Halou | Wholeness

The Inevitable

2007-05-23T21:34:00.000-07:00

For some time, I've realized that this blog was getting updated with way more regularity than the Halou website. As a result, this blog will henceforth be at the front page of www.halou.com

The Science Teacher.

2007-05-19T00:36:00.000-07:00

Just under two months after September 11th, 2001 (call me a Republican - I cite September 11th, then hit you with a dodgy sales pitch), we released our second album, "Wiser" on Nettwerk Records. What followed was the most concentrated string of live dates we have done (which is, sadly, still not many). On one of those nights - in Seattle, WA (where else?) - from the stage, we heard someone refer to me as 'The Science Teacher'. These were the days when the suit/tie/glasses were wardrobe and general unease and discomfort made up my onstage demeanor (they obviously still do). I can remember laughing loudly, pondering how we never really truly 'see' ourselves.

So now, I have just completed three tracks for a short CD that I will release under the name 'The Science Teacher'. This music is different from Halou. Rebecca does sing on one track, but not in the way you're probably familiar with. I would love for you to hear it, but I am quite aware that it is not the kind of thing you can put on at all times of the day.

Anyway, the details:

The Science Teacher: Parallelism
1. On A Haiku Beach
2. Factory Flowers
3. Low Countries

Running time: 17:53

Dynamophone will be releasing this in July as part of their 'Parcel' series of limited 3" CD packages. I will post artwork and pre-order link soon...

RYAN

Back From The Green World

2007-05-12T21:26:00.001-07:00

The Green World/SF Film Festival show was great. One of those nights when just about everything goes right. It was a gorgeous night in the city and people were definitely out to enjoy it.

We showed up at the club right after 6pm, loaded in and soundchecked relatively easily. Unfortunately, the stage was quite small and we had to strike most of our gear to make room for Tarentel. I quite enjoyed their set and it was satisfying to finally catch them live after all the years hearing about them.

After reassembling ourselves onstage we went on and played for about an hour. The new songs are definitely a highlight for us and 'Albatross' just seems like it's coming across really well live, which gives me great hope for a lot of the songs were working for the new record.

Our old friend Jake was on hand and managed to snap some characteristically nice photographs of us doing it. You can see one below and you can click here to view the rest.

RYAN

Rehearsal Shots

2007-05-06T19:12:00.000-07:00

I've been regretting lately that we never post any audio/video/photo content up on this blog so here's a few shots from Friday night's rehearsal:

Back To It

2007-05-04T13:48:00.001-07:00

Last night, everyone trickled into the studio from the rain and we got on with our first rehearsal for next week's SF Film Festival show. Things were tightly packed, as usual, but the songs were fresher in our heads than we thought and that made things easy to bear.

It wasn't my intent, but most of our songs seem to have these nice little breaks in them for everyone to take a sip of wine. In future, perhaps I will just plan to have at least 4 or 8 bars for everyone to lay out and get their drink on.

Another rehearsal tonight...

Wine Critic

2007-05-02T13:48:00.000-07:00

This morning, we woke up to rain-washed roads and moist, clean air due to mild showers overnight. It's almost sad the way the blustery weather tries to creep in with the persistent sun pushing it away again and again.

Last night a short burst of energy on my part (and a particular bottle of Cabernet) resulted in some new guitar bits and a solid chorus for 'Critic'. This one could end up being one of my favorites if things continue to go well with it.

Earlier in the day, Rebecca nailed down lyrics to 'Stop Thief' that improved upon her original idea. I look forward to recording those soon.

Critic.

2007-04-27T21:39:00.001-07:00

I've taken 'Critic' from idea/concept to song in the last 24 hours. It now has a few different parts and is remarkably full sounding give how few elements it has so far.

One of the things that's been different with this group of songs is that Rebecca is hearing them much earlier. For the last album, and 'Wiser', in particular, I finished the songs almost completely before I played them for anyone else. I'm not sure why I used to do things that way - probably just from my early days of working by myself. Anyway, now things are more collaborative in all directions and it's working out very, very well.

We'll more or less be taking the weekend off to spend some time with friends and enjoy the weather. Next week, we'll be focusing more on preparations for the upcoming performance in San Francisco. Much has changed since the last one...

RYAN

You Are Here.

2007-04-26T23:32:00.000-07:00

Tonight more progress made on 'Sunday Low' and 'Stop Thief'. Rebecca has some great new ideas for 'Breath Makes Smoke' but, unfortunately, I've got to redo it quite a bit faster before it's ready for new vocals.

I've attached an image of the album directory which I think you can click on to enlarge. One or two of the titles may be final, but they're mostly temporary.

RYAN

Reverse The Formula

2007-04-25T22:53:00.001-07:00

As time goes on these days, I seem to be moving away from many of the tastes I've carried over the last several years. As you get older, it's accepted that you outgrow things - settle down - whatever. For me, I'm finding the opposite to be true - I want badly to shake off complacency. To rewrite things. Redefine. My eyes now seem to take in colors of all hue and saturation. Sounds that previously struck me as daft or confusing now have their place and I understand them. Hopefully, I can make some useful science out of all this.

RYAN

The Cracks In The Sidewalk

2007-04-23T22:38:00.001-07:00

Some days are full of little things. No songs, no projects, no rehearsals. No callused fingertips or achy voices. On these days, the subtleties of life can take on inflated significance. Libraries, classrooms, walks through town. This is what feels right today.

RYAN

Tempo

2007-04-19T17:01:00.000-07:00

It's always a good idea to listen to mixes in the car, everyone knows that. Well, we're not even close to mixing... Today I drove around Marin a bit, listening to some of the new material hoping I'd be able to hear some of the elements of these songs in a different way.

Consistently, one of the most common things I notice is tempo - you listen to something in the car and if it's a little too slow, you can pick it up right away. For the new record, there aren't really any slow or downtempo tracks so it's important that things have the right energy pushing them forward.

RYAN

14 Is A Magic Number

2007-04-18T17:14:00.000-07:00

Piled up a list of the new tracks last night and it looks like we're working with 14 this time. I think for this round we're going to try for 10 on the album in contrast to the somewhat engorged W&S album.

Been playing the stringed instruments a lot lately. Letting the electronics rest a bit. I've been spending a lot of time teaching my daughter piano which, frankly, leaves me a bit uninspired by keyboards in general. Though, it is so unbelievable to see a 6 year old grasping musical concepts for the first time. Our eventual goal is to turn Halou into a sort of Menudo where members change with the generations. We're in talks with the representatives for Ricky Martin's frozen embryos and things are progressing well.

I must also acknowledge the drunken display of green just outside my front windows. The season has changed here and it's dazzling.

Summer Comes

2007-04-17T17:59:00.000-07:00

I'm sure the Summer is what the wind is blowing in today. Gusts of it.

Last night felt like a leap toward understanding what the next record is going to become. It's like looking back on the trail you've just climbed and you realize you have made it further than you thought you would. That's because our trail, this time, is very, very different than the one we're used to walking.

