Natalie & The Damn Shandys Join Forces With Black Lion Audio And Avantone Pro To Record Lay Eyes On You

Natalie & The Damn Shandys will deliver a sizzling, sultry summer single with Lay Eyes on You premiering this Friday, August 13 on all major online retailers. The New York-based Country/Americana trio teamed up with VuDu Studios’ producer Mike Watts to compose the single that portrays a budding workplace romance between two coworkers pining for a connection. Lay Eyes on You features Natalie Anne on vocals and guitar, Ben Gorham on vocals and piano, and Rob Wagner on lead guitar and backing vocals.

“Who hasn’t had even the slightest crush on someone in the workplace?” says Natalie. “Lay Eyes on You tells the story from both his and her point of view, revealing just how those subtle hints can unravel into an undeniable love.”

Natalie & The Damn Shandys newest single Lay Eyes on You showcases the group’s anecdotal style paired with their strong harmonic melodies. Listeners will be flushed with excitement for what could be with their current crush as they sway to the warm beat. The trio started working together back in 2016 and have since released their debut EP Overlook Trail and several singles including 48 Polaroid and Homebody. In the live performance arena, they have performed alongside Chely Wright, Trace Adkins, Joe Nichols, and more.

Most recently, Natalie & The Damn Shandys joined forces with Black Lion Audio and Avantone Pro when they went in the studio with Watts to record Lay Eyes on You. Watts captured all vocals and instruments on the Black Lion Audio Revolution 2×2 Portable Recording Interface and two Avantone Pro CV-12BLA microphones.

“Mike Watts and I decided to do a project together featuring the Black Lion Revolution and the Avantone Pro CV-12BLA. When I received back the initial track on Natalie & The Damn Shandys, the great sound quality was only overshadowed by how great the song was! I was floored. It’s a special song created by special people. I love it.” Jon Haber, President of Black Lion Audio

The latest single, Lay Eyes on You, will be available on all streaming platforms August 13, followed by the single’s forthcoming music video making a national debut across the broadcast community starting August 23.

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About Natalie & The Damn Shandys

Originating in New York, Natalie and The Damn Shandys features Natalie Anne (vocals/guitar), Rob Wagner (guitar/mandolin/vocals), and Ben Gorham (piano/vocals). The trio has opened for Chely Wright, Trace Adkins, Joe Nichols, Marshall Tucker Band, and Corey Smith. Natalie & The Damn Shandys first connected in 2016, after Natalie moved from San Diego to New York pursuing her music career. She met Rob Wagner, the multi-instrumentalist and vocalist, and the two decided to take their talents to Mike Watts at VuDu Studios as Rob had previously worked at the studio and knew the quality that could be captured there. It was at the studio that they were introduced to Ben Gorham, who initially fell into a keys and backing vocalist role. However, they quickly realized Ben’s talents and today he shares lead vocals with Natalie on their projects. The trio released their debut Overlook Trail on Esque Records & VuDu recordings in May 2019. Since that EP, Natalie & the Damn Shandys have released several singles including 48 Polaroid and Homebody. In a review of their show with Chely Wright, The Daily Times wrote, “Chely Wright took the stage shortly after inviting Grunnan (Natalie) up to sing with her. Wright couldn’t say enough nicethings. In fact, she proclaimed Natalie & The Damn Shandys are destined for great things.”

About Black Lion Audio

Founded in 2006, Black Lion Audio is a boutique audio company based in Chicago. Collectively, it takes pride in providing customers with outstanding quality gear for its recording studios at prices that are ridiculously affordable. As such, the company has built a reputation for supplying superior quality sound in a cost-effective manner within the space of a few short years. Yet, given the current economic climate, it is no wonder that major labels, project studios, software companies and high-profile tracking and mix engineers make up a significant portion of the company’s client base. Indeed, its work can be heard in award-winning major motion picture scores and soundtracks, major television shows and commercials, as well as being used by prestigious organizations and major label acts alike.

About Avantone Pro

It is our belief that great audio products can be created without charging thousands of dollars for them. Our microphones and speakers are used in studios around the world — from home project studios to world-renowned multi-million-dollar facilities. We are very sensitive to the real-world operating budgets of studios as well as the struggling artists/songwriters who are very passionate about creating great music but have budget limitations based on common sense spending. Now, even those on a budget can get world-class sound in their studios. We strive to offer products that anyone would be proud to own and have long-term use of in the quest for creating great music. We believe in our products’ value and know the power of “word-of-mouth” advertising. When you see how good our products are, we know you will tell others! 

USB 2 Channel Portable Recording Interface

 The boutique audio company Black Lion Audio is proud to introduce Revolution 2×2 — its inaugural entry into the hotly contested bus-powered, portable audio interface market as an appropriately- named (2 x 2 USB-C) studio-grade (24-bit/192 kHz) desktop model of its own making, representing revolutionary analog design thanks to the top-tier sound of large, high-end converters costing thousands of dollars now being available in a hand-sized product that does not break the bank.

Black Lion Audio has long since been revered as the ‘king of audio mods’ having modded countless audio interfaces over the years. Yet it has been asked when it would be creating its own audio interface from the outset. On the face of it, its opening gambit has been a long time in the making, having planned, engineered, and worked on it in secret — for years. Indeed, it takes time to truly revolutionize bus-powered, studio-grade audio interface design, and Revolution 2×2 represents the revolutionary result!

