The Friendship Trust set up shop in 2005 as a side project for musicians in another band. But something happened and they liked the music they were producing. Dan Gineer earlier talked to Gearwire about his live setup -- past and present. He also talked about what the band does in the studio, the differences between the live and studio set ups and gear he might want to acquire.

The band's first EP was recorded using an old copy of Cubase VST 24, miked with a Rode NT1000 solid state compressor through an Aardvark Pro 24/96.

"I remember when the Q10 came out, and I crapped my pants hoping to pick one of those up. The next thing I knew, Aardvark tanked, the Direct Pro was on the fritz, and that was that," says Dan. "For plug-ins, I kept it simple; Plugsound Free, mda ePiano, Steinberg vb-1, PD303, Dave Brown's Tempodelay DX, Trancemitter, Waves Renaissance Compressor, LinPlug RMF. I've been using the same plugins since VST first came out; I've been using these plugs so long that their sound is like home."

The studio used then was dismantled and sold off and Gineer is working to rebuild -- again based around a laptop. At the moment his only input is a Line 6 Toneport.

"It's a simplistic setup that simplifies tracking guitar for demos. Vocals sound like garbage, but it'll do until the next CD is ready," he says. "For guitars, I have an Ibanez RG that's kept at E-standard and is used primarily for things that require a faster fretboard. I recommend having at least one guitar with a fast fretboard, even if it sounds like crap, just to improve your technique."

When it comes to new gear there are a few things Gineer has his eye on.

"I've always had a soft spot for those 8-channel FireWire setups, especially if all eight inputs are Neutriks and are usable simultaneously," he says. "And the new studio is going to have a Midiman [now M-Audio] Oxygen8. Yes, it's the most simple keyboard controller out there, but that's not always a bad thing. Once the MIDI data is in the computer, you can do whatever you want with it. If you are taking the audio out of a keyboard, you're selling other people's presets. Other than that, it would be nice to have a decent mic again, in order to help track demos. All we really have around here is this mic that was stolen from a Holiday Inn conference room circa 1999."

Thieves! But then most folks know how tempting the fine gear used in Holiday Inn Conference rooms can be.

The band is currently looking to find their fans and make the best new record they can -- even if that means dragging out 10 years worth of demos and rerecording them. They also plan to hit the road in the USA in the spring and then again in the summer and fall.