Sustains combine classic songs with face-melting audio. I asked the Californian musician behind this - Alex Gramajo - how he makes his music:
.jpg)
Is Sustains just you?
For the most part, yes. However, I’ve had excellent input on certain songs from people that came into my life, who i give much credit for
How do you get that ultra fuzzy electric guitar sound?
Distortion pedal, Sustain knob 100%, direct line into recording console, Channel Gain 100%. It’s just deep fried guitar
What guitars, amps do you use?
MIJ Fender Mustang, 1995 i think, with a mini humbucker at the bridge. I’ve gone through a few amps, I absolutely enjoy solid state 100 watt combos, Crate, Peavy, Yamaha, or Roland do it for me. Hell, give me a Line 6 Spider, I’ll rock it
What is your distortion pedal of choice?
Do you saturate everything on your recordings ie drums and vocals to make them extra fuzzy?
I try to record drums as clear as possible to pierce through that jungle of noise. Same goes for vocals. As for guitars and bass, i just like to play around with the levels
Who plays drums on your recordings?
When the homie Joe wasn’t on the track, it would be me.
Where do you record?
At home. I’ve gone to studios, but I didn’t feel comfortable. Too much pressure
What do you record on?
It used to be a Tascam cassette 4 track i picked up from craigslist during high school. Later, i got a Fostex digital 16 track, thats where i got a lot done. I’m not a fan of using computer interfaces or DAW’s for Sustains. I prefer physical knobs and faders in front of me. That’s just the way I grew up.
How did you get your drum sound?
I never use more than 4 microphones for a kit. One for snare/hi hat/crash, another just for the kick, another for ride/floor tom, and maybe one more if i need middle toms or ambience. Then i pan them out as if the listener is sitting on the drummer’s throne
How long does it usually take you to record a song?
Well it really varies. For example, I’ve spontaneously written and recorded songs, like Coronary, in a few hours. But if I’m really trying to cook, i would do hundreds of takes for one song, let it simmer for months, then come back to it, add more layers, and mess around with the mixes
Any reason why Chase the Wind was digital only and not on iTunes?
I should have given it a proper release. Some record labels were flirting with it, but it fell through. I just ended up releasing it myself, instead of shelving it. I thought it sounded good
.jpg)
What’s the story behind the Chase the Wind artwork?
It’s just Richard Hell’s Blank Generation, but backwards. I wanted to feel like a rocker and i like blue denim on blue. Shout out to the homie Gus for shooting it
Do you play live much? If so, where, and who is in your band?
Not often. When we played, so many people would fill in, while living far away from each other, sometimes having no practice before a show. It was a logistical nightmare. Sustains has gone from 5 members, to 4, to 3, to 2, to 1. Real slacker rock
Some Chase the Wind tracks like Dancing Shadows almost have a 1970s glam songwriting style. Is this just my mind playing tricks on me or do you like music from that era?
I like that era very much. On that track, i was going for T. Rex and early power pop, most specifically The Nerves
Is the car noise at the start of Royal Pine real?
Haha yeah it’s real. I was revving my truck. The song is really just an open love letter to my truck, “Royal Pine” is the scent of the air freshener tree. Man, i really do like driving that thing with no destination, the freedom and romance of it. As for the engine revving in the song, i got that idea from Phil Cordell’s (aka Dan the Banjo Man) Everything Will Rhyme
Nice duelling lead guitars on Heavy Metal Dream. Was there a different pedal used on these?
There were a couple solos on that track, the first solo is the one i did, the other my friend Adrian did. He did use another pedal, maybe the OCD pedal, but I’m not certain
What reverb do you use on things like the lead guitar of Caged Hearts II?
I used the reverb built into my recording console, it was probably a hall reverb. I don’t own any reverb pedals
What organ did you use on Golden Halo?
I think it was a 70s style tone on the Yamaha PSR E313
The sound of Razor Apple is brutal. How did you achieve it?
Distorted bass and guitar, cranked the digital gain on my recording console, and boosted high mid and treble. I like to make it sound sour and spicy
How do you minimize bleed from drum overheads on songs like Book Fair?
I gradually adjust the EQ and volume until it sounds balanced in comparison with the other instruments. But to be honest, i have more trouble with drums being too quiet than too loud.
Do you record to a click?
No, it’s all natural. If there’s a minor tempo drift, i just leave it in. If i need to queue another instrument, i just keep count with a palm mute on the guitar and edit it out later
Nice one-note piano on God Damn. Is is a real piano?
No, its the Yamaha PSR keyboard. The one note piano jingle is straight out of I Wanna Be Your Dog
What is that weird synth sound on Dissonance?
It was a sound I programmed on the microkorg. I liked the glitchyness of it. It was hardly playable. I had to do a lot of takes for that because the key velocity was random and would not stroke the notes that i needed
What drum machine did you use on songs like Land of Hurt?
I did not use a drum machine. I was hitting the keys of the Yamaha PSR in real time with a drum kit preset
Do you enjoy record everything yourself, or would you prefer someone else to handle stuff like engineering?
Maybe i just don’t communicate well enough the ideas i go for to engineers, but I prefer to do it on my own
Do you have a process for mixing your songs, such as drums first?
Guitars first, sometimes bass, it’s what gives the songs the principle feeling. Then i drum along to the tracks. When i mix i really like to use the stereo channels and pan out the instruments very wide
How do you master your music, any key plugins?
After i mix a song on the console, i bounce it onto a computer. I mainly just use rudimentary limiter plugins to get it loud and thick before it starts to clip over 0 Db’s. I don’t have any specific ones to recommend, whatever’s free
What music are you working on at the moment?
I’m working on a side project and aim to release a video album on VHS. It’s mixed genre, but there’s gonna be a lot of house, techno, trip hop, boom bap. That sort of stuff. I do have some Sustains ideas, but it’s on the back burner for now. I’ve been doing Sustains for like 10 years, i want to explore other things
.jpg)
How did Hidden Bay come to release your Sick Ones record?
They just randomly hit me up and asked if they could do my next release, i said i was down. A few months later, i sent them the tracks. Big love. Check out their catalog. Shout out to Manon
Ever tried sending your music to Teenage Fanclub? I think that they'd love it
Never lol. If i ever tried to send music, it wouldn’t be TFC. It would probably be Brad Laner from Medicine. That dude is a mad scientist
Best and worst things about living in LA?
Best thing, the open mic at the Comedy Store. Worst thing, the rush hour
Can you surf?
Nope
Best Wipers album?
Dinosaurs or aliens?
Aliens for sure