Utah County Local Music Scene

Dave Zimmerman of Noisebox Studios combines studio magic, passion, and expertise to create positive music in an ever changing industry

Orem, UT – Right hand on the mouse, left hand flying across the keyboard hitting hotkey after hotkey, Dave Zimmerman is in the zone. Projected on the two black flat-screen computer monitors above his head is a seemingly undecipherable array of colored bars and sequences. The cursor controlled by Zimmerman darts across the screen to enlarge a lead vocal track where he has heard something he needs to edit. The sound of the bass guitar and lead guitar that pulsated through the Event ASP8 speakers seconds before, suddenly disappears as he isolates the lead vocalist and the drum tracks. Concentration shows on his face as he reaches for a pair of headphones; he has pinpointed a flat pitch in the lead vocal track. A deft hand, eye, and ear coordination developed over 12 years of professional sound recording/engineering makes the mixing process seem like a choreographed dance.  And he’s not even breaking a sweat.

The process sounds alien to the untrained ear, but the final product is a work of art. This is Zimmerman’s talent, his craft. Below his humble red brick home in downtown Orem, he has created a four-room professional sound recording studio. Zimmerman is the engineer and owner of Noisebox studios, and today he is working on two projects. Long after the band that recorded earlier in his studio has gone, Zimmerman is sitting at his Avid’s Flagship Pro Tools HD2 Accel System performing the “dark art” of studio engineering. 

To understand the recording process one must understand Zimmerman’s passion for music and music production. Now a master of Pro Tools and Logic Studio, Zimmerman started out as a pianist and percussionist. He played and studied percussion at BYU before becoming involved with audio engineering at Tuacahn Center for the Arts. He has worked on projects as diverse as The Beauty and the Beast to Stephen Covey’s 7 Habits series to currently recording the up and coming rock band The Whits. Over the years he has kept a singular goal in mind, to have a positive impact on the music industry. 

Music is a unique art form. Zimmerman believes that music has a huge influence on its listeners. He asks, “How can people say that music really doesn’t affect you? It really does. It’s so powerful.” At Noisebox studio he has developed a very strong policy regarding positive and uplifting music. 

“Because we are committed to uplifting music, we do not record music that’s profane, vulgar, violent, satanic, or sexual. If you are not sure if your music fits these categories, contact us and we can further clarify.” - excerpt from Noisebox Studios mission statement.

Like any artist with a vision, as a sound engineer Zimmerman wants his work to serve a purpose. His policy can be considered a form of censorship, and he realizes that everyone is not going to agree with it. Taking such a stance against explicit material is controversial, and Zimmerman admits he’s received his fair share of criticism regarding the First Amendment. He’s also been praised for his dedication to promote uplifting media, and he feels it’s about doing the right thing for the community. In one of his online bios he writes, “There is so much crap out there in the media that has a bad influence on our future generations. I hope to bring out the talent that has a positive influence on people and our future.”

In the level above his basement studio, Zimmerman’s wife is cooking dinner and his young son Ezra is playing on the kitchen floor. Dave is a family man. His profession as a sound engineer and as an artist may directly affect his family and community. Although his policy may cost him valuable clients, he considers it a responsibility to have a positive impact on the music scene. When a 15 year-old rapper came in with his mother to record, Dave was forced to turn them away after the young artist’s songs were laced with profanities. Other band’s have changed their lyrics just to be able to record at Noisebox; a nod, perhaps, to the quality of work Zimmerman produces in his studio.

This is not a professional music studio. Four guitars, a violin, a red bass guitar, a used drum set, a beat up trumpet, a black saxophone, various Latin percussion instruments, two amps, microphones, and numerous cords decorate what once was a family room. Spencer Healey sits, playing a red Epiphone Humingbird acoustic guitar, iPad opened to a songwriter’s app. His wife comes in, kisses his neck and leaves the room. She knows he writes best when he’s alone. It’s not that he doesn’t welcome the company, in fact she’s the inspiration for the song he’s writing, but the creative process of song writing is not a public affair.

Spencer’s been writing songs for his band Shades of Brown for six months now, but he’s been writing songs in his head and in his heart for years. Music is a constant fixture in his brain, making it so silence is never really silence at all for him. His wife Katie learned months before that he doesn’t like to share his music before it’s completely ready for performance. “He’s kind of anal about it actually.” she says. Spencer relates it to cake baking.

