Conventional
wisdom dictates that an artist's first album is completed quickly.
The artist's creative force melds with the excitement of entering the
studio for the first time to propel the recording process through a
blizzard of activity ranging from inspired and careful planning to
absolute serendipity.
Conventional
wisdom, however, has not met either Kyle McAllister or Ken
Kincaid. With those two creative drains pulling down Raychel's
recording sessions, conventional wisdom didn't have a chance.
Perhaps I'm
better off backtracking.
I had been
receiving offers to work with Ken Kincaid at Terror Trax for over a year
before I met Raychel. I had demurred based on a combination of my
instincts about him and the rumors that Ken was slowly burying the
company under a flood of red ink. Ken said that he had an
act I had to hear, but refused to tell me more. I'm used to
hearing pitches of that nature from studio execs. Usually it means
that the act is laying the studio exec.
To no one's
surprise, Ken's company flirted with Chapter 11 until Cain International
rode in as a white knight to save the day. While Cain allowed Ken
to maintain his title as CEO, his real power in the company had been
hollowed out beneath him. The position was not without
responsibility, the daily operation of the company remained under his
control, but he had lost two key aspects of his company's previous
incarnation.
First,
financial control was gone. Cain International installed a Chief
Financial Officer of their choosing to ensure their investment remained
solvent. That position is helmed by Nick Kosich, who is decidedly
more boring than his name indicates. No offense, Nick.
Second, and
key to the situation, was the removal of Ken Kincaid from the creative
process. While Ken was allowed to oversee the hiring and firing of
secretaries and middle management, he was not allowed control over the
acts signed by the label or to interfere directly with the Chief
Creative Officer. To fill this new position in their new
"alternative" recording label, Cain went looking for an
independent producer they could entice with total creative
control. Perhaps they were looking for a Napoleon who could combat
head-to-head with Ken Kincaid, but they neglected to mention it.
What they found was a young, independent, producer with 15 years in
musical production and a strong reputation for working with talent.
Yes, you've
guessed it. They found me.
|
"I would be lying to
say that my choice to accept a three-year contract as CCO had nothing to do with the
fact that Raychel was already on the Terror Trax label. I thought
it would be a dream match-up." |
When I first
informed Ken Kincaid of my decision to accept the CCO position, he was
overjoyed. While I had kept him at a distance during his shower of
offers, Ken considered me a friend. Unfortunately for him, I did
not come to the position to "share power" as he indicated
during our first meeting. I came to run the company the way I had
always wanted to.
I began
running Terror Trax in January of 2000. I had met Raychel Taurus
the previous month and struck up an immediate close relationship.
I think we shared a musical soul. I would be lying to say that my
choice to accept a three-year contract as CCO had nothing to do with the
fact that Raychel was already on the Terror Trax label. I thought
it would be a dream match-up.
Contrary to
Ken Kincaid's assertion, I did not go into his office and ask him to let
me record Raychel's sessions. We were having a discussion in his
office and, when asked, I told him that I chose myself to record
Raychel's sessions. To Ken's credit, he warned me that Kyle
McAllister would view my decision as an intrusion against an agreement
that Ken had made with Kyle. Kyle had stated clearly to Ken that
no "outsiders" would be tolerated in his recording
process. Ken had agreed. I did not, and I was running the
company now.
My hard-line
stance against Kyle McAllister's order was a calculated risk.
While I had a good relationship with Raychel, I understood that Kyle had
a strong hold on Raychel. I balanced that against the fact that
Kyle had no real experience in a studio before, and I stated my
"concern" to Raychel. Thankfully, Raychel agreed and was
able to convince Kyle to accept my assistance. I am sure my
reputation as an artistic collaborator made my inclusion more palatable
to Kyle.
I told Ken
Kincaid to schedule time in the studio for us from February until the
end of March. I expected we would only require six weeks, but I
built in two extra weeks just in case. Ken told me that he would
block out time until the end of April, just in case.
