It's been I while since I've checked in with the wonderful readers of the Airlock Tribune. There has been so much going on… and there is even more to look forward to.
I would like to start off my little piece here by saying a huge thank you and bon-voyage to Steve “the snake” Kempnich who is moving on from being Head Engineer here at Airlock Studios. Steve now has a young and growing family, and has started a space of his own. Valley 4000 studios houses some fantastic mix and production rooms and many of Brisbane’s quality producers and engineers. Steve will still be bringing projects through Airlock due to our fantastic LIVE tracking rooms, and he will be available upon request for special projects if his schedule allows. Love ya Steve. Its been fab. We’ve done some cool stuff together, and we’ve still got to do my solo record!!
So - into the helm at Airlock - steps the uber talented Cody McWaters. Cody will take on the head engineer role, and will join the growing list of accomplished engineers that love working at Airlock. Cody has worked many amazing projects... (look at his resume here). I just want to send a huge thank you to Cody for Joining the team...and I know that Emily wants to say the same. We think that its time that we had an OPEN DAY and PARTY to celebrate CODY’s arrival and all of the wonderful additions and improvements that AIRLOCK has to offer. More on that soon!!!
Speaking of Emily - if you were not aware - Emily Hopley is Airlock’s Studio Manager, and she has been doing a fantastic job for 1 year now. The milestone was reached this week. Emily is a pleasure to work with, and is indispensable with the daily runnings of this place, AND more importantly is becoming a fantastic engineer and producer. Emily is also available upon request to work on your project. She is currently offering a Special rate on pre-production and demo sessions. Email her to discuss.
On a personal level - it has been a pretty rough couple of years to be a working musician. Throw into the mix that members of the band that I play in The Church (i’ve been in this group for 9 years now) live all around australia and the USA, and its made it extremely “challenging” to both finish our upcoming album HYPNOGOGUE and to do some shows. Add into the mix that our drummer Tim Powles was unable to play shows due to a knee surgery, and it made the logistics extra spicy. We managed to do a warm up show in Sydney - and then played at the Byron Blues Festival. That was honestly the most hectic build up to a gig that i've ever experienced due to highway traffic and two band members having to be retrieved from the highway using golf buggies…with 2 minutes left to spare to be onstage at our strict allotted time. Anyway - we made it - and we played like a band with a mission. Kudos must go to Nick Meredith who did this with extremely limited rehearsal time. A bloody top drummer and lovely fella he is!
Our next obligation was a quick run through some western states of the USA. Once again there are several logistical hoops to jump through international travel situations, and it turned out that Nick was unable to get his VISA in time. With only 5 days prior to departure we had to find an emergency replacement … or cancel the shows. Barton Price stepped up to the plate… and with 1 and a half days of rehearsal somehow managed to cram the 2 hour show into his brain with the aid of his hieroglyphical cheat notes. We did 11 shows in 13 days and it can only really be noted as a resounding success. Our first shows with Ash Naylor and Jeffrey Cain at the same time, twas very enjoyable. Ross was along for the ride as usual and some of you may well have seen the rooms we were playing while watching the GDAY ROSS videos that I am relentless with.
The tour finished with us playing two days at THE CRUEL WORLD FESTIVAL. It was a great festival lineup with a format that i think would work fantastically here in Australia. The bill was identical for both of the two days. I'm not sure how many people attended on both of the days, but you could make a different programme for yourself over the two days if you did. It was great for the bands as we could vary the setlist as much as we liked. My favourites as a punter were Bauhaus, DEVO, the Psychedelic Furs, Drab Majesty, PIL, The damned, and even Morrisey! It was bloody hot… and there were lots of goths melting in the sun… but it was a damn fine couple of days.
So… one of the best things that I did during the whole of COVID was to make a record with my friends JC and BISH. We went to school together back in the dark ages, and formed Powderfinger together. Now we are called The Predators. We just released our debut LP, and the actual vinyl has just arrived after a 6 month wait. We are very proud of it, and it looks bloody great thanks to the nifty artwork by Doig at Oddball designs. If you would like to order a copy - hit me up at the predators.com.au and I will post it out to you. We just did a show at The Teneriffe festival, and now the next thing on the calendar is to head out to Charleville and play a show out there. 2nd JULY to the halfway there festival. We cant wait!
In other news, and to keep me off the streets, Ive been checking out a few shows, and Ive got some fun things coming up. Went and saw Chelsea Wolfe at the Triffid last weekend. Apparently she was using all borrowed equipment because theirs was lost. I could tell something was up - but I thought it was a special show. Sadly - Emma Ruth Rundle - who was meant to be the opener, had to cancel due to illness. I saw Big Dead and The Milk Buttons play at Its Still a Secret which was wonderful.
Next I have been gladly roped into being on Patience Hoddgson’s team at the Trivia night at the Fortitude. For those who are in Brisbane - come on down ! Its a fun nite. I hope to beat Dicko’s team. This is on the 8th JULY.
Along with many other familiar faces from the Brisbane music scene, there have been plenty of new faces along at trainings - braving the cold - getting match ready for the annual RECLINK CUP. This is a fantastic cause, and heaps of fun. Game day is on 31st July. I’d be happy to get through it all without a broken finger (or worse) and the bonus is if my team The Rockinghorses can beat the enemy - The Brisbane Lines. Come and join in the fun.
UPINTHEAIRLOCK is back! We have started shooting season 2, and it's looking and sounding wonderful. For those that are not familiar with this…check out the links of the 10 filmed live sessions from season 1. This new season “The Apocalypse Sessions” will have a similar format to “The Quarantine Sessions” but with some additional behind the scenes content, and some interviews of the bands by me. Its gonna be a blast.
Lastly - I just want to say how excited we are to be upgrading our main computer in the studio after 14 years of reliable service. The new machine (Mac Studio) will be EPIC. Come to Airlock. Make a booking for your favourite artist or yourself, and lock yourselves in to make the best record of your life. Thank you for all of your support. Remember to keep your eyes and ears open for any special offers to fill in openings caused by unavoidable last minute COVID cancellations.
Love you all.
Peace, Love, and 12 String Guitars.
Ian
NEW MIXING PACKAGE
We are introducing a new special mixing package for sessions recorded out of AIRLOCK STUDIOS. Please enquire Emily (Studio Manager) for pricing.
CONGRATULATIONS SHAG ROCK
ON THE DOUBLE OVERHEAD TOUR
Congratulations to Shag Rock on completing their national tour, wrapping up their final show in Perth, WA. The band had a cattywampus* ordeal with covid; After all the cancellations and rescheduling, the band managed to pull it off, selling out 70% of their Australian tour.
