Seattle?

[Metaltastic]

So you're planning on doing the grad school route, Jeff? Once I graduate next year with a BS in Urban and Regional Planning Geography, I really hope I can work at the place I'm interning now (Westchester County Planning Dept.) and not have to endure another 2 fucking years of school. I mean, I'm loving college, but I really wanna get on with my life, and my friend who's my age but graduated a year early from Reed in Oregon is gonna be making at least $60 g's working at the economic consulting firm he interned at last summer in midtown Manhattan...lucky bastard

 

[JBroll]

Yeah, the plan is a Ph.D. in math and an M.S. or Ph.D. in physics. If I want to do pure math or theoretical physics I'm pretty much stuck in academia.

Jeff

 

[riffmachine]

A friend of mine recently came back from a visit with his family that lives in Seattle and everything he described sounded amazing to me. I currently live in the devil's gooch, otherwise known as San Antonio, Texas. It's hot, humid, boring and trying to get anywhere recording bands means you have to sell yourself short for a while to make a rep and then get your prices to where you want them. Not to mention that even though there are probably plenty bands around to keep anyone busy full-time, most of those bands are cheap bastards that think $150 for a 4-song demo that sounds...IMO...pretty f'in good is "kinda steep."

So, I was wondering what some of you guys thought about Seattle. Any experience living there? Visited? I've never been, in fact my only "experience" is catching a few seconds of the show Frasier every once in a while - which if that is any sign of what it's like then maybe it's not for me, haha. It's always been one of those things that Seattle has a pretty bumpin' music scene. The weather is a plus, the summer up there is like the winter here, about ~70-75ish, not too much humidity, and the rest of the year it's about the same but winters are nice. I'm sure the guys in South America know what I'm talking when I say how it is kind of depressing to wear shorts outside during "winter" here sometimes. Anyway, the point is that a friend and I want to start up a small studio and we've been talking about where we would do it...we both are on the fence about doing it here, and we talk a LOT more about other places being the home of the studio. The target market would be bands looking to do demos and debut full-lengths, etc. Nothing "major" for a while, eventually we would hope to get into that game, but not putting all of our eggs in one basket, as they say. Anybody know what real estate is like up there? As far as a place that could be a studio, of course. I have a majority of the equipment already, but there are a few pieces we would like to get to feel like it's complete, so the main cost would be the building up there and turning it into a studio (treatment-wise and structure-wise). For my friend, this is no problem...but we would like to hear some opinions on the idea and the possible market up there.

Seattle?

~006

I've been living in Seattle for about 6 years and the Puget Sound region since '94. I originally went there for school and made good friends and started a band. I graduated in '98, and with the fall of grunge occurring, the region went through somewhat of an identity crises. I remember playing shows in early 2000 with a funk band, death metal band, rap/metal band, and maybe some indy stuff. My band was heavy rock/metal. It was pretty annoying,the scene was not flourishing, and the crowds could not give a shit. Today, things have gotten better, but I would say that it's probably not as good as it was in the heyday for bands and musicians. Since I've only gotten into the audio production side of music in the last 4 years, I really don't have much advice for where to build a studio, but I know that there are a shitload of them around Seattle and it's outlying areas. However, real estate-wise, this area is only just seeing a dip in sales. Houses are still pretty expensive, yet, they are not as bad as the bay area which is where I am from originally. Seattle is definitely worth checking out. You should set up a visit and come see for yourself. The weather can be depressing, and the description about less annual rain than some other states but with a higher frequency, is very true. Basically we end up living for the summers which are usually amazing. This year we didn't have a spring really. We even had snow in April and most of the days were raining, but the summer hasn't let us down so far. Although, even when it's raining, it still has great beauty. It is surrounded by water and there are a bunch of great national parks near by which are very accessible. The food is good, the music scene is ok, but it's a good place to be. People love there coffee, beer, and weed around here. Attitudes are pretty chill, and it's only in the Eastern part of WA that you will find some white supremacists and some stereotypical "hicks". Still, the area is predominantly white so you won't be finding the diversity you would in the bay area or even close to it. Also, compared to San Francisco for example, Seattle seems way smaller. I really do like being here though. If you have any other questions let 'em fly.

P.S. - One very cool thing that I was able to do only because I'm in the area is take some guitar lesson from Jeff Loomis, which was very cool. He's super friendly and I was able to learn some cool shite on top of it. Also, a couple bands ago(we were named - Dog Bone Sanctuary - the name sucks I know) I was able to record an album with Jack Endino which was a great experience. I wish I had been into the production side of things when that happened. Sadly we broke up almost immediately after the album came out due to LSD.

P.P.S. - You can see my last band at www.myspace.com/weaponwithin if you want some progressive metal. Finding other bands to play with that were similar was pretty hard though. Now, I am in a more rock oriented project that has yet to be named.

 

[Kazrog]

I don't know where you get your facts Kazrog, but the suicide rates here in scandinavia is actually pretty low.

My apologies, I do actually realize it's more specifically Finland, and that the numbers are lower in the other Scandinavian countries. Not trying to make any overly sweeping generalizations, and I certainly didn't want to offend anyone. There may well be other factors at work than just the "midnight sun."

