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Update #13: Five Feet of Receipt
Yesterday, after long last, my wife and I mailed off all* the Psychic Temple LP's to you wonderful Kickstarter backers. Adriana and I spent the morning assembling records, printing labels, folding cardboard, and making sure there were enough mysterious pamphlets to go 'round. We were only sent a few of them and we have to make them last.
When everything was said and done we mailed out over 70 orders, spent $218 on shipping, $202 on packaging and the receipt was over five feet long. All US orders were sent via media mail and overseas orders via air mail.
I'd love to see and hear what you think of your albums when you get them! Maybe you can drop me a line or post a comment here? Also, I wanted to thank everyone who came out to the New York and Los Angeles Psychic Temple performances. It was nice to give so many of you the album in person.
*There are still a few backers who have not filled in their mailing addresses. If you have not done so, please fill out the survey I sent out two weeks ago. If you can't find it, drop me a line through Kickstarter or leave a comment on this page.
Ironically, the backers who pledged more at the $100 or more level will have their orders sent out tomorrow, Monday; April 4, 2011. I wanted to make sure that each of your received your handwritten page of sheet music with the order instead of shipping it separately. Thanks for waiting an extra day. I'll make it up to you.
Update #12: They're Here!
I will be assembling the sleeves and vinyl this week and orders should start being mailed out by next weekend. Jason Munn's posters will be screened within the next month and will ship separately once they're done. I almost can't believe it exists. Thank you all.
Update #11: Test Pressings and Live Meditations
This week I received and approved the vinyl test pressings for Psychic Temple. If I could sum up the sound and experience of listening to the album in one word, it would be: incredible. There is a clarity and warmth present that is just staggering. This music was always intended for the vinyl medium and to hear them commune with one another for the first time was quite an experience.
The album was mastered for vinyl and digital realms by Roger Seibel at SAE Mastering in Phoenix, AZ. In the 70's and 80's Roger mastered countless albums for the ECM record label and has also worked on a number of releases for Thrill Jockey including albums for Tortoise and Pullman. This week saw the submission of all artwork to VGKids.com for printing of the gatefold sleeve and the vinyl label artwork was sent to Bill Smith Custom Records in El Segundo, CA.
I am also very pleased to announce a very special Psychic Temple performance in New York City on March 12th, 2011 at the Church of the Advent Hope on located at 111 E. 87th St. A number of musicians from Psychic Temple will be performing live with me including drummer Andrew Pompey, pianist Mick Rossi, guitarist and vocalist Aaron Roche, and trumpeter Kirk Knuffke. Los Angeles (March 24th) and Austin (June 18th) performances will also be announced soon.
Update #10: Fever, Mastering, and Commentary
It has been a few weeks since the last update and I wanted to apologize for the silence. At the beginning of December I came down with a pretty bad fever and it didn't go away for 14 days. Most days it stayed around 103 degrees and got as high as 104. I made a few trips to urgent care and spent the night in ER with an IV and X-rays and the whole deal. Anyhow, I am finally starting to feel better. If anyone is curious, the diagnosis was very comforting: "fever of unknown origin."
Moving right along, I called SAE Mastering in Phoenix, Arizona last week and made plans to have Psychic Temple mastered for vinyl the week after Christmas. One of the next updates will showcase Roger Seibel and the trip that Andrew Pompey and I took to Phoenix for the original mastering session. Roger is a legend in the field and has mastered hundreds of album for ECM Records, Sun Ra, Tortoise, Andy Bey, Cat Power, and tons of others. It is an honor to have his name on the sleeve of this record.
Last week I received the mylar sleeves and 12" shipping boxes from Bags Unlimited in Rochester, New York and next week I will be talking with the folks at Bill Smith Custom Records in El Segundo, California. I have pressed a few records with them and it's a nice luxury to drive out to the plant to pick up the order. No shipping charges!
Lastly, I recorded the Psychic Temple album commentary last week. Unfortunately, when I listened back to it this morning I could still hear the fever in my thoughts. I'm going to re-record it this week and I'll do my best to have it posted within the next few days.
Update #9: Psychic Temple is 100% Funded!
As of Friday night, Psychic Temple is completely funded! Because of you, in the not too distant future we will be holding this beautiful gatefold, 180-gram record in our hands! I was hopeful and confident that we would meet our goal but I have also seen (and backed) many projects on Kickstarter that have fallen just short. In the next week or so I hope to write an update about the entire process of funding an album pressing this way and the personal interactions it affords. I want to thank you all again for making this one of the best creative experiences of my life. I could never have done it without your encouragement, support and advocacy. Huge thanks to everyone at Asthmatic Kitty as well. All I can say is that they are some of the best people I know. True patrons and true friends.
Just a quick note: although we have met our goal we can still raise more. In fact, $3,555 was the bare minimum needed to press up the vinyl. At this point, I will probably have to spend an additional $500 in packaging and shipping all the records and posters. If you have been thinking of upgrading your pledge (let's say from $25 to $50 for Jason Munn's incredible poster) I would encourage you to do it soon. We have less than 63 hours left and after that, no more awesome packages with free shipping and extra goodies. And there will be extra goodies.
