This is the year of the next Obvious Wish record. We are hard at work writing and tracking new songs. The goal is to finish it all up in 2016. Speaking of records, that would be a new record for us to record a new record. That is right…The sky is the limit.
updates to come.
Remember live records? Cheap Trick Live at Budokan, KISS Alive II, The Who Live at Leads, Frampton Comes Alive, so many classics were part of the musical landscape back in the day. I always loved hearing my favorite bands tearing it up; new arrangements, more energy, maybe even a mistake or two (gasp!). It seems like they just don’t make em’ like they used to (with a few exceptions of course, I LOVED Rush’s Clockwork Angels Live record last year). So with that in mind, what should any self-respecting rock band who: 1) hasn’t played a gig in fifteen years, 2) just put out a new studio record and 3) finally got back to the stage at a recent record release show do? Record it and release it as a live record, of course! So that’s what we decided to do. No warm-up shows, no second-guessing, no room for error and no fear dammit. We dove in headfirst and it’s about to be released to the world.
What’s in a Name?
It finally came to us on a road trip. Paul, Jason and myself were driving out into the desert just east of San Diego, listening to the live tracks and spit-balling ideas for an album title. When the chorus to the song “Come to Your Senses” came on (a track we all agreed had taken on a more muscular, driving feel in the live performance) I think it was Jason who said “How about ‘Turn the Lights On’?” Immediately it stuck – On the one hand we were turning the lights on in a dark room. The band had been holed up for the better part of a decade and a half, mostly dormant, but eventually working on the tracks that became our recent release Concerning Time. We were also turning the lights on in a more literal sense: Paul (with some contributions from the rest of us) had pieced together a really bad ass light show and worked tirelessly to coordinate a computerized, midi-driven, fog-machine-infused, holy-shit-look-at- that, visual feast of a light/video show that was a HUGE part of our preparation for the release show. Every song had serious production value, and the lights were a huge part of it. We tweaked, twerked and retweaked the show again through several months of rehearsals till it felt right. And finally, “Turn the Lights On” was a lyric from the chorus of a song we all felt had taken a step for the better in the live arrangement. The metaphorical, literal, and musical lights had all flipped on simultaneously.
Showtime!
The release show went amazingly well – better than we could have hoped. 150 of our closest friends and fans in attendance, great food and drink for all (including some really cool commemorative “Wish” beer glasses and Geoff’s Obvious Wish Homebrew which was a big hit) and a killer sounding room at our disposal at Third Encore in Burbank. We spent two days setting up the stage and dialing everything up. Our Front of House engineer Steve was a force of nature, working tirelessly until things sounded loud, clear, and dangerous. He recorded our sound check and ran all the recorded signals back through his rig so he could pre-mix the show. Pretty cool, right? At some point we started hearing the playback and the light bulbs went on (there’s that theme again); “These sound really, really good. We could release this if we don’t screw it up too bad.” The stakes had suddenly gone up, maybe this wasn’t just a party to celebrate the completion of Concerning Time. Maybe this could be a show that would live on. Maybe.
So, like I said, the show left an impression. There were a couple little glitches here and there of course, but nothing that slowed us down. We felt great, people seemed to really dig it. My phone immediately blew up with complimentary texts, calls, emails and thoughts from those in attendance. Best of all, we had it all locked down for posterity on Engineer Steve’s Pro Tools rig. Bam.
Mix and Match
That was June. There’s been a lot of work done since. As I recall, the mixing started mid-July, and Engineer Steve insisted on being involved in the post-production process. After several weeks of tireless work and a couple rounds of notes and revisions, he delivered some incredible mixes. With Paul’s help putting on the finishing touches and getting the mastering done, we had ourselves a record we were all extremely proud of. It sounded punchy, rowdy and best of all live. I love that there are a handful of mistakes in there. My favorite is towards the beginning of the song “Wallsharks”: I totally missed an odd-metered turnaround and came in with the bass part at the wrong time (I managed to slide up to the right note like a pro though :)) In “Come to Your Senses” there is a riff at the very, very end of the song that is supposed to come in after a six-count build, but all of us – except Geoff – came in after just 4 counts. Geoff changed course and jumped on board with us, delivering a pretty hectic fill that camouflaged the error in a chaotic and interesting way. The moment is a little sloppy but to my ears it’s fantastic. There are a few others I look forward to hearing every time, it reminds me that this recording represents an actual moment in time when a band took to a stage and rocked it up for a house full of rowdies. Still, those tricky moments aside, we sound damn tight, we definitely delivered the goods (if I do say so myself).
