John was a founding member of the 10,000 Maniacs and both he and Mary joined the band after Natalie Merchant left. They later went back out on their own and have decided that sometimes it would be nice to have a band to play with on some shows. The Valkyries is the answer to that. They're already in their (at least) second iteration. (I know Geno McManus worked with them previously.) Every member in the band is a established local musician, so you can even call it an all-star group. This will make a really neat podcast.

Well, it looks like the logjam to the main site has cleared, so I'd better get the podcast done!

Peter Case at the Sportsmans Tavern - May 27, 2006

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I went to the Sportsmans again, this time to record for a podcast featuring Peter Case. He was playing there with Mark Winsick, Jim Whitford, and Rob Lynch backing him.

Peter is a former Buffalo-area resident who left the area and found fame as a songwriter and leader of the punk band The Plimsouls. After they left the scene, he has been playing as a solo act as well as collaborating with many other respected artists.

His songs have been covered by so many people it would be impossible to list them all here. A charity organization, Hungry For Music, which raises money to support music in education, much as Bufalo's Music Is Art group does, has put out a tribute CD - three CDs in fact - of other artists covering his songs. His tour through Buffalo was to support this CD. The CD is called A Case for Case, and has 48 songs, every one of them a great track.

I've been talking with Mark Winsick about doing a podcast for some time. We've been waiting for the right time to do it - a date where he can do at least a set of his original material, but haven't done it yet. I hope we still will. I think Mark and his band, Jim Whitford and Rob Lynch, is one of the best blues bands you will see anywhere. They are each exceptional musicians, but when they play together, they just click. It's easy to see why they play together. They would have been the perfect band to back up Case, even if Mark and Jim weren't long-time friends.

I recorded the show. It was the first show I used my new Fostex MR8-HD recorder on and I put up three mikes and a direct feed out of the sound system and it came out great. It is so cool being able to play around with the four tracks after the fact and tweak things just so.

Peter felt he didn't have the best night and asked me to let him preview the recordings before I use them for a podcast. I'm a bit dissappointed in that, but I hope when I get back with him and let him hear the show, he'll approve it. I thought it sounded great and - as I always say - the podcast isn't a studio recording, it's supposed to have the feel of a live show, crowd noise and all, so perfection isn't necessary.

In any case - no pun intended - I had a great night enjoying a legend perform in an intimate venue and got some great recordings out of it. I'm happy, but I'll be happier when I can share it in a podcast.

The Blog behind the blog...

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This is quickly becoming the blog behind the blog or behind the podcast, anyway.

As I post more between podcasts here, it will be kind of the insiders view on the Buffalo Live! Music Podcast.

I really don't want to fill the podcast page up with ramblings, or opinions, or even daily goings on. So I'll use this space for that. Then the podcast subscribers will see only podcasts and podcast-related announcements, while if you want to follow in more detail, you may read here.

The album feature is something I've been using a lot. The photo albums here are so much easier than creating my own pages on the wnypodcast.com page.

I still have my personal page at gritzmacher.net for my personal, work, family and tech rants and raves too and my myspace page for all the MySpace contacts. All I need is time to write more...

Some great blues at Vizzi's

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Last Friday, I went out to see Mark Winsick play at Vizzi's in Kenmore. It was a last-minute decision, so no recording for a podcast was done. But due to a cancellation, I had a free evening and had to go see him and his band play. I was treated to some of the best blues in Buffalo.

Let me introduce the band. Besides Mark on guitar and vocals, is bassist Jim Whitford, another Buffalo legend. On drums was Rob Lynch, a highly-regarded musician in his own right. If someone had thrown a hand-grenade through the window at Vizzi's that night, the overall level of talent in the Buffalo area would have dropped noticably!

Watching these musicians play was an experience. While I've seen many good musicians lately, not very many made it look so effortless as this trio did. Whitford's bass playing was subtle and strong at the same time. Never showboating, just damn good playing. He sang on a song or two and added harmony on many others. Lynch's drum skills were impressive as well, again not for being showy, but for his ability to feel the music and always play the perfect rythms for the song.

