Chris Vrenna

While recording 2 A.M. Wakeup Call, Vrenna used some virtual synths, lots of outboard synths, live drums, a live acoustic guitar, a six-string Taylor and a nylon string guitar, plus he borrowed a couple of 12-strings from some friends for a couple parts. There is a lot of live bass on the record as well. "We used a five-string Fender jazz deluxe, which is a really good-sounding solid instrument, and it was all recorded through the Line 6 Bass Pod," says Vrenna. “We did some direct stuff with the guitar, but we used the Mesa Boogie Triaxis. That one is pretty awesome for direct I/O".

“The whole thing started with the guitar riff,” Chris explains, “a big heavy metal-sounding thing. We basically got a click going, then we recorded the riff. I like tube gear, so I use a Mesa/Boogie TriAxis for the big sounds, and also a Marshall JMP-1 [both rack modules]. They’re the best sounding and most natural recording boxes I’ve found for guitar. I use a Line 6 Pod too, but more for the clean stuff.” For this track, the guitar was recorded through the TriAxis into a Neve mic pre, into a Yamaha 02R, and onto the Apogee Rosetta AD en route to Pro Tools. “I tend to use the Neve channel for guitars,” says Chris, “the APIs for drums, and the Summit TD-100s and GMLs for synths.”