So, this week Rebecca and I have been trying to solidify a mid-tempo guitar track and last night I think we cleared the final major hurdle. I've been grasping for titles early this time so we don't end up naming things poorly in the end, but the only lyric I can hear well enough in this one is something about "the tipping point". Anyway...

RYAN

The Ides of April (Nearly)

2007-04-12T17:01:00.000-07:00

I miss Rome.

Anyway.

I wrote a couple of new things this past week that have convinced me definitively that the next album is going to be something of a sharp turn from the last. That was my intention, of course, but in the past I have made similar aims only to remain, frustratingly, so similar. These most recent bits bring us up to around 14 or 15 tracks to work with for the album, which is pretty near what I was aiming for. I think we're trying for a solid 10-track album this time, in contrast to W&S. I'm more excited than ever to play the new material live as it's just got SUCH a different vibe than what we've been doing for the last several years.

On a different track, have you heard the Blonde Redhead record? It's funny to see the excessively hip deride it as their 'sellout' album. It's nearly without fault, as far as I can tell and I fully expected the Shins record to be my favorite of the year. Good music, despite every single negative force kicking against it, is so vibrantly alive and it's more exciting than ever to hear it.

The new Rolling Stone magazine has brief reviews of the latest batch of Depeche Mode reissues and they've pointed out what I've been saying to friends for some time (subjecting myself to much ridicule): re-evaluate 'Songs Of Faith & Devotion'! I still listen to this record often and it still sounds amazing.

RYAN>

Seeing, not hearing.

2007-04-09T00:05:00.000-07:00

I'm afraid I've little to report on Halou-related activity for the past week. I've solidly finished work on the Science Teacher EP and that's just taken it out of me musically for a bit.

My other pursuits usually struggle to find attention amidst all the playing and recording of music but lately things have really been coming into focus. My filmmaking 'career' is very much in its infancy but I am getting MUCH experience doing location shooting and direction. Very fun, but very different from the kind of work I'm used to.

We inevitably move closer to the actual recording dates for Halou and I'm getting that familiar feeling again: 'These are the songs you've got so if you want more to pick from, you better write 'em now.' Feeling very untethered stylistically these days and hoping some concentrated studio time will help me to see the direction things will go. I'm sure it will.

The April Flowers That May Devours

2007-04-02T19:20:00.000-07:00

The sad demise of Tower Records also meant the obsolescence of the Bayside subsidiary of which Halou was a part. Furthering the theory that Halou shall never rest at a single label long enough to find any lasting comfort, we now move on to Dynamophone, who will reissue 'Wholeness & Separation' to prevent it from falling into the silent blackness much the way its two predecessors have done. As W&S is not even 1 year old, we have decided not to dress up the repress, but rather do a quiet continuation of the current format and simply keep the thing in print. However, as stated before, Dynamophone will also be issuing the (Sans Soucie-like) 'Skimming' which collects all W&S related material under one little umbrella thus saving cd racks everywhere from distended 'H' sections and diminishing the brutish relevance of such Western propagandist organizations as Hold Everything and the Container Store. It's our duty as counter-consumerist revolutionaries, is it not?

JESUS

Lapse

2007-03-28T19:10:00.000-07:00

It's been awhile since we've updated this space and there's been good reason. We've kept our heads down lately and we've managed to get a bit of work done on our various projects.

Work continues on the next proper Halou record. The wide range of material we have to work on is encouraging and shows, even at this early stage, what a different sound this next album will have. We still get the odd 'trip-hop' tag applied to us from time to time and, frankly, I will be happy to see that go away once and for all. I think I speak for all of us when I say we'd like it if all seven of you would start calling us goth. What else are we going to do with all this eyeliner?

Very soon - certainly by the time we perform next on May 9th - I will have 'officially' released my very first instrumental music. I have assumed the name 'The Science Teacher' for the purpose and the short introductory CD will be called 'Paralellism'. There are three tracks contained within and I think they represent quite a different sound than I've put out there before. Dynamophone are showing incredible faith and a shocking lack of commercial acumen by agreeing to put this out.

Perhaps more relevant and interesting to readers of this blog is the upcoming Halou EP compilation entitled 'Skimming'. 'Skimming' is more than an albums worth of tracks we've put out on various EP's over the past few years. Why are we putting exclusive tracks and live material on it? Why not? In fact, this CD will actually contain the new track, 'Skimming' along with live versions of this and that.

RYAN

2007SOFAR

2007-03-06T17:06:00.000-08:00

With the change of season I'm already anticipating another year passing me by. My movements feel slower these days and my ambition less satisfied. The one remedy is to constanty work, work on new things and I have been taking my medicine lately - overdosing, perhaps.

2007 will certainly bring the Rigil full-length album, which I am producing. The Abassi Bros album, which I have just recorded and shall mix. The Galactic record which Count is recording and mixing.

Also, we will be releasing a CD compiling the recent EPs. It is our hope to add some live/studio tracks to what already is a full disc. This should be available within the next couple of months. Too bad we already used the name 'Wholeness & Separation' - it would have been perfect for a disc combining the EPs. Damn.

24 Hour Party People

2007-03-04T21:41:00.000-08:00

2 days of recording finished for the Abassi's album. Beatiful weather here in San Rafael to accompany a totally smooth session during which we recorded on about 15 songs. Hopefully, everything continues to go well with this and we get the album out in the early summer. Regardless of release date, it's going to be fantastic.

RYAN

In/Out

2007-03-01T18:33:00.000-08:00

While spending the nights working on new music, days are spent with the music of others humming in the background. 2007 has been a great year for music so far, for sure, and there are plenty of older things I'm just discovering that make the days sound better. Here are a few:

The Mary Onettes - Lost EP
Late Night Tales - Nouvelle Vague
Goldmund - Corduroy Road
Fennesz - Endless Summer (Reissue)
The Good, The Bad & The Queen
The Earlies - The Enemey Chorus
Hammock - Raising Your Voice...

Also, to briefly address my other obsession, it's a really great time for wine. A lot of the '04 Napa Cabernets are hitting the shelves now and, damn, there's some really good stuff to drink. The '05 Pinots from the RRV are also just amazing and I'm drinking what I can of those. Strangely, one of my very favorite wines of the moment is a Zinfandel - the 2005 Gamba Estate, actually, which is made in the style of a Cabernet instead of the syrupy confections that a lot of winemakers favor. You can't knock it down, it just goes with everything and works on its own as a sort of cocktail alarmingly well. Sadly, very little made, which is often the case with such a beautiful creation. I love that.

RYAN

The Old Cliche About Crime

2007-02-28T23:16:00.000-08:00

'Tubefed' by Halou was on tonight's episode of CSI:NY. We had very little notice of this being finalized so I didn't mention it before. Not sure what the point would've been, anyway, but seems like the kind of thing one blogs about. There you go.

RYAN

Evidence.

2007-02-21T22:56:00.000-08:00

Recording full-on these days for so many different things I think I'm losing track. Below are some very brief samples of different elements I've recorded in the past couple of weeks.

