EXCLUSIVE BATILLUS STUDIO BLOG #2: DRUMMER GEOFF SUMMERS

When we heard that our friends in Brooklyn doom-crew Batillus were heading into the studio to record a new album,  we were all, “Dudes, do a studio blog for us!!!” And they were all, “Okay!!!” And so here we are! Below, find the second installment, which was written by drummer Geoff Summers; read the inaugural entry by bassist Willi Stabenau here and expect two more entries by the band’s guitarist and vocalist in the coming days.

Day five. Overdubs are nearly done for all but two songs. It’s nice not to feel rushed for once—for each of our last two recording sessions we tracked and mixed 60 minutes and 25 minutes of music in two days, respectively. This time we have ten days to track and mix seven songs, and we’re taking our time and paying more attention to detail and allowing the creative process to flow a bit more freely. It’s a good feeling.

Having not much to do, I cooked up a stir-fry yesterday with snap peas, bell peppers, onion, corn, and broccoli with rice noodles. It was damn good, if I do say so myself, and rather spicy.

After that we found ourselves over at Exit Bar, Chicago’s legendary punk and metal dive. We spent the majority of the evening downing shots of Beam, cans of High Life, and bottles of Bud while watching the local patrons — strapped to a chain-link fence — get their asses whipped and their nipples electrocuted and molten wax poured over their backs. We were tempted to purchase a spanking for Willi, but in the end we decided he wasn’t worth the 25 bucks the bikini-clad girls were charging for the service.

We piled into the van and rocked Danzig – “Soul on Fire” and Ministry – “Lava” at roasting volume on the ride back to the studio (don’t be surprised if we cover one or both of those songs at an upcoming show) and we all passed out to ‘Airplane’ on the TV.

– Geoff Summers