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Instruments used

Here's a page just for gear heads and curious fans.  Want to know what instruments were used to record Paper Cuts?  Well, you've come to the right place.  We'll break these down by performer.

Todd Bradley

keyboards: Originally, I was using the Korg Karma for everything, but midway through recording, I switched to an all soft-synth setup.  For the later tracks, I used an M-Audio Radium61 MIDI controller connected to my Windows XP laptop, running Brainspawn's forte software.

soft synths: Edirol Super Quartet, Triangle II, daOrgan, Edirol Virtual Sound Canvas

harmonica: I've had this G-major harmonica for about 20 years, and so I decided to finally use it on "Paper Cuts."

Bolivian recorder: I bought this thing online a couple years ago.  It's handmade wooden flute or recorder painted very colorfully.  After teaching myself how to play it, it unfortunately appears on only one recording, although I may explore the instrument further on a future CD.

Scott Siders

Scott exclusively uses a Shure SM-58S microphone, both in the studio and when performing live.

Byron Jacquot

Byron used the following gear to record the tracks on "Paper Cuts":

  • 17" x 22" Sonor Performer Kick drum in red lacquer.
  • 12" x 14" Sonor Performer tom in red lacquer, with RIMS floor tom legs. 10" x 12" Sonorlite tom in creme lacquer, black RIMS mount. 5" x 14" Pearl Sensitone brass snare drum. Hardware from Pearl, Premier, Tama, DW and Sonor.
  • 14" Paiste Innovations Power hihats.
  • 14" old Zildjian A hihats.
  • 18" Paiste Alpha crash cymbal.
  • 20" Paiste Rude Chinese cymbal.
  • 20" Paiste Signature dark dry crash/ride.
  • 22" Zildjian A crash/ride.
  • Pairs of Zildjian 5A nylon tipped and Regal 2B wood tipped sticks.
  • Tube bass
  • Plastic slide whistle, the Fyodor model.

When performing live in a small space, Byron uses the following:

  • The tube bass.
  • 17" x 16" Sonorlite floor tom in creme lacquer.
  • 5" x 10" Tama soprano snare.
  • Hardware from Rogers and DW.
  • 8" Zildjian K splash cymbal.
  • 18" Super sizzle cymbal, 6 rivets (A model I'm considering endorsing. Have the Super people call my people).
  • Plastic slide whistle, the Fyodor model.
  • Potato shaped shaker.
  • Bannana shaped shaker.
  • Set of cheap jungle bells from craft store.
  • Rhythm tech tambourine.
  • Anon cowbell.
  • Single Atlanta Pro Percussion 5A wood tip stick.
  • Single Promuco "Simon Kirke" signature wood tip stick.
  • Single Mainline synthetic 5A "wood" tip stick.
  • Pair of ProMark 5A wood tip sticks, with surgical tubing "covers" over the tips. Pair of Great Dane fiberglass handled yarn mallets. Pair of Johnny Rabb rhythm saws sticks. Pair of Regal wire brushes, non-retractable. Pair of Regal nylon brushes, non-retractable. Pair of Blasticks, plastic handles. Old lathed chair leg.
  • Rubbermaid Roughneck box.

Gene Sobczak

Gene Sobczak used a Guild B301F fretless bass guitar - autographed by John Entwistle! - through a host of custom amplifier-cabinet settings created on a Line 6 Bass Pod Pro. When dared, Gene also will play a Fodera Monarch four-string bass guitar (constructed especially for the Court Jester of Darkness by Brooklyn's finest luthiers), a Carruthers SUB-1 electric upright bass (modified for said demon clown by Venice, California's finest luthier), and a piece-of-shit Rythmline hollow-body electric bass guitar that he purchased from a family member in 1976 for $40.

When performing live, Gene uses a Fender Bassman 400 and Advil.

Stephanie Szostek

  • 1978 Guild B-302
  • SWR basic black amplifier

Recording Details

Tracks 1, 2, 4, and 5 were recorded at Byron's place on Ampex 456 1" magnetic tape, using a Tascam MS-16.  Byron mixed those tracks on his Soundcraft 600 console into Todd's old computer, now sporting a MOTU 1224 converter.  Effects were all hardware, but too numerous to mention/recall

Tracks 7, 8, 9, and 12 were originally recorded at Byron's place on ADAT at 16 bit 48kHz.  Todd pulled the individual tracks into his laptop through a Layla24, did some overdubs, and mixed everything using Cakewalk SONAR 2.2.  Effects were mostly DX plug-ins from Sony, Sonic Foundry, Cakewalk, and Arboretum.

Tracks 3, 6, 10, 11, were assembled and/or recorded at Todd's place direct to hard disk through the Layla24 at 24bit 44.1kHz, again using Cakewalk SONAR 2.2, with a variety of DX plug-ins.

Once everything was mixed down to digital, Todd did all the WAV file cropping, fades, final compression, and EQ in Sound Forge 5.0 and 7.0.  Then he assembled everything and sweetened some of the tracks a little more as needed in CD Architect 5.0.

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