Chicago Rooftop Sessions
By Joel/Dan/Neil/Rooftop Sessions
Rooftop Sessions Chicago, taking its name from the obvious, is a local production group seeking to elevate the status of local musicians in and around the Chicago area, as well as beyond. Pulling the artist out of the mainstream and placing them squarely above the normal performance environment. Rooftop Sessions seeks to engage musicians in a new and fun way, and hopefully inspire something previously untapped in the artist. In addition to working on top of roofs we are also interested in expanding the idea of capturing performances in unique environments. So, if you have access to an interesting looking backyard, courtyard, sewer or meat locker with some room for a band? Why not, we’ll come to you. Wherever it is, whatever it is, we are willing to explore the idea of shooting in unique and interesting places around Chicago.
In order to make the most out of your Rooftop Session there are a few necessary steps to follow. First and foremost practice your music. The capture of your performance can only be as good as the performance itself. We will certainly do multiple takes if necessary to capture the best performance possible, but again success is dependent upon your comfort level with the music.
Secondly, we want the Rooftop Sessions to come to you. Since you the artist will be securing the location, please make sure that you have the proper permissions to enter whatever environment you choose. Be it permits, building owners approval, or just a general knowledge of the space, nothing kills a session quite as quickly as having the Man come and shut us down.
Make sure there’s enough power. We don’t need much, usually two circuits will suffice to cover all of our lighting, cameras, and audio equipment. We can provide a generator plus long cable runs, if necessary but, please make sure to mention this ahead of time. No juice, no performance.
And finally let us know a little bit about yourself. Send us some links to your music or hip us to an upcoming show we can come check out. We want to know what your sound is and what your band consists of. Since all of the audio will be captured via multitrack please let us know ahead of time how many sources or inputs there will be. Knowing how may guitars, vocal mics, scitars, harpsichords, or whatever other instruments will be present means we can ensure the best possible capture of your performance.
Rooftop Sessions is excited to offer these services to our local Chicagoland artists.
Rooftop Sessions Chicago can be found on Myspace, Facebook, Vimeo, or at:
Daniel Panolski (videographer) recommends:
1. One book : High Fidelity
2. Favorite piece of gear : Digital SLR Camera
3. Don’t leave home without : Batteries
4. Who he is listening to now : Rue Royale
Joel Hoover (audio) recommends:
1. One book : Cosmic Trigger
2. Favorite piece of gear : Shure KSM44
3. Don’t leave home without a Sharpie
4. Who he is listening to now : Page France
