About

The Micah Madness BLOG is an opportunity for me to share my unique perspective on music and recording quality with comments from special guests. My concept is to use my restored 1988 Chevrolet Caprice 9C1 police interceptor as a foundation for this BLOG—I will travel places in it, I will use it’s carefully tailored reference sound system to make musical observations, and I will reach various points of interest along the way that may also receive mention.

Good question: Why the 1988 Chevy cop car? I remember in 1977 when GM launched an ad campaign for the Impala/Caprice entitled “The New Chevrolet.” I recall huge ads, profile shots—a very clean, boxy design. For some unexplainable reason, I took to the car way back then. After years of working on automobiles—including many exotics from all over the world, I decided to purchase a “box-style Chevy” of my very own. The 9C1 denomination is reserved for the police package cars, which were adorned with

1988 Chevy 9C1

heavy duty everything and an anemic but torque-heavy 350ci V8 rather than the 305ci that came standard in the civilian cars. I restored the deep blue beast with the initial purpose of using it as a demo platform to sell the very first Alpine aftermarket GPS navigation systems. Once the car had been outfitted and placed in my car electronics showroom (called Audio Coupe, Fairfield, CT), I was surprised to see how it had a sort of universal appeal—men liked it, women liked it, even kids liked to use the old fashioned crank windows. Now years later, I have sold the electronics business but I have retained the car as a platform to absorb much of my extra cash and as a platform for creating this BLOG.

Who the heck am I to offer commentary on music? To be clear, I won’t be pontificating (maybe a little here and there)—there are enough people drowning us in their “expertise.” This is all about perspective—what gets me fired up. Sure, I was raised in a household of musicians, I had piano lessons and music theory from a very early age, and I have played (and continue to play) with some great artists and producers. BUT—this BLOG content will be based on one of my most unique qualities as a human being: my ears. I hear things very acutely—I hear and then visualize all of the notes in my head, and I hear how they interact, harmonies, dissonances, counterpoint, etc. I was born with this ability, it’s not like I can take credit for honing the skill in some faraway camp. At times I’ll get technical and break down why I was moved by something an artist has done—chord voicings, harmonies, melody lines, or whatever. I’ll also address the recording itself, using either the sound system in my Caprice or my home system or both. I am passionate and opinionated about great sound, so I am likely to let it all hang out in this regard.

2009 photo at local marina-car is lowered with new suspension

Other stuff: I’ll try and shoot some cool photos along the way, and I love to talk about food and wine, although I am a casual observer with no formal expertise in these areas. I am adhering to a gluten-free diet having been diagnosed as intolerant of the substance, so I could wander into that territory if I am served something memorable.

Tradition: I’m not, by the way, the first Micah to have a blog. In the 8th century BC a man called Micah the Morashtite — some saw him as a prophet — revealed thoughts that have come down to us in the Old Testament book that carries his name. He advised people to practice three ethical principles: mercy, goodness and humility—and he made this prediction: “And they shall beat their swords into plowshares, And their spears into pruning hooks; Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, Neither shall they learn war any more. But they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree; And none shall make them afraid.“