One
Two
Three
Four

Sybil and Caesar

2007-02-18T18:56:00.000-08:00

Suffering here in California from hurricane Sybil - the multiple-personality weather thing is utterly baffling. Amazingly temperate here right now. The heat has the corks lifting out of all my Chardonnay bottles, strangely enough.

Last night, Rebecca and I struggled with a new track we're calling 'Lunatic' for the moment. This one is just so different than what we usually do that I think we had no strategies in place to come up with things that worked easily. Every addition was a struggle, but I think in the end we nailed it. Sounds nearly finished and there's nothing on it but bass, drums, guitar and vocals. Something refreshing about that, actually.

All the projects I've been mentioning here lately are going very well, in fact. Finding myself behind a personal goal I've even managed to do quite a bit of work on what I imagine will become the next Invisible Ballet record. Looks like we're about 1/3 of the way there on that one. Possibly 2007, but who knows.

Rebecca and I have been totally swept up in Season 1 of Rome. I'm hardly a historian, but Rome is a dark part of our past I know very little about. This show, though very obviously 'produced', is a user-friendly way to get familiar with the time period. As close as I can figure it based on what I've seen so far, Rome suffered from a duality represented best by knives and breasts. The original sex and violence, I suppose. Captivating.

RYAN.

Saturation.

2007-02-13T10:00:00.000-08:00

With regard to musical activity, 2007 is already looking a lot like 2005 for me. Busy.

Rebecca and I are far along on another new Halou track - this one sounding less like any previous Halou material than any of the new tracks. It feels great when that happens. Very much against the idea of repeating previous ideas and goddamn electronic music clichés, though it becomes more and more clear as we go that this is more in the ear of the listener than anything else...

I managed to put together some music for a new short film called 'Sweet Candy.' This project is being produced/directed by the same team that did 'Quality Of Life' and I've contributed 3 songs - one of which is a preliminary version of a new Invisible Ballet track.

I'm also putting together a short release comprised of rethought versions from the 'Beneath Trembling Lanterns' album for Dynamophone. Most likely to be part of the new 'Parcel' series of releases, this will likely consist of around 20 minutes of fairly ambient reworkings of a few of those songs. I'm very excited about the way it's sounding so far and I think it will make a nice companion to the album. The packaging is also going to be something else...

I'm awaiting more tracks from Rigil for production/mixing. I think he's settled on the name 'Concertina Heart' for the album, which just seems to fit so nicely with the tone of the material. This will be a special release, I think. We should see it out in the fall of this year, I think.

I'm also in the preliminary stages of work with two new aquaintances, Yousuf and Amman Abassi, whom I will be working with on their upcoming debut album for Dynamophone. This also promises to be something fantastic as the rough tracks are already favorites.

RYAN

(Short) Films

2007-02-06T19:08:00.000-08:00

Sunday night I spent some time working with some filmmaker friends of mine placing music into a short film they had just shot. Ben and Brant are the pair largely responsible for Quality Of Life, a film we (Halou) did some music for a couple of years ago.

I was able to comb the hard drives and find several pieces that seemed to fit fairly well and it looks like they'll find their way into the finished cut. Not Halou songs, but just some things that hadn't yet found a home.

More on this as things progres...

RYAN

Spring Is Here

2007-02-04T22:34:00.000-08:00

Call me a dogmatic liberal, but I can't help but feel guilty for enjoying the amazing weather we've been having around here. Tonight, the evening air was warm and fragrant and had me just about convinced I had been whisked forward into early Summer.

Lots of business and mixing and troubleshooting going on this weekend - all of which was rendered trite by the amazing brunch earlier today.

Onto another week!

RYAN

In Multiples.

2007-02-02T10:04:00.000-08:00

I guess I've been too busy to write here for the last several days. The many projects I/we are working on have really kept me face-to-face with the computer screen staring at waveforms.

The new Halou track we're working on has developed a little bit. After the installation of Battery 3, I was able to get some really amazing drums onto the second verse. The leap in quality between Battery 2 and 3 is just unbelievable. I'm really loving the vocal melody and the way the track develops as it goes along. I'll most likely record some acoustic guitars this afternoon.

The Rigil project for Dynamophone is progressing well, also. I've dramatically enhanced the track that has been most problematic. The ending now features several different guitar things and I'm contemplating extending the ending quite a bit. We're all very excited about how this release is shaping up. Could become a highlight of 2007 for our catalog.

Last night, I spent a couple hours on 'Cantus' by Evan's Curium project. Essentially, an extended ambient piece propelled by a Latin incantation, I primarily focused on eq/compression and spatializing. The results are sounding promising and this should be finished up and ready for release very soon.

RYAN

New Song Begins.

2007-01-28T22:27:00.000-08:00

Last night I put together the beginnings of a new song (finally). I have wrapped up all the software installations and can now get back to making music, which feels really good. As always, I go long periods in between writing Halou songs, but I usually do them in clusters.

This one, for now, we will call 'January' and we will track its progress here on the blog and see how it ends up.

Last night, I focused on coming up with a percussion figure to anchor the track. Once I had that going, it was easy to find complimentary instrumentation and some of the new tools I've been gathering made it incredibly easy. Rebecca, in typical fashion, hummed along from the beginning and had a solid vocal going right away.

Next time, I'll try to get some video of work on the track...

RYAN

ARCHIVE: Building The Studio

2007-01-27T20:11:00.000-08:00

A few years ago when we moved house and I built my studio I posted my progress online. I just found the page and you can see it here if you like.

RYAN

Back-end Bits

2007-01-27T18:41:00.000-08:00

I imagine this might be as fun to read as it is to write - which is to say, 'perhaps not very' - but I persist.

I have been working quite steadily on Dynamophone-related business for the past week, filling my days with mixing, recording and hypothesizing about how to get the most out of the audio one is given. Thankfully, the audio I've been given is quite good, so the challenge is for me to present it in the best possible light. Prerequisite for this being, of course, that I shall get no sleep - and should sleep come, I must dream of rising oceans that swallow low-lying lands and force one to make tough decisions about what size wooden plank is sufficient to use as transport across the angry sea. The short version of this story is that I'm pleased with where I'm at on the Rigil project and the first 'serious' mixes are sounding good to my ear with mainly small tweaking and fun, creative things left to do.

On the Halou side, I have been editing quite a bit of video footage for various things. Video is strange in that we've all been cultured to expect a certain level of 'quality' (dare I use the word?) having grown up in front of television sets. I guess what I mean is, we all know crap when we see it. I have been exposed to just about my fill of crap video lately and, hence, have been putting in some effort learning ways to navigate around that outcome. More on this as things develop.

RYAN

What?

2007-01-26T10:21:00.000-08:00

Is Amazon.com actually selling Wiser for $80.00?

REBECCA

Reissuing

2007-01-24T13:19:00.000-08:00

We are in the early stages of planning a reissue of our first album, We Only Love You for its 10th anniversary and I've been spending some time gathering up the tracks to include on the release. Of course, the full content of the original album will be included as well as some additional tracks tbd. The lofty goal is to 're-mix' and remaster each track, as well, to greatly improve its overall sound. As soon as things become more solid, we will put it up on halou.com to preorder.

