It’s not easy to encapsulate the energy from a live rock ’n’ roll show onto a record, but Devon Coyote has done just that with his latest album The Wind.
“It was a very performance-based recording,” he said. “There are lots of one-take parts, and we didn’t use all the technology to our advantage.”
While music is most commonly recorded digitally nowadays, Coyote put his sounds right onto tape, and instead of doctoring each element of every song, he recorded the music in unison with his bandmates.
“The little mistakes we make on it are embraced. That’s how it goes when you play live.”
Coyote is backed up by three bandmates, and he said they each present more prominence on The Wind than any album previous.
“We really pushed ourselves to play as best we could. With me on guitar, if it wasn’t up to par, the other guys would say ‘you need to spend some more time on that’ or ‘write something better.’ We made sure to have open lines of communication between all musicians.”
Music on The Wind isn’t as “tight” as Coyote’s other work, as the album is much more “jammy.”
“A lot of the songs are a bit longer than usual at four-and-a-half to five minutes long. During the show, a lot of the live versions will be very similar to how they sound off the album, but we always incorporate a few little twists.”
Before they began recording the album, the band entered the studio with a completely open mind by checking everything at the door, Coyote said.
“We don’t try to stick to one genre so it leaves our ideas very open. There was some added input from everyone, we don’t want to feel pigeon holed with the music we’re expected to write.”
Coyote will be sharing works from The Wind during a performance at the Mule on Dec. 11 at 10 p.m. Tickets cost $5 at the door. Opening band will be Kings and Crowns.