“Nobody can hear unfinished elements of my work. It needs to be heard all together as a complete piece, otherwise it won’t make sense. Think of it like this: what if I walked into the kitchen while Katie was baking a cake and started tasting all the separate ingredients? I eat a handful of flour here, a bit of raw egg and some baking powder. That would taste nasty! But the end result, once all the ingredients are mixed together and baked, can be delicious. It’s the same with song writing.”

In the studio, Spencer creates what he feels. His band is rehearsing their set for an upcoming show. They are playing a song called “Black Strokes”, a song about friends who get lost along the way because of bad life choices. Spencer’s younger sister Chase is the lead singer for the band and is belting out an emotional vocal cadenza. The power of the song is conveyed and as the last note plays the band members all nod in approval. When the band is in the studio, the rest of the world gets shut out to avoid distractions. The interesting thing though, is that when the songs are performed well, elements of Spencer’s world are brought into the room. 

Spencer draws his inspiration from his life. He’s a husband, the oldest of five children, a son, an uncle, a teacher, a student, and a friend. Each role is important to him and his music reflects those individual roles. Songs like “Run the Risk” and “Break my Fall” are inspired by the love of his life, his wife Katie. Other songs such as “At the Edge of Identity” are about his sisters. Each song is a piece of his life. Every word is full of meaning, at least for him.

Inspiration for songs have come from everywhere. He says that the song “Crash Landing” came from hearing the word crash several times in the same day. On the way to his classes at Utah Valley University there was a crash on the freeway. A Kanye West song on his playlist mentioned the word crash. Later in the day someone talking about a young couple who were breaking up said that the relationship had “…crashed and burned.” 

“I’ve read that music is a direct route to the heart. What better way for me to express myself than through that medium?” Spencer recalls the first song he ever wrote. Written for his wife’s brother Andy, who died of cancer in 2010 at the age of 25, the song was a result of Spencer’s need to show Katie’s family how he felt. It wasn’t until almost a year later that he actually played the song for the family. The song titled “Last Night” tells the story of Andy’s last night with the family. “It’s my tribute to him. He’s been sorely missed, Katie still misses him so much. I hope they feel what I felt when I wrote it. I hope Andy would like it.”

From the mundane to the traumatic, Spencer’s life experiences write his songs for him. At 24 years old he still has a lot of life to live and more music to share.

*Author’s note: Spencer’s first name is used on second reference to make the piece feel more intimate. Sorry AP Style. 

Let the youth rock…at Real Rock Band

Forget pep band, symphonic orchestra, and jazz combos. Jared Creer wants to be in a rock band. He wants to shred on his white Ibanez JEM7 Steve Vai Series lead guitar. He wants to lay down a majestic solo like his rock icon Joe Satriani. 

It’s summer vacation on a Wednesday afternoon and Jared’s band is rehearsing “Round and Round”, a cover of the song by the hard rock group Ratt. Thanks to Curt Gordon and Boothe Bros Music in Spanish Fork, Jared is learning how to rock.

 “And we will teach rock and roll…to the world.” - Jack Black in “School of Rock”

The Real Rock Band summer program is a 13 week rock course organized by Gordon. Jared and his band are playing for their second year together in the program. Jared’s band is one of five bands participating this year, and the kids feel like real rockers. This year’s program kicked off this month and the band hasn’t decided on a name yet, though Fish and Chips was being considered seriously by the Jr. High aged band members. Fish and Chips are now rehearsing “Pork and Beans” by Weezer. Has a nice ring to it.

Tall, red-headed, wearing basketball shorts and tennis shoes, Jared doesn’t look like your average rocker. His passion though is guitar, as evidenced by his use of time. He tries to practice for a couple of hours a day and is in four separate rock bands.

He’s been playing for two years now, and admits that he is quitting the school jazz band this year. At Real Rock Band Jared gets to play music that he likes. His band is comprised of other teens with his same musical tastes, a band organizing process implemented by Gordon. 

The program is designed for kids, ages 10-18. Gordon, as a musician and teacher, has a unique opportunity with these kids because the motivation and desire is already there; whereas in a normal Jr. High band it may not be. It doesn’t take much convincing to get a teenage boy to listen to a punk rock song as ‘homework’. Chances are he was listening to ‘Pork and Beans’ while he was doing his other homework anyway. When asked what kind of rocker skills he’s learned at Real Rock Band he simply says, “Timing.” Jared’s not a man of many words, he lets his axe do the talking.

