A local band comprised of Keene State College students recently took advantage of some of the lesser-known tools the college has to offer.
The band, named The HoneyBears, started recording an album using the college’s radio station, WKNH, as a studio.
WKNH normally is used for broadcasting various student and community member-run radio shows and therefore has the equipment needed to do recordings.
The same set of equipment used for broadcast functions quite well as a recording studio for bands, according to some of the members from The HoneyBears.
The HoneyBears, currently KSC seniors, have been playing together as a group since their sophomore years according to one of the group’s guitarists and vocalist Greg Fisher.
Kyle Bailey / Photo Editor
Alongside Fisher is James Gosling on guitar, Ethan Holbrook on bass and Aaron Taub on drums.
According to Fisher, Gosling and Holbrook, the band plays rock ‘n’ roll, with boogie-woogie, funk, blues and jazz elements.
They all agreed that recording in the studio was an experience that proved helpful to the group.
“It’s good space,” Fisher said, “We recorded ten songs in three days.”
Gosling agreed. He said, “It was very professional-feeling. It’s got a great atmosphere.”
Kerrianne Thomas, the co-general manager of WKNH, said the radio station has only worked with a handful of bands that have come in to do live recordings on air.
“It’s a great place to record,” she said.
She continued, “WKNH in general is just a great place to be. It’s such a positive environment and every type of music is welcomed and appreciated.”
“For musicians to come in and just hang out, record some music and have fun, it’s just a great time for them I think, and a really exciting time for them,” she said.
The recording equipment The Honeybears used in the studio was different from what they were used to.
Holbrook said, “It was far superior to anything we had used before.”
He said the person who acted as an audio engineer, Joey Warren, brought some of the equipment they used to record.
Holbrook said Warren, “provided a lot of it. But it seems like a lot of it was already in the station.”
WKNH’s studio is divided into about eight rooms, three of which are linked by windows.
These windows allow a clear line of sight between the linked rooms, which allows the band members to play together in a space where they can all see and hear each other, something they haven’t had much of in the past.
Gosling mentioned how they had tried to record in the past.
He said they would play their individual parts separately and then assemble the pieces in layers with the equipment they used in the past.
Gosling noted having the studio space was more successful for the group.
He said, “This time we were able to kind of spread out into the studio into the different rooms and all hear each other and all just be able to play together.”
The group was able to use the studio because two of the band’s members are WKNH DJs.
Thomas said that, although this band did have ties to WKNH, any band can do a live recording as long as they give the studio some notice so they can be properly prepared.
“We have a great and educated team at WKNH but we do need some time to plan,” she said.
Thomas explained that right now it is a lot of word-of-mouth that brings students into the studio to record.
She also said, “It’s important to remember that we aren’t a recording studio. We’re a radio station that likes to record music.”
In the future, the band’s consensus was that having the studio open to the general student population is not a bad idea.
Fisher pointed out that it is important to be properly staffed if the station will be used as a recording studio by people who wanted to record songs or other things.
He suggested it could work if they have an audio engineer on the WKNH executive board who would be the recording engineer, to help if people want to use the room for recording.
Holbrook agreed. He said, “It’s legit equipment that’s the thing, that’s why it should also be available.”
Thomas said, “This is a good resource for KSC students because bands have a place to promote themselves and record themselves.”
She continued, “It’s also a great opportunity for WKNH members to learn how to record and get comfortable with the equipment and programs. It’s fun for everyone involved and we love doing it.”
Dave Padrazo can be reached at dpadrazo@keene-equinox.com