Ken
Kincaid's instinct proved to be more accurate as every minute in the
studio seemed to take a year with Kyle McAllister's constant whining
about everything from the direction of the music to the position of
microphones. Again, I remind you, Kyle had never entered a
professional music studio before. My years of experience in the
studio seemed to matter little to Kyle.
On a
personal note, I would like to suggest that Kyle's insurgent behavior during
the recording process was the result of his feeling of inadequacy in the
studio. I believe he felt threatened by the combination of
his inexperience in the studio and my position as an experienced
producer who also happened to be the person in charge of the record
label. To compensate for his inadequacy, Kyle spent the entire
time contradicting me, questioning me, and bullying Raychel into
agreeing with him.
Regardless
of Kyle's motives, his results stagnated the creative process. The
most significant obstruction placed by Kyle was his emphatic belief that
no one else be allowed to contribute to the recording process.
Most notably, he refused to allow me to hire extra musicians. He
demanded that I allow him to play all instruments on the album.
While I had previously convinced Raychel to convince Kyle to see things
from my perspective in the past, Raychel was unable to get Kyle to agree
to this aspect of recording. I believe that he feared completely
losing control of the project if I could record without him.
There was
also another component rolled into this stance of Kyle's. While
Kyle proved to be an extremely capable musician on all fronts, I was
unable to record a note without Kyle's complete understanding and
cooperation. He knew that, and exercised this knowledge of that
control extensively. Sometimes I think he did it just to let me
know that he felt he was in control of the process.
Kyle's
control over Raychel did not go unchecked by her, but that did not
benefit Raychel. While I never saw him physically assault Raychel,
I know that they came to blows several times outside the studio. I
know for certain that in June, just before the recording sessions shut
down, Kyle beat Raychel within an inch of her life for no apparent
reason. During that beating, Sharon Wolfe, Raychel's suspected
bodyguard, was on an errand for Raychel. In retrospect, it bears a
significant resemblance to Raychel's murder.
|
"Ken manipulated
the studio records to mask the presence of Raychel and Kyle in the
studios . . . By doing so, Ken allowed Kyle to waste the last month
of Raychel's life by making second-rate recordings which are
unusable in any professional format." |
The June
incident between Raychel and Kyle effectively killed the recording
process for all of us. Raychel called me to let me know that she
wanted to put the recording on hold until she was able to sort a few
things out. She also informed me that she would be staying with
Laura Douglass for a while. That was a benefit for me, as Laura
and I are very close. I discreetly made inquiries regarding
Raychel's health and state of mind through Laura. She let me know
that Raychel had been beaten badly by Kyle McAllister, but she was
slowly recovering with the help of a new friend named Anna Fantiani.
Near the end
of July, though, the information stopped flowing from Laura. I
understood immediately that something was amiss; however, I did not
blame Laura. Laura was trying to be a good friend to Raychel by
steering me out of the loop. My blame in this situation lies
solely on one person.
Ken Kincaid.
A
significant part of Ken's responsibilities include the allocation of
studio time at Terror Trax. For an independent label, we have the
luxury of high-quality, professional studios on the premises. Ken
manipulated the studio records to mask the presence of Raychel and Kyle
in the studios. There is no doubt that Ken knew they were in the
studio without my knowledge or support. By doing so, Ken allowed
Kyle to waste the last month of Raychel's life by making second-rate
recordings which are unusable in any professional format.
I am a
person who forgives a great deal. However, Ken's actions were
clearly traitorous to Terror Trax. While I have allowed him to
stay on with the company without punitive measures, I am aware his
allegiances do not lie with me or Cain International. Had they, I
would have been informed immediately. Perhaps he believes his
allegiance was with Raychel, and that he was doing her a favor by
allowing them to record without me. I believe that he did Raychel
a disservice by doing so.
I still
wonder sometimes what Raychel was thinking after June. Raychel
never tried to contact me again after she shut down her recording
sessions. With only one finished song to her credit, I wonder if
she felt ashamed of her decisions in the recording process and the havoc
that they wreaked. She didn't owe me an apology. Inexperience
can be forgiven. It's the repeated mistakes that cause real
regret.
Unfortunately
for all of us, Raychel never had the opportunity to learn from her
mistakes.
