Genius #13 - Jan '25

Hello, hello geniuses. January’s GDC is both full & scrap heap combined + a microphone chat. In January, I spent my time recovering from the horrible vibes (recovery still in process) and, honestly, playing a lot of Red Dead Redemption 2 (ew). I caught a local showcase at the Ottobar, Norwegians Pom Poko, and Philly darlings Mannequin Pussy. The plan is that GDC#14 will be more of a back to our scheduled programming. Let’s get to it.

Album Recs:

Sabiwa, Quelimada, & Nathan L. - Sons Of_ (Phantom Limb, 2024)

I’ve been doing a little bit of a deeper dive on Sabiwa’s music — she’s a Taiwanese vocalist/composer who tends to straddle an interesting line between ambient, field recordings, and harsher noise. This collab with an Italian duo is a great entry point. Glassy synth textures, ASMR glitches, & hard-hitting percussion. Like an album made by a computer trying to sing along with a dial-up modem.

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Mo Dotti - opaque (self-released, 2024)

Those of us who lived through the shoegaze revival in the 2010s are recoiling in horror as the old genre revolves into fashion once again. But these kids actually get it: it’s not reverb, it’s pitch shifting. It’s not giant guitars, it’s weirdly thin & jangly guitars. It’s not buried melody, but letting the vocal processing take over the whole mix. This shit slaps, this is like getting a new MBV record. Thanks Gen Z.

Total Blue - Total Blue (Music From Memory, 2024)

Goopy and soupy ambient jazz for the vaporwave freak who wants to hear a live band. Cool 4th world percussion sounds, swirling breathy synths, fretless bass, and live wire guitar noodles. Putting this on and looking at youtube compilations of bowling alley strike animations WILL open up a portal to a new dimension.

Klô Pelgag - Abracadabra (Secret City, 2024)

Even tho Pelgag is Quebecois, I can’t help but deem this album as “Absurdly French.” Good mix of drum machines and live drums, giant synths, and massive melodies. Just a good elecro indie rock record, like something that might have been released 20 years ago. At times, the scope can feel a little too wide, everything is always pushing towards a crescendo — but still feel comfortable recommending.

Skyler Gudasz - Country (Perseids, 2024)

Angel Olsen heads will dig this. Gudasz’ voice has incredible depth, but she leaps across her range like Joni Mitchell. Songs are thoughtfully composed with vivid lyrics, and the whole record has a classic sound on a wide open soundstage. I listened to this while driving around at night, but really it would be best in the sunlight, letting the jangly guitars and plaintive synths roll alongside you on a journey.

Upcoming February Albums:

• There’s a new Sharon Van Etten record out, written in collaboration with her band, the Attachment Theory. Love some sad rock songs. The self-titled album came out on 2/7 thru indie stalwart label Jagjaguar.
• UK experimental jazz-rock freaks Squid take their Warp Records experiments to some satisfying ends. I’m excited to check out Cowards, which came out on 2/7.
• North English folk singer Richard Dawson is singing more heartrending songs of every day life to you. You should take heed. End Of The Middle is out today 2/14 courtesy of Weird World.
• British-Bahraini trumpeter Yazz Ahmed writes captivating Arabic-voiced jazz compositions — she’s releasing her latest A Paradise In The Hold on (NTS) 2/28.

Replay

I’ve been on the hunt for gym music… Specifically, full albums that I can throw on and exercise. I’ve found that driving, upper-mid tempo rock music keeps me locked in. Sometimes it’s Battles, sometimes it’s Deerhoof, sometimes it’s Man Man. But lately, I keep going back for more something with more edge. Lets talk about the San Diego rock band Hot Snakes.

Hot Snakes was born through the collaboration of lead guitarist “Swami” John Reis & vocalist/guitarist/visual artist Rick Froberg — the 2 of them also co-led early post-hardcore bands Pitchfork and Drive Like Jehu in the 80s and 90s. Hot Snakes formed in 1999, broke up for a while, and reformed in the 2010s. It would sadly be the last incarnation of their partnership — Froberg passed unexpectedly in 2023.

