Page 10 - BiTS_06_JUNE_2021

BiTS: When did you first pick up slide playing?

About 3 years ago I decided to give it a go and it stuck so hard I no longer play in standard tunings.
All my guitars are resonators, apart from my steel Mulecaster...which I also play slide on! Ha ha!

BiTS: How did you find the blues?

Though I heard the blues in my household
growing up, it was actually a close childhood
buddy who got me to really take note of the
genre, despite it being considerably against the
grain for our generation! I vividly remember him

explaining the blues was "when your girl leaves
you, your friends leave you and even your damn
dog leaves you so all you have left is music!"
which I found both an amusingly frank and
transfixing description of a musical genre I found
very cool to listen to. I slowly grew my catalogue
of blues knowledge from then on and later

formed a little blues, folk and bluegrass ensemble
with some friends.

BiTS: What about the music made you want to
learn and perform it?

I think some of us are born with a natural
propensity for the arts and it is inevitable that
KK’s home studio
you will end up painting, acting or playing an
instrument as the fascination won't leave you
alone otherwise. I indulged in escapism via music

from an early age and I suppose it was just
natural progression combined with having a guitar in the house to tinker with.

BiTS: Tell me about how you record? It is really a single mic? In your living room? (That's
what the pic looks like).

At the start of the first lockdown, I made use of my time and put together a home studio. The set up
is pretty straight forward but works a treat for blues! I've graduated onto a matched pair of mics in
an XY position now for guitars, I really like the sound that captures. More often than not, I record

guitars straight into microphones (as opposed to plugging them in) as I find that produces the most
authentic resonator sound. Especially so with my preferred phosphor bronze strings, which can be
temperamental when played through a pick up.

BiTS: There must be a lot of overdubbing. Do you do that yourself?

I do! I taught myself to use Logic Pro and record and layer my own tracks. I leave the mixing and
mastering to the professionals though, that is an art in itself. Thus far, all my tracks have been
mixed by Michael Rodio in New York. He is fantastic to work with!

BiTS: What recording device(s) do you use?

I use a matched paid of SE8 condenser pencil mics, duel mounted in the XY position for guitars. For

vocals I use an Ear Trumpet Labs Myrtle mic, a large condenser microphone with a lovely warm