Slow Tools

2007-01-20T17:47:00.000-08:00

Pro Tools is a great application. However, as with most updates, the new version has thrown my system into chaos. So much so, in fact, that I'm reinstalling the previous version. I've got a seriously powerful computer and 7.3 is just bogging it down for some reason. Seeing a lot of spinning beach ball. Unfortunately, right now I've got way too much going on to troubleshoot this problem and 7.2 was so stable and quick.

Not Stopping

2007-01-17T00:17:00.000-08:00

Right at the end of last year I took on the project of producing a new Dynamophone artist named Rigil. Today, I'm in the thick of things with the first song nearly done. The songs are quite good and they provide enough interest to keep things interesting as I listen over and over. Each track suggests a lot of ideas and I expect I'll be able to move through things rather quickly.

Next week will bring another round of editing live Halou video. We have talked a little bit about putting out a DVD, but it's early days and things are very much up in the air regarding all that.

In the next few days, I'll begin work on a new Halou track, which I intend to chronicle right here from beginning to end. I'm not sure how that works without posting the audio, but that's what makes this whole blog thing so exciting, innit?

Ryan.

The Long Road Home

2007-01-15T16:16:00.000-08:00

Seattle, Seattle. We were hardly there, it seems.

14 hours up. 14 hours back. I think there was a show in there, as well. That's right. A lovely town, as ever, but a few little twists can always change things. I'm not sure El Corazon was the right venue for us and things were definitely a little logistically complex.

Rolling up to the club, we parked next to a rather unfortunate fellow laying on the sidewalk underneath the freeway ramp tucked into layers of blankets and sleeping bags. I continue to be confused about what causes this kind of thing that can't be addressed in a reasonable way. Here's a problem with no politically-viable constituency to raise its profile.

Inside the club, things we're more cheery. All the other performers on the bill were very kind. I'm afraid I didn't get a chance to catch any of the music during the evening. It's always great to catch up with old friends that have been coming to our shows over the last few years and this was a good occasion to do that.

The performance itself was enjoyable. I think we've played better, but I was happy with it. It's hard to play in those starkly-lit venues where there's no 'ambiance' at all. I'm hardly into huge billowing fog, but a little haze can give things a little bit of something that's otherwise just missing. We're all still really enjoying playing the new songs and I think those went well.

So, what's next? There are a lot of small projects we've got in front of us before we really start nailing down the album sometime in March/April. We probably won't be playing much in the next few months for this reason, but things change. As details emerge, we will post them here.

Ryan

Soundchecking

2007-01-13T21:21:00.000-08:00

We're here at El Corazon at about 9:20 and just wrapped our soundcheck. Went flawlessly, which is just what you hope for after making a 14 hour drive through the ice-decorated Northwestern highway landscape. Next on the agenda has to be food and wine.

I've never made the trip up here with so much of the terrain covered in ice and frost. You can't help but get in the Christmas spirit as you drive through Tacoma, its countless neon stripmalls glittering beneath blankets of shiny white. Northern Oregon, in particular, was really dazzling with its distant mountains taking on a silvery hue as the shadow mixes with the flecks of white.

More soon.

Ryan.

Order Delay

2007-01-08T22:05:00.000-08:00

Normally, orders are packed on Sunday and shipped Monday or Tuesday. Because of our impending Seattle trip, orders placed through halou.com this week will be packed 1/21 and shipped on 1/22 or 1/23. We apologize for the delay.

If you have an urgent need, there's always iTunes!

Thanks!

REBECCA

VIDEO POST: Tubfed Live

2007-01-08T13:29:00.000-08:00

OK, so we've finally got the first of the multi-camera live videos done:
(For some reason, there's about a 13 second blank screen at the beginning)

AUDIO POST: R/R Coseboom - 'Untitled'

2007-01-07T20:01:00.000-08:00

As I mentioned a few days ago, Rebecca and I recorded a simple live version of an old Cure song called 'Untitled'. We don't really 'do' cover songs for our records, so I figured this would be a good entry for an audio posting here, besides my pocketbook can hardly afford to send checks to Mr Smith & friends...

Bloggers and podcasters, go ahead and play it where you will, thanks:

R/R COSEBOOM - UNTITLED

(written by Smith/Tolhurst/O'Donnell/Gallup/Thompson/Williams)

Show Update

2007-01-07T17:27:00.000-08:00

In case you don't get the email updates, click HERE.

Crawling into 2007

2007-01-05T17:25:00.000-08:00

I'm totally bedridden-sick, unable to work on the many projects I've got in front of me. I had planned to come into 2007 paying more attention to what I'm eating, etc. and this illness has me doing that even more than I intended.

Next week is a busy one, with Count speaking at the MacWorld conference on Thursday and Halou playing up in Seattle on Saturday at a Microsoft Zune event. Hopefully, we'll be able to figure out the on-the-road blogging thing...

VIDEO POST: Timothy Video Editing

2007-01-03T23:17:00.000-08:00

Friend of Halou, Timothy Benton, in the studio cutting video...

Another Strange Article

2007-01-03T22:04:00.000-08:00

An interview with Count done before the recent 'Reload' performance. CLICK HERE

Funny Article: SF Chronicle

2007-01-02T22:20:00.000-08:00

Short Halou profile with bizarre questions. CLICK HERE

1994

2007-01-02T22:13:00.000-08:00

Due to the generosity/perversity of one clever gift-giver, Rebecca and I last night were confronted with a DVD of a performance of our old band circa 1994. Sure, it was embarrassing and hard to watch, but it was interesting that one of the performances was a showcase for IUMA, arguably the first music site on the web. Part of the video showed the cameraperson navigating the dodgy website of our dodgy band. 1994 did not have a lot to offer in terms of web content, I was reminded.

Ryan

Disintegrating

2006-12-29T19:24:00.000-08:00

Rebecca and I are putting the finishing touches on a recording of an old Cure song called 'Untitled'.

We were led to this particular song while playing around with this old forced-air organ that sounds similar to the accordian used on the original recording. As cool as that sounds, I decided to play it on the piano and from there we just decided to record it to see what it would sound like. Now Rebecca's finally got over her cold and we're able to record some vocals...

Ryan

10 years

2006-12-29T00:44:00.000-08:00

Today marks 10 years of Rebecca and I being married. (Photo by Jake Appelbaum)

Happy Holidays

2006-12-24T15:04:00.000-08:00

Thanks for reading our blog and we should be back up in a couple of days.

Happy Holidays.

Massive

2006-12-23T00:12:00.000-08:00

So, I've now got NI's Massive installed on the G5 and have had a bit of time to cruise around it and listen to what it can do. Thankfully, the learning curve isn't too steep on this synth as it's rooted in the traditional structures I'm used to, unlike KORE and Guitar Rig, which challenge me a bit.

