No stone unturned
Dave Walker & The Blue Moon Lodge have left no stone unturned in their quest to make their second album as good as it can be.
From the start they’ve had a clear direction about the sort of quality they were after and this dedication to excellence is reflected utterly in the stunning new release, Diamonds on The Road.
“From the very first chord and lyric to the mastering, we’ve been very thorough about the album,” Dave said. “We’re all very proud of the songs we’ve created and it was felt that taking any shortcuts would do us a disservice.”
A vital link in the chain was the studio and to that end the obvious choice for the band was with Mark Stanley at Red Room.
Mark played with seminal Irish band, The Mary Janes and has had a long association and friendship with The Frames. In 2006 The Frames flew him over to France to work with Steve Fitzmaurice (U2, Kylie, Depeche Mode) on their album ‘The Cost’.
“I really enjoyed this project,” Mark said. “For me the super obvious thing was that the preparation was done and the songs were really polished. That gave us scope and freedom to do some exciting things in the recording process, all of which helped to make a great album. Aside from the strength of the performances, I was super impressed with the quality of Dave’s lyric and the direction he has for this band. He’s coming from a really good place musically and emotionally and he has a way of talking about things through his songs that really draw you in. I think a lot of people are going to like this record.”
Dave found that talking ‘around’ songs really helped to bring them up to another level in the studio.
“I guess when you’ve played the songs a lot of times live you get comfortable with them,” he said. “Each instrument has its own place, the arrangements are tight and everyone’s happy. What that comfort enabled us to do was spend time talking about how some songs seem to have their own DNA,” Dave said. “That idea that the vibe is bigger than the sum total of the music and the words.
“We’ve really worked on creating that emotional attachment at every step with this project and I think the results bear that out.”
The album was produced by Greg Hunt, who plays violin and mandolin with the band.
“I’ve worked with Mark on other projects and once again it was a joy to be in the studio with him,” Greg said. “It’s a really rare thing to find that energy and the genuinely empathetic approach to music that Mark has. He’s a rare breed when it comes to that sort of thing in this country.
He was really instrumental in allowing us to focus our energy. The other thing that made it easy is the existing relationships with the band members. It’s easy to be able to be frank and call on people to go above and beyond if they had to.”
“Ultimately it’s about choosing the right type of canvas, the right paints. You have to let them present naturally,” he said.
“The voice of the song tells you the instrumentation that it wants to exist in. It’s not even a conscious thing, there’s no real thought process in that sense.”
Greg believes the album will be well received across the board. blue-moon-lodge-release-2“I think it will be a breath of fresh air, it’s an album with good old fashioned talented writers and honest playing, well executed. I think people will really enjoy it.”
Now the album is complete and the launch dates are locked in, Dave is looking forward to getting the band out on the road in the run up to Christmas.
“The live show has really crystallised over the past six months and we’ve slotted in a regional Victorian tour for later on in the year. We’re really keen to get out and play this record to as many people as we can.”
Dave Walker & The Blue Moon Lodge launch Diamonds on The Road
| Saturday, August 30 | Upper Yarra Arts Centre, Warburton Highway, Warburton |
Special guest Ewan Cloonan | Tickets $20/$17 available at the venue phone 59665040
| And at The Lomond Hotel | Saturday, September 6 | Cnr Nicholson and Blyth Street East Brunswick