In the Stev Skye Studio
Dec 22, 2009 Stev Skye Songs
I posted “Live from the Studio” the other night (December 14, 2009) just because I was actually at Stev’s studio for the first time and it seemed like a fun thing to do to mark the event. Although most of this won’t mean much to anyone at the moment (you kinda had to be there), the evening had some cool tidbits and interesting discussions that will be pretty interesting to reflect upon at some point in the future. As they say, “Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but soon and for the rest of your life,” (pretty sure I heard that quote in a movie like Casablanca and/or a Pink Floyd song, or both).
In the studio for rehearsal with Stev Skye
For me, it was a chance to see the band in action, to see the studio firsthand and to get a taste of what’s to come in terms of the stage performance and new tunes the guys are working on now. What follows are my notes about what I saw and heard, including me trying to log each of the songs they played, as they played them.
From the studio on December 14, 2009:
Before we went over to the studio, Grammy made us some killer stuffed peppers. Grammy can cook like Stev can play the guitar. Damn fine eatin’! It’s just Jeff and Stev armed with musical instruments tonight – no bass guitar since Connor had some other stuff going on tonight and couldn’t be here. Robert’s back there on the sound board making damn sure I’ll have the rock-n-roll ringin’ in my ears in the morning (if not sooner)! I’m front and center here on the studio couch with my laptop ready to go.Robert running the sound in the Stev Skye Studio
Stev and Jeff agree to do a run-through of their full set. Listed below is what they played. I added some random thoughts and notes next to the song names as they were playing and while we were talking. This all happened live, so it’s not totally complete, but you’ll get the gist!
They play:
1. (Let Me Stand Next to Your) Fire – Sweet F(profanity)ing solo! This time Stev’s playin’ Jimi Hendrix for real!
2. CalifornIAAfter a couple songs, I happened to look over at that lonely bass guitar just sitting there on its stand as the guys decided to abort the full set run-through. Stev and Jeff both agreed that the sound was incomplete without the bass. I thought they were kicking ass, but WTF do I know!?!? Had I the ability to actually play a bass, even a little bit, I’d go up and give them the bassist bailout they so desperately want tonight!
Anyway, they decide to move on to practicing some of the newest material. After all, as Robert said, “We are professionals!”
Indeed they are, and so the show must go on!
3. Little Wing – Awesome. Awesome. Awesome. And did I mention this is one of my all-time favorite songs? I did sense the bass missing on this one later in the song, but Jeff and Stev still killed it. It probably helps that I love this song unconditionally!
4. Caution (new track) – Good solid rock jam.
5. Opposites (brand spankin’ new track) – Stev says this one’s “like three days old”. . .Good, fast intro, heavy drumming and an overall upbeat tune with distinct transitions.
6. New Track (“Coexistence” is the working title) – It reminds me of . . .oh crap. . .it’s on the tip of my tongue. . .what the hell is that song I am thinking of?? Shit, just keep writing. . .whatever, I can’t think of it. . .This one’s more of a mellow twangy guitar song to start out and then it has a good grungy jam transition, then a gritty guitar solo later in the track. It ends up more with a mellow tone.
7. Pride and Joy – Stev does a sweet solo that’s extra long, the way it should be. I think Stevie Ray would be proud (and joyous).We take a short pee-break/intermission here and we talked about playing other songs from Stevie Ray Vaughan. My suggestions were “Couldn’t Stand the Weather” or “Texas Flood”.
8. I really want to know
9. Wish You Were Here – Electric style, very cool. Had a little SRV taste to it and a nice smooth transition into Simple Man
10. Simple Man – And I didn’t even have to yell “play some Skynryd” for this one!
11. In Spirit – I think the vocals are powerful on this one. It’s probably one of Stev’s better vocal sounds not to mention an awesome solo/hook. Early-on favorite methinks!
12. Rings of Saturn – Mellow/kinda spacey beginning – good ambiance, which I dig.
13. Scream – A song about an epic rant that Dziadzia (Stev’s father) had after work one day. We won’t name any company names here. . .classic.
14. Sacred Journey – (another new one)
15. Times Three
16. A Chance to Live My Dreams
Stev Skye on guitar/lead vocals and Jeff Hall on drums
Near the end there, I was actually posting the “Live” blog as well as snapping a few of the pics I have which is why there isn’t much in the way of commentary on the songs.
