Produce, Record, Mix & Master

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

A: My favourite projects are when we believe greatly in what we create with an artist, and then the world catches on. Seeing the artist fulfil their dreams is really rewarding. Standing in a room on a tour as the band play songs we've help capture and watching those songs connect to their audience is really special. We've been lucky that this has happened many times. Starting back with And So I Watch You From Afar's first couple of albums all the way up to the debut album by The Wood Burning Savages. It's a thrilling, vital message of discourse and questions about where the world is at. Going from us in the studio, with not many paying attention to them winning Album Of The Year at the Northern Irish Music Prize and then seeing them out on tour in the UK has been wonderful. In all projects we are collaborators, while also being responsible, trustworthy engineers. Systematically not making mistakes while helping artists explore.

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: New, secret projects. We have also launched a Women In Music workshop to offer our facilities for those who traditional feel pushed to the outside of the "recording club" Our studio is a facility for all in Belfast who feel it can help them achieve something positve.

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

A: Niall Doran. Our head engineer.

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: Both formats have their benefits and we'll use them to achieve the best that both have to offer.

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

A: We will tell the truth.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: Helping people to make the best music and recordings they can.

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

A: How much? And the answer is always "it depends"

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

A: That we are expensive and pick and choose who we work with.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: What do you hope to achieve? What do you want to happen? Detailed questions about the specifics of the project after that.

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

A: Chat about your ideas before commencing a project. If you feel a connection and enthusiasm as the plan develops, then you're in the right place.

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

A: Ipod. Headphones. MiniMoog. Guitar. Endless margarita machine.

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

A: Start Together has been opened for 12 years. Our engineers all have a background in being musicians. Owner Rocky O'Reilly spent five years playing in Oppenheimer, an indie-pop two piece signed to Bar/None Records. He released three albums and toured relentlessly in USA, UK & Europe. There he recorded in various studios and for radio & TV sessions. Before this he wrote music for television and recorded audio for TV and film. Before that he toured and worked in-house as an engineer with artists like Ugly Duckling, Olympic Lifts, In Case Of Fire and in Belfast venues The Limelight and The Empire Music Hall.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: Honest and proactive.

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

A: We named the studio after a song by Sleater-Kinney. If we could hold it together, we would love to have them in the studio.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: Mean it.

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

A: Indie pop, rock, country, ambient, metal, hip-hop, acoustic and soundscapes have all been recorded here.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: A solid technical knowledge with musical experience and views that help take a vision and turn it into a finished, released song.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: Our rooms and range of equipment offer a huge range of natural sounding options to any recordings. We have enjoyed a lot of our projects helping artists to achieve radio plays, tours, record deals and generally reaching a wider international audience.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: We usually get together to talk about the project, your ideas, hopes and ambitions. From there we hatch a plan and figure out the budget. We decide how to approach recording, fully live, part live, totally overdubbed or some mix of those. From there we like to get involved and help as much as needed. We usually move to studio for mixing & mastering from there.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: Studio One is our main recording space. It's made up of different sounding rooms for the right natural acoustic. We have pianos, drums, amps, guitars, pedals and all the best microphones, outboard and recording equipment. It's been set up to inspire and excite musicians, to help them explore and experiment with their ideas. Studio Two is our mix/production room. It's got an old SSL 4000 series console with Pro Tools HDX, a dozen classic synthesizers like the MiniMoog Model D, Roland Juno 60, Sh101. Great microphones and outboard. We mix a lot of music from all over the world in here. Studio Three is our writing / production room. If you're a self-recording musician or a producer working on a budget, this room has a great booth, good monitors and it's a really comfortable environment to write, record and mix your ideas.

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

A: We love a wide range of artists. Inspired by studios like Jackpot, Inner Ear and Electrical Audio.

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

A: Full music productions. Demos. Analog Mixing. Mastering.