My band did a show with an orchestra (videos)

[Poparad]

For our album release show in January, we played a this super hip "environmental theatre" in Akron (in the early 1900's a number of theatres across the US were built to look like you were outside in some other part of the world. If you look up at the ceiling, it looks like a nighttime sky).

For the show, I assembled an orchestra to both accompany us on a few tunes, and also to play some pieces I specifically wrote for them. I had the concert filmed and recorded, and I've finally been going through and mixing the audio and editing the video. I've got four songs done so far (of 17):

 

[Mark Wein]

If you can get something like this going in Ohio maybe I need to get the fuck out of SoCal. Sounds pretty rad. Listening to the first video right now.

 

[sonik]

Very cool, everything sounds nice and clear. Great mix! How many channels you got going?

 

[Poparad]

If you can get something like this going in Ohio maybe I need to get the fuck out of SoCal. Sounds pretty rad. Listening to the first video right now.

Northeastern Ohio has had a very strong music scene for decades with some really heavy players. The only reason I was able to pull the orchestra off is because I do so much musical theatre and have made many friends who play strings, woodwinds, etc, and would be willing to do something like this.

 

[Poparad]

Very cool, everything sounds nice and clear. Great mix! How many channels you got going?

Thanks! For the band, 7 channels for drums, 5 for the rest (one mono track each part). The venue only set up three orchestra mics and summed them all to a single mono channel (plus one percussion mic we set up but wasn't in the house), but fortunately the mics on the two main cameras and the two GoPros were actually pretty good, and because they're all in different places, picked up different instruments. When mixed together, they created a really nice, full mix. I was quite surprised at how lucky I got with that.

 

[Denverdave]

Lovely! Sounds amazing. Which guitar player are you? I am assuming the guy on the 10(?) string?

 

[Dogsinplastic]

Who are you on that stage? What's the tuning in the nine(?)-string?

It got me in the headspace of Echolyn and Big Big Train while not sounding like a clone of either. The female lead vocalist in a progressive setting is great.

 

[Poparad]

Yeah, I'm the guy with the 9-string guitar on the left.

 

[Dogsinplastic]

It got me in the headspace of Echolyn and Big Big Train while not sounding like a clone of either.

That was just based on the first clip. Listening to the third now (accidentally skipped the second, but will listen shortly).

Imagine a group of incredibly capable musicians...that can play live no less!? And playing music that isn't the same cookie cutter shit, surely this is not happening in 2016...???

 

[micwalt]

That is some seriously impresive shit right there!
Just awesome!

 

[rhino]

Easily the coolest thing I've seen today. Cheers!

 

[Dogsinplastic]

Pop, great stuff all around. Did you fill the venue? Not that it matters, but I'm interested in how big the ears of Akron are. Vil Rouge is another group that you guys are reminding of while not actually sounding like them.

The XeN guitars seem really cool too.

 

[Dogsinplastic]

It the core band the same as the Wolf House session vids? I know styles change, but it looks like the bassist and keyboard player are different. The idea that you could find other musicians that would want to and could play your stuff so well speaks highly of the local talent pool.

 

[Kerouac]

If you can get something like this going in Ohio maybe I need to get the fuck out of SoCal. Sounds pretty rad. Listening to the first video right now.

The lower cost of living here means you can usually get talented folks to do unique projects without cutting into their bottom line.

Great job, Jeremey.

 

[Poparad]

Pop, great stuff all around. Did you fill the venue? Not that it matters, but I'm interested in how big the ears of Akron are. Vil Rouge is another group that you guys are reminding of while not actually sounding like them.

The XeN guitars seem really cool too.

We had a decent crowd. This was one of their "cabaret" style shows, where the audience is seated on stage, with a smaller stage for us to stand on. They typically do that with jazz groups and rock groups that aren't nationally famous. The stage can seat 200 and we had 110 that night.

