David Kahne
David Kahne, producer of Fiction Plane's debut cd Everything Will Never be OK, brings a wealth of experience and success to this project. Kahne has well over 20 years of experience in the business, having worked as a producer/engineer, as well as A&R for many of the big-name record labels, including Columbia, Warner, and Reprise.
Kahne recently left his job as head of A&R at Warner in order to get back to the music end of the business. "I just started feeling that being the head of A&R for a record label is a sort of an outmoded job, because the record companies aren't that musical anymore", says Kahne in a recent interview with Mix. "It got to the point where I just didn’t want to do it anymore. I wanted to score films and work on records. I was still in the studio every day, but it just seemed like I was going to more and more marketing meetings. So I left, and I like it better now."
Kahne has had great success producing a variety of artists, such as Tony Bennett (for which Kahne won a grammy for Album of the Year), Stevie Nicks, Sublime, Sugar Ray, K.D. Lang, Bruce Springsteen, FIshbone, Shawn Colvin, The Bangles, and most recently, Paul McCartney. He also continues to produce music for movies and TV, and has recently worked on scoring a ballet for Twyla Tharp.
Kahne's introduction to Fiction Plane came about when the band's manager called Kahne to come and see the band at their King's Head gig last summer. Although the band was without a drummer that night, their enthusiasm, raw energy, and original songs caught Kahn's attention, and within a month they were working with him in London.
Abe Laboreil, a well known drummer and friend of Kahne's, was also at the show that night, and offered to fill in on drums . His drumming fit in so well with the band that he ended up playing drums on the band's debut CD as well. ( The band has now found a permanent drummer in Pete Wilhoit, an established drummer from Bloomington, Indiana).
Kahne recorded the band using mostly live takes in the studio, with very few overdubs, in order to preserve the intense energy they bring to their live shows.
M.B.
Joe Sumner, Seton Daunt, Joe Baresi, Kevin Mills, David Kahne, Jamie Sikora, Dan Brown
Exclusive!!!!!!!
Interview with David Kahne, producer of Fiction Plane's debut CD "Everything Will Never Be OK"
by Marilyn Blake
MB: It's been reported that you offered to work with Fiction Plane after
seeing them at King's Head last summer. How did you happen to be at the
gig
that night? What did you see in the band that night that caught your
attention?
DK: I was in town working with Paul and the manager called me. He's a friend of a friend of mine.
I liked the songs, the performance, and the attitude. Intensely musical.
MB: The band was without a drummer that night- was it at your suggestion
that Abe sat in with the band that night?
DK: I called Abe and asked him if he wanted to come down. They knew of him, and liked his playing. It was a total coincidence.
MB: Joe Sumner has been quoted as saying that you helped them to "calm
down". What changes did you make to their sound? What is your vision for the
band?
DK: My vision was to make sure that the songwriting came through, unimpeded by any tricky arrangements or recordings, and that the vocals were supported throughout. Taking a simple, basic musical approach with no frills.
MB: How did you achieve the desired sound ?
DK: The band are all great players and wanted to do the same thing as I did. Terrific energy among them.
MB: Did you record any other songs with them that didn't make it to their
debut cd?
DK: Yes. There are some tracks for movies and b-sides.
MB: What sets Fiction Plane apart from all the other bands out there?
DK: The number of songs they came with - all good songs - and the performance ethic. A song like Silence has to be performed on the spot, with no gimickery. The band can pull something that difficult off every time.
MB: What is your favorite track on the cd?
DK: I dont have a favorite track. I listen to the whole album.
MB: What did you enjoy most about working with Fiction Plane?
DK: How musical it was. It was on the level of a jazz or classical album as far as the performance and musicality went.
MB: Will you continue to work with FP in the future?
DK: I surely hope so. If they want me to, i'll be there...
MB: What's it like for you to go from working with an established icon
such as Paul McCartney to working with an unknown band?
DK: It's great. Both exceptional music and musicians. I'm sure paul will love the record when he hears it.
(much thanks to David Kahne and Claudio Dirani)
David Kahne in a recent photo from Scream Studios, where he has done production work since 1996
" He recorded us on an 8-track analog, and most of the things we kept were the first and second takes. He wanted to capture our live sound. It was dreadfully scary at the time, but we’re pleased it turned out all well. " ~ Seton Daunt
"We needed strong guidance from someone who was also very musical. We trusted David and had a great time working with him." ~ Dan Brown
"The idea was to capture the energy of us playing together live, but when you do that, there's no room for screw-ups" ~ Seton Daunt.
"It was like summer camp. "Everyone knew his role, everyone had space to consider what was best for the song. It wasn't about creating the most clever arrangement, but about creating emotion, creating music that would move people." ~ Dan Brown
"David helped us to calm down." ~ Joe Sumner