Here are a few pictures from a Psychic Temple recording session at CSULB. I had two recorded at CSULB twice for the album. The first time was with Rychard Cooper engineering a grand piano session with Mick Rossi and the second was with Seth Shafer and Corbin Foster conducting their horn and string arrangements. My wife made chocolate chip cookies and I brought milk. We got a lot of recording done in four hours.
Top: Kaitlyn Kissel on flute
Middle: Danny T. Levin on cornet and Corbin Foster conducting
Bottom: Jill Zor on violin and Christopher McCarthy on cello
99
Backers
$4,231
pledged of $3,555 goal
0
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Funding Successful
This project successfully raised its funding goal on December 2, 2010.
Pledge $10 or more Pledge $10 or more
DIGITAL PACKAGE |> |> |> |> |> |> |> |> |> High quality digital download (mp3, AIFF, WAV, FLAC) + 3 copies of Psychic Temple pamphlet
Pledge $25 or more Pledge $25 or more
VINYL + DIGITAL PACKAGE |> |> |> |> |> 180 gram, gatefold vinyl copy of Psychic Temple + Album commentary download • Also includes album download, and 3 pamphlets.
Pledge $50 or more Pledge $50 or more
SOUND + VISION PACKAGE |> |> |> |> |> Limited edition, silk screened Psychic Temple poster designed by Jason Munn • Also includes all downloads, 3 pamphlets, and 180 gram vinyl.
Pledge $100 or more Pledge $100 or more
MUSICIAN-SHIP PACKAGE |> |> |> |> |> |> Hand written sheet music for one song from Psychic Temple + Your name printed inside the Psychic Temple album cover • Also includes all downloads, 3 pamphlets, 180 gram vinyl, and poster.
Pledge $250 or more Pledge $250 or more
VISITATION PACKAGE |> |> |> |> |> |> |> |> Lunch or dinner visit to Sounds Are Active Studios. Includes 2 hours in the studio, listening, recording or remixing. Whatever you'd like to do. Then we'll grab a bite at an expensive restaurant like Chipotle, my treat! • Also includes all downloads, 3 pamphlets, 180 gram vinyl, poster, name inside album, and sheet music.
Pledge $500 or more Pledge $500 or more
ARTIFACT PACKAGE |> |> |> |> |> |> |> |> One of three rare Psychic Temple artifacts: the hand lettered album mix notebook, the Electro-Harmonix Stereo Electric Mistress effects pedal used on the record, or the acoustic guitar featured on the album cover! First pledge receives first pick. • Also includes all downloads, 3 pamphlets, 180 gram vinyl, poster, name inside album, and sheet music.
Pledge $750 or more Pledge $750 or more
CUSTOM SOUND PACKAGE |> |> |> |> |> Five minutes of music composed for you, your family (dedications!) or your film or video game project (includes license not publishing or ownership). We can work together for up to 10 hours in my recording studio! • Also includes all downloads, 3 pamphlets, 180 gram vinyl, poster, name inside album, and sheet music.
Pledge $1,500 or more Pledge $1,500 or more
PRODUCTION PACKAGE |> |> |> |> |> |> |> I will produce an album for you or your band! Includes THREE 8-hour days in the studio where Psychic Temple was recorded! • Also includes all downloads, 3 pamphlets, 180 gram vinyl, poster, name inside album, and sheet music.
Pledge $2,500 or more Pledge $2,500 or more
PERFORMANCE PACKAGE |> |> |> |> |> |> I will fly anywhere in the United States to perform a concert at the venue of your choice. I will record the performance and perform music from Psychic Temple. Requests too! • Also includes all downloads, 3 pamphlets, 180 gram vinyl, poster, name inside album, and sheet music.
Project By
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Chris Schlarb is a musician, composer and producer based in Long Beach, California. His debut solo album, Twilight & Ghost Stories, was critically hailed as both, “40 minutes of avant-garde bliss” by the New York Observer and as “a monumental achievement” by FFWD Weekly. His follow up album, Interoceans, with experimental jazz duo I Heart Lung, was chosen by National Public Radio as one of the Top 5 Jazz albums of the year for 2008. In 2009, Chris scored NightSky for the Nintendo Wii. BoingBoing described the soundtrack as “What Game Music Can Be”.
Hi Chris
I just received my print here in the UK. Great visual. I'm looking forward to the vinyl
Alan
I was pleasantly surprised to find a package at my doorstep this afternoon. The sheet music, pamphlets, stickers, poster, and vinyl are all in my possession, and I couldn't be happier with how everything looks and sounds. Thanks so much for making this available. Psychic temple is more than just another vinyl in my collection, it is a prized artifact of something great. Once again, thank you.
P.S. any murmurs/rumors on future Xn. releases? or has the Xn. ship sailed?
Hey Max, sorry for the delay in responding... Xn. as a pseudonym is no more. However, I have been plotting work on some new solo electric guitar/loop-based stuff. Quite a few things afoot that I think you will dig. So glad your Psychic Temple package made it to you safe and sound! I couldn't be happier that you couldn't be happier!