Hello and welcome to Vol. I of the Strobe Recording newsletter, which is a "recordingzine' about what's happening at Strobe Recording (www.stroberecording.com) in Humboldt Park. We want to keep you abreast of some of the great things that have been happening at the studio over the last few months and give you the heads-up on some the upcoming projects and sessions. We figured since we will be celebrating our 5 th year on April 1 st 2009 we should probably get one of these out before then!

(Either scroll through the document or click on a title below to go directly to more info)

• I. Strobe Announcing Winter Rate Cuts

• II. Satanic Panic Film Score Completed at Strobe

• III. Mike Reed's Loose Assembly Release "Speed of Change" Now Out on 482 Music

• IV. Flat Land Collective's "Maatjes" Due for Release

• V. John Prine Tribute Album in Final Mixing

• VI. Shanta Loecker in Mid Production of Upcoming Release

• VII. Strobe Sessions Update

• VIII. Judith Swan Debut Album in Production

• IX. Strobe Hosted "Ears and Eyes Festival" Pre-Party

• X. Male Completed Tracking for Next Release

• XI. Blue Lorraine's Debut Release in Final Production Stages

• XII. Jimmy Dalydis Pre-Production Has Begun

Strobe Announcing 2008/2009 Winter Rate Cuts:

Strobe Recording is announcing our Winter Rates, which are greatly reduced from our posted rates on our website.   Musicians and artists will still get the same great service and use of all Strobe inventory, all at very favorable rates compared to other studios in our class (price list below). Please contact Jamie Wagner at 773.875.9859 or send an email to info@stroberecording.com for more information. If you are an independent engineer we would love to have you stop by and check out the studio for any of your future projects. We offer a very competitive rate to bands and artists who have their own engineer.  

ProTools HD:

$350 day (10 hour block) includes engineer
$45 hour (3 hour minimum) includes engineer
Call or email for special project rates (3 days or greater)

2" Tape Machine (Studer VU MK1V):

$450 day (10 hour block)includes engineer and calibration
$50 hour (3 hour minimum)
Inquire about our "leased tape" option
New tape: Market prices (estimate $260 a roll - ouch!)

Satanic Panic Film Score Completed at Strobe:

The film score for the upcoming independent film Satanic Panic was just completed at Strobe with Kevin "Corn" Carroll manning the board and Karl Sundstrom composing and performing the score. The movie was directed and written by indie director Marc Selz and will be preparing for its world premiere screening in the suburban Illinois town of Wheeling. Since not much usually happens in the Midwest, as they say, we've got to be sure we let you know when something finally does!

Satanic Panic will have two screenings, one at 8 p.m. and one at 10 p.m., on Friday, November 28th at the Westin Chicago North, 601 Milwaukee Ave. Tickets will only set you back $5 a person, including popcorn (on a first come, first serve basis, of course), which is a helluva lot cheaper than most flicks theses days!

You can learn more at the official Satanic Panic site , http://www.satanicpanicthemovie.com

Mike Reed's Loose Assembly's Release Speed of Change Now Out on 482 Music:

The sophomore release by Loose Assembly, which was tracked at Strobe Recording, has been released on 482 Music. The band continues its evolution by working through a balance of composition and instant composing. In addition to Reed's tunes and the improvised pieces, the group covers "Tezetayé Antchi Lidj (Baby, My Unforgettable Remembrance)" by the Ethiopian vibraphonist Mulatu Astatqe, and Max Roach's "Garvey's Ghost." With great ease the group moves through sonic pastoral explorations to edgy post bop and even Chicago post-rock influences. Reed says, "In the end I guess I'm still thinking about the early AACM bands like Air, as templates for what is possible." Musicians: Nicole Mitchell (flute, voice), Josh Abrams (bass), Jason Adasiewicz (vibraphone), Mike Reed (drums & percussion), Tomeka Reid (cello), Greg Ward (alto saxophone).   For more information please go to the labels website at http://www.482music.com.

Flatlands Collective's New Release, Maatjes , Due for Release:

The Flatlands Collective, whose previous release, Gnomade , was tracked at Strobe Recording, will be releasing their follow-up, Maatjes , also tracked at Strobe. With the Flatlands Collective, Jorrit Dijkstra pairs up with some of the finest musicians from Chicago: James Falzone, Jeb Bishop, Fred Lonberg-Holm, Jason Roebke and Frank Rosaly. In consequence, Maatjes , may well be the most "jazzy" of all Dijkstra's recordings, but you'll find here, as usual, the concepts that made his music so personal and unique.

