Comic 177
Back-up Vocal~ Technology is truly a fascinating realm. The clock never stops on improvements. When I graduated from Pittsburgh Technical Institute in 2003, the students were still using Zip Discs (remember them?). A year and a half later, I took a free Alumni refresher course on software which had seen a number of upgrades and I wanted to acquiant myself with the changes. In the brief time I had been gone, the school and the world at large had switched to Jump Drives. The Zips which had previously been the gold standard, were now paper weights on their best day. I was stunned by the revolution and felt silly for being so out of touch that I had completely missed it. The school’s new computer towers didn’t have slots for the Zips. Sure, I could have bought an external Zip Drive with a USB cable and taken it with me to class. But, even the slimmer designs available were clunky and awkward by comparison. The teachers didn’t even use them anymore. So, I was forced to move with the times.
I recall buying my first Jump Drive at the school book store and it was $100 for 1 Gig of memory. Highway robbery to be sure. But, that was the going rate at the time, no matter where they were purchased. Now, anyone can walk into any chain store and acquire at least a 4 Gig Jump for under $10. Lord knows I’ve got my share of them. Indeed, I have everything “Mannyacs” backed up on a collection of them pocket sized gems. To a degree, that inspired this new Comic.
Just a few years ago, I read an interview with guitar legend, Steve Morse. He was promoting the newest release from the Steve Morse Band at the time. For the uninitiated, they are an Instrumental Rock trio, comprised of incredibly talented and respected musicians. All the members come from extraordinarily accomplished pedigree. Further, they are all extremely busy in their individual careers, which means they can only work together as a band when their schedules allow for it. So, they would send each other Jump Drives of their track work. As a result, when the time came to hit the studio and actually record the new album, their preparation through file sharing, practice and study let them finish the whole shooting match in a matter of days, instead of the weeks or months it would have taken in years past.
Combining all of these factors, it struck me that available gadgetry would be a crucial factor in making a Bo Truwavus solo project a reality. Especially since the studio band in question is based overseas (that’s all I’m permitted to offer in the way of details as of this writing). If application of modern day gizmos is good enough for real life bands, then it’s more than good enough for the critters of Splendorland, too.
Like our (Thank You, Jesus) faithful readers, I was also under the impression that the hidden bonus Disco track was strictly a……”Manny Jam”. So, it threw me for a curve to discover that our Bassman Bo found enough value in it to pursue one himself. I suggest we all buckle up. It’s entirely possible that we are bearing witness to the start of a DBS 3 family tradition.