Most bands track drums first and build on top. For The Ascent, Sound System Seven completely flipped the script using a digital blueprint and a five-studio relay race.

The Digital Blueprint: It started on screen. Dan pre-composed the riddims arrangement in his DAW and exported individual .WAV scratch tracks for each instrument.

The Remote Relay: We dropped those digital stems into Pro Tools at Joe's studio. One by one, we replaced the fake instruments with the real thing, starting with Ski's bass guitar. Paul tracked saxes and Matt's trombone at his place. Ben, Dan, and Mike F recorded their guitar and keyboard parts remotely, too.

Drums Last: With the full arrangement tracked around the digital grid, Bruce came into Joe's studio and laid down live drums and timbales last, locking the real human pulse into the song.

The Finish Line: Joe and Ski mixed the final session, sent it to Daniel for mastering, and handed it to DistroKid to push world-wide.

From DAW blueprint to streaming services—give a listen to The Ascent, if you like.  


Spotify: [https://open.spotify.com/album/3Lxp1Qf8mbyJhdLWXGKyjx](https://open.spotify.com/album/3Lxp1Qf8mbyJhdLWXGKyjx)

Apple Music: [https://music.apple.com/us/album/the-ascent-single/6792833373](https://music.apple.com/us/album/the-ascent-single/6792833373)

Amazon Music: [https://music.amazon.com/albums/B0H9P88LKY](https://music.amazon.com/albums/B0H9P88LKY)

Bandcamp: [https://soundsystem7.bandcamp.com/track/the-ascent](https://soundsystem7.bandcamp.com/track/the-ascent)

How to DIY an Eight-piece Track, Backwards!