Massive has got great clarity - everything is loud, buzzy and fuzzy in the right places and the quantity of preset sounds is staggering. If Halou were an out-and-out electronic project, I expect we'd be able to put this thing to use in everything we did. As it is, I suspect I'll be using it mainly for other things.

Nice one.

Ryan.

2006

2006-12-22T11:01:00.000-08:00

In no order at all:

Decemberists – The Crane Wife
Helios - Eingya
Console - Mono
Johann Johannsson – IMB1401
Pornopop – And The Slow Songs
Junior Boys – So This Is Goodbye
Psapp – The Only Thing I Ever Wanted
Sparklehorse – Dreamt For Light Years…
Thom Yorke – The Eraser
The Late Cord – Lights From The Wheelhouse

RC

Good Feelings About Random Things

2006-12-22T00:50:00.000-08:00

Tonight I heard some of the serious progress that's been made on a few of the songs for our next album. We basically have 5 songs that are close to done right now, with 5 others waiting to be developed. My son thinks we should call the album 'Volcanus' and, though I'm not exactly sure what that is, I'm sure we won't use it as it doesn't meet our strict criteria for such things (meaning, of course, that it doesn't start with a 'w').

What we've got so far has really got me excited. I'm very optimistic that early spring 2007 will, in fact, see us releasing our 4th record.

The track 'Seabright', in particular, has evolved into something quite unlike anything we've done before, but really sounds like a natural progression. Robin Guthrie (ex of Cocteau Twins) played guitar on this track while he was in town recording with Harold Budd and his work adds a nice sparkle to the climax.

Speaking of Robin, I've been meaning to mention two other blogs that you might be interested in checking out:

Robin Guthrie (as mentioned above)

Gareth Jones - Mixer/Engineer/Producer

Both contain fascinating insights and the unique touch of their respective hosts.

Evan, that swank curator of Dynamophone Records handed off to me his latest Lullaby League disc, which I hope to check out just as soon as my cranky G5 feels like acknowledging its placement in the disc slot.

Evan and I also made a brief trip to Amoeba where I picked up the new Hammock record. Quite nice and atmospheric in a way that takes me back to Slowdive/Boo Radleys et al.

Until next time...

Ryan.

New Seattle show posted

2006-12-21T00:43:00.000-08:00

In one of the more ironic twists to date, Halou celebrate the release of their iTunes exclusive EP, "ALBATROSS" at a Microsoft Zune-sponsored show at El Corazon in Seattle on January 13, 2007.

Halou will have a limited number of hard-copy ALBATROSS CDs available at the show. Please email info@halou.com if you want a copy but live outside the Seattle area.

The line-up will include Halou, the incomprable Ms Zoey Keating, and others.

Here are complete details:

Saturday, January 13, 2007
El Corazón, 109 Eastlake Ave. East, Seattle
Zune Presents
- HALOU
- Mexican Institute Of Sound
- Zoe Keating (Imogen Heap/Rasputina)
- Plus Guests
Doors: 9:00 pm
Show: 10:00 pm (Zoey is opening, please be prompt!)
Tickets Available at TicketsWest Ouetlets & At The Door

Seattleites, want to help Halou? Please print this flier and hang it at work, or on your front door, or on your fridge, or anywhere you think potential Halou fans might lurk...

Hope to see you there!
-REBECCA

Albatross News

2006-12-20T22:48:00.000-08:00

We now have a limited supply of 'hard copies' of the 'Albatross EP' for those dedicated followers of Ned Ludd out there. Unfortunately, we can't sell 'em for as cheap as the iTunes version, but if you contact us, we'll get you set up with one of them.

More news very soon, in minutes actually, just wanted this to have its own entry.

Deny The Cold

2006-12-17T02:24:00.000-08:00

Regrettably, the hellish cold has arrived and scared away my ability to sleep. The past couple of days have been spent blissfully out of the studio and in the company of great friends doing enjoyable holiday things.

Friday night was an evening so extraordinary that blogging about it in detail would cheapen it somehow. Food was enjoyed, wine (VAST understatement) was consumed and a large crowd of new friends made Rebecca and I feel like happy new members in an incredibly warm and loving family.

Today, Rebecca and I bundled the kids and leapt over the bridge to catch the SF Youth Symphony's holiday concert. The first of what I hope to be an annual tradition for us. The program was light-hearted but quite well-thought-out and easy to get lost in. The main draw was Prokofiev's classic 'Peter & The Wolf' led by the symphony's 27 year-old(!) conductor and it was a nice reading. However, the selections played just before it were picked to highlight for the children and neophytes in the audience the different sections of the orchestra. Light waltzes and bright brass symphonies gave way to a stunning piece performed entirely by a quintet of drummers. The lone bass drummer stood stoic on stage beating his simple, but crescendoing, pulse while 4 other drummers slowly proceeded up the aisles toward the stage beating their single tuned toms. As they neared the stage, the rhythm became more frenzied and the audience more spellbound. Written as a 'wake' for the composer's musical idol, I was left utterly reminded how much more powerful music is when rended from the soul by an honest emotion and a unique thought.

The highlight, though, did not come from the stage, but from little Olivia whose response to first hearing the sweeps of the full orchestra were little gossamer tears that trickled down her sweet warm cheeks. From the first, she was completely consumed and did not disengage until the final strains. Selfishly, I grinned as I felt my parental satisfaction reserves overflow enough to warm me through until spring.

More Halou news soon, as I can hear the faint, siren-like whisper calling up the stairs from the studio. Much, much to do in the week ahead.

Ryan.

The Usual

2006-12-14T00:55:00.000-08:00

Tonight, I've been trying to use Atmosphere for the first time and it really does not want to play nice with any other plug-ins. If I have any NI plugins open, it crashes the whole session and forces a restart.

To be honest, cool as it is, I think Atmosphere is probably something I would have found more useful 10 years ago. It's a little Jean-Michael Jarre-ish for me with its insta-ambient leanings. Nevertheless, the synthesis behind it and the GUI are very cool. Perhaps I will find a way to work it in somewhere.

On The Weekend

2006-12-10T22:15:00.000-08:00

The volatile combination of weather and holiday shopping made things quite slow over the past couple of days. Unfortunately, I had little time to spend working on anything much in the studio - apart from cleaning things up now that rehearsals have subsided for the time being.

I did get the opportunity to work with Rebecca on finding a new tempo for the track I've been calling 'Stoplights'. Also found out Rebecca has been calling it 'Breath Makes Smoke'. In any case, we adjusted it upward 11 beats per minute, which is substantial. Typically, I don't move things up or down more than 5 BPM to get it right. I guess we both felt this particular track has the potential to be fairly energetic, which is hard to achieve at lower tempos.

Also, I did the original demo using dodgy synth sounds from Reason so I've been replacing those with real performances to work out what I/we will actually play once we go into the studio proper...

Ryan.

Last Night

2006-12-06T17:25:00.000-08:00

Though Marin County hardly suffers from dynamic weather to the degree of, say, the East Coast, things can get pretty murky and dark. Last year around this time, Rebecca and I were nearly done with the R/R Coseboom album, a project taken on largely to pass the late fall and winter doldrums and maybe reflect a little bit of that time of year.