Simple and effective songwriting is what makes it all work. Hot Snakes take all of the bite from their post-hardcore bands, but replace the angular puzzling riffs with a jagged and primal garage rock sound. The drum beats are driving, the time signatures normal, except for when they suddenly aren’t, and then they suddenly are again. The songs are fast-paced and loud, but not heavy; repetitive but not monotonous. Froberg’s lyrics are often funny, he delivers them in a deadpan howl.

I think the reason it’s perfect exercise music is that I feel powerful listening to it. The band has four albums and the first three have, in my estimation, nearly no differentiation between them in terms of a change in sound. It’s all pedal-to-the-floor-all-the-time. There’s maybe a couple guitar solos, but they rarely indulge in anything. I would say that their fourth (and final) record Jericho Sirens has a wider scope than the previous 3, but throwing on a Hot Snakes album ALWAYS sounds like a Hot Snakes record. It’s always going to try to square up on you and kick your ass.

RIP Rick

Garbage Corner - The Microphones

In January, I spent a long weekend recording some songs with my buddy Aled. While recording, I lamented that I only own 3 microphones — an Audio Technica AT2020 large diaphragm condenser mic and a pair of beat-to-shit Shure SM58 dynamic mics. Before I get too deep in: I am not a pro recording engineer & the microphones in the pic below are literally the only ones I have ever owned or used. All of the info below is based on asking engineers questions, researching online, listening to recordings of different mics, etc. OK mic check.

The 3 mics I own are pretty useful microphones, but aren’t universally applicable.

• The SM58s worked as band practice microphones for years — they are designed to be used by a vocalist on stage, but can double as vocal mics or guitar amp mics if you’re willing to futz with them until they sound good. I love these for live sound, but let’s be real… they don’t really do a great job with studio work.

  

• The AT2020 was originally purchased for recording acoustic guitars, but I’ve also used it for recording vocals, electric guitars, drums, etc. I have found that vocals recorded on it sound kind of thin and bright. It does ok as a room mic!

How does a microphone work?

Recording a sound requires a microphone (duh) — a microphone has some piece of electronic circuitry that turns physical sound waves into an electronic signal. There are different methods for converting those vibrations, which results in different characteristics of the sound. Within those different methods, there are also different ways that microphones handle directionality — ie how well a mic captures sound to its left/right/behind vs right in front.

Microphone Types

Dynamic microphones

• This is what’s in a home telephone or a karaoke mic or on stage at a show. These can take a beating and still work perfectly.
• How it works: A moving coil rests suspended in of a magnetic field inside of the microphone. When the sound hits the diaphragm on the top of the microphone, it moves slightly — the soundwaves push and pull the coil. The coil moving inside of the magnetic field induces a current, which is sent out from the microphone.
• When to use: kinda whenever, as long as the sound source benefits from the coloring from the frequency response. Because the whole coil moves, dynamic mics can be a little less accurate with more articulate (quick) sounds and tend to “smoothen out” those sounds, which can be both good & bad.

Condenser microphones

• Requires additional external voltage to work. Tend to emphasize upper mids & treble, so you get a lot of articulation. Very sensitive, so you get a lot of the room sound in the recording.

• Condensers can be Small Diaphragm (SDC) or Large Diaphragm (LDC), based on the size. SDCs are seen as better for accurate & sharper sounds (like drum hit transients) and limiting external noise sources, while LDCs are better for capturing a colorful & open sound.1

• How it works: the external power results in a charge which is held in between a membrane and a metal plate. When a sound wave hits the membrane, it vibrates and causes its distance from the metal plate to fluctuate. The difference in space creates a change in the electric signal and that signal is sent out from the microphone.

• When to use: Condensers are very sensitive & excellent for highly articulate sounds, but can be unforgiving. If the room you are recording in has a weird echo or room noise, you’ll hear it. Any vocal hiccup will come through perfectly.