Signed, Sealed, Delivered
With the music ready to roll, we needed to wrap this thing up. Paul put on his graphic design hat and got to work on the layout, which we agreed would be kept relatively simple this time around – a limited CD run, probably 300 discs to give to fans, friends and family, plus a digital release. The emails flew, photos, fonts and layout designs got worked out, dozens of details were settled. As I type this, at 11:22 AM on Monday, December 15th, 2014, everything is done. Paul is uploading the files to iTunes/CD Baby, the order for the CD print run is placed, I’ve got the final mastered files in my headphones (“Avon Ladies on the Amazon” is playing, “soft smooth hands, with immaculate nails, knock on flimsy straw doors”). I think we’re all really proud of this release – how it sounds and what it stands for. Hopefully it will make its way into your ears at some point in the near future. If you were at the show, you can probably listen closely and hear yourself in there somewhere 
Looking Ahead
While all that was happening, we’ve been working on pre-production for our next studio record. After January 1st we’ll switch into performance mode again, the lights will come back out of storage and we’re gonna work up a new set. Some new stuff, some old favorites, and a surprise or two for sure. The idea is to hit the stage in mid-to-late February, we’ll keep you posted I promise No plans to jump through the Live Record hoops this time around, but stranger things have happened. We don’t seem to be able to do anything these days without diving in all the way, so who knows? Either way, hope to see you in February, thanks for all the great support we’ve received from so many of you!
-Steve, December 2014
“Somebody turn the lights on, somebody turn the lights on, somebody come to your senses”
TOW
-Come to Your Senses
Check out the the “Videos” page and youtube to see the new videos from the first half of the Concerning Time live show.
A Few Thoughts On Throwing A Release Party
Okay, seriously, this one is going to be a doozy.
It’s not just that we haven’t played a Wish show in over a decade, although that is probably worth mentioning. The thing about our release party for Concerning Time on June 21st is that we decided to take it up a notch. Or maybe ten. We really didn’t want it to be “just another gig”, this one needed some Special Sauce, some Show Biz, some Fairy Dust, whatever you want to call it, we wanted to have an Event To Remember. We’d talked about this on a conceptual level for ages (a luxury afforded to those bands that take seven years to make an album) but when we could finally see the light at the end of the Concerning Time tunnel, another clock started ticking. It was time to plan a party.
A quick checklist for bands who want to throw a record release party;
1) MAKE A RECORD- Okay, we did this. We wrote it, tracked it, mixed it, mastered it, packaged it, dotted all the i’s and crossed all the t’s. Sure it took well over a half-decade, but we did in fact see it through to the end. Plus it’s really good, just ask me
2) PICK A DATE- This wasn’t easy. Paul wanted to get it on the books ASAP, to light a fire and have a date to work towards. I wanted to stall, to make sure we had everything rehearsed up and ready to go before we committed (these aren’t the easiest songs to play, seriously). I think Geoff and Jason fell somewhere in the middle. Plus our schedules, mine in particular, can get pretty crazy. Eventually June 21st got the green light. It was on. Once we had a date I think we had just over two months to hammer out the details. Seems like an ample party-planning window, but in Wish Time that’s just a blink.
3) PICK A VENUE- Early on we realized we didn’t want to have our party in a bar or club. We wanted to take our sweet time setting up, sound checking, getting things just right. Not having to go into Roadie Mode right after the gig was important too, we wanted to pick a spot where we could relax and hang with our peeps post-performance. The idea was to make it more of “an evening with…” kinda deal. Finding a “Showcase Room” became the order of the day. We visited a few, poked around online, found some options, priced it out, and eventually agreed that Third Encore in Burbank was the way to go. It’s frequently used by huge touring acts like Ozzy Osborne and Linkin’ Park when they are rehearsing for their mega tours, really a great facility with amazing gear, the right vibe, just what we were looking for. I was mildly concerned at first that the Burbank location would be problematic, but in retrospect I don’t think it will be an issue. We have lots of friends and fans out in the valley and for everyone else, I’m confident that we can make this an event worth going out of your way for. That’s the idea anyway.
