Music Producer, Mix Engineer

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

A: I'm proud of all my projects!

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: With lockdown, I'm working on finishing two album projects that are in their finishing stages, sending mixes to the artist and then actioning their suggestions.

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: Don't care. It's all about the music.

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

A: That you'll have a great time making music and you'll be really proud of the music we produce together.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: I love people and I love music - recording music is the perfect combination!

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

A: How much does it cost to record a song? It all depends on the artist. If the artist sings and plays guitar well, then perhaps a day's work so about $300. If the artist doesn't sing so well and doesn't play an instrument, it'll take longer!

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

A: That a producer is 'in charge' - it's teamwork and I'm here to translate what YOU want...

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: What kind of music do you want to make? Do you sing or play instruments? What's your budget? What do you need me to do?

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

A: Get in touch with a nice thoughtful email - the more you tell me, the more thought I can give the project and the more we'll have to talk about! Think about what kind of music you like, what music you want to make and what your budget is.

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

A: A big boat, a mobile phone, a picnic, sunblock and a toothbrush. There's no electricity on a desert island, so listing fabulous studio gear isn't really very helpful!

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

A: Been a musician since I was a kid, been studio recording for 15 or so years.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: I like melody and atmosphere, but otherwise I will try to create YOUR sound and you won't hear 'me' at all...

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

A: I would like to work with YOU because your probably brilliant... good answer?

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: Limit yourself to a set genre, a specific bunch of instruments or another limiting discipline - too much complication, too many options and you'll get confused and forget to just make some music!

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

A: Anything with guitars in it... but not exclusively so!

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: I've got a good ear for a tune and am never short of musical ideas!

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: I bring whatever I need to bring. Sometimes that's just a little nudge here and there, some guitar parts or backing vocals, other times I need to step up and lead the production. I always work with positivity and humour and

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: Production: I like to start off spending some time chatting to my client, listening to some music and discussing their ideas and what they want to get done within their budget. We can then start jamming out the songs live to make sure arrangement, key, tempo and lyric are all there, we then start creating a quick demo sketch for each song and building up the songs that will make up the album or EP. Once we are all happy with the demos, we can start producing the tracks 'up' to their full potential! Hopefully we've laid the groundwork pretty well so this doesn't take too long and we often end up using the lots of the demo in the final production! Finally we iron out any last tweaks in the mix, master the tracks and we're done!

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: My studio is small but perfectly formed! A comfortable writing and recording space based around a Mac Pro running Logic Pro, with vintage guitars and basses, valve amps, drum, a great selection of microphones, a couple of nice synthesizers and loads of sound 'toys' to play with!

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

A: I'm inspired by anyone who has talent. I love Led Zeppelin, The Beatles, MGMT, Tom Petty and a wide and eclectic range of just about everything else! I love people who can play an instrument or sing and have something to say.

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

A: I work with many artists who want to record an EP or album but haven't really found their 'true sound'. I then work closely with them to find their sound and help them finesse their songs and performance before creating some great music, usually in-house but sometimes hiring a drummer or string section etc.