The S&V Interview

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The S&V Interview
Saga's Michael Sadler on The Art of Mixing
Mike Mettler  |  Aug 06, 2014  |  0 comments
Sagacity, definition: Exhibiting acute perception, foresight, wisdom, and sound judgment. Tenacity, definition: Holding together tough and firm, with a tendency to stick or adhere. Two words could not better describe Saga, the longstanding Canadian progressive collective that continues to up its game with every release. To wit: Sagacity (earMusic/Eagle Rock), which crackles with confident energy, from the heavy propulsion of “Go With the Flow” to the anthemic uplift of “I’ll Be.” As an added bonus, Sagacity includes a second disc, Saga Hits, where the band muscles through nine of its best-known songs during a set recorded at the SWR1 Rockarena in Ludwigshafen am Rhein, Germany on June 22, 2013 that includes the perennial powerhouses “On the Loose,” “Humble Stance,” and “Wind Him Up.” Lead vocalist Michael Sadler (with arms folded in the above band photo) and I recently got together to discuss modern-day recording logistics, the fine art of mixing, and some surround-sound wishes. As you’ll soon see, when it comes to having Sadler talk about harnessing great sound, once you wind him up, he can’t stop.
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The S&V Interview
Santana & The Isley Brothers Testify About the Power of Peace
Mike Mettler  |  Aug 02, 2017  |  1 comments
The very idea of an Isley Brothers–Santana mashup appears to be quite the sonic dream team on paper, and I’m more than pleased to report the proof is abundantly clear in the grooves of Power of Peace’s baker’s dozen of tasty tunes. I sat down exclusively at the fabled Electric Lady Studios in the heart of Greenwich Village in New York City with both families — i.e., the Santanas (Carlos and Cindy) and the Isleys (Ernie and Ronald) — to discuss the best way to listen to Power of Peace, the DNA behind the album’s sonic template, and what each family plans on doing next.
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The S&V Interview
Scott Kirkland Reboots The Crystal Method
Mike Mettler  |  Dec 12, 2018  |  0 comments
Scott Kirkland of The Crystal Method got on the line with us to discuss getting back to his core electronic music values on The Trip Home after parting ways with his longtime collaborative partner Ken Jordan, his thoughts about remixing new and catalog material in Dolby Atmos, and refocusing his goals following brain surgery.
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The S&V Interview
Simon Kirke’s Sonics Are in Good Company on New Solo Album
 |  Feb 22, 2017  |  0 comments
“Give the drummer some” is a phrase you hear a lot in this business of ours, and it often refers to shining the spotlight on a band’s timekeeper during a specific drum break or extended solo section. In the case of Free and Bad Company founding drummer Simon Kirke, however, it’s time to give the man different kind of spotlight as steps out on his third solo album, All Because of You (BMG/The End). Kirke and I sat down in an open-air lounge to discuss the making of You, how music can connect you with your kids, streaming, and loving Ringo. The sun and moon are definitely shinin’ on this skinsman.
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The S&V InterviewCustom Installation How-ToHome Movie Theaters
Sitting Room Pretty
Jamie Sorcher  |  Nov 25, 2008  |  1 comments

Constructing a theater from scratch in a custom-built home can be a challenge, but remodeling a room in an established home can sometimes be even more demanding.

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The S&V Interview
Slide Maestro Sonny Landreth Is Right at Home, Live in Lafayette
Mike Mettler  |  Jul 05, 2017  |  0 comments
Sonny Landreth is the consummate slide player’s slide player. His smoky, swampy, down-home, Nawlins-certified slide playing carries such a unique blend of influences and originality that the phrase “slydeco” was coined just to describe it. I got on the horn with Landreth to discuss his SQ aspirations for the double LP Recorded Live in Lafayette, respecting and building on music history, and how learning to play wind instruments influenced his guitar style.
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The S&V Interview
Slide Master and Vinyl Lover Derek Trucks
Mike Mettler  |  Dec 18, 2013  |  0 comments
“That’s the cartridge you want — the one that’ll get you kicked out of the house!” And that’s Derek Trucks, empathizing over the price of high-end audiophile gear, both in terms of how it affects your wallet and your personal life. “I’ve had that conversation too,” he adds with a chuckle. The good-natured Trucks — seen at the center of the above photo, with his arms folded — drenched his sweet-toned slide-guitar stamp all over one of 2013’s best albums, the Tedeschi Trucks Band’s Made Up Mind (Masterworks; you can read my 4 1/2-star review of it in the Discs & Downloads section.) Here, Trucks, 34, and I commune over his favorite gear and LPs, how good Mind sounds on vinyl, and its thematic album-closing parallel. (Hint: “Darling, won’t you ease my worried mind” is a line from said album's title track.)