Ribbon microphones

• As close to a human ear as any of these mics can get — typically expensive & fragile

• How it works: Similar to the dynamic microphone, but instead of a coil, a thin ribbon of metal is suspended in a magnetic field. Ribbon microphones typically pick up whats in front and behind perfectly and null out anything to the side, since the ribbon can move in 2 dimensions. The ribbon is extremely low mass, allowing it to move with very subtle sounds.

• When to use: Typically only to be used on lower volume sound sources. I wouldn’t take a ribbon microphone outside, because a gust of wind can physically snap the ribbon. Ribbons are naturally bidirectional. Typically have a smoother treble response, so I think these are not as suited for vocals or close-mic’d drums.2 Work well on acoustic instruments, drum overheads, room mics, amplifiers (provided it isn’t cranked too loud), etc.

Others??

There are other microphone types like piezoelectric microphones, which are basically contact microphones and MEMS microphones (basically a micro capacitor in a cell phone). I’m only really thinking about music-recording mics for this one. Sorry nerds.

Capitalism

Ok with what we’ve learned above, I’m plotting 1 or 2 microphones in my future, especially to help with vocal recording. But I am also broke. Here’s what I’ve been considering, maybe this will be useful for any other would-be engineers who can’t drop ++$1k on one microphone.

Dynamic microphones:

• Shure SM57 (retail $100, seemingly inflation proof), a classic dynamic mic which has a flatter frequency response in the 2-7kHz range than their SM58 kin. These things can be found for like $50 if you are patient online.
• Heil PR30 for guitar cabs (retail $300), Heil PR40 (retail $350) for bass cab & kick, vocals. The PR30 is hella cheap and gets a good throaty sound for a guitar amp. The PR40 is a good bass response dynamic mic, seems like you can kind of throw it on a lot of things to get a cool sound.
• Shure SM7B (retail $400) is kind of the industry standard vocal mic. Every YouTuuber and would-be podcaster has one & will be selling it cheap when they give up. Bee used one to track my voice for the Oh No Oh No album and I’m happy with how that turned out.

Condensers:

• Rode NT5 (retails $430 for a pair) small diaphragm condenser seems like a great deal for a pair, would do well in overheads or on acoustic sound sources. I’ve never used a small diaphragm condenser before.
• AKG C414 (retails for $1200, used can be found for cheap) large diaphragm condenser — I love that this has multiple polar patterns, since I’ve only ever used cardioid mics. I’d like to try A/Bing against my AT2020 for acoustic guitars and as a room mic.

Ribbons:

• Cascade Fat Head (pait for $625) stereo ribbon mics seem like the best bang-for-buck way to get a stereo ribbon set. Cascade went out of business when the owner died a few years ago, but the children seem to have resurrected the design & are selling the mics under the name Pinnacle. Would be great for stereo drum overheads
• This European company NoHype has a couple ribbon mics like the LRM-2b (retails for ~€200-€300 + shipping). I’m intrigued! But not convinced. Their website looks like it’s from the year 2002, which is both good and bad.
• The real hotness would be a Royer R-121, but those are like $1500 new and they don’t get much cheaper used.

Ok enough lusting, let’s move on.

Live Music

Pom Poko @ Comet Ping Pong (Jan 21)

In January, I caught a couple of great shows, but I wanted to highlight finally catching Pom Poko, the Norwegian power-pop quartet. Their previous tour was canceled before I got to go, so I was very hyped when they rescheduled. Their 2021 album Cheater remains a favorite of mine, and their 2024 follow-up Champion has grown on me a lot, especially since this performance.

First off, Ragnhild Fangel’s vocal performance was incredible — subtleties in her vocal melodies were clearer and more visibly acrobatic than they sound on the record, and the less-than-subtle processing (mostly vocal doubling during the choruses) brought extra power to the vocals without sounding gimmicky.

The rest of the band was just as on-point — I made sure to position myself in front of guitarist Martin Tonne because I had a bunch of questions about how he plays these parts. The answer is that he has written a lot of double-melodies & is constantly changing his hand position to access the 2 notes at the same time and keep everything moving forward. It’s a really impressive way to write songs, and something that I’m keen to work on myself!

