Feedback

In the July 11 edition of this here column, I told you about Area 39, a new club (owned by Johnson frontman Haylar Garcia) that features an on-site recording facility. Obviously, the venue/studio notion is an idea whose time has come--and the Bluebird Theater, at 3317 East Colfax, is trying it on for size.

"What we did, in a nutshell," says Chris Swank, the Bluebird's co-owner, "is we spent a fair amount of money putting in a 24-track digital recording facility that's going to allow us to record whatever's on stage. And also, we can use the room for recording during the off-hours or during the day. I don't know if you could record a whole album here, because it's a bit of a departure from recording in a regular studio, but for some things, it'll be just great. If you use the feel of the room a little bit, it'll give you a really big drum sound, for example."

To test out the facility, Swank and company have been recording numerous shows at the theater, including appearances by 16 Horsepower, the Iguanas, Medeski, Martin and Wood and Junior Brown. (Swank calls the last date "probably the best show we've ever had at the Bluebird.") Of the aforementioned tapes, only one is apt to see the light of day; Rykodisc, the label home of Medeski, Martin and Wood, hired the venue's staff to put down the trio's performance for posterity. But Swank fantasizes about some day putting together a compilation CD of the best from the Bluebird, perhaps to feature local acts such as Jux County and the Czars, both of which are currently cutting tracks on the premises.

More immediately, Swank is hoping to help revive the regular live-on-the-radio tradition that most Denverites associate with the recent partnership involving MusicLink, a music-video program now airing on KBDI-TV/Channel 12, and KTCL-FM/93.3. First at Okoboji's, a space that went south due to mismanagement, and later at the Mercury Cafe, MusicLink booked national artists (such as Concrete Blonde, Belly, They Might Be Giants and the Afghan Whigs) and numerous area performers for mini-sets that were frequently free to the public; these shows were broadcast on KTCL and videotaped for later airing on MusicLink. It seemed like a sweet deal for everyone, but keeping the operation running proved to be an expensive proposition. Marilyn Megenity, owner of the Mercury, says that paying for analog phone lines from the cafe to KTCL's headquarters in Fort Collins cost her in the area of $1,000 every month. This ultimately became too high a price to pay.

Now, however, the proliferation of digital, fiber-optic phone lines makes the concept financially feasible; Swank says that he can get for approximately $60 the services for which Megenity was charged in the four-figure range. He's presently negotiating with two different radio stations in the market, and while nothing had been finalized at press time, he's confident that an agreement with one of these suitors won't be long in coming. According to Swank, "I'm hoping we'll get a weekly slot where we can feature some national acts, as well as some of the things that are going on locally." He adds, "This was a big investment on our part, but we really wanted to put some value-added things into the theater. And if it gives more people the chance to hear some good music, that's even better."

"Let me tell you about the very rich," F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote. "They are different from you and me."