Session guitarist, songwriter

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

A: I am especially proud of my band's most recent song, "stale peeps." Every part works together in a complementary way, from the melodic baselines to the beautiful drumming and guitar work of the other guitarist. It was a blast recording with the other musicians on that track.

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: Currently I am focusing on mixing and recording my band's album. We have 7 songs that we wrote and are wrapping up, hopefully releasing it this summer.

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: Both of course! I love analog gear and the inspiration it provides, and I love how it pairs with the versatility and accessibility of DAW's and digital gear.

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

A: My promise is that the tracks they receive will be professional quality, ready to go on a final production.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: I love working with a diverse population of people on different types of projects. Each individual has their own unique drive and style that can be really inspiring to work with.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: I ask if there is any reference material they can provide for what they are looking for, as well as what they are hoping to do with the project.

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

A: Please provide as much detail as possible about what you are looking for stylistically, as well as any tonal advice you may have.

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

A: My fender Stratocaster, Taylor acoustic guitar, tweed deluxe amp, a microphone, and a computer :)

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

A: I am currently looking to expand my network with hopes of being able to play live and do session work full time. I have working at it for the last 2 years, since graduating college.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: My style is very rhythm-based and versatile. I love locking in with the drums and bass, and providing a complementary voice to the other parts of the song. For lead parts, I try to create an arc of tension, using memorable motifs combined with ear-catching technical parts when appropriate.

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

A: I would love to work with chill pop/ indie groups such as crumb, as I love the versatile songwriting and interesting textures.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: My biggest tip would be to make sure you have the sound you are looking for at the source. This includes the right setup, as well as nailing the performance and giving it your all.

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

A: I usually work on different forms of rock and indie rock, as well as church music.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: My strongest skill is listening to the desires of the client, and providing them with tracks that they will be excited to include in their production.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: I bring memorable and compelling guitar parts that fit in with what the producer and songwriter are looking for. I love receiving feedback and growing as a musician with each project.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: If I am asked to learn specific parts, I will spend a few hours listening to the tracks provided and memorizing the structure. After I feel that I understand the composition, I will go to my instrument and learn to play it. From there, I begin recording scratches and decide what sounds will work best, and then begin recording the tracks. Once they are recorded I will send a demo to the client and happily accept any critique they can offer, or changes they desire. Once it is done, I share the consolidated stems via Dropbox or Google Drive.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: I record either at home or in a studio space depending on the project and desired sound/ level of ambience. For electric tracks I have a tweed deluxe amp in an isolated cabinet that I run my modified Stratocaster and pedalboard through. With this setup I can cover just about any genre sound, but also have the option of recording DI tracks if the engineer wishes to do their own processing. For acoustic I have a Taylor 314 that I record either with a DPA small diaphragm condenser, or a Shure Beta 57, depending on the context,

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

A: Recently I have been inspired by math rock groups such as Toe, Totorro, and TTNG. I love the live, natural feel to their recordings, and love how the individual performances really shine through.

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

A: I frequently write and record guitar solos and hooks for indie/rock tracks. I also write and record riffs and acoustic parts, or learn parts by ear depending.