Recording
Producer Adam Kasper was brought in to work with the band on its seventh album. Kasper had engineered other Pearl Jam albums, and was brought to produce following a suggestion by drummer Matt Cameron, who worked with Kasper on his previous groups Wellwater Conspiracy and Soundgarden. Riot Act was recorded in two sessions in February 2002 and April 2002 at Studio X in Seattle, Washington. The album was mixed by Brendan O'Brien at Studio X.
Similar to the process for Yield and Binaural, band members worked on material individually before starting the recording sessions together. According to Cameron, everyone in the band had "four or five" ideas coming into the sessions, and there was "a lot to just kind of weed through and work on." The band often recorded material intended to be demo recordings, but lead vocalist Eddie Vedder would come along and record his vocals afterwards, stating, "I just sang it, that's the take." Regarding the creative process, guitarist Stone Gossard said that while playing alone "the anal-retentive side of you goes, 'I think I could play better.'", but when reuniting "the entire band goes 'No, it's great as it is,' then you just get in the mood and embrace it." Gossard stated that "the process of letting go is constant in this band", adding that bandmembers would arrive with "a clear idea of what a song is going to be" but eschew for other musical ideas while discussing the song with the group. Riot Act was the first Pearl Jam album to feature Kenneth "Boom" Gaspar on organ, most notably on the song "Love Boat Captain". According to Gaspar, the song initially developed out of a jam session he had with Vedder in Hawaii shortly after the two first met. When they were done, Vedder asked Gaspar if he was "ready to go to Seattle." According to Gossard, bringing in Gaspar was about being "open to new things," while Vedder stated Gaspar "was able to find his place" and fit in easily with the band dynamics. Guitarist Mike McCready said that he had always wanted the band to feature keyboards.
McCready described the recording environment as "a pretty positive one" and "very intense and spiritual." Cameron said that producer Adam Kasper created a "really relaxed" atmosphere and that the band was able to complete lot of material in a short amount of time. Vedder set up his typewriter in a corner of the studio and would write lyrics as the band members played their material. Most of the album was recorded live, with Cameron describing the album as "our anti-Pro Tools record." Gossard said that the band fed off Cameron's playing as well as Vedder's excitement about the recording process.
Read more about this topic: Riot Act (album)
Famous quotes containing the word recording:
“I didn’t have to think up so much as a comma or a semicolon; it was all given, straight from the celestial recording room. Weary, I would beg for a break, an intermission, time enough, let’s say, to go to the toilet or take a breath of fresh air on the balcony. Nothing doing!”
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—Jane Heap (c. 1880–1964)