HIDE IN VIEW (AN AUTHOR’S NOTES)

Posted by: Jack    Tags:      Posted date:  October 29, 2021  |  No comment
Album number 9 by BLACK SWAN LANE. Eighteen months of non stop work and listening to nothing other than the recordings, edits and mixes. The finality of the completed art and release is hard to describe. It is hard to let it go. Are the levels mixed correctly? Did I cut the right songs off the album and keep the right ones? Listening to the final songs at bedtime every night for months and making notes on what needs to change and what needs to be added… Did I make them better or worse? Did I keep in mind the average listener or simply do what I wanted on the album? I’m pretty sure a lot of songwriters go through this devilish process as an album evolves over time. Ages ago, we went into a studio, pressed for time, and whatever happened, happened. The new technology of today comes with a psychological price of either working towards perfection or overdoing things in mixing. On Hide In View, I took the stance of writing and recording an album that I personally would want to listen to. It started as something that would be completely raw, angry and hard. It developed into another eclectic album that combines both hard and tender tracks that could appeal to many listeners. With quality headphones, one can hear the complexities of the multitude of guitars bouncing around and meshing together simultaneously, whilst sometimes doing opposite things throughout the track. I am always shooting for something that starts off one way and by the end gets you addicted and puts you into a hypnotic trance. I promised a Fall 2021 release and stopped life to make it happen. I gave up time with my family, coaching soccer and invested in a lot of new equipment to make things sound fresh and new. Now, it is in the hands of the world to help make it a success. There are so many people who have been instrumental in helping me and pushing me along to pursue my art and passion and I am eternally grateful. To the people who continue to share our work on social media and between friends – you are my heroes. To the people, many of whom that I have helped through the years, who have now ignored me and blown me off – you have shocked me. To the people who have promised us things and never delivered on their promises – you are dead to me. I am very excited for the opportunity to release another album but I am equally exhausted from the current state of the music business and industry as a whole. It is a pay to play scenario in the music world and I’m having none of it. Hide In View is a powerful statement that stands out in the crowd and is one of my biggest achievements to date. Although the word, unprecedented, has become overused and annoying, this particular piece of work fits the word. For the first time in the history of BLACK SWAN LANE, I worked alone during the pandemic. I took the time to learn more about the live instruments I was playing and was afforded more time to record and mix without distractions or arguments or creative differences with other members. I didn’t have to argue over the fact that I did not want to use autotune on my vocals which I am whole heartedly against. I don’t have perfect pitch, but I do know what sounds good and what our fans want to hear out of me. I have always written about 95% of the songs on each project and then brought in band members to make things better. Having said that, I kept asking myself during the recordings, what would John do? John being, John Kolbeck, one of the greatest guitarists and musicians on the planet who was in both The Messengers and BLACK SWAN LANE with me. John and his father both had severe reactions to Covid and although I wanted to invite him, Jerry, Jason and Hamm back into the studio with me, I couldn’t afford to take the chance. I was recently diagnosed with two immune compromising conditions and whether you believe Covid is real or not, I wasn’t going to fuck around with it. This is also the first album since our third release, Things You Know And Love, where the famed engineer, Jeff Tomei, wasn’t mixing it. I learned a lot, however, over the previous six albums sitting next to one of the greats and I owe him a lot for teaching me along the way. I did, however, have to study up on many more intricate parts of mixing and recording in order to make this release sound just as fantastic as our others. The cover art… It was down to the wire and I had looked at literally thousands of pictures and offerings over a long period of time. I didn’t like anything and nothing went with my title, Hide In View. With the help of my friend Robyn in Connecticut, we found the perfect cover from Lidia Vivas in Barcelona and reached out to her manager Cesar Rosas. A shot in the dark, so to speak. Luckily, they loved BLACK SWAN LANE, a deal was made and we secured the most perfect cover for both the album and how I’ve been feeling as of late. Shot with arrows in my back. A heartfelt thanks to those who have purchased the new album, streamed it and have acknowledged my messages and requests to share this new project. I love you all!

I’m typically the one giving and donating, but now, I am hoping you can help BLACK SWAN LANE. In a matter of minutes, you can help give us the boost we need right now! Click the link below which will take you to everything that is BLACK SWAN LANE. CLICK THE LINK TO SUBSCRIBE TO OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL. FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK AND TWITTER. CLICK BUY FROM ARTIST OR CLICK ON YOUR FAVORITE STREAMING SERVICE. IF YOU HAVE APPLE MUSIC, DOWNLOAD OUR ALBUM. These things won’t make us rich, they will help empower us to continue making great music for our cult following and pay off the debt incurred on making the new album! All My Love, jack richard sobel xx

https://blackswanlane.hearnow.com

About the author
Jack
Founding member of Black Swan Lane




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