Ark Recording Studios

27/04/2020

Can't wait to get back in here...

27/06/2019

From the archives number 10.
John Power, "Good Life"
There's a box set of John's three solo albums coming out this week on white vinyl; I recorded two of them, "Willow She Weeps" and "Stormbreaker", so it seems timely to post a song from one now. Both albums were recorded in the studio I built in the garage of my old house. When I say built, I mean Lee Griffin did most of the graft - nice one mate 😉. "Good Life" is from the Stormbreaker album, which we recorded start to finish in two weeks. A rootsy, bluesy, folky album, this song is a bit quirky compared to most of the record, but I found this video so here it is. It's a great trio btw, John, Jay Lewis and Steve Pilgrim. Anyone who saw the live shows at the time will testify to that.

Taken from Johns 2009 rootsy/blues album 'Stormbreaker', Good Life is an endearing track with a simple video of Johns band titting about in the studio.…

26/06/2019

From the archives number 9.
Autour De Lucie, "Island"
This was recorded right at the start of the Strands sessions. We'd started on Queen Matilda and another song, can't remember what, and a day or two in we recorded this. Mick had been asked to produce the track, so the band came over from Paris. They were working on their first album and wanted to include this track on it. The song is best known from the version in the film The Wicker Man, were it was called "Willow's Song". It's a lovely vocal performance from Valerie, and aside from Mick, John and Iain ( The Strands ) it features Fabrice and Olivier from Autour de Lucie on bass and additional guitar, and Les Roberts, flautist on the Strands album.

The Michael Head of "Shack" produced song "Island". From the album "L'échappée belle" sang by Valérie Leulliot of Autour De Lucie

25/06/2019

25/06/2019

From the archives number 8.
Michael Head and The Strands, "The Prize".
The Strands album is the record I recorded that people mention to me the most. I have fond memories of these beautiful songs evolving, one genius track after another, and I feel privileged to have been there with lovely people making such great, timeless music. I could have chosen anything off the record, I'm a fan and I love them all. This particular song was written by Mick about his daughter Alice, who came to the studio with him a few times as a four year old during the album sessions.

From the 1998 album: The Magical World Of The Strands. Enjoy & spread the word : )

24/06/2019

From the archives number 7.
Echo and the Bunnymen, "Foggy Notion"
Cover of the Velvet Underground song. I recorded this in Avid. I'd taken the building over from the Bunnymen and built the studio there. It was the first time they'd been back in the place since it was their rehearsal/office space, and it had changed a fair bit. This was recorded in the period when Mac had left the band and Noel Burke had replaced him. Will and Les were still in the band, as was Jake Brockman R.I.P. and Damon Reece, later of Spiritualised, was the drummer. It was released as a 7" single.

Echo And The Bunnymen - Foggy Notion fifteen minutes: a tribute to the velvet underground - uploaded via http://www.mp32u.net/

23/06/2019

From the archives number 6.
Deja Vega, "Pentagrams".
This was a double a-side single ( coupled with "Skeletons in the Florist" ) I recorded with this Winsford trio in 2015. They're gaining a growing reputation as a great live band, and rightly so. Well worth catching if you get a chance.

Download from iTunes here: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/pentagrams-skeletons-in-florist/id1043011046

22/06/2019

From the archives number 5.
Wizards of Twiddly, "Fracture for Pleasure"
I just noticed that the lovely Wizards have been making their wonderful noises for 30 years! So, here's one I recorded with them a few years back. Long live the Twids!

New Wizards of Twiddly instrumental, penned by Mr Simon James. Digital double A-side with Red Snails by MR Andrew Frizell available at https://twiddlywizards.bandcamp.com

21/06/2019

From the archives number 4.
Ella Guru, "This is My Rock-'n'-roll"
Taken from their first and only album, entitled "The First Album", which I recorded in Elevator Studios. Despite rave reviews from press and peers alike, the band never lasted long enough to make their second long player. Ella Guru were the last band booked in for a Peel session, sadly Peel himself didn't get to hear it due to his untimely passing. A year on from his death, the World Service broadcast a tribute programme and Ella Guru were invited to record a session for it. I was honoured to be invited to play guitar on the session, as Christian, the original guitarist, had recently moved to Holland to live.
It's a beautiful album, if you've not heard it you should check it out.

If ever there was a song that deserved global recognition it's this dark melancholic epic by Ella Guru, a band from Liverpool that had one album out in 2004 ...

20/06/2019

From the archives number 3.
Factory Star "Olympian"
A slice of Manchester made in Liverpool. Factory Star were founding member of both The Fall and The Blue Orchids Martin Bramah, bassist Chris Dutton, keyboard player John Paul Moran, and Liverpool's own Joe McKechnie on drums. This is a track from the 10" mini album New Sacral, which was released the month of the UK Olympics, August 2012.

Factory Star: Olympian from the forthcoming mini-album on Occultation Recordings and Fishrider Records "New Sacral", out August 2012.

19/06/2019

From the archives number 2.
The Stairs, Flying Machine.
Recorded in Avid Studios way back in the nineties. I loved The Stairs, great lads, funny, with a no compromise approach to music making. We did a remix if this song later for an American single release, replacing the chorus lyrics to get a chance of radio play.
The recent live shows have seen them playing as well, and with as much passion as ever.

Legendary (and highly underated) early 90's Liverpool band "The Stairs" with a lovely 60's style ditty "Flying Machine"

18/06/2019

I'll be dipping into the archives and posting some stuff I've recorded over the years. I'll start with one I was lucky enough to play guitar on as well.
Number one. Michael Head and the Red Elastic Band - Newby Street

Taken from the Artorius Revisited EP (Violette Records) Now available on iTunes - https://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/artorius-revisited/id791588614 Documentat...