Distorted Proportions (Full LP) [GARAGE/PSYCH ROCK]

Описание: ~Tracklist~
0:00 - (The Great Siege of) Little Yellow Bird
4:47 - Tell Me What You Really Want (My Half)
7:20 - Dissociative Reaction
8:12 - Doped Up Dogs
12:47 - Hang Ten
14:13 - Pretty Girl
16:57 - The Electric Organ Acid Test
21:40 - The New Hey Song
23:11 - My Neighbor's Cat
25:23 - Serial Skinner
29:14 - The Lost Organ Jam
30:56 - Il Pagliacci
32:46 - I Hate You
35:14 - Jem Bon
36:54 - Squash Me Like a Bug
40:25 - Sweet Sweet Heather

Although I started recording the first track of this album somewhere around Jan '22, the story of this album goes back a few years before that, somewhere near the dawn of 2019. I like to describe this moment as such: When I was a young boy, The Beatles ignited my intense interest for music, later in my teenage years The Who (Keith Moon specifically) established my drive for playing on a stage, and finally at the inflection point of 2019, Ty Segall was the man who influenced me to be a songwriter. Many garage rockers can sympathize with that moment.

So I decided to create an album, a goal I spent every moment of my free time on. What did I have to make this a reality? Besides a drum set, not much. I didn't have any other instruments, any recording equipment, or any knowledge on how to play or use either. So I began with a simple goal: Write and Record my first song. I bought a crappy bass for chump change, bought my tele (best $200 I ever spent) and borrowed a keyboard from a friend. I started writing and practicing my first song "Orange Creamsicle". Simultaneously learning three instruments and music theory is no easy task, especially as a dumb drummer like myself. I was also COMPLETELY tone deaf. Literally unable to discern the difference between two notes. So a lot of practice was necessary.

I eventually manage to write the song and it was now time to make a recording. Like any aspiring home recordist should, I bought an SM57. I faithfully turned to Craigslist, and found a TEAC 80-8 and mixer for sale and for cheap. Within a couple hours, I was eagerly speeding home to try out my new tape machine. After some TLC, I made some test recordings. From there I was hooked. I instantly fell in love with home recording. I then successfully recorded "Orange Creamsicle" (available on YouTube). The end result was rough, but goddamn I was proud of it. This was months worth of dedication .

Now the focus was to produce an album. I started brainstorming themes. The name "Distorted Proportions" was the first thing I stuck my dart on. I ran with this and landed upon motifs meant to examine the dark sides of life: paranoia, hatred, infatuation, lost love, etc. That sorta thing. I then began recording demos, where I was gaining experience as a writer, a recording engineer, and a musician.

I eventually start doing a short stint of live performances for an open mic night at a place called the "Chubby Pickle". I was doing a Hasil Adkins style performance- one man band sorta deal. One night I had invited a friend of mine to come watch me play. He shows up late, mid-performance, joined with another guest, Nicol. Something immediately took me back about Nicol. Little did I know this person would later become my girlfriend. This moment also turned out to be super critical for another reason. The reason being Nicol, after hearing some of my music, eventually convinces me to "release" some of my demos as an EP. Thus leading to my "Maybe One Day" EP. When I say EP, I mean DIY CDs given out at local music events and to friends. As these tracks were never intended to be "released", I don't count this EP as an "official release". I guess I won't have an "official release" until I can convince someone to press some physical copies of this album...but humor me for a bit, okay?

Regardless, I am grateful Nicol convinced me to release the EP because this would lead to many fulfilling projects, such as The Pomelos (Alex Gapinski), Bad Static (Nicol Maciejewska), and meeting with Tim Jones. The latter of course leading to the "My Neighbor's Cat" music video.

Once I acquired my Tascam MS16, I was ready to record the final tracks for the album. I've had a couple years of recording experience under my belt. I learned through trial and error before this that my "demos" are my favorite version of a song (a classic case of "demo-itis"). So all final tracks on the album are the first attempt at the song. I love the spontaneous moments that arise from this method as they often turn out to be the magical moments.

If you line up all the songs on this album in chronological order of the recording date, you can discern me improving "my sound" on the MS16 through experience (1st song - "Pretty Girl", Last song - "Serial Skinner"). I still have many lessons to learn in my journey as a songwriter, producer and recording engineer. The number of things I'd like to redo on this album are endless. Nevertheless, I hope that this album merely marks the beginning stages of my output.

Cheers,
Mario