Realgrey is blessed to have a host of very talented interns this semester, two of which help me with an idea.  Percussionist Adam McClousky and Composer Callum Amacher have worked together for quite some time so I felt like they’d be the perfect duo to test the studio kit in our newly revamped acoustic room (formally known as our control room).

We moved to NE Ohio from Nashville in 1998.  I still had some of my recording gear from my traveling days.  Freelance design became my mainstay as I found myself wanting to sleep in my own bed every night.

Utilizing an amalgam of techniques, proprietary protocols, hardware and software, the PhantomFocus™ System is a powerful tool in optimizing monitor systems.

“Play me the bad news,” Guy Randall sings, his voice a little like Don Henley, a little like Joe Cocker.  The riffs, the words, are bluesy for certain, but they are also full of tender, honeyed, existential soul

Over the last few years I’ve become familiar with the Neotek line of vintage recording consoles.  We’re thankful to have added an Elite to our recording tool offering.

a quick look at how we’re going to keep the control room cool and quiet
DIY HVAC mufflers.

Ben and Ron discuss the sound profiles of Ben’s new Guild guitar and his old Seagull.

The basic definition of decoupling is to separate objects. Decoupling to isolate sound is most commonly done with Hush Sound Isolation Clips, resilient channel, or specialty framing like double stud or staggered stud walls.  Here’s what we’re doing ...

We’ll be closed the entire month of December 2021 for construction.  We’ll be doing the prep work for the contractors to move the walls and doors and level the ceiling in the current live room.

Dr. Alex Meibos of The University of Akron and Dr. Heather Malyuk of Soundcheck Audiology are researching isolation and output levels of in-ear monitors (IEMs).

A lonely, isolated closet.  Cables and wires.  The pulse of a drum machine.  “I’ve wanted to make heavy, loud music for a long time…” says John King.

Rodney and the Regulars, Terrycloth Mother and Cory Grinder & The Playboy Scouts find Tebbs lighting up the stage on a regular basis.

“Music heals,” says Louis Begue, who just a few months ago released his EP, Living Memories.  “It saved me many times”.

When I’ve asked artists what they’d like to be different about our space I get feedback like this

A simple way to keep track of song arrangement changes along with recording iterations.

Lucky Channel 37 is up and running like new

Learning how to make your own scratch tracks can go a long way in helping you prepare for your recording sessions.  It can even help you understand the DNA of your own songs.

Michael Omartian (born November 26, 1945) is an American singer-songwriter, arranger, keyboardist, and music producer. He has been a participant in numerous albums during a career that has spanned more than four decades. As a producer, he has had number-one records in three consecutive decades —Wikipedia

This morning I reached out to a few respected drummers to get their opinions on a drum kit I thought might be a good fit for the studio.  In the process Brian McTear and I ventured over to topic of getting the kick sound “right” and what right could mean.

With Connie Flack providing La Croix and Ron Flack offering the space, Andy Hoffman and Matt Gregory from the Ohio Native band, Ledges, sat down in the Realgrey Records, Our Carriage house Studio to talk about the process of building a song.

Music speaks where words cannot. During this pandemic, we have all struggled to know how to access deep connection as we’ve experienced so much change and isolation from our typical ways of being together.

His hands fumbled around on a Wal-Mart guitar, searching the strings for one chord, then another. He was learning the ropes. He had stories to tell, untapped passions living just below the surface.

Jesse Gearhart talks to Josh Compton about his various writing and music-making projects, his approach to producing others, and what he is learning from Ron and John through his internship at Realgrey Records in Canton Ohio.

Jason “Goody” Goodwin talks to Josh Compton about finding your voice, the evolution of a band and his new EP.

Greg Snier talks with Josh Compton about music making, his history with Realgrey Records, and learning to use technology to serve the songwriter.

“I’ve crossed lines because of the help and challenge of others, I feel like the studio is a catalyst for that challenge to be passed on.”
—Ron Flack

“Anything that happens in life, no matter how severe or sinister, can be turned into something beautiful”.  This is how Brandon Covey describes the themes of his new album, Reflections, a series of mostly instrumental pieces centered around his bass guitar.

Some time ago, I found myself at Realgrey Studios, visiting the “control room” while songwriter Gary Peck put down vocal tracks in the room adjacent. He stood quietly behind the microphones as the dark light of Canton crept through the windows.

The summer sun is beginning to wane. Fall winds have swept in, and along with them come rainy, gray days; warning us of the impending winter. Ohio is known for its meandering climates, but I think it’s the chilly, fall evenings that best encapsulate a land that refuses to give up, despite the imminent cold of winter, or of hard times. That is Ohio.

There’s a fair amount of spirituality that creeps into the songs of Kevin Embleton. Not so explicit that it would turn away those less inclined to religion or its ilk, but subtle enough to draw your attention, if only for a moment, to something beyond this life.