‘New Album’ is where a band or artist answers some questions about their latest release. Up next is Rob from Hobnail who have just released their 7th album, ‘Blue Sky Songs’, in a career that now spans 23 years.
When/where was the new album recorded?
Basic tracks were recorded at The Surgery in Wellington with Andrew Downes Engineering. Overdubs including Guitars, vocals and some violins and percussion were recorded at Mad Dog Studio which is my home studio. I also mixed the album at home. Mastering was done by Ross McDermott at Audiosuite in Kapiti.
Who produced/engineered the album? How did the tracks come together in the studio, or at home?
Caroline Easther (Drummer) and I shared production on the album. Songs were pretty well rehearsed and arranged before we started recording, although some arrangements came together or were altered during recording. Arrangements are a pretty collaborative process in Hobnail. We’ve been working together for a long time and all have ideas on what will best serve the songs.
How did the songwriting happen? Are there any overall themes within the songs/album?
I’m the main songwriter in the band, although this time around Jo sings 3 songs which are all covers, and Hamish sings 2, 1 of which is an original and the other written by our friend Jeff Simmonds. I write songs fairly compulsively, but find I need time and space to get any real work done. So I’ve always got tons of half finished ideas flying around, and then when I get some free time to focus will tend to finish off a batch. I think my 5 on this album came from a demo of about 15 that I put forward to the band. Themes? Life, death, love and broken hearts. Although the overall feel of the album is upbeat and optimistic. Blue Skies ahead…
Were you going for a different sound/approach on this album?
Yep. Our previous album (String Things) was a bit of a career retrospective in that we gathered songs from throughout our (then) 21 years together, and had an extensive guest list and some pretty big productions. On this album we decided we wanted to keep it to pretty much the 4 of us, with a more acoustic sound, which is reflective of our live sound.
Was there any specific gear you used to capture that?
Well, I have some really nice acoustic guitars and my home studio setup is geared toward capturing a warm sound, so mostly valve microphones and pre-amps.
Is there a particular single/track that you feel captures the essence of the album?
Hard to say, because with 3 different singers across the album the sound does change, and we do touch on various styles across the folk/rock spectrum from song to song. That said, our first single ‘Every Single Day’ is a good place to start.
Is there a physical copy available? If not which digital platforms is it available on?
Yes – both physical CD’s and links to iTunes and Bandcamp can be had from our Website.
Are you working on a video/videos for any of the songs?
After 23 years together, we shot our first ever music video for ‘Every Single Day’.