Brian Preston - Metaphoric Music

This is the home page for Metaphoric Music Productions and me, Brian Preston, presenting my musical endeavors, historical as well as present and future. Metaphoric Music Productions grew out of me acquiring a Fostex X-15 4 track cassette recorder back in 1985. I had been playing in various hard rock and progressive rock bands and was just getting the band Freehand started with David Bollinger. I was in graduate school at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill at the time and during this period I experimented with many different recording techniques and approaches, as much as could be done with 4 track recording and a few low-tech instruments, analogue delays, etc. Even with the advent of better home multi track recorders I continued working on the Fostex until 1997 when I jumped to ADAT and multi-channel mixer (Mackie 16). You may be surprised at what we were able to accomplish on that old 4 track cassette recorder, especially the most recent stuff from the early 90's. My good friend Todd Barbee plays sax and WX7 on much of this material. A drum machine and many effects were all put to good use. I used various guitar and bass rigs and effects units, but one that has particular prominence is the Korg DRV-3000, a stereo digital processing unit from the early 90's.

I have compiled a 'best of' collection of Metaphoric recordings from 1997-2002 into a CD release, Metaphoric Music 1997-2002

I have since continued solo home recording projects with some better equipment (though not computer recording. I do use it some but so far I don't like it so much, even though most of my bigger projects-Smokin' Granny, Onomata, Groove Stream- are recorded, mixed or mastered using computers.) So for the post 1996 Metaphoric Music I am using an 8 track Alesis ADAT (basic black face), Mackie CR1604 mixing console, a Korg X5 synthesizer, the old Korg DRV-3000 stereo digital effects unit and a host of guitars, basses, processors and occasionally an old Yamaha RX15 drum machine. I also have a sitar, baliphon (African marimba), talking drum, doogi, and various other hand percussions.

There are many more recordings, but I had to draw the line somewhere. I enjoy recording in these track building excursions almost as much (but not quite) as the live improvisational interplay between the excellent musicians I have been lucky to play with. Hope you enjoy it if you decide to take the plunge.