‘New Album’ is where a band or artist answers some questions about their latest release. Up next is Dan from Richter City Rebels, who are just about to release their new album ‘Hard Work Hard Money’.
When/where was the new album recorded?
Mostly at The Surgery in Newtown, Wellington but we did a couple special vocal overdubs elsewhere, and one of the singles, Never Know, was recorded at the RNZAF band rooms.
Who produced/engineered the album? How did the tracks come together in the studio, or at home?
We were very lucky to have legendary engineer Mike Gibson (Munki Studios) with us for the tracking, mixing and mastering. The tunes were composed long before the session but we did make some of the decisions in the studio, and Mike had some great technical and creative input along the way.
How did the songwriting happen? Are there any overall themes within the songs/album?
We write the tunes as individuals and adjust them once we’ve played them. The songs really take shape on stage, but we have a few special traditions such as playing a brand new tune for the first time at soundcheck, or writing tunes or lyrics on specific stretches of road across the country.
Were you going for a different sound/approach on this album?
We want to bring the party atmosphere of the second line in New Orleans to our audience here, and also to have some of our friends as guests.
Was there any specific gear you used to capture that?
Very expensive microphones, and sacred ancient Jamaican medicines made from fermented sugar… heh
Is there a particular single/track that you feel captures the essence of the album?
B.M.C. (the second single written by our trumpet player Ben Hunt) was written after some of our members spent time partying with TBC Brass Band at the Balcony Music Club in New Orleans in 2016. It’s got all the key ingredients – Huge minor-y bass line, screaming trumpet, hot spicy Latin flavour, a very very special solo by “Lil'” Glenn Hall from the legendary godfathers of modern second line Rebirth Brass Band, and a deadly vocal feature from local crew Raw Collective and Jinz Moss. It’s unstoppable and it’s gonna be absolutely fearsome when we play it live (with Raw Collective in effect) at the release show on December 1.
Is there a physical copy available? If not which digital platforms is it available on?
CDs will go on sale at the release show, and it’s available on all digital platforms including Spotify, iTunes and Bandcamp from December 1st.
Are you working on a video/videos for any of the songs?
There are plans! Watch this space!