More about James Pertusi

I’ve been recording since I was in grade school.  I couldn’t play an instrument then but my best friend and I would record comedy/variety shows and sketch comedy… “Adventures of The Starship Enterpoop” and similar stuff.  I wish i still had the cassettes.  In junior high it turned into a band called the Shit Stains with our single “Earwax”.  I wish I had that too.

I started playing bass seriously in High-school and in college I did as much live sound and home recording on a 4 track as I could (I was in architecture school so time was limited, but I snuck it in)

Out of College I joined Jenifer Convertible and between playing and trying to be an architect, I didn’t do much recording.  I was learning to be a musician though and was always paying attention to sound.  Next was my band FakeBrain.  We did all our own recording in our 10’x10’ cube in Williamsburgh and that is where I got the bug to roll tape.  We moved to a bigger space, began collecting gear and recording bands (Without Misty, Remenitia and Low Brau were the first ones I did).  All the while recording our own records.

When that band dissolved, it was a huge fork in the road.  I had the space and all the gear, but no money.  I had to either quit and be an architect or leave architecture behind.  I left architecture behind and I’ve always felt it was the right decision.

So we built The Kennel (the NEW Kennel to be precise!) and here we are…

I still play in a number of bands.  My own band – The Ditty Committee and several others, The Sharp Things, Pal Shazar and Slow Children.

How do I work in the studio?  It’s different every time and for every client.  I listen to what the client wants.  I always try to meet up first to have a beer and talk about what you’re trying to achieve.  I like to get a list of songs for reference so I know sonically where you’re coming from.  I’ll offer my opinion if I think you’re making a mistake but I won’t push it – its your music in the end. I try not to produce unless I’m asked.  I’ll tell you when a take is awesome and I’ll tell you if you can do better.  I try to listen to performances instead of single snare hits.  I try not to look at waveforms.  I try to listen with my ears, not my eyes and especially not with my brain.  I like finger noise on guitars and hearing the inhale before a vocal, but I’ll edit them out if you insist.  I think less is more.  Sometimes though, more is awesome.  I take my job very seriously, I take myself less seriously.  I like the way 2” tape smells fresh out of the box.