Características
This album is the first release on a new label by award-winning mastering engineer Kevin Gray. It was recorded in his new Cohearent Recording Studio for Cohearent Records, using all analog and tube technology.
Kirsten Edkins, a composer and saxophonist from Los Angeles, graduated from the Eastman School of Music on scholarship. She studied composition and arranging with Bill Dobbins, Walt Weiskopf and Ray Ricker, and has performed with Arturo Sandoval (Al "Tootie" Heath), Tim Hagans, Clay Jenkins, John Beasley and Geoffrey Keezer. She has been a guest on several American TV shows, teaches saxophone at several colleges, and more.
"Shapes & Sound" is a perfect introduction to Gray's new recording studio and an excellent showcase. Gray's passion for audiophile recording and mastering has made him one of the most respected recording engineers in the world, working for labels such as Blue Note, Music Matters and Analogue Productions. He spent 15 years building the equipment for this project: "I had a new idea: to get the vintage sound we all love, I designed and built a pure tube recording system, from the microphone to the record-cutting head, with no transistors or ICs in the signal path. That took a lot longer than expected, but it's finally done."
Studio space is Gray's own living room. He got the idea to use this room when he noticed that it resembled the size and shape of legendary jazz recording engineer Rudy Van Gelder's childhood home in Hackensack, N.J. He was able to use it as a studio. Many classic jazz albums were recorded there by Gelder. Some of the microphones used on those earlier Gelder recordings are also used in Gray's setup. The custom vacuum tube electronics are different, and for "Shapes & Sound" Gray used a tube-based Studer C37 instead of an Ampex.
The album was recorded on December 10 and 11, 2021
Kirsten Edkins (sax), Gerald Clayton (p), Ahmet Turkmenoglu (b), Chris Wabich (dr), Lemar Guillary (tb)
Side One
1. Party Slug
2. Bird Shapes
3. Dedicated to You
4. The Goose
Side Two
1. Sweet Pickles
2. Wuhoo
3. Proprietary Minor
4. Hula Hoop