I have been finding some cool artists online whose work really inspired me  – this Blog, belonging to Scott Hansen, is always full of interesting links and artwork. Brilliant stuff

Broke my finger, crushed it in a hydarulic hoist…lame. hurts like a mofo and wil take ages to heal.

I am really just updating this to post a link to my friend Hil’s site…here goes

www.hilcook.co.nz – Hil is a very talented hair and make up (or makeup or make-up) artist who specialises in hair and makeup for weddings, wedding, bridal, fashion, film, television, TV, photographic – in fact all manner of high end makeup services. She was part of the Oscar™ winning team at Weta who did the prosthetic makeup for the Lord Of The Rings trilogy…nice one

She kicks arse and is a super person to hang out and work with – very relaxed and knows her stuff….if you have a need for a makeup artist or any of your friends are getting married soon give them Hil’s website

cheers!

Spent 2 weeks recording the new Mephymology album “Secret Garden of Space” in this incredible location.

think stone walls and floor, pitched wooden roof, open fires, warm rich golden glow, incredible view of Coronet Peak and the various mountain ranges…I’ll post some pix soon

The space sounded incredible too – perfect for tracking Tom Mepham’s drums, Jeremy Callander’s guitars, and Rohan Callander’s vocals and Acoustic.

Other performers included Tony Zweis on Piano – amazing – and Dunedin stalwart Malcolm Gordon (whose album “One Voice” has been getting airplay on various stations and who will also be embarking on a South Island tour soon – more info to come)

I played bass, and did some additional bits and pieces, as well as recording and mixing.

Will post links to the songs when they’re mixed and mastered.

The project ended on a weird note when the police alerted Rohan (singer) to the fact that some kids were walking thru Dunedin last night with my computer, Fender Telecaster, and some other stuff they had stolen out of the band van!!! So they got the gear back (whew) but now I am waiting to here if the police want to hold it as evidence (!!!!!!) so my suggestion to them is “take photos, or pay me what I could be earning by using it!!” (the latter being my preferred option but I can’t see them going for that !!)

Anyway – an amazing experience with a real cool bunch of people.

will keep you posted !!

Since it’s now official – I can tell you the scoop

Ben Hazlewood, NZ Idol contender, all-round nice guy. Writes songs. We record some demos. He puts them online. Gets tapped to join US boyband “Stateside”. Less than a week after initially hearing from the management compaany, he’s on a plane to Orlando, FL. Cool

then off to LA, now living in London and the list of people who they band are working with is amazing.

so far, writers and producers working on the album are :

Max Martin (Max produced and wrote the hits for N’Sync, Backstreet Boys, Britney Spears, Kelly Clarkson and heaps more. )

Wayne Hector (written hits for Westlife,Carrie Underwood, O-Town, among others!)

Steve Mac (Over 50 worldwide number 1 hits – including for Westlife, Ronan Keating, Leona Lewis, Mel C, Atomic Kitten, Boyzone, Ruben Studdard, Five – plus too many to list…)

So, yeah, the team working on this project is made up of top-level producers and writers – so hopefully stateside will come out with a great, catchy pop record. I am sure you will here more of this when the first singles from the album start to get airplay.

anyway – check out Ben and Stateside here.

cheers

Heading down to start recording an album with Mephymology – very inventive rock-pop-alt band from Dunedin. we are setting up a studio space in a house in the Crown Ranges, near Queenstown. Should be cool (literally. We’re talking snow, people.)

It’s an album by Chris Balm featuring some fantastic songs – vaguely pop-rock but encompassing influences ranging from  David Bowie, Pink Floyd and Queen, to Don Henley, A-ha, and The Beatles.

We’ve gone a for a BIG, lush, warm fat sound, with huge drums, guitars, and vocals. I’ll put more info up when the songs have been uploaded to Chris’s garageband page and his myspace.

OTHER STUFF

In talks with several artists at the moment with a view to get some more recording projects underway.

Also, I am heading down to beautiful Queenstown to record and produce an album by Dunedin alt-pop-rock band Mephymology. 2 weeks in a mountain hideway in the Crown Ranges, where we’ll set up shop and go nuts for 14 days creating an album. Should be awesome. Watch this space!

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If you have a single, demo, soundtrack, jingle, or album project you’d like to discuss – drop me a line! Either leave a message here, or check my site www.geoffduncan.co.nz for contact info.

cheers

Geoff