Session notes from the booth.

Reach for it when the sequence needs a record that can keep moving and still leave detail behind. It leaves Whipping Post (Live At The Fillmore East, 1971 - First Show) by The Allman Brothers Band off The 1971 Fillmore East Recordings (2014) a clean lane instead of boxing the handoff in.

Hearing it against Requiem: Reconstruction of First Performance matters because it reads like part of an album world, not a detached single. Rex Tremendae by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart off Requiem: Reconstruction of First Performance (2014) earns its place when the turn needs shape, contrast, and enough detail to keep the next move honest. On Requiem: Reconstruction of First Performance (2014), it reads as part of a larger album world instead of a stray file in the crate. Hearing it against Requiem: Reconstruction of First Performance matters because it reads like part of an album world, not a detached single.

Listen for the point where the record suddenly feels larger than the speakers and starts changing the shape of the room. Notice how it hands the weight to Whipping Post (Live At The Fillmore East, 1971 - First Show) by The Allman Brothers Band off The 1971 Fillmore East Recordings (2014) instead of crowding the next move.

Whipping Post (Live At The Fillmore East, 1971 - First Show) by The Allman Brothers Band off The 1971 Fillmore East Recordings (2014) lifts the pressure after Requiem in D Minor, K. 626: V. Rex Tremendae by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart off Requiem: Reconstruction of First Performance (2014) without snapping the thread. Reach for it when the turn needs shape, attack, and a record that can define the next move in just a few bars. It leaves And the Cradle Will Rock… by Van Halen off Women and Children First (1980) a clean lane instead of boxing the handoff in.

Hearing it against The 1971 Fillmore East Recordings matters because it reads like part of an album world, not a detached single. Whipping Post (Live At The Fillmore East, 1971 - First Show) by The Allman Brothers Band off The 1971 Fillmore East Recordings (2014) carries the feel of a band in a room rather than a mood-board tag, and that physicality matters in a sequence. With The Allman Brothers Band, the attraction is often attack and arrangement economy: what the band can say quickly and physically. The record earns its place through how the arrangement opens and tightens rather than through sheer mass.

This one is airing as a clipped passage, so listen for the section Mr Rassy chose to stand in for the whole piece. The choice was deliberate: Mr Rassy kept the strongest passage of the long-form piece in the set instead of taking the full side.. And the Cradle Will Rock… is waiting on the far side of that seam.

And the Cradle Will Rock… by Van Halen off Women and Children First (1980) cools the temperature after Whipping Post (Live At The Fillmore East, 1971 - First Show) by The Allman Brothers Band off The 1971 Fillmore East Recordings (2014) and lets the turn breathe. Reach for it when the turn needs shape, attack, and a record that can define the next move in just a few bars.

Hearing it against Women and Children First matters because it reads like part of an album world, not a detached single. And the Cradle Will Rock… by Van Halen off Women and Children First (1980) carries the feel of a band in a room rather than a mood-board tag, and that physicality matters in a sequence. With Van Halen, the attraction is often attack and arrangement economy: what the band can say quickly and physically. The record earns its place through how the arrangement opens and tightens rather than through sheer mass.

Listen for where the arrangement opens wider than the first impression suggests, especially when the rhythm section changes the floor under the lead.

Reach for it when the turn needs shape, attack, and a record that can define the next move in just a few bars. It leaves A Clean Break (Let's Work) (Live at CBGB's, 10/10/77) by Talking Heads off Bonus Rarities & Outtakes (2006) a clean lane instead of boxing the handoff in.

Hearing it against I'm With You matters because it reads like part of an album world, not a detached single. Ethiopia by Red Hot Chili Peppers off I'm With You (2011) carries the feel of a band in a room rather than a mood-board tag, and that physicality matters in a sequence. With Red Hot Chili Peppers, the attraction is often attack and arrangement economy: what the band can say quickly and physically. The record earns its place through how the arrangement opens and tightens rather than through sheer mass.

Listen for where the arrangement opens wider than the first impression suggests, especially when the rhythm section changes the floor under the lead. Notice how it hands the weight to A Clean Break (Let's Work) (Live at CBGB's, 10/10/77) by Talking Heads off Bonus Rarities & Outtakes (2006) instead of crowding the next move.

A Clean Break (Let's Work) (Live at CBGB's, 10/10/77) by Talking Heads off Bonus Rarities & Outtakes (2006) stays related to Ethiopia by Red Hot Chili Peppers off I'm With You (2011) through pop, rock, but changes the pocket enough to matter. Reach for it when the turn needs shape, attack, and a record that can define the next move in just a few bars. It leaves Come Back Jonee by Devo off Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! [2008 Remaster] (1978) a clean lane instead of boxing the handoff in.

