LEADS AND READS - WEEK OF 5/26 TO 6/01

Erik Sheppard

Unfortunately my brain has turned to putty from lack of sleep as I have spent the weekend welcoming my little brother's bohemian love child into the world so all I have for you is another barely coherent non sequitur.

I was just reminded yesterday that the cicadas will be back this year. For those of you not familiar, these things stay burrowed underground and only emerge from their holes once every 17 years to mate.

I can totally empathize with the little buggers.

Now I'm not sure where else in the country these things live (I probably should have looked that up) but they for damn sure live on Long Island because I remember the unbelievable racket they made back in '91. They are like a plague of locusts with little buzzsaws attached to them. Apparently their calls measures in at about 90 decibels and there could be thousands of them all around here.

Fortunately my mic is fairly isolated but the walls in this joint are made out of rice paper or something and the cicadas resonate at a fairly odd frequency so this might be interesting. I think between the crying baby being here all the time and Mother Nature's little noisemakers surrounding the place, I might be submitting a lot more produced auditions for a while.

Anyway, enjoy your BBQs everybody. The veggie burgers are already calling my name.

-Uncle Erik

Lori Furth · Posted: Mon May 26, 2008, 14:58 (GMT) Post subject:

Congratulations Uncle Erik!!

Springtime, new life, insects emerging from underground. Sounds exciting and unpredictable....or is it global warming??

Anyway, may only the sweetest interruptions come your way!!

I have no auditions to share....cuz there are no leads for me Confused

Lori

Diane Havens · Posted: Mon May 26, 2008, 14:58 (GMT) Post subject:

Congrats, Uncle Erik!

Beauty pic of the cicada, oh yeah, in NJ we got 'em -- and just goes to show how a good photographer can flatter any ugly creature...

Well, back to my Memorial Day brunch and another round of mimosas -- the parade passes right by my house so I wouldn't be submitting any auds right now, produced or otherwise. (And I've got a great veggie-sausage strata as part of the menu, btw.)

With respect, admiration and appreciation for all those who made the ultimate sacrifice for our democracy.

Peace and love,

Dave DeAndrea · Posted: Mon May 26, 2008, 15:01 (GMT) Post subject:

For those who haven't had the pleasure of hearing what Erik is talking about...

Maxine Dunn · Posted: Mon May 26, 2008, 15:32 (GMT) Post subject:

Happy Memorial Day Erik ~

I feel your pain! I live on the edge of the wetlands/open space. My living room and kitchen window look right out over a beautiful little lake, cattails and willows waving in the breeze, blackbirds and meadow larks, finches and herons abound. No neighbors at all along the back side….just beautiful nature.

Oh yes, and the Canadian Geese. The loud, fighting, mating, screeching, honking, Canadian Geese. They've finally had their goslings now so it's a bit quieter, but for the past three months it's been bedlam around here during mating season. They could literally sit for hours and honk as loud as they possibly could.

I'm not sure how many decibels a goose honk is, but they definitely speak "in the mask." And when they were all going at it at once, from the lake, from the roof tops, from my patio, there was no way in h-ll to record. Just had to wait it out.

(Those little fuzzy yellow goslings are so cute though!)

xoxo

.

David Bosco · Posted: Tue May 27, 2008, 02:40 (GMT) Post subject:

Dave:

Thanks(?) for submitting that audio clip of the cicadas. Once every 17 years is still too often for a racket like that. Sounds like Frank Zappa's recording of "Weasels Ripped My Flesh"

Scott Pollak · Posted: Tue May 27, 2008, 03:10 (GMT) Post subject:

Pain? That's not pain! It's a GREAT sound of warm summer days and nights! We have 'em by the billions in the South and over the years you become pretty immune to them.

True story: Some years back I was directing a video shoot and we were outside a local hospital in the spring interviewing a couple of the hospitals powers-that-be for a corporate video. The interviews went great, but thank goodness we checked audio before packing up to leave. We heard this weird cycling of 'static' that was pretty overwhelming and we finally realized it was the cicadas perched throughout all the trees everywhere around us! Being from the south we weren't even HEARING IT! So we set up the shoot again and merely did the speaking parts during the down cycles of the little buzzsaws.

And another little life enters the world, eh? Congrats to your brother, Erik. So cool to see another little miracle on the planet!
Wink

September Day Leach · Posted: Wed May 28, 2008, 18:41 (GMT) Post subject:

Deby Cedars · Posted: Wed May 28, 2008, 19:39 (GMT) Post subject:

OK....Well someone's got to start this party here is a Toy commercial I did .....and I do mean G-rated toys for kids this time.....lol Very Happy

Lance Blair · Posted: Wed May 28, 2008, 20:04 (GMT) Post subject:

Nice toy read Deby, even if it's G-Rated. I'll give it a G for great.

Here's a recent fiver for a website tutorial. I just bought a $99 MXL v67g as an experiment and for some reason my ratings are going up with this bad boy. It's easily the darkest sounding Chinese mic I've heard (other than the Kel mics).

Kent LaTurno · Posted: Wed May 28, 2008, 21:54 (GMT) Post subject:

Lance - love the sound - sounds like a 5 to me!

Haven't auditioned in a bit - too busy deleting reminders... here are a few from TOS. It's a John Wayne and Jesus set... church and trucks.

David Bosco · Posted: Thu May 29, 2008, 19:42 (GMT) Post subject:

Kent:

The Ford spot was great. Nice and warm. I ope they like it and use it. Such a departure from the screaming car ads.

Lance:

Hey! So far it's you and me with the $99 MXLs. You're getting a lot more out of it than I am though, makin' that puppy sing!

Deby:

Howdy neighbor! Even your G stuff sounds great. Stayin' busy I hope?

Here's one from this morning, for a presentation to a group of venture capitalists, a mechanical energy gathering/generating device (maybe)

Lance Blair · Posted: Thu May 29, 2008, 22:43 (GMT) Post subject:

This was tricky: big, technical, and under :53. This is with the Heil PR40 to cut through.

Steve Cotsalas · Posted: Fri May 30, 2008, 13:04 (GMT) Post subject:

Here's a couple a fiver's for ya(average was 4.8&4.9..granted quite hi..but still..fivers!)
Big deal...gimme da gig!!

Marilyn Taylor · Posted: Fri May 30, 2008, 14:24 (GMT) Post subject:

Speaking of noise....our neighbor just retired and has a new hobby...he decided to get a chainsaw!!!! He doesn't actually 'saw' anything I think he just likes being outside (away from the wife) with his new toy...for hours...sure has cut down on my ability to record Sad

I sure hope he takes up birdwatching or basket weaving or something a little more quiet...SOON!