Album Notes

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Low Stress In The Deep End encapsulates Drayton's skills as a vocalist, composer, lyricist and guitarist.
Guest musicians include Mike Mussberger (Posies), Keith Lowe (Fiona Apple, David Sylvian) Cristina Orbe and jazz legend Wayne Horvitz.

Produced by Drayton and Gary Reynolds at Electrokitty Studios in Seattle, Low Stress in the Deep End includes five tracks mixed by Robbie Adams (who has worked with U2, Smashing Pumpkins and Spoon). The CD was mastered at Precision Mastering in LA by Ron Boustead.

Low Stress in the Deep End is a collection of 11 songs that span stylistic boundaries from exuberant pop hooks to quiet and reflective. The heart of the material is supported by the singer-songwriter ethic of personal introspection and well crafted tunes that are memorable. Ever present is the rich warm sounds of acoustic guitar and voice. Along with world class accompaniment, these songs offer a future classic sound.

About the Recording sessions for Low Stress In The Deep End

In 2002, Low Stress In The Deep End was a motto for a whole slew of home recordings that eventually materialized into the 11 songs that make up the finished disc.

In many past pro and at home recording settings there was always a distraction or detraction from the proceedings on some level. This time I wanted it to be only about the songs and the music. I decided to find players who had been on pro level sessions as well as people who dug the feel of just making music around a song. In order to keep the songs intact and the energy up, I decided to have no "pre production" with the musicians. Much like jazz sesssions - here is the tune let's do it. So I gave the musicians demo copies and we played the songs at the studio.

Gary Reynolds of Electrokitty studios is a recording head and a song junkie. He runs a great studio and stays focused at all times in the sessions. We made a good team. He recomended drummer Mike Mussberger from the Posies. That was a great start.

All the players on the CD either knew each other or know of each other. Greg Keplinger was the drum sound guru. He tuned, tweeked and gave an overall well earned opinon to the drum sound for the type of track we were recording.

Anyu who played percussion on two tracks was a catylist for having Dale Fanning's drumming and Kevin Hudson's bass playing. Dale hooked me up with Keith Lowe, and Keith mentioned Wayne Horvitz when I was looking for a keyboard player. All these people have great reps and play with some amazing artists.

Mandy Anderson came my way during some hip hop sessions I was producing. She made quite an impression. When she sang on the demo of the song Anyway, I knew she would fit with that track as well as a few more.

Cristina Orbe was recomended by Dave Miller as someone to book for a show at Studio 7 in Seattle, so I did and was quite happy I took his advice! Cristina is an amazing singer-songwriter in her own right. Both of these women are a great addition to the songs.

Dave Miller plays slide guitar on At Least and is one of the coolest guitarists around.

Michael Clarke lends his electric guitar on two tracks, Anyway & Thievery. We spent many hours hanging and playing. Please visit www.draytonmichaels.com to hear the tracks Under The Radar and Fall Away. These are just two of the many tracks we have in the can....

It all started on August 6th 2004...

The players got the songs a week or so in advance of the recording dates. In most cases there were no more than three takes after a 30 - 40 min walk through, talk through, listen through. I laid down all the acoustic guitars first to a drum loop. Then a guide vocal. We kept whole takes of the performances and kept digital wizardry to a respectful minimum. We finished tracking all the music by Mid September.

Vocals were cut in October.

There were discussions of a mix producer/engineer from early on. Robbie Adams had done some work out of Electrokitty a few months before I began. He was in town at the right time. He gave a great flow to the five songs he mixed. That set us up for the next 6 songs quite well. From his foundation, Gary and I mixed the remaining songs. We wrapped up the sessions on November 24th.

All in all, it took 40 days from August - November 2004 to capture.

I was blesssed to work with all these amazing people. They deserve much credit. Many people touched this recording. It was an honor and a pleasure working with them. They are all busy and talented people who I recommend checking out - they are doing interesting music all the time.