This year, Halou feels more vibrant and we have begun working on our next album in earnest. I have gone into some of the work that we’ve done so far on this blog, but I expect to really get into things right around the beginning of next year.

Last night, though, we got together for dinner and a little bit of recording and rehearsal. Rebecca – who can always be counted on to brighten a table with her face and her fare – served an elegant mushroom soup with fresh chantrelles, cannelloni stuffed with smoked cherries and Swiss chard (then topped with parsnip cream), and I-Li’s recipe for Moo-less chocolate cake. Almost more decadence than you should be allowed to fit into one sentence – or onto one table, but we found a way.

It was a good night for wine, too, actually. With the mushroom soup, we had the 2004 Ramey Russian River Chardonnay – a current favorite that Rebecca and I also had this Thanksgiving. With the cannelloni we drank the new Parallel Cabernet, perhaps my favorite red of the moment. To get us through the recording, we hurt a bottle of Valdez Rockpile Zinfandel – the new wine that the Spectator, Chronicle, etc. keep talking about. Lives up to the hype, no question.

We used the rehearsal to further work out the newer songs and tighten ourselves up on the older ones. ‘Albatross’ is already a new live favorite of mine with its tremolo guitar rakes and moog modulating. Also, ‘It Will All Make Sense In The Morning’ now makes a lot more sense to all of us as we were sort of confused about how to arrange it.

I’ve got much work to do on several other demos laying around. Next up, I’ve got this ‘Stoplights’ track staring at me from a lonely folder in a remote corner of an audio drive…

Ryan

Reload Image Roundup

2006-12-03T22:33:00.000-08:00

The internets. Photos. Instantly. WTF.

DNA Lounge Photos

Flickr Photos

Live Footage

2006-12-02T22:47:00.000-08:00

As Rebecca mentioned, the Reload event was great. Very healthy turnout of friendly people and (once we were onstage) little to no technical fuckups. A LOT of video footage to go through, but here's a small nugget:

Rebecca's Reload Recap

2006-12-02T16:42:00.000-08:00

We had an amazing time in San Francisco at Reload the other night and we're so grateful to everyone who came and made the night so fantastic!

The lofty goal of the evening was to highlight new technologies and how live performance might be more interactive with their use. While we had a few "setbacks" toward achieving that goal, I was pretty content with the fact that it was an awesome evening of live music! That is a feat in and of itself. If ever Corey wants to put on another Reload, I'm in - especially if it's at the DNA Lounge, a fantastic venue.

The Podcast meetup was great. I was impressed with the turnout and thrilled with the enthusiasm of the attendees. I even met one person who had actually changed his last name to "Podcaster." I wonder what he'll be named in 5 years... or even 3...

Black Fiction was a nice surprise. I didn't know what to expect and besides the neckbeards, they were very well received!

One of the greatest parts of the night for me was Zoe Keating. I finally got a chance to get to know her a little better and I was thrilled to discover that she is as wonderful as you might imagine. She may be staying at chez Coseboom in the coming weeks and has promised to consult with us regarding updating our live setup. Oddly enough, we figured out that she was working at the culinary academy when I was a student there!

I have not one complaint about our set. I was so happy and relaxed and comfortable. Our new song went over as well as I had hoped and we were all really excited about sharing some more of the new music we've been working on for the new album. Hopefully, if all goes well, we will have some shows in mid-January and we can add another new one.

To the best of my knowledge, no audio recording of any value exists to chronicle the evening, but we do have loads of video. As soon as one of us has half a moment to catch breath, we'll post some of it online.

Special thanks to Darren for so capably managing our merch booth! You can see him in this photo I found online, slaving away, all bent over there on the right:

-REBECCA

Soundcheck, etc

2006-11-30T19:46:00.000-08:00

Here at the DNA Lounge. Nearly 8pm. Soundcheck finished about an hour ago and went ok considering the technical elements involved.

Last Minute

2006-11-28T22:16:00.000-08:00

As I type, I'm waiting for DVD Studio Pro to multiplex the video ouptut on the G5. I've spent most of the evening tossing things around in Final Cut, as is usually the case in the days before we play shows. This time, however, I ran into some annoying obstacles with Final Cut losing track of various clilps and mysteriously chopping/replacing others. It seems so random sometimes.

Tomorrow night is the final rehearsal. Last practice was a bit contentious, but only because we're playing a couple new songs that haven't been thouroughly though-out already. The two new songs in the set are definitely high points and we're all looking forward to finally playing them out.

RYAN

When Sleeping

2006-11-26T00:12:00.000-08:00

These get the brain settled...

July Skies - Where The Days Go
Helios - Eingya
Console - Mono
Deaf Center - Pale Ravine

Rethinking Bass

2006-11-21T23:20:00.000-08:00

Over the years I've spent some time thinking of ways to avoid bringing amps onstage for guitars. My original idea - which I still use - is the reliable Pod Pro that puts out a convincing guitar sound while eliminating all the negative aspects of amps (and stompboxes).

Now that I've added bass to the setup, I've had to consider how to do something similar for it. My original plan - the path of least resistance, of course - was to just unplug the guitar and use the Pod for the bass, as well. This definitely works, though I'm not in love with the results.

Tonight, I took a shot at running Guitar Rig inside the KORE environment and using the amps/fuzz inside it to get the tone of the bass and then added dynamic processing on top of that. I can't believe how good it sounds. It's a bit weird to get my head around using a laptop as my 'bass amp', but can't argue with the sound.

Rehearse, Record, Release

2006-11-18T20:30:00.000-08:00

Rehearsal went brilliantly with very successful run-throughs of both the new songs in the set: 'Albatross' (from the upcoming EP) and 'It Will All Make Sense In The Morning' (for the next record). 'It Will All Make Sense...' for me is such a needed presence in our live set adding something that we haven't had up until now. Hard to articulate. 'Albatross' we've played before, but only now is it really working the way it should. I should also mention here that our friend, the amazing cellist, Zoe Keating will be joining us for the Nov 30th show, also.

The recording of 'It Will All Make Sense...' is really coming along nicely. So many great elements already - I'm quite pleased. Count recorded quite a bit of material for the song 'Seabright' in Dallas, as well. I haven't heard it yet, but he seems very energized by what was laid down. A few months ago Robin Guthrie (of Cocteau Twins), someone we've admired for quite a long time, played guitar on it also. Our timeline for the next album seems more realistic everyday, though those of you who followed us during the making of our last album will take that with a serious lump of salt. ;)

Today, I listened to the master of the 'Albatross EP' for the first time. These EP's are so fun to put together, as they remove a lot of the challenges that a full album brings. Admittedly, the EP format is not as vibrant as it once was, I still get excited by the possibilities it provides.

