Session Buzz: Who’s Recording In & Around NYC — A Monthly Report

GREATER NYC AREA: Heading into Summer, the city’s recording studios show no signs of slowing down. The following is but a sampling of recent sessions, and works in progress…a snapshot of what’s going on around town:

Aventura – the Bachata band out of the Bronx – has been at Daddy’s House tracking and mixing a new release with Justin Sampson engineering. Pop artist One Love has also been recording at Daddy’s House – tracking basics and vocals with producer/engineer Jon Thimple for his upcoming full-length album on Intrepid Music.

Meanwhile, Daddy’s House is currently undergoing a complete overhaul of infrastructure, operations, and aesthetics – with extensive work being done to both the SSL G Series and Neve VR consoles. Stay tuned for more on this, as the studio prepares to re-set as a full-blown commercial operation.

Queens born rapper Ja Rule was at Area 51 tracking and mixing for his upcoming LP with producer Seven Aurelius and engineer Darren Moore. Also at Area 51: Jacob Latimore recorded new material with producer “CJ” and engineer Alberto Vaccarino, and David Banner was in to mix his upcoming release with Pat Viala (50 Cent, Mariah Carey).

Downtown, Christina Aguilera was recording vocals at Germano Studios for a duet with Maroon 5 – the song “Moves Like Jagger” – with Manny Marroquin (Kanye West, Alicia Keys) engineering. Aguilera has also been writing and recording with producer/songwriter Sandy Vee at Germano in sessions engineered by Kevin Porter.

Vee – whose songwriting/producing credits include Katy Perry’s “Firework,” Rhianna’s “Only Girl in the World” – was also working at Germano with Disney ingenue Demi Lovato, and with pop artist/singer Dev, writing and recording new material with Porter engineering.

Other Germano sessions include will.i.am, Beyonce, The Kin recording with  producer/engineer Thom Panunzio, DJ/producer/remixer Chew Fu, and Tiësto mixing with engineer Ben Chang. And Chris Taylor (Grizzly Bear) brought his new solo project, CANT – featuring George Lewis Jr. of Twin Shadow – to Germano to mix with Jake Aron (Yeasayer, Jamie Lidell). The new album will be released September 13 via Taylor’s own Terrible Records.

Up the block, experimental Toronto punk band Fucked Up mastered their conceptual sophomore LP David Comes To Life (on Matador Records) at The Lodge. An epic 18-song rock opera, David Comes To Life was produced by NYC’s Shane Stoneback (Cults, Sleigh Bells, Vampire Weekend).

Other records mastered at The Lodge and released this month include Hooray For Earth’s True Loves, Ford & Lopatin’s Channel Pressure, and both The Postelles’ and Cults’ debut albums.

Nearby, rock singer Jean Morisson, formerly of MorissonPoe, has been recording at Electric Lady (Studio C) with producer Diego Paul Sanchez and Hillary Johnson engineering – assisted by Pete Bishoff.

Vernon Reid has been through to play guitar on several tracks on the album, and Nuno Bettencourt will be adding guitars on this project as well.

This week, Universal Japan artist Chihiro Yamanaka recorded at EastSide Sound in the Lower East Side. The recording session, engineered by Marc Urselli, featured Yamanaka playing (piano) with legendary drummer Bernard Purdie and upright bass player Larry Grenadier.

Urselli has also been engineering sessions with John Zorn this week – recording soundtrack music for a play featuring Zorn on sax, Bill Laswell on bass and effects, Kevin Norton on vibes and percussion and Rob Burger on piano/organ/Rhodes.

Heading on over to Long Island City, Lamb of God drummer Chris Adler checked into Spin Recording Studios to track drums for the band’s upcoming release with Josh Wilbur producing and engineering.

Also at Spin, Andy Wallace mixed Natalie Findlay’s upcoming album for Polydor, guitarist-producer Alex Skolnick (Testament) worked on Adrienne Warren’s upcoming album with engineer Nik Chinboukas, and Jeff Kazee (Southside Johnny & the Asbury Jukes, Bon Jovi) produced Jersey rock-and-rollers Outside the Box for their upcoming release – also with Chinboukas engineering.

And south to Williamsburg, indie rock band Nada Surf recorded basic tracks for their upcoming LP at Headgear Recording with producer/engineer Chris Shaw. Also at Headgear… Virgin Forest tracked and mixed their second full-length album (for Partisan) with Alex Lipsen engineering; Lipsen produced some new music by Sam Marine, which John Agnello mixed; Kelli Scarr did some tracking with Scott F. Norton; and Male Bonding mixed their upcoming SubPop album with Agnello.

Chris Shaw and Nada Surf also recently booked Joe McGinty (Psychedelic Furs, Loser’s Lounge) at Carousel Recording in Greenpoint to play and record keyboard parts on new songs. McGinty added Hammond Organ, RMI Keyboard Computer, Mass-Rowe Vibrachime, ARP Strings, Modular Moog, and Fender Rhodes to their forthcoming record. McGinty also recently recorded Piano, Hammond, Combo Organ, and others for Lianne Smith’s debut record, being produced by Anton Fier.