The band gets to play on a real stage with a professional sound system. They practice on the Booth Bros Theater stage. The structure of the rehearsals is looser than a high school jazz band class, but it still allows Gordon to teach the kids technique, theory, and musicality. In fact, the band won’t be working on stage presence until they have their songs all tight. Once the parts sound good they can add some swagger and power stance to their performance.

Last year Jared played in two rock concerts, one annual concert at the end of the program and one show called Rocktoberfest. These kids get to rock their little socks off in front of a real live crowd every year, something normal local bands relish.

The local music scene will be affected by this in the coming years as these little rockers get older and start forming their own original groups; groups with more experience and rock knowledge than your average garage band. In 3-4 years we may be hearing some Fish and Chips.      

Competing for limited soundspace, a hardcore venue makes a move

It was Chase’s first time singing in a real venue with a real sound system and live band. The 15 year-old female vocalist stepped up to the mic to mentally prepare herself for her big moment. She wanted everything to sound perfect, she had been practicing her songs for months and tonight a crowd of potential fans was in attendance. Her red and white blouse/shirt combo matched her red heels perfectly. Her band dressed the part as well, accenting her red and white with dark dress shirts and black attitude glasses. Everything was set for a great night. Sound check hadn’t started, yet she could hear a whole lot of noise coming from somewhere. It wasn’t the guitars or drums from her band though, it was the sound of distorted guitars and high octane drumming seeping through the walls. She realized her light pop voice would be competing against a screamo band that would be playing on the other side of the brick wall in the new heavy metal venue The Deathstar. Chase can infuse intense emotion into her songs, but against the backdrop of a much louder, much more piercing style of music, her performance is lost. Next door in the cramped space of the Death Star a band like The Lunatics shakes the graffiti covered walls with their dark sound, unaware of their affect on Chase and her first concert as a lead singer.

A heavy metal enthusiast has squeezed a Deathstar where it doesn’t fit. Tyler Foisy, an enterprising young man has recently occupied the once vacant space in between the Muse and Velour music venues with a hardcore venue of his own called The Deathstar. 100 South and University in Provo has been home to two rival entertainment venues for years. Not 100 feet from each other, Muse Music Café and The Velour have long competed for local music attention. 

Built from the remains of the Legion skateshop that occupied the small, bathroom-less space, The Deathstar is unassuming and almost hidden at first glance. Some local musicians like Chase don’t even realize it’s there until they find themselves competing for sound space on nights when two or more of the venues is booked.

The Deathstar is conveniently located right between the other two venues, causing people to scratch their heads and wonder why another venue is necessary in such a small area. The venue shares two walls with different music joints.

 Foisy is all about the hardcore scene. Punk, garage rock, death metal, you name it they’ve got it. This is the kind of hard stuff that the other places usually won’t book. The problem though, isn’t the hardcore scene itself. The issue is the location choice. 

Local music venues struggle enough with the competition they are up against. Finding a place where you can make noise all night is not easy. When your music is forced to compete against the noise and crowds next door, part of the experience is lost. Bands loading and unloading behind the venues have noticed a problem with crowding –  the three business’s back doors practically touching each other. Matters become worse when The Deathstar patrons use the back door space, normally reserved for band use only, to escape the claustrophobic atmosphere of their hardcore concerts. In essence, the Deathstar is like the fat, sweaty guy that chooses to sit right in between you and your friend on the airplane.

The night of Chase’s performance her band mate waited almost a half hour to get past the van of the Death Star’s booked band en route to the back entrance of the Muse. In the one-lane alleyway behind the three venues, crowds – including members of bands and roadies – create a frustrating traffic jam for bands of the other venues. A 30 minute wait to get their truck in and an even longer wait after their concert to escape past the same people from The Deathstar that were clogging the lane earlier. 

The hardcore scene needs a place, it just seems like they went out of their way to find an extremely inconvenient place for other local music afficionados. Parking, backdoor access, competing sounds, no restroom, and a lack of mutual respect are some of the problems The Deathstar has created. According to one band member about to play a show in The Deathstar, the place is “too small for a good hardcore venue anyway”.

As an added sound issue, the summer rooftop concert series in downtown Provo can usually be heard from the location of the three venues. If you stand in just the right place on the street you might be able to rock out to four different songs all at once. 

The Deathstar is the product of Darth Foisy. Where’s Luke Skywalker when you need him?

Art City Battle of the Bands is tomorrow in Springville.  It will feature 11 bands with 15 minute sets each.  Starts at 7:00 p.m. in the Arts Park behind Springville High.

Good local music events are hard to come by in south Utah County; Zac Freeman and Mayhem Sound are doing something about it.

