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Snapshots of the albums in progress. Be a fly on the studio wall.

- 2006 Sessions
- Pre-Production Sessions
- Pre-Production Video
- Facing Down sessions
- Pre-Production Sessions
- The Hot-Carl Sessions
- The God-Damn-It Sessions
- Vocalworks
- Dying God Sessions
contact

You can click on the DAEMOS symbols to view the pictures

So- we decided to make a full length record....pretty easy huh?
What initially was supposed to take a couple months to complete from start until finish is taking a lot longer than we anticipated. However, we know the end result is going to be such a kick ass product, it will certainly be worth all the long hours we've spent rehearsing and making sure every note that we play is exact and as heavy as can be....
Anyways, the first step was our pre-production recordings. This is where we went into DML Studios in Escondido, CA. Working with our engineer, Don Lithgow, we recorded rough mixes of our songs...just to give it a listen and then think about what everybody plays, timings of songs, etc.
This is really an important period, as you begin to hear things that you might wanna change.....after the recording sessions, we went back over all our songs, mapped out every section, figured out timings and went back in after about a month of rehearsals. At this point, we found somethings that we needed to work on and went back to the rehearsal room yet again....two weeks later, we emerged, ready to begin the final recordings...
The cd will contain 8 tracks, and here are the names in no particular order:
Rely on Denial, Clik, Reflection, Resistance, Molded in Clay, Exhale the Dry, Room 512, ??? still un-named (instrumental)


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You can click on the DAEMOS symbols to view the pictures

"What the hell is a 'Hot Carl'???"

That was the question of the evening as we started to load in our equipment to begin the recording sessions for the highly anticipated DAEMOS album.

We arrived in the late evening, and we decided to get all our equipment ready to begin recording the following morning....we knew we'd definitely have some long days ahead of us.

With us were long-time engineer Don Lithgow, James Hale, and Roger Sommers. We were very excited to be working with this team, as they all have years of experience working with acts such as Van Halen, Metallica, and Rage Against the Machine. We knew we were up for the challenge of putting out some amazing, bad ass performances....
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You can click on the DAEMOS symbols to view the pictures
Man- that's a lotta mics! Multiple mics were placed all over the drums to capture the backbone of DAEMOS. Also, mics were placed strategically around the room to get the open, live feel that comes with a large room. The drums are definitely going to be thick....

Next were the bass and guitars.....some well placed mics and we were ready to go. We would all be recording, but these sessions were all about drums and bass. And...so we began...with the lights dimmed and the band ready....the 2 in. reels started rolling...

We'd spent hours of pre-production making sure every part of every song was right on, and it was apparent while we were recording. There was definitely a vibe to the recording sessions that was unmistakably DAEMOS.

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After every take, we'd go into the control room and give it a listen... cymbals, double bass, string hits...everything had to be perfect, otherwise we'd do it again...and there were times when that would happen.

"Alright you pieces of shit....get your fuckin' asses in there and do it again..." Inspiring word from Don.....however, it was Don, James, and Roger that could hear things that we sometimes missed....

"That song is sooo fuckin' crazy...." Words from Kevin describing 'Reflection.'

Victor on the song: "I'm really happy about how the song turned out.... it wasn't an easy song to finish up...I remember we kept at it for a long time before we decided on the way it's written now....but- I'm really diggin' it...it's got soft parts, and angry parts- it's totally where I'm at...and the vibe it has is totally us..."

Download a piece of the drums and bass for REFLECTION HERE (in mp3 format)
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In between takes, we'd play an occasional game of foozball.....but, most of the time, we'd just be in one of the sitting rooms, either practicing our instruments, or watching t.v.

As the sessions came to a close, we packed up all our gear and stopped to take some final photos... and for what a "Hot Carl" is?? Well- ask the guys when you see 'em...
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You can click on the DAEMOS symbols to view the pictures

"Man - are we done yet?"

Months after we started recording the drums and bass, we began doing guitars. Eric and Vic have spent the last 5 years coming up with their guitar sound - many late night were had tweaking their amps, trying different effects, eq'ing.....it was quite a painstaking process....however, all their efforts were not in vain.

Vic: Yeah- Eric and I have been messin' with our stuff since the last cd we did... and...I think we're pretty happy with our sound now. It's got that heaviness goin' for it, and it's a pretty clean sounding distortion...so...I couldn't be happier with the way things are turning out...
 