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The S&V InterviewAudio Video News
Sonic Windshield: ClearView Audio Clio Wireless Speaker
Bob Ankosko  |  Jul 11, 2014  |  0 comments
When someone says “invisible sound,” the first thing that comes to my mind is an in-wall/ceiling speaker hidden behind an inconspicuous grille. ClearView Audio has a different take on “invisible” with its stylish Clio Bluetooth speaker, which uses acrylic glass to create sound. No domes, no cones, except for a tiny 2-inch “woofer” hidden in the base that supports what you might call its sonic windshield. We asked CEO Stefen Bokamper to tell us about this unusual speaker.
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The S&V Interview
Space Invader: MIIB's Barry Sonnenfeld
Dan Yakir  |  Feb 22, 2003  |  0 comments
When he agreed to direct a sequel to his megahit Men In Black, Barry Sonnenfeld was determined not to repeat himself. "We had to bring back Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones, because so much of what made that first movie work was the relationship between them," he explains. "They're like Abbott and Costello. You can't have one without the other . . . there's a karmic thing between these two. The audience likes to see them bicker. The first movie takes place over three days and MIIB over two, so they only know each other for five days—but it looks like they've been together for 30 years!"
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The S&V Interview
Star Trek: The Motion Picture - Re-Energizing a Sci-Fi Classic
Chris Chiarella  |  Oct 06, 2022  |  5 comments
Ambitious, original, yet largely underappreciated, the first Star Trek film stands alone. Rushed into theaters in December 1979 with unfinished special effects and a studio-mandated runtime of only 130 minutes, it was not the version director Robert Wise intended.
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The S&V Interview
Stereo Is Father to the Surround: Al Kooper Talks 5.1
Mike Mettler  |  Mar 02, 2015  |  0 comments
Al Kooper has been a mastermind behind the board of many a storied session over his half-century career, but his prowess as a multichannel mixmaster has been largely unheard — until now. Audiophile circles have long been well aware that Kooper had turned in “interesting” 5.1 mixes to Sony for a pair of albums he personally had stakes in — Blood, Sweat & Tears’ trippy big-band-influenced debut, Child Is Father to the Man (originally released in February 1968) and Mike Bloomfield, Al Kooper, and Steve Stills’ still influential jam amalgamation, Super Session (July 1968). Both mixes gathered multichannel dust on the corporate shelves until almost a full decade later, when Audio Fidelity released them from captivity by way of a pair of Hybrid Mulitchannel SACDs. Here, Kooper, 71, and I discuss his surround mixing philosophy for both of those classic releases, why he’s not a fan of mono or streaming, and his alternate, Bloomfield-centric mix of Bob Dylan’s “Like a Rolling Stone” (on which Kooper played the infamous improvised organ riffs). There are no longer any 5.1 secrets to conceal.
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The S&V Interview
Steve Cropper, Soul Man of the Stax Sound
Mike Mettler  |  Jul 11, 2018  |  0 comments
Steve Cropper is the king of the song intro and one of the chief architects of the legendary Stax Records sound. To get the scoop on his recorded history, I called the once and forever Booker T. & The MG’s guitarist/producer to discuss the process of going from mono to stereo in the studio, the true origin of Sam Moore’s indelible “Play it, Steve!” exclamation on “Soul Man,” and the compositional sizzle behind the Booker T. instrumental masterpiece, “Green Onions.”
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Reference TracksThe S&V Interview
Steve Earle Embraces His Outlaw Country Roots on ‘Wannabe’
Mike Mettler  |  Aug 16, 2017  |  0 comments
Call singer/songwriter Steve Earle a curator/progenitor of the music movement known as outlaw country, and the man also known as the “hardcore troubadour” bristles at the thought. “You know, I’ve always been kind of uncomfortable with that term,” Earle admits. “I’ve been called that for a long time, and it’s a lot to do with where I came from [San Antonio, Texas]. What I actually think outlaw music is all about is artistic freedom. That’s what it’s really about.”
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The S&V Interview
Steve Forbert Makes No Sonic Compromises
Mike Mettler  |  Dec 09, 2015  |  0 comments
The songwriter’s songwriter is one who adheres to an unwavering standard of excellence. His work is honed, sculpted, shaped, and then reshaped until it feels right to share with the world. These are just a few of the guiding principles Steve Forbert followed while composing the 11 original songs that appear on his new album, Compromised (Rock Ridge). “The art of making a recording a finished product is extremely sophisticated,” he observes. Forbert, 60, and I got on the phone recently to discuss the art of songwriting, how you know when a song sounds as good as it can sound, and how to keep challenging yourself creatively.
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The S&V Interview
Steve Hackett Opens Up The Musical Box to Revisit Genesis
Mike Mettler  |  Nov 26, 2014  |  0 comments
“I personally like to be surrounded and ambushed by music. I want it to surprise me, and I want it to come from surprising places,” says Steve Hackett, echoing the sentiments of scores of audiophiles the world over. The progressive-minded guitarist has been enjoying accolades for the depth, compositional excellence, and overall live sound quality evident on his Genesis Revisited II 2013/2014 tour — so much so that a number of additional legs, dubbed Genesis Extended, have been added to his touring palette through next spring, at which time he’ll focus his energies on a new solo album release. Of that forthcoming new music, he says, “I like to think about it as a rock album with a difference. It’s very much like having scenes from a film for the ear rather than the eye.” Hackett, 64, and I got on the line a few days before he headed back out on the road for the next leg of the Genesis Extended tour to discuss how to create “inhabitable” music, his personal favorite Genesis surround mixes, and his view of the ongoing viability of the album format. Hadn’t you heard? He’s a supersonic scientist.
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