Further Studio Updates from Kevin Shirley

Posted by Shadow from Bravewords.com on March 28, 2006 @ 14:29

Producer Kevin Shirley has posted his second full diary about recording IRON MAIDEN's new studio album at the Iron Maiden Online Club (IMOC). It reads as follows:

"Diary of an album - part 2

It's another Friday, and time for another weekly update on the progress of the album. Thanks for all the e-mails, lads - but really, I'd prefer it if you got your girlfriends to write too! ;-)

Back to work. Monday saw me alone in the studio, going through the tracks and picking the performances, editing and fixing up the few blatant stinkers where necessary. Nicko (McBrain - drums) has left the building, for the sunny shores of Miami, Flahdah - and kindly left us all with his stinkin' lurgy, so there's much coughing and sputtering around the console!

Tuesday, all the lads came in and I played them rough mixes of all the basic tracks, and they're sounding incredible (even Adrian Smith - guitar - was thrilled!) - then we went through who's doing what guitar solos where, where the Three Amigos are playing harmony melodies, where keys would play melody and pad - and the album is a terrific Iron Maiden album - full of trademark gallops and canters, hard rocking choruses - perhaps a little more tough prog riffing spirited about than on record lately, and definitely a couple of well grounded groovers in there too. Long melodic intros abound and the rocker that's probably the single, is as tough as it gets on radio. There's one about a famous eccentric and novelist, who's memorabilia is sensitively distributed throughout the studio for inspiration. It turns out that Janick (Gers - guitar) is a bit of an avid collector and an anorak about this fellow, and he isn't Pawtucket Pat!! We call the song, The Rime Of Billy Bunter!

Wing Commander Biggles (singer BRUCE DICKINSON) has been absent all week - flying sorties to Egypt and Sierra Leone.

'Arry (bassist Steve Harris) been in a fine mood as his beloved West Ham are through to the quarter finals of the F.A. Cup, although we did have a loud and heated argument about a guitar harmony (it wasn't a debate) - he insists he's right, but I know I am! I pedantically threw out 'I've studied classical composition' to which he maturely countered with 'well, I don't give a toss as I've studied rockabilly!' Anyway, you had to be there and the moment will forever be shrouded in the mists of time....but most importantly the harmonies came out AMAZING, and I know I'm right! If he needs to say otherwise, he can do the damn diary! Well, we all want the best record possible - and then some! Here are some pictures of his rig - and the bass on this album is the best sounding it's been in years - not that he's doing anything different - but I certainly have! It's definitely going to be the best Maiden record since the great Martin Birch left the dark and dingy control room for greener fairways. That's genius.......

As I mentioned, the Three Amigos were in yesterday, doing guitar melodies on a couple of songs - their lilting tones playing along the sing-a-long tunes that only 'Arry can write, and Davey (Murray - guitar) put a solo over one that just lifted it into the stratosphere - with a Celtic lilt to get Steven Hawkins doing the jig! Today, I'm just waiting for Davey, who's going to do some more soloing, and we're moving along with him (not that he's in a rush), as his family are all in Hawaii and he must be looking forward to spending time with them, before the Maiden trucks roll out for the tour at year's end!

Anyhoo, that's it for this week - there's actually not that much to say - because that's what making a record is. The same slog and grind day after day. I only do it, because I can't do anything else!! If I raise the seat on my bicycle, I invariably strip the thread - even though I always have. My dad used to yell at me about being more sensitive, but I just don't know when to stop.........

Gotta give a shout out to me boys - both great engineers! That's newbie Alexon the left, and Drew, who's worked with me on Maiden's Dance Of Death, Death On The Road, and the Live After Death surround mixes, as well as the Led Zeppelin DVD, How The West was Won, Silvertide mixes and many more!

Until later...........KS"

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