Benjamin Booker (album)

Recording and production

The album was recorded in December 2013 at Andrija Tokic's all-analog Bomb Shelter in East Nashville. Tokic, who has produced recordings for Hurray for the Riff Raff and Alabama Shakes, engineered and produced the sessions. Alynda Lee Segarra of Hurray for the Riff Raff and Sam Doores of The Deslondes recommended the studio to Booker, who chose it because he wanted to record in analog. Booker arrived with his only bandmate, Max Norton, from Tampa, Florida.

The drum kit was captured with an RCA overhead, a Neumann U 87 on kick, and a Shure 57 on snare. Booker's vocal chain typically included a Neumann U 67 with an Altec tube preamp and a UA 175 compressor. Other instruments, such as a Sennheiser 441, were rotated in. The main guitars used were a 60s hollow-body Super Lynx Deluxe Vox and an ’80s Ibanez Matsumoku Roadster.

As recording progressed, Tokic brought in bass players and keyboardists to flesh out the recordings. The album was mixed on Tokic's MCI JH600 console.