Humanity
Writing the songs:
	Writing the material for the CD "Humanity" started pretty much as any of our projects in the past.   As a rule we sit and discuss amongst ourselves the weeks events, usually something "dark" has taken place in the worlds "current" events, hence the group name "Dark Current".  Once we start to jam, someone starts to think up lyrics related to our earlier discussions.  Normally it is John who starts it off.  We always have the recorder going in hopes of creating a "keeper" and review the nights "jams' each week.  When we like what we hear, we will decide to actually create a song out of the random mayhem.  Of course certain songs are actually "written" by various parties, some just lyrics, some music & lyrics.  In these cases, the composer usually presents the rough song for the rest to critique.  We have a whole binder full of this type!!
Preparing to record the CD:
	As mentioned above we always have the recorder running.  We decided that we wanted to record a new CD of the material we had been compiling over the last year or so.  We put together a list of the compositions and decided upon which should be considered for the CD.  Once we got these songs together, we started to record the "bed "tracks or possible bed tracks so we could get a feel for the tempo and actual structure of the material.  Originally we had about 18 songs, which was pared down to the 15 on the CD. This process of recording the tracks started in September or October of 2003.  By November 2003, we pretty much had an idea of the basic configuration & content of the CD.  By January 2004, we had most of the "bed " track s recorded well enough to burn a trial copy for limited distribution to close friends for their input.
Recording tracks:
	The recording of "Humanity" was accomplished using digital recording by way of the Guillemot ISIS recording hardware and software as well as a custom built PC for recording.  Dales 24 channel analogue console was used in conjunction with the ISIS 8 port input board on the PC.   Bed tracks consisted of "ghost" vocals, bass guitar (direct), electric guitar (direct), and  5 drum microphones.  Specifically, the drums had mics on the kick, snare, upper toms, lower tom, hi-hat, and 2 over heads for the cymbals which were mixed down through the console to 5 mics directly to the PC for a total of 8 channels. Additional tracks were recorded as required by bouncing completed bed tracks in software to allow new tracks to be added.  We always wanted to get a "live" feeling for our songs, and as such all were recorded using  this "live" method of recording. Overdubs were only completed if necessary, once the final drum "bed" tracks for each song were completed.  Sometimes, several takes were required for certain tracks, although quite a few 1st or 2nd takes, (after much analyzing), stood up as the best tracks, and were used as final bed tracks.  This process was pretty much completed by mid January, then we started to record "over dubs", specifically John re-recorded all the vocal tracks using our large diaphragm mic.  We also added extra guitar tracks both electric and acoustic as well as percussion and backing vocals. We were aiming at April 1, 2004 as a finish date for the project.
Mixing and Mastering:
	Most of "Humanity" was mixed using ISIS software as well as Cubase software. The whole band had a say in the production of the final mixes, though Mark & Dale did the majority of the actual mixing.  This process took about a month to complete with many "mixes" being made with various amounts of success.  Once we agreed upon the final mixes, and order of the songs on the CD, we decided on the title and designed the CD artwork.  Dan Bohlender assisted with this, due to his natural ability with design software on PC's. (and he also new what he was doing!!). Once the art work and design was completed we burned multiple copies and started to distribute the finished product. We still continue to burn copies and print artwork as copies of "Humanity" are requested.