Kitchen Notes : A Covenant of Thorns on Ashes

Electraumatisme a découvert A Covenant of Thorns au tout début des années 2000 et nous n'avons jamais cessé de suivre les progrès faits par Scott-David Allen à chacune de ses sorties. Aujourd'hui avec son dernier album Ashes qui recèle à nouveau quelques perles darwave accrocheuses pleines d'amertume et de désillusion, il se prête au jeu de la Kitchen Notes, ses méthodes de production privilégiant l'efficacité du résultat.

Electraumatisme discovered A Covenant of Thorns on the very early 2000th and we never stopped following progresses done by Scott-David Allen thru each of his releases. Nowadays, with his last album Ashes containing again catchy darkwave gems full of bitterness and delusion, he plays the Kitchen Notes game, his production methods favoring result effictiveness.

  

 

Gears and software

What gears/softwares did you use for Ashes ?

For “Ashes”, I used a combination of virtual and hardware synths, as well as different guitars.  I use Ableton Live for all recording and mixing.

Your favorite gear(s)/software(s) ?

I think this changes from album to album. I am always designing new sounds so I am always on the lookout for something new and different.

Sound Design

Do you use/tweak presets  ?

I do. I’ve heard a lot of debate about using presets as either the end sound or a starting point.  I don’t have an issue with this.  I’ve heard it done many times.  For me, the most important thing is the end result.  If a painter finds a shade of blue paint that is perfect, I doubt they will avoid it and mix their own.  Having said that, if there isn’t a shade available, they will certainly mix their own perfect shade.  This is the same for me.  I find that, more than not, I will end up with something all my own but, if I find something that exists that is perfect, I am not going to avoid it.

Do you design you own sound  ? On which synth/plugin in particular ? 

Very often I do, yes.  Any synth or plugin can provide something interesting.  I think U-He has some really great synths as well as many of the analog boards that have been coming out lately.  I really like to turn knobs and move faders but, I don’t mind doing it virtually either.

Writing/composing method

What would be your main writing/composing method ? Do you start classical rythm/bassline then arrange around it ? Do you already have structure in mind ? Do you improvise, record sessions then select ? ...

I think my writing style has changed over the years.  One thing that hasn’t changed is it always starts with sound design.  I generally sit down and start creating sounds. At some point I will find something that catches my ear and run with that. I have several drum loops already created that I use as a starting point (they rarely end up in the final version). From there I start recording parts and build from there.  Many years ago, I would write lyrics first and add them to a piece of music. Now, I usually write the music and then write lyrics to the music.

Producing/mixing method

Do you produce/mix in the box or do you use mainly external gears (effect/comp/eq...)

I do everything in the box as far as mixing. I find that everything I need is there. As far as mastering, I send that off to my friend Gordon Young who uses a combination of internal and external gear to master the album.

What is your most painful / enjoyable step in track production ? Sound design, arrangement, mixing, mastering ?

I really enjoy all of it. The part that is least enjoyable for me is once everything is done and I need to switch to promoting. I find it really difficult to talk about myself or my music and that is really a requirement for promotion so that is definitely a challenge.

Scott-David's Tips

Having a default set in Ableton Live that has everything I use already in it is a huge timesaver.  You can create a set that has everything you need and save it as the default set. I can then come into a new set and have all my tracks set up with all the gear I use as a starting point. This is especially useful for vocals if you have a set of gear you use. Then it’s just a matter of dialing things in for compressors, etc.  The other thing I do that saves a bunch of time is to create instrument racks that have all the gear grouped together that I can grab easily.

Contact info

http://acot.bandcamp.com
https://www.facebook.com/ACovenantOfThorns/
https://www.instagram.com/acovenantofthorns/