NEWS:

"Just because the microphone in front of you amplifies your voice around the world is no reason to think we have any more wisdom than we had when our voices could reach only from one end of the bar to the other."
- Edward R. Murrow

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In The Studio:

Colombian classical guitarist Aris Quiroga is currently working with Chris on a new release. Aris recorded nine pieces with Mark Lambert at Audio Works in Charlotte, NC, and with Matthew Everhart in Baltimore, MD. Chris is mixing the material at Old House Studio in Gastonia, NC.



Chris recently completed a project for New River Community Church in Clover, SC. The album was recorded at Old House Studio in Gastonia, NC and produced by Scott Applegate. It features ten songs performed by the church's in-house band and will be available in Spring 2010.



Guitarist Alex Martin recently traveled from Washington, DC to Old House Studio in Gastonia, NC to record a new CD with Chris engineering. Martin's unique blend of jazz, classical, and South and Central American compositions were ably performed with accompaniment from Charlotte-area bassist Ron Brendle and Wilmington, NC-based drummer Thomas Garner. The twelve-song CD, entitled Second Life, will be available in March of 2010.

Chris is currently working with Washington, DC-area rock band The Public Goodas drummer and recording engineer. The band features guitarist/vocalist John Elderkin, bassist/vocalist Steve Ruppenthal, and multi-instrumentalist Sam Esquith. Elderkin and Ruppenthal have provided some of the East Coast's best pop-rock for two decades, dating back to Chapel Hill band The Popes in the late eighties and early nineties, as well as NC's Stumble and Atlanta's The Lovely Lads. It's very exciting for Chris to be a part of this ensemble, as he's been a rabid fan since 1989. The group recently finished recording a follow-up to their recent release, No. 1, at Old House Studio in Gastonia, NC at Fidelitorium Recording in Kernersville, NC, Double Decker Bus in Chapel Hill, NC, and at The Bastille and Inner Ear Studio in Arlington, VA.



Classical harpist Kirsten Carrell recenly returned to Old House Studio to record new demo material with Chris.



Singer-songwriter Mike Strauss has recently completed his second album with Chris engineering (his fourth release). The eight-song recording features guitarist Randolph Lewis, upright bassist Jon Schigoda, keyboardist Donovan Collins, drummer David "D.K" Kim, trombonist Molly Brown, and violinist Beth Brown-Alwari. The group recorded at Old House Studio and the project is slated for an early 2010 release.

Monroe, NC-based band One Big Love is nearing completion of a new full-length album recorded with Chris at Old House Studio. The eight-song album features the six-piece band, recorded almost entirely live in the studio.



Rock band Troublewalkers recently returned to Old House Studio to record a split 7" single with rock band Guam High. Both bands recorded two songs each for the upcoming release with producer Mark Lynch and with Chris engineering.



Shelby, NC-based singer-songwriter Al Dunkleman was once again at Old House Studio recording with Chris. This time, Al was recording a theme song for Bridge's Bar-be-cue Lodge in Shelby.

Guitarist Bon Lozaga (Gongzilla, Gong, Mike Oldfield) is currently working on a new solo album with Chris engineering. This new record comes on the heels of the release of the recent Gongzilla album, Five Even on LoLo Records, which was also recorded by Chris. Bon, along with drummer Donnie Futrell and bassist Anthony Goodwyn traveled to Old House Studio in Gastonia to work on the project. The album features several guest artists as well, including Kofi Burbridge (Derek Trucks, Aquarium Rescue Unit) on organ, Chuck Garvey (moe) on guitar, and Joel Cummins (Umphrey's McGee) on keyboards. Congratulations to Bon, also, on his feature in the December issue of Guitar Player magazine.



Singer/songwriter Brian Doyle is in the process of working on a new album at Old House Studio with Chris engineering. The album features several of Doyle's long time band mates, including drummers Greg Lisi and Curtis Wingfield, guitarists Dan Hood and Les Moore, bassist Steve Green, keyboardist Scott Dailey, and pedal steel player Bob Barone. The album features new original material and one surprising cover tune.



David Childers has once again returned to Old House Studio to work with Chris on another project for his new band, Overmountain Men. The new band features Bob Crawford (Avett Brothers) on bass, Randy Saxon on guitar, Scott Dailey on keyboards, Geoff White on fiddle, and Robert Childers on drums. The first Overmountain Men recording (also recorded with Chris) is due out in early 2010.