The only issue I had with this show was that door were at 10pm (??) and I didn’t get home until like 2:30AM which is honestly fucked up & should be illegal.

February Shows

Baltimore

• 2/15 (Sat) Palestine Relief Benefit w/ Motel Portrait, Strawbalien, Noctamos Ground Unit, Kid Celeste @ The Forest
• 2/15 (Sat) “Perfect Victims” w/ Brekhna Aftab, Mohammed El-Kurd @ Red Emmas
• 2/16 (Sun) Wolf Eyes, Lexie Mountain Boys @ Ottobar
• 2/17 (Mon) Ambient & Experimental Night @ Peabody Heights
• 2/21 (Fri) Alcest, Mono, Kaelen Mikla @ Soundstage
• 2/22 (Sat) Gaza Fundraiser w/ Pinkshift, Jigsaw Youth, Pollyanna, Stay Off The Fence, Redeye, Stuck In Place @ DM @wristxguards
• 2/27 (Thu) Ami Dang, Eyas @ Good Neighbor Design Garage
• 2/28 (Fri) Dresser, Powerwasher, File Select @ Holy Frijoles

DC:

• 2/23 (Sun) Poison Ruin @ Comet Ping Pong

NYC:

• 2/15 (Sat) John Zorn & Laurie Anderson @ Roulette
• 2/28 (Fri) Ami Dang @ Roulette

More:

• 3/1 (Sat) Honoring Cecil Taylor @ The Clemente (NYC)
• 3/1 (Sat) The Men, Pharmakon @ TV Eye (NYC)
• 3/4 (Tue) Michael Shannon & Jason Narducy play REM @ 9:30 Club (DC)
• 3/4 (Tue) Joe McPhee @ NuBlu (NYC)
• 3/7 (Fri) Psyop, Hormone, Credit, Pluot @ Ottobar (Baltimore)
• 3/7 (Fri) Spirit Of The Beehive, Kassie Krut (ex-Palm) @ Black Cat (DC)
• 3/9 (Sun) Grocer, Powerwasher @ Ottobar (Baltimore)
• 3/22 (Sat) Horsegirl, Emotional World, Free Range @ Black Cat (DC)
• 3/25 (Tue) Chanel Beads, More Eaze @ Ottobar (Baltimore)
• 3/25 (Tue) Astrid Sonne @ Pioneer Works (NYC)
• 3/27 (Thu) Maria Chavez, Victoria Shen, Mariam Rezaei @ Roulette
• 3/28 (Fri) Asthma Castle, Consumer Culture @ Ottobar (Baltimore)
• 3/29 (Sat) Black Eyes, Dreamcrusher @ Pioneer Works (NYC)
• 4/1 (Tue) Still House Plants, Aunt Katrina @ Ottobar (Baltimore)
• 4/8 (Tue) Diles Que No Me Maten @ Ottobar (Baltimore)
• 4/9 (Wed) Brainiac @ Metro (Baltimore)
• 4/12 (Sat) Kool Keith @ Mobtown Ballroom (Baltimore)
• 4/14 (Mon) Jerome's Dream, Eyelet, Gloop @ Metro (Baltimore)
• 4/17 (Thu) MIKE @ Black Cat (DC)
• 4/18 (Fri) Swami John Reis, Cloak/Dagger @ Metro (Baltimore)
• 4/20 (Sun) Mount Eerie @ The Atlantis (DC)
• 5/3 (Sat) Tim Hecker @ Black Cat (DC)
• 5/4 (Sun) Napalm Death & The Melvins @ Soundstage (Baltimore)
• 5/21 (Wed) Squid @ Black Cat (DC)
• 6/7 (Sat) Perfume Genius @ 9:30 Club (DC)
• 6/23 (Mon) GY!BE @ 9:30 Club (DC)
• 6/25 (Wed) Femi Kuti @ 9:30 Club (DC)