Payson, UT - Sat, June 4 - The usually quiet, white pillar stage in the middle of Payson park is anything but quiet today.  Families, picnickers and curious passerby are listening to a song being performed by a local group called The Lovecapades.  The crowd is modest in size, but the scene is extraordinary for a Saturday afternoon in the small city of Payson.  A massive PA system is set up and the stage is littered with amps, guitars and mics.  The 3rd annual Burst Your Own Bubble music festival, an all-day local music event, kicked off earlier that morning and would continue to rock and croon well into the night.  

16 bands, two stages, two separate event production crews and an affinity for music is all Zac Freeman needs to get his own local music event off the ground.  He and his friends from Mayhem Sound Event Production have planned, coordinated, and executed the BYOB event for three straight years.  The brainchild of Zac, this event is free to the public and offers a showcase of eclectic musical talent.  A pop/rock group playing on the acoustic stage is followed immediately on the main stage by a heavy metal group featuring a female vocalist and a bass player with a purple mohawk.  From solo comedy acts like Mister Tim to full screamo groups such as I Capture Castle, fans and curious music lovers get to hear a wide range of style at the BYOB.  The musicians love it, the crowds seem impressed, and Zac and his production crews get some valuable face time.

“We want to create a neutral ground for music lovers.”  Says Carlton Heywood, co-founder of Mayhem Sound.  The lack of a good local music scene drives entrepreneurial musicians like Carlton and Zac to action.  There aren’t many places for local bands to play in this area and most of the groups don’t have the money to rent a venue like the Booth Bros Music Theatre in Spanish Fork.  Carlton adds, “We don’t want money to be an issue for the bands or the fan base.”  The idea of a free concert appeals to the many fans who come to listen throughout the day and the music can be enjoyed from anywhere in the park thanks to the sound system provided by London Sound on the main stage.  Eidolo, a psychedelic rock group ends the festival with their own light show complete with smoke machines.  

The event is successful, drawing good crowds all day and providing the bands with much needed exposure.  One band, determined by crowd surveys, will win free recording time in a professional studio and all participating groups will receive a discount at that same studio.  This year the recording time has been provided by David Elijah, who has worked with the Warped Tour and has had a Myspace record deal.  

Zac himself performs at the show as a one man group called the.freebie.  As a musician himself, he shares the passion that all the other bands have.  Zac is a proponent of the independent music scene, “It’s all about the independent musician now.  You empower yourself.”  Zac believes that local musicians can synergize and help one another in the industry.  Synergy has never been a defining attribute of local music groups, usually they adopt the ‘dog eat dog’ philosophy when working with competing music groups.  Zac on the other hand thinks that these local musicians would benefit much more from working together.  

Respect.  The Burst Your Own Bubble music festival has the goal of developing mutual respect between local musicians.  The night ends right at 10:00 p.m., when the city sound ordinance kicks in.  11 hours of completely original music has been played and the local music scene has made another big step forward in south Utah County.  Zac and Mayhem Sound have created a neutral ground where local talents can come together and change the local music atmosphere.

Article by Spencer Healey

Shades of Brown @ the Muse Music Cafe last Friday night.

musemusiccafe:

Defcon 5 by Book on Tape Worm - May 28 at Velour in Provo

From the Castellano word for ‘Impassioned’.  It’s the only way to describe my obsession with everything that is music.  Music has formed who I am today in many respects and threatens to change my future as well. What I know about life I express through the mediums of melody and harmony and when those aren’t available I write about them. There is a reason for this blog, and that is passion.  As a singer/songwriter, a guitarist, a band leader, a jazz trumpet player and a music history hobbyist I find that music is my escape from the world and my emergence into it at the same time.  I’ve played instruments since I was 11 and have studied music theory ‘til my head hurt, and all because of a desire to reach the hearts of others through music.  It really is a shortcut to the heart.  

I have a very eclectic music taste that ranges from Miles Davis to Led Zepplin to Kanye West to The Black Keys to Rage Against the Machine to Jack Johnson to Brad Paisley and beyond.  This appetite of sound places me in a position to diligently seek out new music wherever it may be.  I’ve lived in Happy Valley, Utah for most of my life and am discovering the lush musical atmosphere of the area.  I’m ready to find the music here in our little valley and enjoy it with all other music lovers I come in contact with.  

Let’s put four on the floor, take the bass for a walk and find that killer sound everyone’s looking for.

-Spencer Healey

Shades of Brown

Local band from Payson, UT.  A little shameless plug from the blogger.