Singer/songwriter Bruce Hazel is recording a giant handful of new material with Chris at Old House Studio. The project features original music from Hazel performed with drummer David "D.K." Kim, keyboardist Justin Faircloth, guitarist Chad Edwards, bassist and guitarist Shawn Lynch, bassist Mark Lynch, vocalist Karla Marsh, saxophonist Brent Bagwell, and trombonist Molly Brown. Mark Lynch is producing the project. This project marks a unique reunion for Garges, Hazel and Faircloth, who played some of their earliest gigs together in Charlotte area rock band Relayer in the late eighties.



Chris has also recently worked on projects that include live recordings for Ethos Consortium and studio recordings for songwriter Todd Busch, classical flautist Emily Higgins and classical harpist Kirsten Carrell, progressive guitarist/composer Jordan Klemons, singer-songwriter Benji Hughes, Greensboro-area rock band Thacker Dairy Road, Nashville singer/songwriter Megan Peeler, and New Jersey-based Columbia recording artist Nicole Atkins.

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On Record:

Congratulations to s inger/songwriter Bill Noonan on the release of his new album, The Man That I Can't Be. Chris engineered the project for Noonan and producer Mark Lynch at Old House Studio. The album features a host of Charlotte-area all-stars, including drummers Ray Mitchell, David "D.K" Kim, and Chris Garges, keyboardist Jason Atkins, banjo-player Randy Saxon, pedal steel guitar player Bob Barone, bassist Tom Kuhn, saxophonist John Alexander, trumpet player Jon Thornton, and vocalists Beth Chorneau and David Childers. The album was mastered by Dave Harris at Studio B Mastering in Charlotte.

Congratulations to Charlotte area fusion band Actual Proof on the release of their new CD, Paradigm Shift. The new album was recorded with Chris at Old House Studio in Gastonia and features mallet percussionist Eric Mullis, guitarist Clint Presley, bassist Philip Berkley, drummer Scott Brower, and keyboardist Silas Aldridge. The album was mastered by Dave Harris at Studio B Mastering.

Congratulations to Charlotte songwriting icon Todd Busch on the release of the new self-titled album from his large ensemble, Buschovski. Recorded by Chris Walldorf at his personal studio, the twelve-song album was mixed by Chris Garges at Old House Studio in Gastonia and mastered by Dave Harris at Studio B Mastering.



Congratulations to singer/songwriter Royce Robinson, who recently released an album of children's songs sponsored by a Regional Artist Project Grant from the North Carolina Arts Council. The album, entitled Big Kids, Big Plans, features Robinson and his six-piece accompanying ensemble (called Royce Robinson With Katie And Her Crazy Uncles) performing ten songs live at Old House Studio with Chris engineering. The recording features Robinson on guitar and vocals, Bill Moore on banjo, fiddle, electric guitar, and vocals, Bob Bigger on guitar and harmonica, Katie Lawton on fiddle, Bram Sargent on bass, Ken Todd on percussion, and Lander Robinson on guitar. The album was mastered by Dave Harris at Studio B Mastering in Charlotte.

Congratulations to northern Virginia-based guitarist/songwriter Josh Burgess on the release of his new CD, Living And Dying Under Orion. The ten-song album features all original music performed by Burgess, along with bassists Matthew Everhart and Mike Echols, drummers Sean Bradley and Andy Hamburger, guitarist Gary Smallwood, and keyboardist Jason Atkins. The album was recorded by Chris at Old House Studio in Gastonia, NC, and by Rich Issac at Cue Studios in Falls Church, VA. and was mixed by Chris at Old House and mastered by Scott Craggs at Old Colony Mastering in Boston, MA.

Congratulations to Wisconsin-based singer-songwriter David Tomaloff on the release of his new solo album, Birds On Wires. Garges and Tomaloff collaborated on the project by sending audio files back and forth between Wisconsin and North Carolina for several months before the two completed mixing the album in six days at Old House Studio in Gastonia, NC. David has some great photos of the sessions on his website.

Congratulations to progressive rock band Gongzilla on the release of their new album, Five Even. The four piece band, born out of legendary fusion group Gong, features guitarist Bon Lozaga, bassist/vocalist Hansford Rowe, guitarist Jameison Ledonio, and drummer/percussionist Phil Kester. Chris traveled to Roxobel, NC to record eight new songs on the group's mobile recording setup for LoLo Records. The album was mixed by Pete Donnelly at Westmont Station in Philadelphia, PA, mastered by Chris Muth, and features guests such as bassist Kai Eckhardt (John McLaughlin, Garage Mahal), guitarist Chuck Garvey (Moe), guitarist Jake Cinniger (Umphrey's McGee), guitarist Dave Fiuczynski (Screaming Headless Torsos), mandolin player Todd Barneson, drummer Mitch Hull, and vocalist Lian Amber.