Winsick, was of course the lead man of the group. His voice is good for the blues, not trying to follow some other artist's style, but his own unassuming style. His guitar work was impressive too. Effortlessly playing what most other musicians would struggle with, but always serving the music, not showing off. Journeyman is the term that comes to mind.

They played three sets, mostly covers of blues standards, to an appreciative audience. There was plenty of dancing going on and his fans were from all generations, from mid-20's to the senior citizen crowd.

Vizzi's is an interesting place. A neighborhood bar in a typical storefront building, it looks more like a restaraunt than a bar, and in fact does seem to have a decent menu. The decor is unlike many bars, light and colorful, not black and dark. It would be a good place to go catch a beer and sandwich and watch some sports.

I'll be getting with Mark in the future to put a podcast together. He has a good catalog of original songs as well and we hope to showcase some of them soon.

It's been nearly a month...

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since I posted here.

Let's see what's happened since then?

The Feast http://www.thefeast.biz podcast. I visited with The Feast and recorded a podcast. It turned out pretty well. See it at the Buffalo Live! Music Podcast page. (It's down as I write this, otherwise I'd be writing there. It should be back by tomorrow.) (Alternate site: http://feeds.feedburner.com/BuffaloMusic/ or the links page here.)

Penny Whiskey http://pennywhiskey.com I recorded a podcast with Penny Whiskey last Saturday at the Buffalo Irish Center. It's in editing now and should go up at the above site by the weekend.

Surgery. I had my sinuses cleared out Monday and I'm sitting here all stuffed and swollen up. Hopefully, when the swelling is gone and all healed, it will be clear breathing...

Christmas Shopping. I haven't even begun to shop. I don't know when I'll get time. At least I have this week off of work.

Flyin' Blind in Lockport

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Last night I went to the Flyin' Blind show in Lockport. They played at the American Legion which is great for me, it's close to home. Like walking distance.

I had just gotten in two new microphones and a couple of stands to go with them, so I dragged the podcast equipment along. I asked if they would be willing to take part in a podcast and got permission to record the show and a few interviews, which I did.

I've been to some of their shows before (photo album here) and have gotten to know the band. So it was the perfect chance to try out the equipment.

We did record the show and several interviews. I'm still editing the audio, so the podcast isn't up yet.

The new microphones are some large-diaphragm condenser mikes, and I'm afraid the sound level there was just too much for them, or I should say it, as I only recorded in mono with one mike. I thought at first it was just some distortion in the headphone amp, as I had to turn it up all the way to hear in the loud room. But the recordings are slightly distorted. Not that bad that they can't be used, but not as good as I would like.

The recorder, a Marantz PMD-660, doesn't have a lo-cut. I suspect that may have helped if there was one. But maybe not. Maybe the mike was just overloaded. I'll have to play around more with them to tell. I did use the -20db attenuator setting, which is why I suspect it was just too much for the mike.

[Update: I've since heard that the PMD-660 is noted for mike preamps that are easily overloaded. I've since done live recordings using a mixer between the mikes and the recorder and had much better results. Oade Electronics sells modified PMD-660s that have this problem fixed, but it's too late for mine, they don't do retrofits.]

Maybe a foam cover will help. Maybe not. I may need to just get some dynamic mikes for that sort of situation. Or maybe a preamp with a lo-cut filter.

I had the PMD-660 set to break the recording up into new files every 5 minutes. I don't know if that was such a good idea. I didn't remember setting it that way, but when I got home, there were nearly 50 files! It's not too hard to put them back together, but it's a pain. On the other hand, it made it easy to find certain parts of the show.

Anyway, it was a great show. The place filled up early and stayed crowded most of the night. Good thing I got there extra early and got a good spot. I met an old friend and a friend of his and sat with them the whole night. It was a real case of good music and good company.

Flyin' Blind was the winner of the recent WNY Blues Society Best New Album Award and their CD has been submitted for the national competition in Memphis. They were the winners of the Memphis Bound competition last year as well.

Their CD which has been out since this summer, Havin' Fun Feelin' Blue contains all original material and is one of the best Blues CDs I've heard in quite a while.

I'll put some photos up here to hold you over until the podcast, which will be at Buffalo Live! Music Podcast.
November 2009
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