Marcelo Suarez

Producer/ Record/ Mix engineer

starstarstarstarstar
2 Reviews
Marcelo Suarez on SoundBetter

Music Producer and engineer, based in Ecuador, McGill's Sound Recording Master's graduate. I've worked in some of the most relevant indie music projects in my native country, Ecuador and worked with great artists and Orchestras in Montreal, Canada. I can help you realize the vision you have for you music and will work hard in achieving YOUR sound.

I specialize in pop, rock, indie, but I can definitely mix any genre. Hit me up for a quote and to talk about your project. That initial contact will be key to making sure we get to the final product we are both proud of. I'll remotely mix, master or stem - master, any project of yours in any genre.

Contact me through the green button above and let's get to work.

2 Reviews

Endorse Marcelo Suarez
  1. Review by Mauro Samaniego
    starstarstarstarstar
    by Mauro Samaniego

    Chelo is the guy you need!
    I’ve been working with him more than 8 years now, the best thing is that he really gets into the Music and is really good at taking the time to understand the concept behind it. Work with him, you won’t regret it!

  2. Review by Robert Hughson
    starstarstarstarstar
    by Robert Hughson

    Marcelo delivers high quality mixes and masterings without compromising the artist's vision or integrity within their music. He is very open minded and open to all sorts of suggestions, and working with him has always been flexible and results have always ended positively.

Interview with Marcelo Suarez

  1. Q: Tell us about a project you worked on you are especially proud of and why. What was your role?

  2. A: Da Pawn - "Pistola de Balin", this album was produced mixed and finished in one month and it's a real picture of the artist's character at the time, I was really proud to get a comment from the artist claiming it was very real to the style of the band.

  3. Q: What are you working on at the moment?

  4. A: I'm currently mixing a live recording of a concert that didn't get to happen because of the COVID-19 crisis.

  5. Q: Is there anyone on SoundBetter you know and would recommend to your clients?

  6. A: Andrew Scheps?

  7. Q: Analog or digital and why?

  8. A: Both, Analog for the character and the physical feel of it, digital for the flexibility and convenience. My setup is hybrid.

  9. Q: What's your 'promise' to your clients?

  10. A: I promise I'll work on the music until we are both happy with it, with the client's happiness being above mine of course.

  11. Q: What do you like most about your job?

  12. A: I love to bring up someone's art to a higher level, I know that I'm mostly a catalyst, I make sure that the art can be as relatable as possible and as compelling as I can.

  13. Q: What questions do customers most commonly ask you? What's your answer?

  14. A: Besides rates and gear, people often ask about what I feel about the music itself, and to that the answer is of course project-dependant. But I make sure I'm honest about what I feel.

  15. Q: What's the biggest misconception about what you do?

  16. A: People often mistake the process of mastering with the mixing process, so I often get quotes where people hiring me for mastering are looking for mixing duties.

  17. Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

  18. A: Tell me about your career. What is your intention with this new record? What do you want to sound like? (not to copy an aesthetic, but to inspire it) Is there anything special you'd like me to do with this recording? Is there additional editing, comping, tightening or tuning that needs to be done? When do you need this finished? Where is this intended to be released and what kind of deliverables do you need? (instrumentals? TV version? stems?)

  19. Q: What advice do you have for a customer looking to hire a provider like you?

  20. A: Make sure your initial contact makes you feel comfortable with what the provider can bring to your music, honesty is key.

  21. Q: If you were on a desert island and could take just 5 pieces of gear, what would they be?

  22. A: One Shure SM7B, my Apogee quartet portable interface, my Wes Audio Dione mixbus compressor, trusted Sennheiser HD650 headphones and a laptop.

  23. Q: What was your career path? How long have you been doing this?

  24. A: I studied a BA in Music Production and Engineering in USFQ (Berklee Network), and later a M. Mus Master of Sound Recording at McGill University in Montreal, Canada. I've been doing this for 13 years at the moment, and started with young indie artists, helping them build an audience by doing live sound as well as studio work in order to make them succeed in front of an audience.

  25. Q: How would you describe your style?

  26. A: I think my style can be bold and big, i like drawing all the right visceral cues from a song to bring emotion to it. Music is art and as art it's meant to make you feel something, so my goal is to intensify the emotions that a piece of music can convey.

  27. Q: Which artist would you like to work with and why?

  28. A: There's an artist in my hometown with whom I've collaborated with a lot, I've been working with Da Pawn for about 10 years now, and their music and work ethic has influenced my work, and brought experience and joy to my life, from doing tours, big festivals and great albums with them. I like to create a relationship with artists and follow their careers.

  29. Q: Can you share one music production tip?

  30. A: "Timeless takes time", i don't remember who this quote is from, but I live by it. Invest time in experimenting with the musicians, the gear and techniques in order to really be able to color outside the lines without making a mess. Learn all the rules, practice them and really apply them before you can attempt to break them, knowing how and when to do so.

  31. Q: What type of music do you usually work on?

  32. A: I mostly work on indie pop and rock, but anything from classical 100 piece orchestras to singer/songwriter and jazz or metal are genres and styles I'm familiar with and have worked on.

  33. Q: What's your strongest skill?

  34. A: Really good understanding of audio principles, I have been doing this for 13 years, and studied a masters degree with some of the best professionals in different aspects in the industry, I bring bold creative approaches without sacrificing quality in any step of the process.

  35. Q: What do you bring to a song?

  36. A: I like to think that my job is to elevate the material I receive. I bring all my creativity and attempt to highlight all the best features of the pre-existing materials. I can be extremely bold with my mixing style or super "respectful" and just clean up and polish the material, I let the music and the artist guide me in this. But I do like a big sound and for rock I often reach for a contrast between vintage and modern sounds, to create something that doesn't have a noticeable era stamped to it, "timeless" is something i like to strive for.

  37. Q: What's your typical work process?

  38. A: I like to guide myself by having a good interaction with the artist/client, really diving into the references, likes and needs of the artist before getting to work, this really informs my work. For mixing and mastering, the first contact is where i get all this important information so I can get to know the artist and find out where I can take their music to.

  39. Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

  40. A: My studio is a small project studio with proper acoustic treatment and all the gear I need for recording small bands and mixing records. Focal CMS65 monitors, Apogee Ensemble Thunderbolt converters, Rupert Neve Designs and Universal Audio preamps and compressors, an SSL X-Desk for monitoring, recording and Analog Summing. Wes Audio Dione mixbus compressor, and an assortment of amplifiers, guitars, basses, keyboards and a big plugin collection.

  41. Q: What other musicians or music production professionals inspire you?

  42. A: I really look into the work of interesting music producers like Noah Georgeson, Tchad Blake, Shawn Everett, and musicians like Brian Eno, Danger Mouse and others.

  43. Q: Describe the most common type of work you do for your clients.

  44. A: In my hometown I usually do the whole process for indie artists: production, recording, mixing and mastering. I specialize in mixing and mastering.

loading
play_arrowpause
skip_previous
skip_next
Bardo Jose - Las Flores (Excerpt)

I was the Producer/ Mix Engineer in this production

Terms Of Service

I deliver one original mix, then I do 2 full revisions and if needed an online real-time session for final tweaks, always. If more tweaks are needed they will be done, within reason.

GenresSounds Like
  • Tame Impala
  • Arctic Monkeys
  • Feist
Gear Highlights
  • WesAudio Dione
  • SSL Xdesk
  • Rupert Neve Designs RND511
  • UA 4-710d.
SoundBetter Deal

Instrumental Mixes printed for free if needed.