Congratulaions to Americana/punk band Troublewalkers on the release of their new album, Free Cowboy Hat, recorded by Chris at Old House Studio in Gastonia, NC. The four-piece band, formerly known as Hot Rod Grease Lighting, features drummer Robert Childers, guitarists Gabe Hinceman and Daylon Brumfield, and bassist Mark Lynch, and the recording features Chris on tambourine, Karla Marsh on background vocals, and Randy Saxon on guitar, mandolin, and banjo. Free Cowboy Hat was selected as one of the Top Ten Local Releases of 2008 in Creative Loafing magazine.



Chris also recorded and mixed the latest album by NC blues/rock band Contagious Blues Band, Ride, mixed the new album from Florida-based jazz guitarist/vocalist Karl Louis Weismantel, In Hand, co-produced and engineerd the latest Doll Records release for guitarist Scott Sawyer, Go There (featuring drummer Kenny Soule, keyboardist/flautist Kofi Burbridge, and bassists Oteil Burbridge and Ron Brendle), engineered the latest album by singer/songwriter Mike Strauss, After All (produced by Randolph Lewis), mixed the newest release by singer-songwriter Sunshone Still, Ten Cent American Novels (produced by Smith, recorded by David Sleigh), produced and engineered and new single for rock band, A Town Called Robot (issued on a CD accompanying the release of the new Tape Op Book, Vol.II), played drums on the latest albums by blues-rock/funk band Junque Gallery (produced and engineered by Mark Williams)and Americana artists Wink Keziah and Delux Motel, Working Songs For The Drinking Class (co-produced by Wink and Mark Stuart, engineered by Mark Williams), engineered and played drums on the latest album by jazz trumpet player/vocalist Bill Averbach, Carolina Moonshine, and recorded the latest release by Americana/rock band David Childers and the Modern Don Juans, Burnin' In Hell (produced by Mark Lynch, mixed by Brian Paulson).

The self-titled debut album from Chris' jazz trio, Big Octave, is currently available on LoNote Records. Featuring saxophonist John Alexander, bassist Ron Brendle, and Chris on drums, the album features an eclectic collection of 11 original and classic works. The album was recorded by Chris and Matthew Everhart and mixed by Chris at Jay Howard Production Audio and was mastered by Hoyt Dooley at Open Door Productions in Nashville. You can listen to audio clips and order the CD online at CD Baby. Be sure to look for a reviews of the CD in Jazz Improv magazine (Vol.6, No. 1), Charlotte Magazine (Vol. 10, No. 12), and Cadence magazine.

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Some Great Upcoming Shows To Check Out:

Chris will also be appearing with jazz guitarist Dennis Currier and bassist Ron Brendle at Summit Coffee in Davidson, NC on Saturday, March 13th (2010).



Chris will be performing with Washington, DC-based rock band The Public Good on Saturday, March 20th at Snug Harbor in Charlotte, NC. Special guests, Gogopilot.



Chris will once again be appearing as part of the house band for the 7th Annual Fool's Brigade Benefit concert. This year will see a double-whammy of Fool's Brigade awesomeness one TWO NIGHTS at Snug Harbor! Friday, April 2nd will showcase the music of Paul Westerberg and The Replacements and Saturday, April 3rd will showcase the music of Alex Chilton and Big Star. The proceeds from this year's show go to the Project Halo Animal Shelter.

Chris will be appearing with rock icon Mitch Easter on several Southeast shows in April:

Tuesday, April 6th
Local 506, Chapel Hill, NC
with Citay

Chris' jazz trio, Big Octave (featuring John Alexander and Ron Brendle) performs every Thursday night from 8-11pm in uptown Charlotte at Blue Restaurant And Bar (in the Hearst Tower) at the corner of 5th Street and College Street.

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Congratulations to Scott Applegate and Janet Clark, owners of Old House Studio on over ten years of successful business ownership. This ultra-cozy and well-equipped studio opened for business in September of 1998 and has continued to record some of the area's best music over the last decade. Here's to the next ten!