 

[Genius Gone Insane]

Ya west coast weather once you get up past santa barbara there is no joke. say goodbye to summer as you know it and be prepared to wear sweaters mid-day in July. The pacific is a powerful beast.

 

[KeithTidd]

washington is a nice state. the air is really clean. Seattle is like a slightly grimier san francisco.

 

[006]

@riffmachine: Dude that was extremely helpful! Thank you very much for the lengthy reply. I feel really good about the idea now. If I have any other questions I will definitely be taking you up on the offer

@Genius: Hell yeah man, I'm a fan of cold weather. I hate SA and heat. Sounds like Seattle will be perfect for my friend and I. Now just gotta figure everything else out, haha. I wish everything could happen right now but... shit takes time. Oh well.

~006

 

[riffmachine]

@riffmachine: Dude that was extremely helpful! Thank you very much for the lengthy reply. I feel really good about the idea now. If I have any other questions I will definitely be taking you up on the offer

@Genius: Hell yeah man, I'm a fan of cold weather. I hate SA and heat. Sounds like Seattle will be perfect for my friend and I. Now just gotta figure everything else out, haha. I wish everything could happen right now but... shit takes time. Oh well.

~006

Cool, glad to help

 

[Jackal_Strain]

My apologies, I do actually realize it's more specifically Finland, and that the numbers are lower in the other Scandinavian countries. Not trying to make any overly sweeping generalizations, and I certainly didn't want to offend anyone. There may well be other factors at work than just the "midnight sun."

No problem. Just thought i'd chime in and at least try to lighten up the gloomy image we get up here

 

[The spark]

I was able to record an album with Jack Endino which was a great experience.

That is awesome. This old grunge fan is jealous. haha.

 

[scorpio01169]

if Jeff and 006 leave for Washington State...that'll leave me the only Sneapter in San Antonio. and he is right these fuckers here dont wanna pay anything. they wanna act like they are big time but don't wanna pay for it.

 

[006]

You could go with us man! An apartment is a lot cheaper when 3 people are paying for it

~006

 

[scorpio01169]

You could go with us man! An apartment is a lot cheaper when 3 people are paying for it

~006

yea i would.....but i have a wife and kids and that wouldn't feel right....lol
but if you ever decide to stay maybe we can do some work together

 

[006]

Well, I won't be moving any time soon, this is quite a ways off. I'm hoping to book a few guys soon so that I can make some extra cash in order to visit Seattle for a couple of days and see what's up. I may not like it, but the only way to find out is to go. How I feel about Seattle after visiting will determine what my next move is. I may not like it and end up staying here or look for another potential city. I've spent 6 months in NYC before for a project and although it was mostly a cool place to be, I didn't like how crowded everywhere was. I'm use to having more space to commute in, etc.

As far as working together, sounds like a plan to me

~006

 

[Chryst Krispies]

Come to Mass.
We have shitty weather too!!!

Plus every shitty breakdown ever written was probably an export of ours.
Come join the fun!

 

[Metaltastic]

Don't forget about the suburbs of NYC, Mike! I can't imagine myself ever living anywhere else for the foreseeable future, cuz I know it and love it!

 

[JBroll]

yea i would.....but i have a wife and kids and that wouldn't feel right....lol
but if you ever decide to stay maybe we can do some work together

Again, give me a call if you need some real mad scientist stuff...

Anyway, I'm in a very similar position because of graduate schools... I'm looking all over the world, really, and will go anywhere that'll take me. University of Washington would kick ass all over the place, and I could easily end up in California or New York. Closest I'll be to here a year from now will be Austin or Houston, and I wouldn't be surprised if my ass is on a plane to Sweden, England, or Germany. Oh well... San Antonio is interesting, but there are just a lot of reasons why one would have to leave completely at some point. It's big enough to be a 'city' technically, but it still doesn't know that it's a city - and some of the fringe things like 'audio engineer' and suchlike can't be supported easily.

Jeff

 

[ffaudio]

Lived here my entire life. I love the weather.

 

[riffmachine]

That is awesome. This old grunge fan is jealous. haha.

One of my favorite moments was during one of our lunch breaks. We were talking about bands and production and we got on the subject of Metallica's St. Anger album. He mentioned that he had not heard it yet, so my drummer went out to his car and brought it in. It's been too long since it happened for me to directly quote him, but I remember him smiling, then chuckling, and then he said something like "really?". You kind of had to be there, but it was quite an amusing lunch break. As a producer, he had some really interesting perspectives about music that were pretty fascinating. He was also very friendly, super witty, and so quick with any of the production aspects. Mic placement, mixing, Pro Tools tweaking/editing, and any of the other stuff was done so skillfully. It was definitely a cool experience.

 

[Radd]

I was able to record an album with Jack Endino which was a great experience.

Any stories about making "Bleach", Kurt or Nirvana in general?
Great album. There was always something about the rawness of that album that I love and seems "special".
I used to be a big grunge fan. Still love it, just don't listen anymore.

Oh yeah, and 006, I don't think I need to tell you not to come to Jersey lol. PUKE!!