PRESS

"This is first rate! You've got it all - strong memorable hooks, lyrics with depth and originality , intriguing melodies....great musicianship & vocals. This is an artist that is ready to be heard by the industry. You've got the goods!"
TAXI.com

"I have two current pleasures involving the upcoming Drayton Michaels album, Low Stress in the Deep End. The first pleasure is that I got an advance copy of the album. If you're like me, you will attack a good album with repeated listenings until you've got every note memorized. And sometime during said attack, you will covet one song above all the others and claim it as your own. For me, that song is Ghosts of Manhattan. 2005 is still very early, but I can't imagine I'll hear a better song this year. The imagery paints a picture I just can't stop staring at. The second pleasure is being able to say my current favorite album is one that hasn't even been officially released yet. But, that is soon to change. If this album is a sign of the creativity to be unleashed in 2005, then it's going to be a pretty special year."
Roger Thornhill, Doldrum Records - www.doldrum.com

"Great modern pop melodies combined with cool flashy undertones of soul standards. A classic ability to fuse jazz and pop aided by a soaring voice. Lyrics are cutting and honest. Very cool and original."
Jonathan Plum (Alice In Chains, Pearl Jam, Blind Melon)

"Low Stress In The Deep End" has been on our air waves since we opened the mail. A great batch of intelligent songs,well-delivered and with superb backing players.
You may not know his name now, but you will...Trust me, radio stations in Dylan's hometown know good song-writers."
John Ziegler (KUMD-FM Duluth, MN)

"Low Stress is successful in portraying Drayton Michaels' musical talents....His lyrics are original and he is clearly a talented guitarist and vocalist....His tracks are mellow and speak of loneliness, broken love, and being lost. 'Ghosts of Manhattan' and 'At Least' are high points of the CD and are engaging tracks."
The Clarion

"strong hooks and songs that can stand alone and actually make sense....Listeners will certainly be inclined to devour its content readily and return to the table in an effort to have their fill... does indeed feature some truely wonderful moments. 7 out of 10"
Nick James / Atomicduster

"Low Stress In The Deep End is released with humble confidence... this album is gentle and harmonic... Low Stress is like a good coming-of-age album that can grow on you over time if you allow it to happen. Further proof: 'Right By Your Side'. Although the closing track, it's the best on all of the album. A calming, nurturing tune, it's fit for a tear-jerker, edge-of-your-seat, gripping lost-and-found, lost-in-love romance flick as the lovemaking scene commences with a sigh of relief and comfort that She has found Him and He has fallen into love with Her. From Seattle hails the unique black sheep, Drayton Michaels....And so there you have it-- Michaels singlehandedly puts out his debut with a gracefulness deserving of attention."
-Arie Musil One Time One.com *** (3 out of 5 stars)

Many thanks for sending this great album; one of the best I've heard this year. My review is now on-line at http://www.leonardslair.co.uk/.
Best wishes Jon - Leonards Lair

Drayton Michaels has a classic acoustic-pop grounding where his songs shine amidst simple arrangements, intelligent musicianship and dynamic craftings that work on many levels.
Not Lame Records

Tracks like "At Least", with its pounding groove, "Thievery", complete with delicious guitar hook, and the lovely "I'm Not Waiting", with it's twee-pop feel, are proof that Michaels' is headed in the right direction. Low Stress In The Deep End is an ace album for listening to on a late night car ride, or simply semi-chillaxin'.
Soul Shine Magazine

NU Futur Mag
“Everybody”, Drayton Michaels shows that heir’s ear for pop is impeccable....parallels can be made to early-era Elton, especially in tracks like “Understand”.... I could conceivably hear them on teen-based TV shows and the like â€" Lets make this clear: Michaels’ work is leaps and bounds better than 99% than most of the singular singer-songwriters.... I have total faith in the ability of Michaels to continually innovate and come back in a year or two with a better disc.
Top Tracks: Everybody, Ghosts of Manhattan Reviewed 31 March 2005


REDEFINE MAG / SEATTLE
On Low Stress in the Deep End, Drayton Michaels has found his unique voice with a fantastic range and a haunting delivery, which gives us an almost bubblegum type of “jazz pop.” The standout track on Low Stress is “Ghosts of Manhattan,” which features Michaels and a piano. This stripped-down approach works the best for Michaels, leaving his voice free to float around and explore its full range.
Anyone who would have had the chance to see Michaels at one of his solo acoustic shows probably got a chance to see a great singer work his craft.