LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – AUGUST 2010: Stëv Skye is, without a doubt, one of the most talented blues and rock guitarists to have slipped under the radar of the mainstream media. He is currently recording his future blues classics with the help of a Daking Mic Pre EQ, to record his fiery guitar leads, and a matched pair of BOCK 151 tube condensers for drum overheads/room mics, thus the backbone of the new material. In the mid-1990s, a young Stëv Skye was spotted by legendary engineer/producer Eddie Kramer (Led Zeppelin, Kiss, Jimi Hendrix, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, et al.), who encouraged him to move to Los Angeles to develop his chops. In L.A., Skye worked with a string of Grammy-winning artists before downshifting to help raise his newborn daughter in Phoenix. After recently reemerging from that hiatus to work with celebrity QVC/HSN guitarist Esteban, veteran artist representative Robert Rozich spotted the two and took a keen interest in Skye’s astounding back catalog of over four hundred unreleased songs.
Rozich signed Skye to his label, EPS Records, and the two collaborated to overhaul what had been known as Skye Studios to EPS Skye Studios with an infusion of several hundred thousand dollars’ worth of high-end gear for the multi-year project that will transform Skye’s back catalog of demo-quality recordings into polished material suitable for radio play and background music in commercials, television and film. The task of recording would be ably handled by Skye himself, who has over three hundred recordings to his name. Sony RED will distribute the albums, the first of which is tentatively titled, The Dawn of Creation.
Skye is a multi-instrumentalist and performs most of the parts on the forthcoming album, but because his claim to fame is guitar, the guitar parts must stand out as very special. “I love the Daking Mic Pre EQ on electric guitar and, when I need more bite, on acoustic guitars as well,” said Skye. “It has a very musical sound and delivers tracks that mix effortlessly.” Depending on the part, Skye uses a variety of mics and amps with his trusted Fender Strat.
Because Skye’s style of music is a rockin’ sort of blues, properly capturing the drums is critical for the overall success of the recordings. “I’ve tried every large diaphragm condenser in my mic locker for drum room mics – CM7s, 149s, 414s – and nothing comes close to the controlled capture of the BOCK 151s,” said Skye. “They capture the sparkle of the cymbals without making them ‘splashy,’ while at the same time giving depth and body to the drums themselves, particularly the rack toms. I also love that they have a ‘brite/normal’ switch, which lets me tailor the high end to complement the mood of a particular song.”