- RYAN

NP

2006-11-17T00:03:00.000-08:00

Console - Mono
Billy Bragg - Worker's Playtime
The Decemberists - The Crane Wife
Goldmund - The Heart Of High Places
Guitar - Tokyo
Johann Johannsson - IBM 1401: A User's Manual

- RYAN

Still Learning & Techie Things

2006-11-15T18:11:00.000-08:00

Just picked up a bass guitar again for the first time in quite a while - probably since I recorded some bits on the 'W&S' record. I think I finally feel comfortable with it's combination of guitar/percussiveness and I plan on getting quite a bit of practice time in. I used to hate bass when I was younger, having been more-or-less raised on electronic music. The naivete in that was pointed out to me when I realized that the bass parts on all the early OMD records were real stringed bass guitars. Over the years, I've also come to realize that bass, much like drums, has a lot to do with how people categorize music. For me, one of the most reliable ways to move a track away from an 'electronic feel' is to use a stringed bass - preferably electric. Picking up an unfamiliar instrument is always refreshing and invigorating and I've so far had quite a bit of fun 'refinining' my bass playing.

Another facet of our evolving performance is the new integration of Rebecca's laptop running Ableton live. Anyone who has seen us live is familiar with Rebecca's three microphone attack and this is sort of an extension of that - with her now being able to loop vocal bits live. Still working out the kinks and details, but this is perhaps the most potentially exciting development we've adopted in a while.

- RYAN

Crazy Week

2006-11-13T18:24:00.000-08:00

It didn't seem like it at the time, but the past week turned out to be a somewhat crazy one. Anyone who reads this blog (hi mom) knows the trouble I've seen with plugins, but we've also had the first Halou rehearsal in some time. This included running through 'It Will All Make Sense In The Morning' for the first time as a live band (I think we've determined this to be the first two-bass-guitar Halou song), designing a cover for the new EP on the fly, and flying down to LA briefly for a quick trip that included some serious DVD Studio Pro lessons and an overdue encounter with Chris Lowe and Neil Tennant who turned out to be every bit as charming and warm as you could expect.

Tonight I hope to nail down the details concerning the video elements of the upcoming Nov 30th show. We've never seriously recorded video of any Halou show and this one is illustrating for me how difficult that can be. Video just isn't worth doing unless it's done right.

- RYAN

Some New Music On The Way

2006-11-10T21:25:00.000-08:00

The new EP is more or less done with an iTunes exclusive release just around the corner.

Tracks:

1. Cello - An instrumental piece a'la 'Separation' and 'Alaska'

2. Ingenue (Different) - We enhanced the percussion elements quite a bit, removed the dodgy synth sound and replaced it with a pretty minimal electric piano, and Rebecca resang some of the vocals. A version far superior to the original, I think.

3. Albatross - This song was originally intended to be on the album but we really couldn't find a place for it. We've played it live a few times and it always sounds really good to me. I'm happy it's finally getting out there.

4. One Sunny Day - 'Separation' from the new album is actually the instrumental coda to this song. We wrote this at the same time as 'The Ratio Of Freckles To Stars' and 'Ingenue' but revisited several times before resting on this version. The ambient noises throughout are a very good example of one of Count's big strengths.

5. Night Divides The Girls - Also written around the time of 'Freckles' etc, this song is one I really enjoy - the middle part in particular.

- RYAN

Ugh

2006-11-10T16:56:00.000-08:00

Plugin hell.

On The Weekend

2006-11-05T20:28:00.000-08:00

Not much time spent this weekend on music-related pursuits but I did manage to get some further installs going on the new laptop tonight. For some reason, the Native Instruments authorizer is being stubborn, but it’s the only hitch I’ve encountered so far. Looking forward to getting the v4 Komplete bundle from NI soon to optimize things to the Intel brain...

Count is off to Dallas soon to work with Shadow on another remix and I’ve just started on production of a new Dynamophone project that will require a serious time commitment over the next few weeks. So far, I've primarily been running tracks through a nice tube channel strip to get more satisfying dynamics. More creative work to follow, hopefully.

More soon

Ryan

Laptalk

2006-11-02T18:47:00.000-08:00

A few months ago, Native Instruments was kind enough to hook us up with their new Kore interface that has finally really got me excited about using software synths in a live context. The challenge with this kind of thing continues to be that the software is released a beat ahead of computers that are capable of really harnessing the capabilities.

Yesterday, I bought the new Mac core duo laptop to provide a little peace of mind as I try to run everything onstage in a couple of weeks. Most of the sounds we use are from chains of plug-ins that I never thought could be accessed live. Honestly, I’m still not convinced. We’ve never played with laptops onstage for just this reason. The challenge these days is that we really can’t avoid it. Most of what we’re doing now really requires sounds quite a bit more involved than what you can get from standard hardware sound module. So, we’ll see what happens with this during rehearsals and, hopefully, we’ll try some new things onstage Nov 30th.

I’ve also been continuing the development of some of the demos we’ve got for our next record. Honestly, I’ve been a bit disillusioned by the usual instrumentation and have been holding off on doing too much until we get into a ‘real’ studio with a selection of (non-virtual) instruments to play around with.

Rebecca has been itching to sing lately and, I’m afraid I’ve had little to offer in terms of new material. Rehearsals do go some way to appeasing, but there’s no substitute for coming up with something new and satisfying...

Everything Is OK - The video

2006-10-30T17:44:00.000-08:00

Halou’s “Everything Is OK” Video has been entered in the “You Tube Underground” contest for unsigned, independent bands.

We’d very much like this video to win and we need you to vote for us to help make it happen.

How to vote:
1. Log into your YouTube account (http://www.youtube.com ). If you don't have one already, you probably should sign up for one anyway. It only takes a second.
2. Paste this URL into the address line of your browser window: http://www.youtube.com/contest/youtubeunderground?v=XleggvyyFso&from=watch
3. Click the "thumbs up" icon next to the video!

Pass it on and have your friends vote too!

The making of the video

REBECCA:
Every once in awhile, an opportunity crosses our path that seems too good to be true. Usually, they are and we are left on the platform, bag in hand. Copious disappointments make the rare success so much sweeter! I am happy to say that this post is the story of one of those sweet, sweet successes.

In fall of 2004, Count got a call from Kelly Tunstall of Reardon studios. Kelly had heard our music at the Quality of Life premiere party, which was hosted at Reardon Studios south of Market in San Francisco. She said that she was working on a video and was considering using one of our songs. She wanted to meet me first (presumably to see if I fit her idea of what the star of her video should look like). On a cold day in September, I walked down to their offices to meet Kelly, an exceedingly fashionable girl with loads of blonde hair and a long, willowy figure, much like the girls in her paintings. She looked me over and we chatted a bit, had some tea, and looked at her storyboard. I was impressed with the drawings and the storyline and tried not to get my hopes up. She told me that there was another song by another local artist that she was considering.

A week or so later, we got a call back from Kelly saying that she had chosen our song and that we should show up to a shoot at a green screen stage in Emeryville. Kelly and I met once before the shoot to pick out a dress for me to wear. The day of the shoot, I met the puppeteers and the adorable beastie puppets featured in the video, made from Kelly’s drawings. The puppeteers had worked on movies such as Star Wars (the cantina scene) and The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (a favorite) and were very adept and bringing the little beasties and landscapes to life.

