Marc Urselli

Category: Status Updates

  • Makigami Koichi’s Hikashu live and in the studio

    I realize I haven’t posted anything in a while, not because I haven’t seen anything interesting but rather because I have been traveling and working a lot.
    However I didn’t want to pass on the opportunity to mention the amazing performance of this historic japanese band called Haikashu at Japan Society tonight. Makigami Koichi’s unique singing and theremin-playing style is both improvisational and structured, wild and controlled… His band Haikashu opened the concert without Maki to support the first US visit of J-pop star Tomoe Shinohara, but I personally went to see Maki and the wait was worth it.
    I’ll be recording Hikashu with Koichi in a few days at EastSide Sound and I’m very happy to have made his acquaintance (thanks to Zorn and Ikue Mori who brought Maki to my studio during the recording of her latest DVD release on Tzadik). It’s gonna be a memorable session… I’ll be lost in translation and totally dazzled by the music! Can’t wait!

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  • Lou Reed recording at Avatar and EastSide Sound

    I usually don’t post about who, what, when and where I work with in the studio because some artists don’t want for that information to be out, at least not until after their recording is released, but since somebody else did, I’m happy to repost the article.

    In this article on Sonic Scoop, New York City establishment Avatar Studios highlighted some of their latest clients and mentioned me in conjunction with a recording session with Lou Reed that we did there. The song (which the article also mentions) was subsequently mixed by myself at EastSide Sound Studios in New York City.

    You can read the whole article here (http://www.sonicscoop.com/2011/02/14/lou-reed-kurt-elling-bobby-mcferrin-recording-at-avatar/)

  • Speaking of Grammy’s…

    To set the record straight I just wanna say that the “Music is Life is Music is Life is Music…” motto has been my Facebook profile description for years now, and those who know me on FB know that. You can imagine my “oh shit!” moment when I saw the Grammy posters in every NYC subway station… It was probably used even before me but I still wish I had copyrighted that slogan! ;-)

  • What busy feels like? Working on 4 gigs in less than 48 hours!

    To be clear, am NOT complaining, I am thankful I have work when a lot of talented colleagues are struggling…
    Today I worked 9 hours with Lou Reed in the studio mixing a song at EastSide Sound… then I went to dinner with my lovely girl for her birthday and at 9pm I went to do live sound at a gig for a lively up and coming band called Pants Velour who rocked the house… Now I’m on my way home to do some more show advancing for a gig with the Swiss-American band Grand Pianoramax at SXSW festival in Austin… and finally tomorrow I have a 10am load in for a 10.30pm show with Bryan Ferry in the city so it’s gonna be an early and looooong day.
    In the middle of everything I found out that Laurie Anderson is up for a Grammy Award for a her latest and amazing album on which I did engineering work, so I wish her all the best, not only cause it would bring my Grammies to four, but because she is one of the most amazing artists out there and deserves all the recognition and praise!

  • Take a walk on the snow side…

    I just finished a late night recording session with Lou Reed that went really well. We did a cover of an old song for a tribute record and great musicians accompanied him. Now I’m walking home in the snow from the studio and I’m thinking: say what you want, complain about the puddles and the slow traffic, but I love NYC covered in snow: makes the city look even more special and unique, even more so at night.
    A few nights ago when the snow was coming down heavy I was standing at a light looking at musicians carrying their instrumental through a blizzard going to or coming from a gig which probably didn’t pay much… Now that’s priceless passion and love for music!

    Check out a few shots…

  • Back out on the road again with Lou Reed – off to Brazil…

    Got back from Zorn’s gig in Milan two nights ago and after just one day at home (which I spent working in the studio on a soundtrack for a film called “Addiction Incorporated”) I’m back on the road again heading to JFK airport to fly to Brazil with Lou Reed for two gigs in Sao Paulo.
    Looking forward to the gig but less so to the 9 hour red-eye.
    I just hope that this time Brazil will treat me better than last time I was there when I was robbed of everything and had to spend time and money to get emergency papers to be able to get back home.

  • eating in Bologna is a pretty divine experience…

    My favorite place in Bologna. The picture’s lighting doesn’t do justice to the goodness of the food!

    This family-owned place is small, run by a retired musician (as you can tell from amp in the bathroom), his sister and his mother.

  • John Zorn’s Masada Marathon in Milan was phenomenal

    Milan was a total blast!
    Although it ain’t easy to mix 12 bands in one evening and deal with 11 stage changes and 60 channels of continuously changing audio with dynamics that range from classical strings solos to seven piece metal bands, but such is the incredible variety of Zorn’s body of work and honestly it is right up my alley. I love his music and all the variety so much that doing a show like this goes by very quickly and I enjoy every minute of it really!
    Can’t wait for the next one.
    Here’s two pics of the stage at its least mic-busy and least people-crowded moment.

  • about to hit the road (ie the air) with John Zorn and 50 reasons to come back to NYC

    In less than 5 hours I’ll be sitting in a big bird on my way to the old continent for a big John Zorn Masada Marathon festival. It’s going to be a phenomenal concert in Milan, with 12 bands in a row (Masada Quartet, Sylvie Curvosier & Mark Feldman duo, Cyro Baptista’s new band Banquet of the Spirits, the acappella quartet Mycale, Medeski Martin & Wood, Bar Kokhba, The Dreamers, Erik Friedlander solo, Bester Quartet, New Klezmer trio, Masada String Trio, Electric Masada).

    Doing Front of House sound for such a gigantic concert is obviously no easy task (12 bands, 15 minutes each, 11 quick stage changes, 60 channels of audio on the board) but I am really looking forward to doing it and I have a blast every time. Except for MMW and Bester Quartet I have done sound for all of these cats before so I know it’s gonna be a killer show.

    I love going on the road to do these shows but I love being in NYC as well and I love NYC with all my heart… If you love (or hate) NYC you should read this article I was just sent called “50 Reasons to Be Pretty Damn Euphoric You Live in New York City”. It’s pretty hilarious, let me know what you think: http://blogs.villagevoice.com/runninscared/2010/11/50_reasons_to_b.php

  • when it rains it pours…

    …and I’m not talking about that hail that came down in Brooklyn a week or two ago… I’m talking about work! Studio life is such that sometimes you have a week with no sessions and then there are weeks like this one where EVERYONE wants to record!!! What is it about the third week of October??? I had to turn down SO MUCH work this week, I hate turning down work! This week I’ve worked with 6 different clients, sometimes two in a day! Crazy.