Apophenia took pretty much the same process as my previous record: Woodshedding for a couple of years on a slew of songs until it seems like a particular group of them are getting close to being done and sitting well together as a collection. Many of the songs on this record were already begun in earnest and were in various states of incompletion at the time of Stingy Alley's release in late 2018, so I was pretty much working on this record while working on the previous one. That's generally the process. I'm sure it's not unique.
Paul McNamara and Dan Bernini showing off their phones n' shit.
At the end of September 2020, I contacted my friends, Danny Bernini and Paul McNamara at Spirit House Recording Studio in Longmeadow, MA and told them I was ready to come westward and finish a record. At Paul and Danny's suggestion, I contacted Tommy Diehl to play the drums on my songs.
After Tommy got a bit familiar with the material, he and I communicated by phone repeatedly about the songs. His need to get me talking about them, what inspired them, any kind of information he could get from me, was something you don't often experience, especially from someone you don't really know. People usually approach it strictly from a musical angle. That's what I'd probably do. It felt like he was really invested in the songs in a deeper way than most are, particularly from a drummer.
Three weeks later, after due diligence and with a clean bill of health for all, we convened at Spirit House to begin work. Upon arriving, I met Tommy in-person, for the first time. He had come highly recommended and he didn’t disappoint. His playing is spectaculous.
Tommy Diehl is the guy in the foreground.
We did drum tracks for a day and a half, then Tommy headed back to Connecticut soon after. Danny and I started mixing immediately, finishing seven days later. Butch and Sundance (and faithful Blue) housed me, fed me for the week and made me feel like part of the family with a steady diet of good conversation and Rapi. It was grand!
After some dickering around with some touch ups and level changes via FaceTime with Danny (because I'm never happy), I sent the tracks off to be mastered by my old friend, Pete Keppler at The Tree House in Lake Katonah, NY. Pete and I go back to an earlier epoch. He also did a wonderful job on the sound of this record and I’ve gotten more compliments on the overall sound of this one than on my previous two combined.
Pete Keppler - The Oracle of Sheehan
One thing you should know is that in addition to being an amazing drummer, Tommy Diehl happens to be a crack graphic designer so he also handled those chores for Apophenia. Once again, this process was peppered with communications back and forth and was a true collaboration in many ways. I love his design work on this record. The only thing wrong is that between the two of us, we forgot to credit HIM for playing the drums on the record! Unbelievable!
I was very fortunate to work with such quality people on this project. From Danny Bernini, Paul McNamara, and Tommy Diehl to Pete Keppler, Matt Cullen and Jim Armenti, all pros.
I also need to say thank you to my old friend, Jerry O'Hare, who lent me his mandolin guitar which I used on Echoes of Never.
Also, a big thank you to my friend, Mark Dobbyn, who tended to the maintenance of my instruments and their playability.
I hope you’ll give Apophenia a listen or three. For the best experience, I suggest headphones and no distractions for forty-some odd minutes. If you enjoy it, tell all your friends and their children ... and their children's friends, too.
Peace and Much Love
PR ~ April 2021 ~