I immediately set up my Harmonizer and decided to use one of the coolest tricks I’d discovered before I’d left London. Here's Visconti talking about the Harmonizer in the context of the "Low" sessions:īefore we recorded the first piece, I had to get sounds from each instrument, and in the case of the drums, one for each drum. It's effect is more pronounced on "Low" but can be heard on "The Idiot" as well (remember both albums were recorded pretty much simultaneously at the same studio). In the hands of Bowie, Visconti and Thibault this device was used to pitch drum sounds DOWN. The Harmonizer is a real-time pitch-shifting device that one would typically use to fabricate vocal harmonies. I should say this is also a success for Thibault because he states that the Château was the first studio in Europe to have an Eventide Harmonizer. Visconti's main secret behind the sounds of "Low" and "The Idiot" lies in the Eventide Harmonizer.
Well, back in 1977 after the release of "Low" engineers were clamoring to figure out what Visconti had wrought, and he wasn't telling then either. The way I use them is really my own business." My first reaction was puzzlement, "Why would someone protect some recording technique that is over 30 years old?". However, he also stated, "I use the same gear as all engineers do, the same mics, pres, consoles, etc. In email exchanges with Visconti where I have asked about some of the details from the Idiot sessions he's been kind to reply, but cannot recall the details of what the gear he used, which is understandable. And of course, he mixed (some of) Iggy's "The Idiot", which Bowie produced. Tony Visconti, Brooklyn-native, has been a fairly constant presence behind the glass of Bowie's work records among others. This picture was taken during the "Low" sessions. The photo to the left shows Roy Young and Carlos Alomar attempting to hide at The Chateau, while David Bowie (on the left) counts to a hundred.