Hearing it against Bonus Rarities & Outtakes matters because it reads like part of an album world, not a detached single. A Clean Break (Let's Work) (Live at CBGB's, 10/10/77) by Talking Heads off Bonus Rarities & Outtakes (2006) carries the feel of a band in a room rather than a mood-board tag, and that physicality matters in a sequence. With Talking Heads, the attraction is often attack and arrangement economy: what the band can say quickly and physically. The record earns its place through how the arrangement opens and tightens rather than through sheer mass.

Listen for where the arrangement opens wider than the first impression suggests, especially when the rhythm section changes the floor under the lead. Notice how it hands the weight to Come Back Jonee by Devo off Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! [2008 Remaster] (1978) instead of crowding the next move.

Come Back Jonee by Devo off Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! [2008 Remaster] (1978) stays related to A Clean Break (Let's Work) (Live at CBGB's, 10/10/77) by Talking Heads off Bonus Rarities & Outtakes (2006) through new wave, but changes the pocket enough to matter. Reach for it when the turn needs shape, attack, and a record that can define the next move in just a few bars.

[2008 Remaster] matters because it reads like part of an album world, not a detached single. [2008 Remaster] (1978) carries the feel of a band in a room rather than a mood-board tag, and that physicality matters in a sequence. With Devo, the attraction is often attack and arrangement economy: what the band can say quickly and physically. The record earns its place through how the arrangement opens and tightens rather than through sheer mass.

Listen for where the arrangement opens wider than the first impression suggests, especially when the rhythm section changes the floor under the lead.

Reach for it when the turn needs shape, attack, and a record that can define the next move in just a few bars. It leaves Red-Eyed And Blue by Wilco off Being There (1996) a clean lane instead of boxing the handoff in.

Hearing it against Morning Phase matters because it reads like part of an album world, not a detached single. Say Goodbye by Beck off Morning Phase (2014) carries the feel of a band in a room rather than a mood-board tag, and that physicality matters in a sequence. With Beck, the attraction is often attack and arrangement economy: what the band can say quickly and physically. The record earns its place through how the arrangement opens and tightens rather than through sheer mass.

Listen for where the arrangement opens wider than the first impression suggests, especially when the rhythm section changes the floor under the lead. Notice how it hands the weight to Red-Eyed And Blue by Wilco off Being There (1996) instead of crowding the next move.

Red-Eyed And Blue by Wilco off Being There (1996) stays related to Say Goodbye by Beck off Morning Phase (2014) through country, but changes the pocket enough to matter. Reach for it when the hour needs the human voice or acoustic grain to reset the emotional scale. It leaves Wild Eyed Boy from Freecloud (2015 Remaster) by David Bowie off David Bowie (aka Space Oddity) [2015 Remaster] (2015) a clean lane instead of boxing the handoff in.

Hearing it against Being There matters because it reads like part of an album world, not a detached single. Red-Eyed And Blue by Wilco off Being There (1996) pulls the room inward and lets voice, phrasing, or acoustic grain do the heavy lifting. With Wilco, phrasing and vocal or acoustic grain do most of the emotional work, which is why the record can reset the scale of the hour. The cut lives or dies on phrasing and vocal or acoustic grain, which is why it reads as a human choice instead of wallpaper.

Listen for phrasing, breath, and the way tiny changes in delivery make the emotional pressure jump. Notice how it hands the weight to Wild Eyed Boy from Freecloud (2015 Remaster) by David Bowie off David Bowie (aka Space Oddity) [2015 Remaster] (2015) instead of crowding the next move.

Wild Eyed Boy from Freecloud (2015 Remaster) by David Bowie off David Bowie (aka Space Oddity) [2015 Remaster] (2015) stays related to Red-Eyed And Blue by Wilco off Being There (1996) through pop, rock, but changes the pocket enough to matter. Reach for it when the turn needs shape, attack, and a record that can define the next move in just a few bars.

Hearing it against David Bowie (aka Space Oddity) [2015 Remaster] matters because it reads like part of an album world, not a detached single. Wild Eyed Boy from Freecloud (2015 Remaster) by David Bowie off David Bowie (aka Space Oddity) [2015 Remaster] (2015) carries the feel of a band in a room rather than a mood-board tag, and that physicality matters in a sequence. With David Bowie, the attraction is often attack and arrangement economy: what the band can say quickly and physically. The record earns its place through how the arrangement opens and tightens rather than through sheer mass.

Listen for where the arrangement opens wider than the first impression suggests, especially when the rhythm section changes the floor under the lead.