Relic Track by Track - Nightbus

Next few posts are going to be on about my new album Relic, song by song, how we recorded it. You can download Relic and pay any amount or get the CD from:

http://mattstevens.bandcamp.com/releases

Nightbus then, first song on the album. I wanted it to be punchy and direct. I wanted to show its was different to Ghost, lots of extra instrumentation. Progression, but not for the sake of it. There is a temptation that when you get a reasonably successful record like Ghost to just do Ghost 2 but that was the last thing i wanted to do. I didn't want to get bored. A few people have said its an experimental record but i think generally its a continuation of what I have done before just with bigger arrangements. I just wanted to make an interesting record. Really for me its all about the chords, i don't think its that out there or weird. Well, not when you compare it to Derek Bailey.

Kev Feazey who produced the album did the electronic stuff at the start then we overdubbed Stuart Marshall (who i play with in the Fierce And The Dead) on drums. I'm really pleased with the drums on this, we recorded them at Livingstone studios which is in North London's exotic Wood Green (you may have seen it being looted on the TV a few months ago, Wood Green, not the studio).

Livingstone is best known for Bjork's Debut and Buena Vista Social Club being recorded there but its also where everyone from Porcupine Tree to Mel C have made records. Its actually quite posh but the sounds you get there are amazing and its a wonderful environment to work in. We used the money from the Pre-Orders to finance this bit (thank you).

I can't remember if I played Bass or Kev did on this this one and neither can he. The guitar is a mic'd up Ibanez acoustic called an Artwood that I used on all the other records that i got for £100. I did the Glockenspiel then we built up the guitar parts in stacked triads above that. Those parts were recorded direct into Pro Tools in our back bedroom (which is now a baby room!). I wrote it on my £20 knackered Yamaha guitar and it was one of the last songs we recorded for the album. Often its seems you record/write the first song last. Odd.

I'm really proud of this one and i think it really brings in a different feel for the whole album.

Next Relic....