Exquisite collective interplay, reminiscent of the most radical non-idiomatic European music is mixed with meditative textures inspired by the minimalist compositions and with melodies resulting from a particular care for pitch, timbre, counterpoint and lyricism, not far from the cool jazz tradition. Overtones and layers of sound, using Dijkstra's Lyricon (an analog electronic wind synthesizer from the seventies) and Lonberg-Holm's array of effect pedals, are combined with the use of spaces and a great variety of colors, very much in reference to Dutch painting and design traditions. The perspective is innovative, strongly rooted in the histories of both American and European creative music. Remarkable. For more information, check out the group at http://www.jorritdijkstra.com/flatlands.html.

John Prine Tribute Album in Final Mixing:

We are finalizing the mixes for the upcoming full-length John Prine tribute album, tentatively titled   The Postman Delivers: a Chicago Musicians' Salute to the Music of John Prine . More information to come, so stay tuned!   We currently have submissions from 21 great Chicago local acts.

Shanta Loecker in Mid Production of Upcoming Release:

Shanta Loecker began work on her upcoming album in late September. Shanta will be back in December and January to finish her album - we will keep you up to date.   Shanta is currently living in Los Angeles and is a great songwriter and pianist. For more info check out http://www.myspace.com/shantaloecker.  

Strobe Sessions Update:

On October 20 th Strobe Session #8 was hosted at the studio. The first act was Ben Boye (pianist and composer) & Dan Thatcher (contrabass).   Our second act was Mike Reed's Loose Assembly featuring Josh Abrams (contrabass), Jason Adasiewicz (vibes), Mike Reed (drums & percussion), Tomeka Reid (cello) and Greg Ward (alto sax).   Both performances were fantastic and will be up on our website and YouTube over the next month.   You can check out some of the other great performances on YouTube by searching "Strobe Sessions."   Feel free to leave a comment!

The Strobe Sessions are a way for a wide variety of musicians and other creative individual to network, interact and display their particular talents. Creative outlets consist of (but are not limited to) musicians, performance artists, photography, video capture, audio recording and web design.   Our next session will be held on Thursday, November 20, 2008. Doors at 7:00pm. Set 1 - Jason Roebke solo. Set 2 - Joshua Eustis and Alfredo Nogueira. Set 3 - Jason Stein and Frank Rosaly. There is limited seating and it will be BYOB event with a $5 suggested donation. If interested in attending, please RSVP to strobesessions@yahoo.com . For more information go to http://www.myspace.com/strobesessions or search on "Strobe Sessions" at YouTube.com

Past artists have been Jeff Parker, Via Tania, Tomorrow Music Orchestra, Bill Mackay Trio, Janet Bean, Fred Elkington, Fred Lonberg-Holm, The Zoo Wheel, Jim Baker and Kevin Davis, Leaf Bird, Jim Becker, Emmett Kelly, Scott Tuma, Joe Adamik, Eric Noden, Joe Filisko, For Pilots, Mio, Lizzy Ellison, Mike Reed's Loose Assembly and Ben Boye and Dan Thatcher.

Judith Swan Debut Album in Production:

The band Judith Swan just started production on their full-length, untitled album.   Currently the band is tracking to 2" tape with Sean Costello at the helm of the Neotek and Studer - this band is sure to turn some heads in the near future. For more info go to http://www.myspace.com/judithswan.

Strobe Hosted "Ears and Eyes Festival" Pre-Party:

On October 23 rd Strobe was the host of the pre-party for the "Ears and Eyes Festival," which was a three-day music fest held at the Hideout on Oct 24th, 25th and 26 th . The party was a great success with Tomorrow Music Orchestra playing a fantastic set in the main studio with lots of great vegan chili and beverages aplenty. The night ended with a great dance explosion in the main lounge to the sounds of the Beatles' "Abbey Road"!

Male Completed Tracking for Next Release:

Male is Jonathan Krohn and Ben Mjolsness alongside with varying combinations of musicians including Jason Adasiewicz, Josh Berman, Nick Butcher, Steven Hess, Todd Mattei, Mike Reed and Dave Rempis. Engineer Griffin Rodriguez (Icy Demons, Bablicon, HiM) recently tracked the group's second release, German for Shark , at Strobe.   The album is now mixed and completed by the group with no release date yet.   We will keep you posted on the project and happenings with this great group.   For more info check out www.arkonow.com/male .

Blue Lorraine's Debut Release in Final Production Stages:

Linda Weseman and Blue Lorraine are completing final production of the group's first EP, which was tracked at Strobe Recording. The EP is rumored to be included on the Lost in America Music roster of stars and starlets (www.lostinamericamusic.com)!   Please check out www.bluelorraine.com for more information on the upcoming release.

Jimmy Dalydis Pre-Production Has Begun:

Jimmy Dalydis and his band have started pre-production on their forthcoming album.   Our own Kenny, the intern extraordinaire, has been handling the recording and pre-production setup.   More information to come on this great original band's upcoming album.