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Eric: The guitars are definitely more involved this time around. We've taken advantage of having two guitars, adding more layers to the music where we felt it needed it. I really think we've all become better musicians, as well as songwriters..
So- how are things different this time around?
Vic: Well- there are a number of parts in all the songs where Eric and I are playing different parts that compliment each other...and...I don't know...I usually come up with the initial idea, Eric adds his harmonies over it...and it's usually some trippy ass harmony that I think is part of our sound now.
Spending hours and hours in the studio recording their guitar tracks, sometimes the guys in DAEMOS would even kick out their engineer, famed Don Lithgow of DML Studios in Escondido, CA.
Vic: Yeah- sometimes it worked better havin' him outta the control room.... so....Depending on who was workin', either I or Eric would be workin' the board.
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Of course, DAEMOS relied on their normal rigs to create their signature sound, however, the guys were looking for some different types of tones on the cd to create the different vibes of each song...
Eric: On most of the tracks we used our favored guitars- Vic's Warlock and my Les Paul- but we did experiment with other guitars here and there.. a strat on one track..a couple Taylor Guitars and a weird Italian 12-string made by Giannini on 512. I also used a Leslie on 512....you'll definitely be able to pick that one out.
512 has easily become the most intricate piece on the cd. Vic on the song...
Vic: Ahh..man....that song has got like 30 tracks on it....there was just a lot of stuff we wanted to do with it...and...what the song is about, it just wouldn't have been complete without all the stuff we did...

Download a piece of ROOM 512 HERE (in mp3 format)
 
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Then came the solos. Trying to come up with interesting solos always been a great challenge. Messing with different types of effects, timings, harmonies, the guy are confident they've come up with some pretty crazy stuff.

Vic: You know- I've known Eric a long time...and his solos still throw me for a loop everytime I hear them on tape....I guess the only thing I can expect is the unexpected.

Two months later, the guys emerged from DML...worn in fingers and a lot of sweat....the focus now changed towards vocals...
 
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You can click on the DAEMOS symbols to view the pictures

"Finally...it's about fuckin' time..." Words from producer/head engineer Don Lithgow...

The sessions for the CD that looked like it would take years to finish finally came to close. As engineer Don Lithgow said, "You know - usually bands are in here, do a track or so of vocals, and head to the next song....maybe 2 or 3 days to finish everything...I've never seen somebody take so long on vocals..."

Two months in the making, the vocals are finally complete.

Victor: "I really wanted to do something different with vocals. Our last CD was kinda like, 'okay- do the vocal track and lets get outta here...' And.. I'd do it, one take, and we were out. This time, I made track sheets for vocals....and there'd be songs with 6 tracks of vocals in different spots, doing different stuff...so, I'm really happy with them..."
 
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So - what are the themes of the vocals this time around?
Victor: "Well - a lot of the stuff is really near to me... I've always kinda been that way...and I really don't know how else to write...Anyways- there's a lot of....anger on the album...not that I was trying to do that or anything...that's just what came out."
Like...for example?
Victor: "Reflection is probably one of the best songs lyrically I've ever written...I was involved in an accident and, I remember right after they brought me in...you really don't know if you're going to die or what, you know? And... basically this song represents the thoughts I had from the moment they brought me in until the next morning..."

Download a piece of REFLECTION (rough mix) HERE (in mp3 format)

Affliction
I don't wanna know
The path that lies before me

I can't move
This pain inside me
Strength to none
I'm the only one

Stare so hard at nothing to stare
The walls around, used to despair

The pain that grows within me
Stop it now


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So - you were saying up to 6 vocals tracks? What kind of stuff are you doing?

Victor: "Well, to be honest, I've been listening a lot to stuff like the Beatles...just a lot of stuff with vocal melodies. So, I really wanted to incorporate some of that into our stuff...but doing it our way, you know?"

Of course we do. Those of us who have seen their live show definately know the DAEMOS sound, musically as well as vocally. We've also seen the addition of Eric taking lead vocals on one song, Molded in Clay.

Eric: It's definately something I've been wanting to do for awhile now. And...Molded just came together that way. With the addition of Jason and Vic on backups, I couldn't be happier with how it turned out...

As Jason screamed the last "Dry" in 'Exhale the Dry', the sessions came to a close....and thus finishing the recording sessions for the DAEMOS album, tentatively titled, Facing Down.
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These pictures were taken during the "Dying God" sessions of 1998, where the DAEMOS sound began to find itself...

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