Dan PMd me the following, but since there were some questions that others might like to hear the answers to, I am replying in public:
"Hi Lindsay
How did you go with the final mixes for this album? If its ok to ask, was this tracked mostly as keyboard/sequence first, vocals then instruments later, or was there a band playing the rhythm section first? I gave a few of these tracks a good listen, and still really enjoying it... reminiscent of Sarah Blasko a little, although with a bit more country flavour.
Cheers
Dan"
The final mixes are mixed, finally. Not too much drastic action taken, except for a tucking in of things here and there, boosting the vocals a bit, and brightening key instruments. We're waiting now for mastering.
As for how this was tracked, it was done live after several rehearsals, with drums (kick: EV RE20, snare: Rode NT5 & Shure SM57, toms: Senn. MD421 MkII, OHs: Lawson LM47FET, Shure KSM32, room: AEA R84, off axis) and bass (DI) in the tracking room and Ashley in the control room with me on a keyboard for scratches. After we were happy with our takes, we bid adieu to the rhythm section and focused on replacing the fake piano with the real thing (our one-legged fin de siecle Steinway upright:
http://ow.ly/1MeAt), also in the tracking room. The piano was tracked with a close stereo pair (Rode NT5), a close dynamic(EV RE20), a mid-distant room (Shure KSM32), a single on the back of the soundboard (Lawson LM47FET), and a distant room (AEA R84, off axis). Then vocals (LM47FET). Preamps were either GT Bricks or OSA MP1s, 'cause that's all I own. No compression or EQ in the chain while tracking, 'cause I own none.
And then it was just more of the same as we tracked guitar, banjo, harmonies, strings, percussion and other noises.
Sarah Blasko, huh? Don't know her stuff - but I soon will.