From what I heard of the new stuff, I liked “In Spirit” the best. It’s really rare for me to instantly love a song after the first time I hear it (and I mean that across the board, including my beloved Pink Floyd), but that one seemed to stick the most in my brain. It’s not completely fair to judge music after only hearing it once and doing so in a rehearsal setting where it is still taking shape, not to mention it’s being played with a third of the sound missing. BUT, I must say that the new stuff is solid and Stev Skye fans have A LOT of good stuff to look forward to!
It’s exciting that there is so much more great stuff in the pipeline. And even without a complete sound tonight, the songs sounded awesome. It’s just a rehearsal, but if it truly were crap, I’d probably not have babbled on for this long about it!
Good show!
Tags: Jeff Hall, Jimi Hendrix, stev skye, Stev Skye Studio, Stevie Ray Vaughan
Stev Skye guitar FX
Dec 22, 2009 Guitar & Gear
(Continued from my conversation with Stev Skye regarding his guitar and gear).
“When you play, I hear Jimi Hendrix and Stevie Ray Vaughan influences more than any others. I’m not saying I hear you playing them, if that makes sense, but I definitely feel their influences when you play.”
“Absolutely. I would agree that those two more than any others have influenced my playing and my sound.”
“So how do you find that sound? How do you know it’s yours?” I ask.
“Well, it varies from song to song, but I hear it in my head and I try to match what I hear. It’s pretty much all up there (pointing to his head) so I just try to replicate what I hear in my mind.”
“Makes sense,” I say. “So then how do you reproduce a certain sound, once you think you have it? I mean, is it hard to remember what you played, how you played it and all the settings between the guitar, the amp and all the effects, etc.?”
“Well, I have four main ‘sounds’ that I stick to for the most part (he starts to demonstrate). I have the total clean sound (plays), then the overdrive sound (plays again) which is more of a ‘gritty’ sound. Then I have the rhythm distortion sound (plays) which is tighter sounding and finally, I have the louder more distorted ballistic atomic sound that I use in my solos.”
To achieve his sound, Stev uses a combination of guitar pedal FX along with his custom Two-Rock amp. Here is Stev Skye’s Signal Chain:
Boss CH-1 SUPER Chorus Pedal Standard
Vox V847A Wah Pedal Standard
Fulltone MDV2 Mini DejaVibe 2 Guitar Effects Pedal Cream (made with original Univibe parts)
MXR M169 Carbon Copy Analog Delay Guitar Effects Pedal Standard
Ibanez TS9 Tube Screamer Effects Pedal Original Reissue Standard (Modified by Robert Keeley)
Fulltone OCD Overdrive Obsessive Compulsive Drive Standard Distortion Pedal
As I mentioned, Stev uses a custom designed guitar amp from Two-Rock. The amp is a 100-watt Custom Reverb Signature Model Version 2, all tube, handmade for specifically for Stev by Two-Rock. We’ll get into more details on the Two-Rock amp in another post!
Tags: Boss CH-1 SUPER Chorus Pedal, Distortion Pedal, Fender Stratocaster, Fulltone Deja Vibe 2 Univibe, Fulltone OCD Overdrive Obsessive Compulsive Drive, Guitar Center, Guitar inspiration, Ibanez TS9 Tube Screamer Effects Pedal, Jimi Hendrix, MXR M169 Carbon Copy Analog Delay Guitar Effects Pedal, Robert Keeley, stev skye, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Two-Rock Guitar Amp, Vox Wah Pedal
Live from the studio
Dec 14, 2009 Stev Skye Songs
So yeah. I am sitting here in the studio with nothing but brand new tunes bustin’ out around me. Just thought I would drop a quick line since I am sitting here front row/center couch with Stev and Jeff practicing some of the newest stuff – even sans bassist in this particular session – and it sounds pretty sweet for missing a pretty vital piece of the band at the moment.
Stay tuned for lots more (and pics!) from this session and our previous sit-down when Stev and I talked influences, gear and more!
Online Only Free Shipping Exclusives from Guitar Center.
Tags: Guitar inspiration, holysmith!, Jeff Hall, Jimi Hendrix, stev skye, Stev Skye Studio