Simply speaking, the most revolutionary thing to note about Revolution 2×2 is the quality of its sound — the top-tier sound of large, high-end converters costing thousands of dollars now being available in a hand-sized product that does not break the bank. Better still, Revolution 2×2 readily utilizes Black Lion Audio’s new Macro-MMC clocking technology, based on its numerous clocking products and modifications; Macro- MMC’s circuit implementation brings converters to new heights — well beyond what has been witnessed with other audio interfaces anywhere near its class. Clearly, with that in mind, the boutique audio company creator also assembled its finest AD/DA (analog-digital/ Digital-Analogue) converter technology to provide Revolution 2×2 users with record-making power previously unobtainable in an audio interface that is so small and affordable.

Additionally, Revolution 2×2 internally integrates Black Lion Audio’s PG-i technology, based on its extensive experience in engineering its best-in-class power conditioners, with all power rails being highly filtered in every active stage — something not found even in the most well-respected, high-end products! Put it this way: with power being decoupled across all of Revolution 2×2’s circuitry — preamps, converters, internal power supply, and even the clock, any noise contamination from other devices plugged into the audio interface itself is discernibly reduced.

However, hi-fi digital design alone does not cut it; indeed, it takes serious analogue circuitry for facilitating the very best capture and playback of audio. As such, Revolution 2×2 is built with the most cutting-edge, high-end ICs (Integrated Circuits) with high-end Vishay, Nichicon, and Wima capacitors being used. Ultimately, all internal gain-staging has been optimised for the very lowest signal-to-noise ratio and all analogue I/O connections have not only been built with the finest components but are also fully decoupled and balanced — right to the very core of the converter! Most manufacturers do not follow this practice, failing to prevent extra noise contamination during both audio capture and playback as a direct result.

Revolutionary audio interfaces need serious software to provide an adjunct to today’s DAW-driven workflow. With its included Revolution Software Suite, Revolution 2×2 far from fails to deliver, starting with Studio One Artist — the cutting-edge DAW for all production needs from PreSonus. And as if that alone was not enough to be getting on with, Black Lion Audio has helpfully included select plug-ins from Brainworx (bx_digital — the hi-fi, mastering EQ of the future), iZotope (Elements — includes Nektar, Neutron, Ozone, and RX8, so everything needed to repair, mix, and master audio), and Plugin Alliance (Lindell Audio 6X-500 — hardware-modelled preamp and passive EQ).

It is fair to say, then, that Revolution 2×2 is not simply another run-of-the-mill audio interface from ‘big brother’ but rather it is the audio interface the world has always asked for — albeit a world still somewhat affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

“Revolution 2×2 will begin shipping in February 2021 but initial supply will be constrained due to the shortage of the premium components chosen by our engineers for this interface.” So states Black Lion Audio Chief Operations Officer Preston Whiting, before adding: “We could have subbed in alternative parts for the sake of speed but the sound would have been compromised and we refuse to do anything that negatively affects the experience of our customers or audio quality of our products.” 

Pricing and Availability

Revolution 2×2 will begin shipping through Black Lion Audio’s growing global network of dealers/distributors with a MAP (Minimum Advertised Price) of $399.00 USD and an SSP (Suggested Selling Price) of €399.00 EUR (excluding VAT) in February.

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British-style B173 mkII and American-style B12A MkIII Pre-Amps

Boutique audio company Black Lion Audio announce availability of the B173 mkII and B12A mkIII — British-style (1073) and American-style (312A) portable preamps packed into convenient half-rack-sized units, respectively, allowing users to mix and match as they sonically see fit,

Simply speaking, Black Lion Audio’s B173 mkII is the most portable 1073 ‘British sound’ around! As such, it uses the same Cinemag input and output transformers that are found in the company’s ‘full-size’ B173 Quad mic preamp to duly deliver a whopping 70dB of gain, alongside a revamped gain stage and a lower noise floor for a cleaner, lower distortion sound.

Sonically, the front panel-positioned Hi-Z IN (high impedance input) brings a harmonically rich tone to guitars, keyboards, and synthesizers, while the stepped input 1073-style GAIN and variable OUTPUT LEVEL attenuation knobs allow for flawless control over transformer saturation. 48V phantom power and phase inverse controls round out the front panel with self-explanatory XLR IN (input) and TRS OUT (output) connections literally bringing up the rear.

Representing the most portable 312A ‘American sound’ around, Black Lion Audio’s B12A mkIII uses the same Cinemag input and output transformers that are found in the company’s ‘full-size’ B12A Quad preamp to duly deliver a whopping 70dB of gain — just like its B173 mkII half-rack-sized sibling. Similarly, the front panel- positioned Hi-Z IN input also brings a harmonically rich tone to guitars, keyboards, and synthesizers, while the stepped 312A-style input GAIN control allows for perfect recall. Remaining on the front panel, there are also 48V phantom power and phase inverse controls, plus an 18dB PAD, while the B12A mkIII’s rear panel-positioned XLR IN and TRS OUT connections mirror those found on the B173 mkII.

Pricing and Availability

The B173 mkII is available to purchase with a MAP (Minimum Advertised Price) of $449.00 USD and an SSP (Suggested Selling Price) of €449.00 EUR (including VAT). The B12A mkIII is available to purchase through Black Lion Audio’s growing global network of dealers/distributors with a MAP of $399.00 USD and an SSP of €399.00 EUR (including VAT).

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