After hours on the green screen stage interacting with puppets and things that weren’t there, I was let go for the day and I went home to wait and see how everything came out. It took a very long time in post production, editing together Kelly’s drawings and animations with puppetry and live action video, but the end result is exuberant and we are thrilled.

As I mentioned at the beginning of my post, we have entered the video into the YouTube underground contest. We’d very much like this video to win and we need you to vote for us to help make it happen. Please log into youtube and go to this URL: http://www.youtube.com/contest/youtubeunderground?v=XleggvyyFso&from=watch
Then click the little "thumbs up" icon to vote for us!

Thank you so much!

Halfbreath Redux

2006-10-22T18:00:00.000-07:00

Among the hard drive detritus that piles up, you sometimes find things that just fell through the cracks. For every project that just flowed from beginning to end, there are five or so that just didn't come together for whatever reason. Now that I've been doing this for as long as I have, I know that it's usually just a temporary lack of perspective that keeps something from getting finished - spend enough time away from it and things will eventually come together.

I've recently found an attempt I made at updating an old song of ours called 'Halfbreath'. The main problem with the original - apart from the dodgy recording - is that it just sounds dated. I made some lazy decisions about drum programming on this song mainly because I had considered it a demo. It was never intended to be released. The trick to redoing it is to deal with the 160+BPM tempo. Drum and bass is something that really doesn't interest me at all, and I suspect it's quite out of fashion nearly a decade later. An even less inspiring idea is to cut the tempo in half and end up with some coffee table electronica bullshit.

Listening back to what I've done, I think I was going back to early Warp Records stuff - not all the way back to acid house days, but to Seefeel, in particular. Their album, Succour, still has a lot to offer and, I think, was quite ahead of its time. Anyway, my memory of that clearly drove what I was trying to do with this particular track and I thought I'd just post a bit of it up here. Who knows if I will ever complete this...

Halfbreath (2005) (short instrumental clip)

- Ryan

This Will All Make Sense.

2006-10-17T23:41:00.000-07:00

RYAN:

After a couple of weeks away from Halou music, I spent some time today working on one of the new songs. Something we're doing a bit differently these days is recording a scratch vocal quite early on and I appreciated having that to listen to. Typically, I've completed the structure and arrangements completely before any collaboration has taken place. It's taken a lot of time for me to realize that I don't enjoy the process as much that way. The way we're working now feels more human, somehow - more collaborative. I suppose that's a good way to describe our intentions currently.

Speaking for myself, I am finally aware of what I'm doing. It seems that at some point over the last 18 months or so I've learned how to listen in a new way. Being more constructive with my self-criticism has become valuable to me and, I think, improved my satisfaction with what results from my work.

This evening, I opened up a demo we've been calling 'This Will All Make Sense In The Morning'. Hearing it for the first time in quite a while was a relief. I had remembered liking it a lot, but had forgotten a lot of the details. Tonight, I was able to analyse it and make a few plans about where I think the song should go from here. This resulted in some conflict as it doesn't seem to want or need much more than is there. My instinct is usually to layer and layer and layer. Trying to think in new ways. Difficult.

MSNBC - Halou profile

2006-09-26T17:16:00.000-07:00

The online site for MSNBC has an article providing a solid background on Halou. This can be found here.

Making 'Wholeness & Separation' ((Part Two))

2006-06-14T22:54:00.000-07:00

Rebecca discusses the evolution of the song, 'I Am Warm':

Listen here.

Making 'Wholeness & Separation' ((Part One))

2006-06-02T23:15:00.000-07:00

This is the first in a series of text, audio, and video entries relating to the making of the new Halou record by members of the band and outside contributors:

**

Ryan:

Looking back on the making of the record, I sort of divide it up in my mind into two halves - the songs written just after "Wiser", and the more recent songs done after moving house.

Many of the older songs were done in the dark back room studio I had set up in our old place that just felt temporary and uncomfortable. Once we moved into the new house and I built out the new studio, work was much more relaxed and productive. Might have something to do with that floor-to-ceiling window...

For most of this record, we worked as we did on "Wiser": I put the demos together at our place in Marin and we finished things up at Count's in San Francisco. This time, Count took a couple of trips out to Dallas to record drums and guitars which really gave a couple songs the attention they deserved. Also, our new studio in Marin meant the countless trips over the Golden Gate Bridge, the long waits sitting still on Van Ness, and the late night drives home listening to rough mixes slowly became a thing of the past and made way for heightened wine consumption and puddles of DigiDelivered audio files.

**

So, for this part of the story, I thought I would focus on the songs that were near the end of 2001, right as "Wiser" was being released. Though "Wiser" came out in October 2001, it was finished about nine months earlier, so the songs we had written in that time could not be included on the album. Looking back, it was one of our more prolific periods during which quite a few songs came about:

The Ratio Of Freckles To Stars
Ingénue
Night Divides The Girls
One Sunny Day (the outro of which became the track "Separation")

...and four or five others that have not yet been released

It was during this period that we were playing a lot with Greg, our upright bassist, and Elizabeth, the cellist who played with us during the "Wiser" shows. The arrangements of these new songs reflected that lineup and so the demos were little more than bass, cello, piano, a beat, and Rebecca's vocals - occasionally a bit of xylophone or glockenspiel. The reason for keeping things simple like this was (hypothetically) so that we could take each song in a different way once we began 'production' on the final versions.

As it turned out, "Freckles" was the stand-out track of the bunch and ended up being the only one to make it onto the record. Though the others are each interesting and enjoyable in their own way, we chose to omit them for one reason or another - usually to do with the production style. It was important to us to have an eclectic record as opposed to our previous two, which were fairly consistent in tone.

Ryan.

(to be continued...)

Halou Video

2006-05-11T09:16:00.000-07:00

tags: halou, ryancoseboom, rebeccacoseboom, count, music, sanfrancisco, wholeness, separation, video

The Separation EP.

2006-05-06T10:48:00.000-07:00

As of today, we are accepting preorders for "The Separation EP" on halou.com. PREORDER IT HERE

This EP will be exclusively sold online at halou.com and at all dates on the upcoming Halou US tour. Like "The Wholeness EP", this release features 5 tracks - a mixture of alternate versions and previously unreleased material. Tracklist as follows:

1. Honeythief (Album Version)
2. Everything Is OK (Different)
3. Exoskeleton (Exclusive Track)
4. Far Too Far (Exclusive Track)
5. Tubefed (Instrumental Score from the film Quality Of Life)

"The Separation EP" will ship with orders for the album, "Wholeness & Separation" to arrive on or before the official street date of May 23. Also, remember, the album includes information on how to get a free download of another EXCLUSIVE new Halou track, "Night Divides The Girls".

Thanks for listening!

Begin.

2006-05-01T16:20:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the new Halou blog set up to coincide with the released of 'Wholeness & Separation'...