It has been a while since my last post and a lot has happened. Here’s a few highlights.

First, and most notable, was that Infidel Studios and I won, what seems to be, a combined & inaugural MAMA award for Engineer/Producer/Studio of 2012.

Thank you to all the people at the MAMAs for organising the awards. Unfortunately I was unable to attend the awards night but it was a fantastic event by all accounts.

And especially, a big thank you to everyone who has been though the doors of Infidel Studios since it opened in its current location in 1999.

I spent large part of the end of last year were spent making an album for Na Maza. I can’t wait ’til it comes out. All I can say about it is that it sounds like two planets crashing into each other. The rest is sworn to secrecy … for now.

The brass knuckles came back and all I can say is SOUSAPHONE!!

I have wanted to record one for years.

And look who popped in to lay down some congas for some production music.

It was fantastic to have Paco back in the studio.

And just briefly. Currently Tim is working on a recording with Little Mac and The Monster Men and I am working on, what seem to be, a much anticipated EP by Magic Rob Universe. More on these later …..

Not many news posts here on the website but plenty has been happening at the studio over the last month or so.

Duncan has been working on tracking and overdubs for a much anticipated Na Maza album. It’s sounding nice and heavy, and Duncan got the added bonus of recording some cars for inclusion. Duncan has also been working with The Brass Knuckles Brass Band and The Khalasar as well as some production music  with Gabe Trew.

Pol O’Shea has tracked a 4 song EP for The Second Hand Salmon, and is finalising mixes today. It’s booked in for mastering with Kimmo Vennonen tomorrow.

Tim completed mixes for young metal band Venom Inside and the 4 songs are off getting mastered for an EP to be released over the summer.

In gig news, Sam Marzden, of Penguin fame is presenting a comedy show all about rock’n'roll on 28 and 29 November at The Civic Pub. Hellbringer are doing the Canberra launch of their Dominion of Darkness album at The Pot Belly on 8 December, and Duncan is getting his Coreyness prepared for the annual Cellblock 69 extravaganza.

10 episodes that is. Canberra musician and punk rock fan Chris Navin has been producing a cool podcast featuring local and national punkish music. Chris has been into the studio to play for various bands over the years and is a great drummer and guitarist. Chris was nice enough to ask me in for a chat on the podcast back in Episode 3, and he has lots of great interviewees in on other episodes so far including John from 4Dead, Luke from Hoodlum Shouts, Aaron from Revellers, Pete from Waterford and heaps more. If you have an interest in punk music then you should definitely check out the podcast.

To get to the podcast:

http://heartfeltrecords.com.au/podcast

For other Punktuation news posts:

http://punktuation.me/

Chris’ new label Heartfelt Records, which includes Revellers, Outcome and Yoko Oh No on the roster:

http://heartfeltrecords.com.au/

Punktuation Sampler CD that was given out at the Punktuation launch gig at The Phoenix Bar last week

The Brass Knuckles Brass Band popped in for an all too brief session to record one song before heading off on a short tour to somewhere warmer.

The song was written for the band by Sally Greenaway and sounds to me something like a traditional New Orleans funeral for a circus clown. I’m sure Sally could describe it better.

2 trumpets, 2 trombones, a tuba, a baritone sax, and a drum kit all in the same room with Sally conducting. Fantastic.

The track should be mixed and finished in the coming week. Keep an eye on Sally’s website for news of the finished result.

Yes that is right. Adrian from Punishment brought in his drum kit comprising 3 kick drums, 6 toms, so many cymbals I couldn’t be bothered counting them and, for some weird reason, only one snare drum.

The band have been working up tracks for a future release at home but decided they needed to track the drums at the studio. After two days of hard work – mostly by Adrian – they guys took the tracks home and are getting stuck into guitar and bass tracks.

As big, crazy and indulgent as this kit may seem, I have to say that Adrian is a very controlled and yet powerful drummer who really knows how to get the best from it.

The past few weeks have busy and productive. Night Train, Venom Inside, Lavers, Rick Bennett, and a band with no name, amongst others

Tim recorded a song – “Altitude Sickness” – for Venom Inside. The song sounds great and is kicking goals for them on the Triple J Unearthed site. The band also went on, a few days after the session here, to win their age category and the open category for rock bands at the National Eisteddfod.

Night Train spent the the best part of the Queen’s Birthday weekend tracking three songs with Duncan which are earmarked for an upcoming release … maybe … if you ask nicely.

Laura and Michelle from the Babyshakers of old have teamed up with Chris on bass. There result is a heavy, trashsy, loud, obnoxious and fantastic noise. The, as yet, unnamed band tracked a few songs one evening and one was mixed for a competition entry.

The Lavers spent a day tracking drums to some songs they have been working up at home. Those boys have a great sense of pop. Soiree started work on a industry demo which was all going along just nicely but Megan, their singer, retired hurt with a flu. And Rick Bennett, who has written a book since I last saw him, popped in and dug into his reserves of as yet unreleased music with the plan to remaster and repress his album “Spirit Trail” with several extra tracks.

Congratulations to Jane Sage, Hannah Gillespie and The Bridge Between for making the list of finalists for the MusicOz awards with recording done at Infidel Studios. Jane is in four categories.

I think you can still vote for them if you hurry. Head to http://www.musicoz.org/, search the site for their name and vote like crazy.

Here we are a little over two intense weeks later and Hellbringer, with Harris Johns at the wheel, have recorded and roughed out the mixes for their upcoming album.

The band are very happy with how it is sounding – if you ask me, it sounds as big as a planet.

Everyone, the band and Infidel engineers, has learned a lot from Harris. It has been a valuable experience for everyone involved.

And the word is that there already seems to be interest in the album in Europe.

Halfway through the sessions I managed to find some vaguely suitable refreshments to help the proceedings along.

Harris has packed up the album and his things and, after a couple of days on the Barrier Reef, is heading back to Berlin to finalise the mixes. We look forward to hearing the finished album.

Harris Johns, who has produced records for Helloween, Tankard, Sodom, Voivod, Kreator, Slime, Daily Terror and many others, arrived in Canberra from Berlin on Thursday to start work producing an album for Hellbringer.

We spent all day yesterday getting set up and pulling sounds. The bulk of the day was spent on Josh’s drum kit and finding guitar tones from the many amps and cabinets that have been lent to us for the session.

Today is the beginning of tracking – mostly aiming for great drum takes. The band are sounding great and Harris is pushing them to get the very best from them.

Here is a quick pic of Harris and his trusty stopwatch.

Duncan is in mixing with Charles Sage at the moment. Apparently Charles has done something abstract with his mix (like crumbled biscuit to be used for the base for a cheesecake or something or other) and Duncan is helping shape it together again. Meanwhile Duncan has conned me into figuring out this social media malarkey. Anyway, a really busy month at the studio including a few quick jobs and then a couple of weeks of the studio being booked out for the Hellbringer album recording with Harris Johns producing. Harris has produced some seminal albums in over 30 years of producing metal including classic albums from the likes of Sodom, Kreator and Voivod.

Hellbringer are in bashing through a quick demo of their tracks (right now) in preparation for recording their album at the studio in a couple of weeks with German producer Harris Johns. The new songs are sounding very thrash – did we expect anything else?

YeeeHaaaa!

This is the first posting of news from Infidel Studios.

Expect this news feed to be erratic and tangential.

We are attempting to link this news feed to a new Facebook page. But seeing as how I have never used Facebook before, it could all end in tears.

I find it startling that the blue of the Infidel Logo, designed for us by Pete Rohen of Fusebox Design many years ago, is identical to Facebook blue.