As thrilled as I am with our recent compilation CD This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio, Volume 4, there was a period late in its production where I was hit with self-doubt. In retrospect, that was nuts. But looking back now, I may as well admit my moment of weakness. Acknowledging our weakness makes us stronger. Spinach also makes us stronger. As do the magic word "SHAZAM!," a bite from a radioactive spider, gettin' belted by gamma rays, or being born on the planet Krypton.
A delay in the production of our forthcoming compilation CD This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio, Volume 4 has put us in an unfamiliar holding pattern, as we wait for everything to fall into place. It's not anything I wish to make public, so let's make this our private post for July.
The waiting part--the key part of the waiting part, anyway--is actually over. We mastered the CD at SubCat Studios in Syracuse on June 21st, but there were mastering errors on two of the tracks. Fixing the glitches was a relatively simple matter (and it gave us the opportunity to also tighten up a few of the track-to-track transitions), but the fix was delayed just by the logistics of time and scheduling. Nonetheless, SubCat completed a corrected master for us, and that corrected master is now in my possession. I will review it obsessively over the weekend, and we'll proceed as soon as my anxieties about it subside.
And that's where our unfamiliar holding pattern manifests: the mastering delay is giving me an excuse to second-guess, third-guess, hundredth-guess everything with the CD. Not the songs themselves--we have an absolutely ace selection of tracks from our stellar contributors--but I'm questioning the overall sound, hoping it's as good as I thought it was two weeks ago. I'm sure it is. But I'm unsure of my certainty, so I may as well second-guess that, too.
The uncertainty has delayed me in writing the liner notes. That delay is entirely on me. I write best when I write with confidence; my confidence is a little shaky at the moment. That will pass. I don't recall writer's block as ever having been much of a problem for me, not when I was freelancing, and not now as a hobbyist blogger. The basics always remain the same: tell the story. Hell, once you start writing, the story is often eager to tell itself. You just have to stay out of its way. But this week, when I wanted to get this CD's liner notes done, I couldn't even stay out of my own way long enough to do the job.
For all that, I do still believe in this CD. I think you'll believe in it, too. Dana's been on vacation this week, but he'll finish the graphics when I finish the text. Once I stop hearing audio deficiencies that aren't really there, I'll resume full-on hype mode, and craft some cool liners about how much great radio means to me. I wouldn't be here doing this if the simple act of hearing Badfinger and so many others on the radio hadn't blown me away when I was younger. I remember that feeling. I still crave that feeling. And I'll conjure that feeling again, with This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio, Volume 4. There is a discernible line to be drawn from "Baby Blue" and "No Matter What" to the fine rockin' pop songs on this disc. Turn it up. We have a story to tell along with it.
And that story has a soundtrack! This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio, Volume 4 is now available from Kool Kat Musik
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