And Norah Jones stopped by Bryce Goggin’s Trout Recording to lay down some vocals on an upcoming So Brown record, being co-produced by Goggin and Sonia Brown and engineered by Adam Sachs.

Back in Manhattan, Carol King has been at KMA Studios mixing her upcoming holiday album with producer Louise Goffin and engineer Nathaniel Kunkel.

Also at KMA recently… Pianist Eric Lewis recorded and mixed an album with Bryan Williams engineering, Mike Posner recorded songs for his upcoming Sony album –producing/engineering the sessions himself – hit songwriters Claude Kelly and Chuck Harmony wrote/recorded for CJ Holland with engineers Ben Chang and Conrad Martin, Corey Gunz cut vocals for his upcoming Cash Money/Universal release with S. Dot engineering, and Yo Gotti recorded vocals for his album on Sony with Leo Goff engineering.

Yo Gotti’s new album – Live From The Kitchen – is scheduled for release on Sept 6th, and is expected to have guest appearances by Lupe Fiasco, Lil Wayne, Nicky Minaj, Ciara, Rick Ross, Waka Flocka and Young Jeezy.

John Lithgow was also at KMA doing voiceovers for a children’s book – Trumpet of The Swan – with Jayson Brown producing and Ian Kagey engineering for PS Classics.

Out on Long Island at  PIE Studios in Glen Cove…NYC rock band Lion in the Mane recorded a new EP, taking advantage of Pie’s Neve-equipped, George Augspurger-tuned control room and 35’ x 28’ x 18’ live room. NYC-based producer/engineer William Wittman oversaw the sessions.

Back in big town, Joe Jackson recently recorded his upcoming self-produced release at Avatar Studios with engineer Elliot Scheiner, assisted by Aki Nishimura. Other recent sessions at Avatar include… Esperanza Spalding recording her upcoming release co-produced with Q-Tip in Studio A with engineer Joe Ferla, assisted by Fernando Lodeiro; Honor Society recording on the SSL 9000J in Studio B with producer Adam Blackstone and engineer Jon Smeltz, assisted by Tim Marchiafava; and the Manhattan Chamber Orchestra recording with producer Howard Cass and engineer David Merrill.

Also in Midtown, Foreigner checked in at Threshold Recording Studios NYC to cut acoustic versions of ten of their greatest hits — Mick Jones and Jeff Pilson produced, with Jeremy Sklarsky (Freelance Whales) engineering. And Dave Eggar and Heather Holley produced a track for singer/songwriter Jacob Baine Fields at Threshold recently, also with Sklarsky at the controls.

On the way west side, Santigold was at Stratosphere Sound working with songwriters Amanda Ghost and Ian Dench in Studio A. Ghost, Dave McCracken and Andros Rodriguez also worked with Daniel Merriweather in Studios A & B, and Louis C.K. was in Studio A, overseeing music recording for Season Two of his FX sitcom Louie. Ruddy Cullers engineered.

And staying on the west side, mastering engineer Vlado Meller is up and running in his new studio at Masterdisk.

Here, Meller recently mastered the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ single “The Adventures of Rain Dance Maggie,” produced by Rick Rubin and engineered by Andrew Schoeps for Warner Bros, and a Harry Connick, Jr. album, The Happy Elf, produced by Tracey Freeman and engineered by Vince Caro for Marsalis Music.

And we know there’s so much more going on out there! If you’d like to be featured in “Session Buzz,” please submit your studio news to submissions@sonicscoop.com.

Lou Reed, Kurt Elling, Bobby McFerrin Recording at Avatar

Who’s been recording at Avatar Studios recently? Check it out:

Lou Reed recently recorded “Peggy Sue” for a Buddy Holly tribute project in Avatar’s Studio A with engineer Mark Urselli assisted by Fernando Lodeiro. And Bobby McFerrin recorded in Studio G with longtime producer and manager Linda Goldstein, engineer Bob Power assisted by Rick Kwan.

Songwriter and producer Paul Brill booked Studio C to record new material with engineer Robert Smith assisted by Charlie Kramsky.

Rock ‘n’ Roll Fantasy Camp was held at Avatar recently, with producers Mark Hudson, Rudy Sarzo; engineers Steve Greenwell, Robert Smith assisted by Bob Mallory and Charlie Kramsky. Roger Daltrey came in to record with the campers.

A performance by Kurt Elling was recorded in front of a live audience in Avatar Studio A for broadcast on WFUV. The session was produced by Dave Einstein and engineered by Brian Montgomery assisted by Aki Nishimura and Charlie Kramsky.

The Christian McBride Big Band recorded and mixed at Avatar with engineer Joe Ferla assisted by Rick Kwan, Michel Camilo recorded with engineer Phil Magnotti and Fly recorded and mixed with producer Manfred Eicher and engineer Aya Takemura.

