so i saw these guys for the first time in charleston last night. 4th row all night, killer sound, it was awesome. seriously rocking, and the pedal steel sounded great, killer drummer. however i thought noticed some other acoustic guitar playing while jim james was playing something else, or not playing at all. Anyone know whats the deal with this? no biggie, i'll still go see them again just on accord of those ripping, gun-slinging grooves...
peace
nuthin'?
what song was it?
i dunno song titles, but it was on several of the acoustic numbers...Librarian for example, he was doing some picking, while there was full on acoustic strumming going on somewhere...oh well
I would say that on most acoustic songs Carl is playing slide guitar while Jim plays acoustic
Quoteso i saw these guys for the first time in charleston last night. 4th row all night, killer sound, it was awesome. seriously rocking, and the pedal steel sounded like great, killer drummer. however i thought noticed some other acoustic guitar playing while jim james was playing something else, or not playing at all. Anyone know whats the deal with this? no biggie, i'll still go see them again just on accord of those ripping, gun-slinging grooves...
peace
I would generally say that, if Jim is playing something else (guitar or Omnichord), then any acoustic guitar you hear would be Carl. If Carl is also on something else, like slide, then I wonder if Bo's sampling some pre-recorded guitar.
I stumbled upon the video below just two days ago, a facinating interview with Bo Koster, MMJ keyboardist. He describes the equipment he uses to provide pre-recorded backing vocals (Wordless Chorus, Highly Suspiscious) and strings (Gideon). Its 11 minutes well spent.
[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m5AbmFq8dYY[/media]
QuoteQuoteso i saw these guys for the first time in charleston last night. 4th row all night, killer sound, it was awesome. seriously rocking, and the pedal steel sounded like great, killer drummer. however i thought noticed some other acoustic guitar playing while jim james was playing something else, or not playing at all. Anyone know whats the deal with this? no biggie, i'll still go see them again just on accord of those ripping, gun-slinging grooves...
peace
I would generally say that, if Jim is playing something else (guitar or Omnichord), then any acoustic guitar you hear would be Carl. If Carl is also on something else, like slide, then I wonder if Bo's sampling some pre-recorded guitar.
I stumbled upon the video below just two days ago, a facinating interview with Bo Koster, MMJ keyboardist. He describes the equipment he uses to provide pre-recorded backing vocals (Wordless Chorus, Highly Suspiscious) and strings (Gideon). Its 11 minutes well spent.
[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m5AbmFq8dYY[/media]
Fuckin wicked John!! I've been looking for something like this on Bo. thanks man.
bo triggers vocal parts but I don't think they have acoustic backing tracks or anything. fairly certain.
QuoteQuoteso i saw these guys for the first time in charleston last night. 4th row all night, killer sound, it was awesome. seriously rocking, and the pedal steel sounded like great, killer drummer. however i thought noticed some other acoustic guitar playing while jim james was playing something else, or not playing at all. Anyone know whats the deal with this? no biggie, i'll still go see them again just on accord of those ripping, gun-slinging grooves...
peace
then I wonder if Bo's sampling some pre-recorded guitar.
that's what i was thinking....doesn't seem that out of the realm of possibility, i'm just not sure if i like that....nice full sound, but at what cost?
if he is sampling, its probably something that they personally have recorded
We know they use pre-recorded sampling for the Gideon strings and the vocals of Wordless and H. Susp. Personally, I'd rather have them sample their own recordings than bring on some backup singers or extra musicians. Its still all them. Even the Gideon strings, while originally played by session musicians (I imagine) were arranged by Jim and the boys. Its not like they're lip synching or playing air guitar up there. Imagine seeing Queen live and expecting them to pull off Bohemian Rhapsody without some pre-recorded stuff. Not bloody likely, mate. And Bo still needs to have things timed well when he's bringing up these tracks, so its its own form of instrumentation, I suppose. Does this make any sense?
QuoteWe know they use pre-recorded sampling for the Gideon strings and the vocals of Wordless and H. Susp. Personally, I'd rather have them sample their own recordings than bring on some backup singers or extra musicians. Its still all them. Even the Gideon strings, while originally played by session musicians (I imagine) were arranged by Jim and the boys. Its not like they're lip synching or playing air guitar up there. Imagine seeing Queen live and expecting them to pull off Bohemian Rhapsody without some pre-recorded stuff. Not bloody likely, mate. And Bo still needs to have things timed well when he's bringing up these tracks, so its its own form of instrumentation, I suppose. Does this make any sense?
Totally.
Keep in mind that Jim (especially if he plays a solo show) can really manipulate the sound of whatever instrument he's playing. As far as acoustic guitar, sometimes I've seen him strum chords, run the bass line, and play lead all at the same time. I understand Bo is working a lot of magic back there, but a song like Golden or Librarian is played clean and clear...all Jim until the band comes in.
QuoteKeep in mind that Jim (especially if he plays a solo show) can really manipulate the sound of whatever instrument he's playing. As far as acoustic guitar, sometimes I've seen him strum chords, run the bass line, and play lead all at the same time. I understand Bo is working a lot of magic back there, but a song like Golden or Librarian is played clean and clear...all Jim until the band comes in.
I seen it with my own ears!
QuoteQuoteKeep in mind that Jim (especially if he plays a solo show) can really manipulate the sound of whatever instrument he's playing. As far as acoustic guitar, sometimes I've seen him strum chords, run the bass line, and play lead all at the same time. I understand Bo is working a lot of magic back there, but a song like Golden or Librarian is played clean and clear...all Jim until the band comes in.
I seen it with my own ears!
;D
The drum intro to laylow is bo on the keyboard, patrick comes in later on the actuall drums. I learned this front row at the cary show. When the drum intro started patrick was wiping his head with a towel using both hands. and waited several measures before he joined in.
QuoteThe drum intro to laylow is bo on the keyboard, patrick comes in later on the actuall drums. I learned this front row at the cary show. When the drum intro started patrick was wiping his head with a towel using both hands. and waited several measures before he joined in.
This is a great example of what we've been talking about. I think I first caught it watching Rockpalast. At first you're like "what the f..." But really, what do we expect? Let Patrick have a moment to wipe his brow. God knows he deserves it, the maniac. It bridges the gap between what a band can do in the studio and what they can do on stage. You can go too far, but I've yet to see or hear MMJ cross that line (wherever it may be).