The Xen is nice instrument. Xen is run by one guy, Eric Lovett, and he's a great guy to work with. Very passionate, and primarily focused on making customers happy. He does the designs, and then commissions builds from various luthiers in America and Canada. My guitar is actually in NYC right now getting some repair work done, but Eric's been really on top of helping me out with that. I'm also going to be going to NAMM next month as a guest performer for Xen at Eric's booth.

 

[Poparad]

It the core band the same as the Wolf House session vids? I know styles change, but it looks like the bassist and keyboard player are different. The idea that you could find other musicians that would want to and could play your stuff so well speaks highly of the local talent pool.

Yeah, the keyboard player in the Wolf House video was actually our original keyboardist from 2011. He'd moved out of town, but happened to be in town that weekend and we were still searching for a new, permanent guy. The bassist is actually one of my guitar students at Kent State, but he's a fine bassist, too. He replaced the long time guy from the Wolf House video who left under some bizarre circumstances about a month before we did the concert in the videos here. I'm still impressed at how the new guy, Corey, was able to learn all that music so well in less than 30 days.

Since everyone in my band is a working musician, I've actually had three completely different lineups for each of the three albums. Every time I release something, everyone moves away for school, careers, etc. In fact, I just found out that my current singer is moving to Boston next month! Fortunately I have a new prospect lined up. Musical theatre has been quite a blessing in terms of networking with lots of very talented musicians. The new singer is someone I've done more than a dozen theatre productions with over the years, and happens to be really into metal and progressive music.

 

[Dogsinplastic]

We had a decent crowd. This was one of their "cabaret" style shows, where the audience is seated on stage, with a smaller stage for us to stand on. They typically do that with jazz groups and rock groups that aren't nationally famous. The stage can seat 200 and we had 110 that night.

The Xen is nice instrument. Xen is run by one guy, Eric Lovett, and he's a great guy to work with. Very passionate, and primarily focused on making customers happy. He does the designs, and then commissions builds from various luthiers in America and Canada. My guitar is actually in NYC right now getting some repair work done, but Eric's been really on top of helping me out with that. I'm also going to be going to NAMM next month as a guest performer for Xen at Eric's booth.

Very cool. How does the Xen compare to the Agile?

 

[Dogsinplastic]

Yeah, the keyboard player in the Wolf House video was actually our original keyboardist from 2011. He'd moved out of town, but happened to be in town that weekend and we were still searching for a new, permanent guy. The bassist is actually one of my guitar students at Kent State, but he's a fine bassist, too. He replaced the long time guy from the Wolf House video who left under some bizarre circumstances about a month before we did the concert in the videos here. I'm still impressed at how the new guy, Corey, was able to learn all that music so well in less than 30 days.

Since everyone in my band is a working musician, I've actually had three completely different lineups for each of the three albums. Every time I release something, everyone moves away for school, careers, etc. In fact, I just found out that my current singer is moving to Boston next month! Fortunately I have a new prospect lined up. Musical theatre has been quite a blessing in terms of networking with lots of very talented musicians. The new singer is someone I've done more than a dozen theatre productions with over the years, and happens to be really into metal and progressive music.

Will the new singer also be a female? Not that it would matter, but it is definitely part of what makes your band stand out from others.

 

[Poparad]

Very cool. How does the Xen compare to the Agile?

It's quite a step up, to say the least! It weights about half as much, and the tone is much more open and resonant. The neck profile is also a lot more comfortable to play (not quite so flat - more V shaped and less extreme U shaped).

 

[Poparad]

Will the new singer also be a female? Not that it would matter, but it is definitely part of what makes your band stand out from others.

Yes, and amazingly she has the same vocal range, too, so I don't need to rearrange any of the music! I like working with female singers for two reasons: 1) I know a lot more of them, so it's easier for me to find ones to work with and 2) Because I write harmonically complex music, having the vocal line one octave higher affords me a lot more headroom for the accompaniment. Many of the notes in the vocal parts sound great up higher as extensions of the chords, but one octave lower they would be rubbing in 2nds with other chord tones. It's really become an essential part of how I write the music.