Recording for a metal band, Famyne

Last February, I was asked by Canterbury Doom Metal band, Famyne, to record some violin for their track, Ghosts, to feature on their self-titled debut album. I headed down to the studio in Whitstable armed with some sheet music, with the impression that I was going to play an octave higher than the cello part which had already been recorded. After doing a couple of takes of that, one of the guys asked if I could also try playing some viola to enrich the sound. That sounded nice, but somehow 'nice' wasn't exactly the style they were looking for; I think they wanted 'epic'! I then suggested doing some improv, played around with a few takes on both instruments and the guys seemed pretty happy.

Fast forward a year, and the lead vocalist, Tom, sent me the track. They'd not only layered my octaves with the cello, but also layered parts of my multiple improv takes to create a whole string ensemble!

It was so cleverly mixed, and I'm really pleased that I managed to 'let my hair down', as improvisation doesn't often come naturally to me. Take a listen - strings appear from around 1:25.