Yes, is has been a while since Larry kicked on the Rock-and-Roll supercomputer but we are happy to report that we are finally prepping the final materials to be sent off to the manufacturers. We’re also happy to announce that we have an official month for the release – June! We don’t have an exact date for the release right now but that is simply because we are trying to coordinate the release party right now and are even considering doing it in more that just one Texas city. Don’t worry, we’ll give you the deets here as soon as we get it pinned down but I’d say look for something around Mid-June. Now, that all may seem like a ways off from the original release date we had hoped for back in December but we have some exciting developments happening with the release.
First off, in addition to the digital edition and the CD we will have a limited edition High-Def Mono double-LP. Yup, you heard me right – Mono! This actually came about because Brandon Lemons of Treaty Oak Collective just got back from Portland with the crazy machinery that makes vinyl. It’s a vintage machine to be sure but he’s getting it fine tuned and ready for pressing very soon. The only thing is, at least in the short term, it will be only cutting mono thus the format for the LP edition. Now we were pretty skeptical about the album – which we mixed for stereo – being pressed in mono but Bubba told us to just play it back in mono first to hear how it sounds – no remixing, no nothing, just a straight dump into mono. Well, we tried it and to our surprise it sounded phenomenal. It gave a totally different, more raw feel to the album. This being just a raw dump into mono, we all gave it the green light. I guess you could say there is something to be said for that AM sound. The final should sound even better because Steve will be remixing (mostly small tweaks here and there) exclusively for the mono LP. So, we’re pretty excited about being able to issue this album as an LP and the bonus is that Shelby’s artwork really does deserve the LP treatment. It’s that good. So, save your pennies for a copy of the vinyl – you won’t be disappointed.
Now, in other news, it’s getting to be SXSW time here and no, we weren’t picked to play this year but that really was no surprise to us once we knew that the release was going to be delayed. We’ve played official showcases three times before and always with a release under out belts but with Hammers delayed and five years since our last proper studio album*, we expected to be passed over this time. Sure SXSW day parties are an option but right now, with all the super-cool top-secret stuff that we’re working on for Hammers that will leave you crazy stupid when you see it, we just haven’t made seeking out those shows a priority. Who knows maybe we’ll pull something at the last minute but our plates are just too full right now. That said, there are a lot of solid Houston bands that are heading out the our fair capital in March – some official showcases and some just doing day parties – and to all those who were selected for the official showcases – congratulations,. The rest of you cat’s playing the day shows, we hope you guys have a lot of fun with it. SXSW can be overwhelming but it’s fun if you don’t take it too seriously.
That’s all for now but stay tuned, we’ll have some April and May show announcements for you next week.
*Yes, Horns of Ammon came out in 2010 but that was a collection of material from the vaults – hardly “new” material.
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