RPM Challenge update.

I said I would be keeping a log on my progress in the RPM Challenge, and I haven’t been. So, here’s a quick update.

I, uh, just figured out how to record things about an hour ago.

I had some trouble, you see. I tried two different microphones, all sorts of positions, three instruments, two cables, two rooms (on two floors), all of Logic Express’ software plugins, and almost every other variable I could think of, but all of my recording attempts were marred by an incessant whine. I could have just plowed ahead and recorded the damn thing anyway, but it was loud enough to be distracting. Hell, it was loud enough to give me a headache.

Tonight I finally figured out the proper mix of preamp gain and normalization that makes my guitar sound okay. Or pretty okay. I’m no recording engineer, but I had the eureka moment I needed to finally get this thing off the ground.

Now, you may have noticed that today is February 19th. I’m supposed to have my album in the mail by March 1st. That leaves ten days to write and record nine songs, which is a fairly terrifying prospect.

How am I going to do that? Well, I’m going to fudge it a little and use ideas that I’ve had kicking around for a while. All of them are incomplete — chord progressions without melodies, verses without bridges, that sort of thing — so I don’t feel too bad about it. And it will allow me to retain my sanity.

More soon.