Music
When I was 7, I fell in love with the cello (in large part to the highly-improbable-yet-nevertheless-entertaining-cello-sledding scene in 1985's "A View to a Kill"). By the age of 16, I had added electric & acoustic bass as well as piano and had begun playing in several bands in addition to string and jazz ensembles at school. I moved to Boston at 18 to attend Berklee College of Music (where I received my degree in Music Production & Engineering), and I've been a professional musician and freelance producer/engineer ever since.
Now if I could just figure out how to make a living at it...
Chauncey - "To Love Once More"
Released: December 1, 2014
Chauncey returns after a 10-year hiatus with (in my humble opinion) it's best work to date. 4 new songs plus one deep cut ("Narcotic Shotgun" for those of you keeping score at home) all wrapped up in the kick-ass rock production of Ducky Carlisle. Recorded at Ice Station Zebra over 5 days in the summer of 2014, this was definitely the easiest recording session that I've ever been a part of. It was also very nice to have an original composition of mine ("Let it Ride") finally make it onto a Chauncey record.
Session Americana - "Love and Dirt"
Released: September 4, 2012
The third release I've been a part of with Session Americana. I've stepped back a little bit on the gigging front (much to the delight of former-and-now-platoon-bassist Kimon Kirk), and while I didn't contribute a song on this release I played bass on much more of this record than the first. Working with engineer/producer Paul Q. Kolderie is always a delight, and this release is no exception. A little more rock at times than "Diving for Gold", but still true to the artistic je ne sais quoi of the group. My favorite track from these sessions didn't end up making the CD - "(Forcing You) From My Mind", which can be heard here.
Session Americana - "Live"
Released: September 1, 2011
My second SA release, although I've always been fuzzy on whether or not live records counted on that front. Recorded live at the Lizard Lounge (Cambridge, MA) between May 2009 & February 2011, and featuring such guests as Duke Levine, Jefferson Hamer, Dave Harris and the incomporable Alec Spiegelman. I even got the opportunity to mix some of the unreleased B-sides (available here) which featured the high-power personalities of Peter Wolf (yes, THAT Peter Wolf), John Powhida and Aiofe O'Donovan.
◦ ◦ ☆ - "Circle Circle Star"
Released: May 29, 2010
This is the first band that I’ve ever had where I write the songs equally with my bandmates (Eliot Hunt & Shawn Marquis) and we all share the role of “frontman”. Somewhere between Shellac and Field Music, Circle Circle Star is definitely the most unique group I’ve ever been in, not to mention the one I am most excited about. We released a somewhat eponymously titled EP in May 2010 that I had the pleasure of being the first engineer on (tracking and mixing, with expert mastering provided by David Torrey of DRT Mastering), which was quickly followed by roles in a major Hollywood movie. No. Really.
Jonny Wonderful - "1up"
Released: September 28, 2009
My first completely solo work. Featuring Eliot Hunt (lead guitar) and Mike Piehl (drums). Mixed and mastered by Matt Hennessy. Artwork by Shawn Marquis. The rest (bass, guitar, keys, vocals, composition, arrangements, composition, production, engineering, and web design) was done by yours truly. This record was begun in late 2007 and completed about 2 years later.
Session Americana - "Diving for Gold"
Released: May 14, 2009
I was lucky enough to be asked to join Session Americana in late 2008, and I’ve been the full-time bassist ever since. Truly, this is the most talented and wonderful group of musicians I’ve ever had the pleasure of performing with. Despite being nearly 10 years younger than the next closest man, they’ve never made me feel out of place. Quite the contrary… this was the first band that I ever wrote and performed one of my own songs with, which ended up being the first track on their 4th record, “Diving for Gold”.
Chauncey - "My Radio (Everything I Know)"
Released: June 23, 2005
Chauncey’s 2nd and final full-length record ended up being our most ambitious (and expensive) recording to date. Recorded in Chicago with legendary indie-rock god Steve Albini, this record was a marked departure from our initial release. Stark, natural and even somewhat ominous, My Radio (Everything I Know) still remains to this day as one of the records that I am most proud of.
Chauncey, Eponymous
Released: September 29, 2001
Chauncey’s eponymous debut record was hailed as Boston Magazine’s Best Rock Record of 2002 in their Best of Boston issue as “loaded with swerving melodies, bending rhythms, and emotional truths”. A bit melodramtic, perhaps, but this was the first record I ever made in a real studio with a real band (that studio being the locally-legendary Room 9 From Outer Space with Ducky Carlisle).