Another Driving Blog

Driving has made me consider the world in a different way, and that not having driven for the first third of my life has allowed me unreserved psycho-spatial perception. My surroundings as a driver, now, are definite and rigid: thoughts must be controlled and while thinking and driving could be considered as multitasking, the differ greatly from thinking while traveling as a passenger.

Driving only permits short term ideas. For example, a driver cannot write and conceptualize a full video treatment (as a passenger I recently wrote a treatment for the song “Dream Job”). But a driver can form a full thought — that is, beyond “Stay in this lane,” or “Don’t kill anyone.” Like I started this blog post while driving, and (probably illegally) typed it in stages into my BlackBerry at various stop lights.

I would strongly recommend for any city dweller to avoid getting their license as long as possible. Not only is your life’s carbon footprint diminished incredibly (think of the children), but the time you spend waiting will render you closer to yourself: you will have a tighter relationship with your consciousness. And think of all the video treatments you could write?

So now that mastering is done…

Murray and I got back from mastering on Tuesday night. We drove down to Portland, Maine to work with Bob Ludwig. It was a really nice, scenic drive from Montreal. Here’s what it looked like:

Anyhoo, a lot of people don’t really know what mastering is, so here’s a quick rundown of the whole process:

1. Recording or Tracking: Each instrument is performed and recorded individually. A dense song can have more that 50 layers of instruments.
2. Mixing: All those 50 layers or tracks are balanced together into two tracks: Left and Right.
3. Mastering: The mixes are then kind of “mixed again,” compressed together, hopefully resulting in a unified sound. Also the songs are put in running order and any fades or gaps are added.

Or, in Jughead Jones sandwich terms:

1. Recording: Picking out all your ingredients for your ultimate, multi-level sandwich: slices of havarti, provolone, tomatoes, Swiss, lettuce, sprouts, (veggie) meats, pickles, and five to seven slices of bread. Don’t forget condiments such as mustard (regular, Dijon or en grains), mayonnaise, corn relish, etc.
2. Mixing: Assembling the towering sandooze.
3. Mastering: Pressing assertively (but not too firmly…don’t want to bruise the lettuce) down on the sandwich to achieve a height suitable for the most openest mouth. Finally placing toothpicks in each corner before slicing diagonally, into triangles.

…and one year later you have an amazing album/sandwich in your hands!

It’s been an emotionally and psychologically rough year for The Dears, and especially for Murray, so it’s really good to have the album done and sound REALLY incredible. BTW, we’ve mastered with a lot of people, and Mr. Bob Ludwig is a genius: he’s got that bag of magic pixie dust and he’s not afraid to use it. I’ll tell you more about it soon.

Art Showdown: Cooking vs. Music

This past Tuesday, after the second big snowfall, I insisted that Murray accompany me to Ikea. Trips to Ikea must always be planned thoroughly: the day of the week and time of day must be carefully selected, otherwise the place is too crowded and I can’t stand being in crowded places. Our time at Ikea was, as usual, slightly satisfying but completely forgettable. At any rate, there was still tons and tons of snow on the roads, and the usually short drive home took nearly an hour.

When driving, and especially when stuck in traffic, Murray likes to listen to the CBC; he says it means he’s an adult now, and I would tend to agree, but would expand the definition to him being a “true Canadian adult.” Anyhow, Q was on, and our good friend Jian Gomeshi was interviewing a dude named Jonah Lehrer. Lehrer is the author of the recently published Proust was a Neuroscientist, a book that “…explores the oft-overlooked places in literary history where novelists, poets and the occasional cookbook writer predicted scientific breakthroughs with their artistic insights¹.” . Further exploration of Mr. Lehrer’s blog immediatley reminded me that I’m not nearly smrt smart enough to dedicate myself to such a read, and while the Q interview and other reviews have peaked my interest, I’m just too impatient to collect all the facts…or perhaps I am without the desire to be 100%, fully informed, but why should I, when 79% has always worked so well?

The conversation between interviewer and interviewee took a slight tangent to cooking, where they discussed the science of cooking and the innovations of Auguste Escoffier, including the deglazing technique. At any rate, it all got me to thinking about cooking, and how the more simplistic and “old-fashioned” you cook, the “better” your food is considered. Like how some people freak out if you cut a pie crust in a stand mixer, or even with a pastry cutter: they insist that if executed properly, using your hands results in a better crust. So then why, in cooking, as an artistic form, is it better to be traditional and, dare I say, boring, where as in music, boringness and being labelled as “derivative” promises a fate worse than death? Why is a well made apple pie awlays amazing, and Jet so absolutely horrible?

That’s really harsh and I apologise but I’m trying to make a point. Do I? I’m not sure but the idea kept me awake last night and I coulnd’t fall asleep until I jotted it down. Music is so incredible and powerful and in my rummaging through the smart bits of the internet I read about Oliver Sacks, another brainy dude. Anyhow, he recenlty published a book called Musicophilia which outlines the immense and innate powers music has on the human body. And if my assumptions might, for a second, be validated, Sacks suggests that the physiological and psychological effects of music on people are deeply connected. Or as he says: “humans are a musical species.”

Bottom line? Don’t deny undeniable music. It’s essentially inhuman to be hateful of music that speaks to you. Being a discerning and critical music listener makes you a better person, and being improperly swayed by poorly written songs makes you, well, inferior? Um…yeah, maybe.

Listen to the Q Podcast here: Q: Dcember 18th

¹ Publisher’s Weekly: Nonfiction Reviews: Week of 6/11/2007

Driving a Car

I drove alone in the car to the fish store yesterday. But before you click away from this blog because it’s suddenly become the most boring thing you’ve ever laid eyes on, let me provide some (kind of) titilating background: I only got my license last month and haven’t done much solo driving. When you get your license at 16 or whatever, it’s less about controlling a car and more just about the freedom to get places. When you get your license at 30 there are implications to your actions. The idea of driving a death machine (both physically and environmentally) is apparent. Stopping is more important than giving it gas. And while I drove up Hutchison, slowing for the speed bumps, I felt for a moment the exhilaration a 16-year-old must feel when driving away from their parents for the first time. Then the logic of a 30-year-old descended upon me and was replaced with a feeling of giddiness coupled with the thought: “I can’t believe this is legal.”

I think I am a good driver but that I still need to build my confidence. I have to admit that I was a little astonished to have passed my driving test on my first try. They guy who gave me my test said: “You passed but you need to watch for a few things. Always check your blind spot and learn how to parallel park.” I was like: “Wow. Really?” Basically he was trusting that I wanted to be a better driver…either that or he’s an excellent judge of character (because I do want to be a better driver). But is that why there are so many bad drivers in Montreal out there? People with no regard for the law, who’ve forgotten what a turning signal is for, or who drive just generally like a maniac. Anyway, I would probably be enraged if I was driving behind myself since I’m a bit light on the gas. Basically I drive like a grandma. So I’ll just stop bitching everyone else out now.

So I got the fish from the fishmonger’s on Parc all by my lonesome without incident. Murray cooked an amazing dinner. The End.