4) GIVE SOME SHIT AWAY- I think this is important. It doesn’t have to be the music, I know there is some controversy on that front, but have some kind of carrot to dangle to reward your friends/fans for coming out. It’s a celebration, a shindig, a party, and parties need gifts dammit. We decided early on to give away copies of our CD to folks who make it out. We WANT people to hear what we worked so hard on for all that time, we really want you to put the CD into whatever device you play music on, listen to it top-to-bottom, get your head around what we were trying to accomplish, pick a couple favorites, you know, get into it. We DON’T want to make money off of you, our potential inner circle. Lend us your ears, not your pocketbooks. Anyway, in addition, Geoff had the great idea to custom order some The Obvious Wish beer glasses and give those away too. Besides being an amazing drummer, he is also a first-class home-brewer and this idea was perfect. Done. First fifty through the door get an awesome beer glass. Also, we decided to supply some GREAT finger food (spearheaded by Geoff’s lovely wife Bev), sodas, wine and the kicker is Geoff will be bringing a limited supply of his home-brewed beers! They are SO DAMN GOOD, come early and sample the goods before supplies run out!
5) MAKE IT A “SHOW”- We wanted some special touches to elevate the evening and make it a bit more of a spectacle. This excellent idea has gotten away from us a bit, in all the best possible ways. Warning: “Let’s get a few lights” is a phrase that hangs over a bottomless rabbit hole that the faint of heart may not wish to explore. Poor Paul has put himself through a master class in Rock Show Lighting and the results are still blowing me away in rehearsals. I won’t go into too much detail about the lights (or the giant video screen that will be playing amazing video production elements throughout the show), but trust me it’s pretty rad. And I don’t use that word lightly.
6) MAKE SURE IT SOUNDS GREAT- As I type this, the hunt for the perfect sound guy is down to two candidates, and both are fantastic options. World-class front of house dudes who are constantly working with A-list mofo’s, from Jack White to Linkin’ Park and many more. The entire band has also been tuning up our personal gear and customizing equipment specifically for this show. If you make it out you should take a peak at the pedal boards that Jason, myself and Paul have put together, the love and obsession is apparent at first glance.
7) INVITE LOTS OF PEOPLE- This seems fairly obvious but of course it’s no fun to throw a party without all your grooviest friends/fans in attendance. We’re getting a great response to the evite and Facebook event so far, looks like we should be right in the attendance sweet spot for the venue and for our supplies. I hope you are one of them, we would love to see you there.
8) WRITE A BLOG POST THAT LOOKS INFORMATIVE BUT IS ACTUALLY A PROMOTIONAL DEVICE- Wait, no, that would be cheesy. Don’t do this last one…
Okay, hope to see YOU on Saturday night, it’s gonna be a fun hang and a night to remember for sure
-Steve
“The destination is clear, leave your body behind, this is the Meeting Place …”
T.O.W., The Meeting Place
concerning (kənˈsɜːnɪŋ)
prep 1. about; regarding; on the subject of adj 2. worrying or troublesomeOkay, fine, we took nearly seven years or so to make a record. The good news is that it’s done and we love how it turned out and I don’t think any of the four of us would change a thing.
I remember early on, sometime around 2008 or so, we would crack wise about finishing the album in “five years or so”. Oh how we’d laugh at such a ridiculous idea. Sure, we’d take our time, it was to be a labor of love done strictly for the joy of making music, making art, having fun with the process, a celebration, an excuse to get together and drink some good Scotch (and eventually Geoff’s homebrewed beer out of our assigned KISS pint glasses) in Paul’s studio now and then. But seven years? If you would have told me that when we started this thing I would absolutely have found that “worrying or troublesome”.
Thanks to the wonder of time stamps I can see that I sent out the first demo on November 3rd, 2007. It’s for a song called Easter Island that ended up being track two on the finished product when all the dust settled. Not the oldest song on the record (we ended up going back and reworking some previously existing material) but the first one written with the idea of a new Wish record in mind.
Eventually, I think it was sometime in the Winter of 2013, Paul suggested that we title the album “Concerning Time”. We all immediately liked the idea, or at least that’s how I remember it. Besides the obvious allusion to our glacial recording pace, we had also written some interesting time signature changes that helped define the feel of the record. More importantly, several of the songs have lyrical themes that are indeed concerning time.
So here we are, it’s finally done, I can hold it in my hand or put it into my car stereo or hand it to a friend. It’s officially available on itunes as of a week ago, I actually downloaded a copy myself. Kind of surreal after all this time to be at my computer, typing out a few thoughts on the finished Wish record, but here I sit. Better still, it sounds great, even better than I expected. Time well spent if you ask me.
April 30th, 2014
-s
“Head back and staring at the stars, as a thousand years drift by”
-T.O.W., Easter Island
Our Brand new record is available right now on iTunes and CD Baby.