Recording and Production in the News



Orpheus delivers high quality audio in 05Ric's Studio

It is always pleasing to have your album acclaimed for its musical and lyrical content, but when self-produced musicians also receive praise for achieving Hi-Fi sound quality they really do feel like the cat that got the cream!

This is the situation multi-instrumentalist, singer and extended range bass player 05Ric has found himself in, having just released The Man Who Sold Himself, his third collaboration with Porcupine Tree drummer Gavin Harrison.

"Both Gavin and I have our own studios, so all Gavin's parts were recorded in his studio near Watford and all my parts where recorded in mine, near Cambridge," 05Ric says. "My studio consists of a Prism Sound Orpheus FireWire interface going to a Mac, with PMC TB2s for monitoring. All my vocals, guitars and basses were recorded using a Telefunken AR51 microphone and the mic amps and inputs of the Orpheus. I'm sure the reason why we are receiving accolades for sound quality is down to the Orpheus. I really love the clean sound it gives me."

Musically, The Man Who Sold Himself pushes the boundaries of rhythmic and harmonic possibilities and, according to Gavin Harrison, delivers "some of the wildest rhythmic concepts that I have ever conjured and 05Ric has snaked his bass around".

Best known for his work with Porcupine Tree, Gavin Harrison has played extensively with King Crimson, as well as providing session drumming for a host of respected artists. He has been voted Best Progressive Drummer four years in a row by Modern Drummer Magazine and was also recently invited to perform on the David Letterman show as part of his Drum Solo week.

05Ric uses his voice, Touch Guitars® U8 extended range bass and guitars to turn his love of sound into sonic tapestries. His vocals, virtuoso playing and a chance meeting between the two has led to one of the most interesting and complex musical collaborations in recent years. The union has already produced some unique results and the new album is no exception.

05Ric says: "The Man Who Sold Himself was written over the last two years and recorded in mid-2011. Lyrically, it deals with themes based on the greed of the financial global crisis, the empty shallowness of goal seeking without passion or for its own sake and the destructive force left behind by selfish behaviour. But the central character eventually discovers his true calling through heightened awareness and right action." 05Ric has been using Prism Sound's Orpheus as the centrepiece of his studio since 2009 when he began recording Circles, his second collaboration with Harrison.

"I compared it to my RME board and liked it so much that I decided to make the switch," he says. "I haven't looked back since. One of the big benefits is its portability. If I need to work from home, which is often the case when my kids are on holiday, I just hook it up to the Mac in my house and I'm away. As a piece of equipment, it never interferes with the creative process of recording and composing music, which is quite possibly the highest compliment I can pay it."

Aside from its portability, 05Ric says he loves the sound quality of the Orpheus and the fact that he can plug it in and forget about it.

"In my opinion, every piece of equipment leaves its own sonic signature - how else can you explain the huge discrepancy between manufacturers?" he says. "My studio went through quite a few upgrades along the way but the one item I never considered upgrading was the Orpheus. It is the heart of my studio and I am really looking forward to testing out its 5.1 capabilities on our next album."

The Man Who Sold Himself is available on Kscope as a two disc set featuring the album on CD as well as a 5.1 mix on DVD.