Audio Oddities
We have been in this business a long time. Every now and then you run across things that are so cool, funny or just so ‘out there’ you can't help but collect them. Here are a few of the most notable
The Virtual Haircut–
a Binaural Recording
Binaural ‘Dummy Head’ Stereo Microphone
What are "binaural" recordings?
They are recordings made using a simulation of the human head with molds of real outer and inner ears. A microphone capsule is then placed where the eardrum would be at the end of the ear canal. The resulting recording, when listened to through headphones, has full 360° spatial location (up, down, left, right, front, back; everywhere!) It's as realistic as you're ever going to hear; it's almost spooky. So get your headphones on and listen to:
It takes a few seconds to start…
J & H Productions
An ‘Open Letter to the Label Industry’
An improvised rant/business proposal purportedly played for execs by Al Kooper at a high level label A & R meeting. If you ever wonder why record companies won't listen to unsolicited music, after hearing this you'll have your answer!
Commercial Parodies
Some Great Commercial Parodies:
A word of explanation about this last one: Keith Jarrett is a brilliant but very eccentric jazz pianist who has developed a habit of singing (well 'whining along' would be a better word), along with his playing in a very "not subtle" way. Most people either love Keith or hate him because of this extra sound he provides. I personally can't get past it, and for the same reason I don't get Glenn Gould either!
Bizarre Sessions
This was my introduction to the Thrash music style from a never released compilation of Thrash versions of TV Show Theme Songs
A truly bizarre afternoon in the studio produced this gem who we referred to as ‘The Screamer’ from that point forward!
It quickly became apparent that this duo had never actually made it all the way to the end of one of their songs before deciding to record! There was nothing to do but just let tape roll and hope they'd stumble into something.
Cowboy Ken was the name I gave to the next artist who could quite probably be the least accomplished singer I've ever recorded. The full story of this recording is fascinating, funny and a testament to how much human beings can delude themselves. I'll unravel this tale on one of our podcasts…