Music for Fox’s Glee continues to be recorded and mixed at Avatar with producer Tommy Faragher, engineer Bryan Smith assisted by Charlie Kramsky. And Carter Burwell continued recording his score for HBO’s mini-series Mildred Pierce with engineer Todd Whitelock. Vince Giordano and the Nighthawks also recorded for the show in Studio A with producer and music supervisor Randy Poster and engineer Stewart Lerman.

Visit www.avatarstudios.net for more information, and booking.

Who’s In The Studio: Avatar, NYC

Avatar Studios has been plenty busy this Fall, once again hosting sessions for all manner of media — radio tapings, music for television and video games, and album production. Here’s a rundown of recent sessions:

Prince Royce and Ben E. King recorded “Stand By Me” in Studio C and mixed it in Studio G for the Latin Grammy Awards. The session was produced by Sergio George and engineered by Roy Hendrickson, assisted by Aki Nishimura.

Elvis Costello performed live in Studio A for the top donors of [our favorite local radio station!] WFUV. The performance was recorded and produced by Dave Einstein, engineered by Brian Montgomery assisted by Aki Nishimura. Click to listen to the performance on NPR.

Josh Groban’s live performance was videotaped for “Walmart Soundcheck” in Studio A. Charles Gant produced the session and Allen Sides engineered, assisted by Fernendo Lodeiro and Aki Nishimura.

Lenny Kravitz recorded in Studio C with engineer Tom Edmunds assisted by Bob Mallory.

Ricky Martin recorded in Studio G with producer Desmond Child and Hendrickson engineering, also assisted by Mallory.

Imelda May recorded with Lou Reed and mixed in Studio C. The session was produced by Tony Visconti with engineer Mario McNulty, assisted by Charlie Kramsky.

Trans Siberian Orchestra recorded and mixed in Studio B with producer Paul O’Neil and engineer Dave Wittman. And Esperanza Spalding mixed in Studio C with engineer Joe Ferla assisted by Rick Kwan.

Avatar also hosted projects for ABC, NBC, CBS and Fox within a span of a few weeks — first with Glee‘s Darren Criss into record and mix “Teenage Dream” in Studio B and G with producer Tommy Faragher and engineers Robert Smith and Bryan Smith. The episode aired on November 9 and the single hit #1 on iTunes.

ABC’s Nightline did a story called “The World on Autotune” in Studio G with reporter Jeremy Hubbard, and engineer Roy Hendrickson. The show was produced by Dan Przygoda and engineered by Hendrickson. The “Sign of the Times” segment aired on October 22.

Mike Tompkins, an a capella artist who became famous for his YouTube viral videos covering popular songs, assisted Today Show anchors Matt Lauer, Meredith Vieira, Ann Curry and Al Roker with the singing and beat boxing to make a “Dynamite” viral video. The process was recorded and taped in Studio B and the resulting video was aired on November 15. It was produced by Robin Sindler and engineered by Rick Kwan. Check it out here!

Bill Cosby recorded the winning giggle for a press event by Kraft for Jell-O’s “Give It A Giggle” tour in a session produced by Greg Lederer and engineered by Bob Mallory.

Finally, THQ recorded music for an upcoming video game Homefront in Studio A with producer Frank Di Minno and engineer Gary Chester.

Avatar Studios Hosts Paul Simon, Moby, O.A.R. and More

Paul Simon recently spent time recording at NYC’s Avatar Studios, working with producer Phil Ramone, engineer Andy Smith and assistant engineer Justin Gerrish.

Moby‘s also recently recorded in Studio A, with engineer Scott Norton and assistant engineer Rick Kwan.

Meanwhile, roots rock quintet O.A.R. recorded in Studio C with producer Matt Wallace and engineer Mike Landolt. Other acts that recorded in March include Teddy Thompson, Proud Simon, and The Script.

From the jazz world, the Christian McBride Big Band recorded in Studio A with engineer Joe Ferla, while woodwind specialist James Carter recorded in Studio B with producer Michael Cuscuna and engineer Jim Anderson, assisted by Fernando Lodeiro. Other notables were Michel Portal and The Don Friedman Trio, both of whom recorded in Studio C with their producer/engineer teams.

Studio A recently hosted several TV and theater projects as well. Vince Giordano and the Nighthawks recorded music for the upcoming HBO series Boardwalk Empire with producer Jim Dunbar and engineer Stewart Lerman. Also, the cast of Broadway’s Million Dollar Quartet recorded with producer Hank Neuberger and engineer Chris Steinmetz.

And finally, the music for Life Begins At 8:40, a 1934 Harold Arlen / Ira Gershwin / Yip Harburg musical revue, was recorded in Studio A with producer Tommy Krasker and engineer Bart Migal.

For more information on Avatar Studios, visit their website at avatarstudios.net.