Last week I was fortunate enough to have the honor of recording for 5 days at the amazing Blue Rock Studio and Artist Ranch in Wimberley, TX. I was there working on Katie Carroll's second album which I believe will be one of the best albums I've ever worked on when it's complete. I have always enjoyed Katie's songwriting, but this most recent work is a new level for her. That coupled with the amazing group of musicians we had with us made for an absolutely timeless experience. The legendary Curt Bisquera was on drums along with Ben Wilson from Blues Traveler on keys and David and Daran DeShazo on bass and guitars respectively. Of course Josh Goode was co-producing the project with me and played a few parts down himself. Everything about this studio is absolutely top-notch -- from the staff and hospitality to the control room acoustics and fantastic custom C7 grand piano. We brought in a collection of vintage keyboards and mics as well to compliment the setup.
There were a few pieces of gear that stood out during the sessions including the lovely FET 47's (rentals), Wunder's version of the C12 and U47, the Shadow Hills Mono Gamma pre's and Mastering Comp, and the GML 2032's, which I was especially impressed by. I also have to mention that Blue Rock is the first studio I have worked in where the main monitoring system is not only useable, but glorious! I listened to their Dynaudio M4's for the majority of the session!
But the most amazing part was the vibe. Blue Rock is set on 20 acres on top of a small mountain in a relatively remote part of the Texas hill country. The views are incredible and there are over a mile of hiking trails on the property. The facility has fantastic guest accommodations, and the level of attention to detail is beyond expectations. I was especially impressed by the kindness of the staff (thank you Billy and Dodee!!!), we really felt like we were family during our time there. I would highly recommend this facility to any artist who is looking to remove themselves from their daily routine while making a record. It certainly worked for ours.