Rock & Metal Bass + Production

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: I'm working on the business side of my business...

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: I got me some UAD Apollos and a setup with all the benefits of analog AND digital. What I like about analog is the commitment, but on the other hand digital benefits are just too good to make use of them...

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

A: They usually ask stuff they don't know, so I give them an answer.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: What is the goal you're working towards and what's your overall plan/vision? What would reaching these goals be worth to you? What can you do on your own, and where do you need help?

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

A: Know what you really want/need, have a plan/vision, and be able to communicate that properly... You need to have commitment and dedication!

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

A: 2003-2006 Autodidact (friends I was going skateboarding with needed a bass player)... 2006-2009 Bass School Munich (I wasn't accepted at university studying psychology, so I studied bass and graduated with a diploma as live & studio bassist)... 2009-2012 Music College Regensburg (I needed certification in music education for officially teaching at music schools)... 2012-2014 Berklee College Of Music (I've been producing since 2005 so I thought it'd be handy to have a professional certificate in music production)... 2015 Home Mastering Masterclass by Ian Shepherd and 2020 Mastering Academy by Friedemann Tischmeyer (to even further specialize in mastering)... 2020-2021 Mastering Academy by Friedemann Tischmeyer (become certified Apple Digital Masters mastering engineer)...

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: I like my recordings 'real' and 'timeless': not too over-produced, but clean and focused with dynamics! No more Loudness War casualties - 80% Appolonian, 20% Dionysian!

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

A: I'd like to work with (semi-)professional bands/artists, who are willing to accept and appreciate help in situations where they are not professional enough (yet), and who are serious enough to sacrifice their hard earned money (or the label's budget) for their art. Commitment, you know?

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

A: Most of the time I work on music where guitars are the most important part after the vocals, so that's often genres of Rock & Metal.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: I have utmost expertise in the technical (recording, mixing, mastering) and artistic (songwriting/arranging, teaching/playing lots of instruments, being an artist myself) sides of audio and I'm a patient and 'easy to get along with' kinda guy, so I guess I can best serve as the supervising producer.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: I try to understand the artist's vision and then work fast and effective to fulfill it the best I can to make the artist happy.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: Slash Zero Records Studio (or simply Ø Studio) is a recording studio located in Abensberg, Germany (between Regensburg, Ingolstadt, Munich and Nuremberg). We have 4 different recording rooms to record as a complete live-band, or one-by-one via overdub (we can also provide space to sleep for the whole band, if needed), state of the art equipment that has the ability to sound both modern or vintage, and offer 360° guidance including (pre-)production, recording (professional coaching for almost every instrument), mixing, mastering, label work (release plan, promotion, distribution, marketing), and general tips about the music business (GEMA/PROs, taxes, etc.). The studio is easy to reach via train (5min walk from Abensberg Central Station), car (15min drive from A93 highway), or plane (45min drive from Munich Airport), and within 5min walk you're "into the wild" in beautiful nature to relax and enjoy Abensberg's panorama way and free your mind to be creative. Visit http://slashzerorecords.com for more info.

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

A: too many... but Steven Wilson and of course life itself have had huge influence on me...

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

A: I mostly work as producer together with artists/bands in my studio (Slash Zero Records) and do their mixing/mastering work afterwards, kinda like 360... On many sessions I also jump in as bass player, backing vocalist, or sometimes even as guitarist/keyboarder. . I also mix/master for online clients very often, or artists/bands that were home-recording themselves. The third common work-type I do is classic session bass playing in my own or other studios. The rest of the time I give music lessons, write songs, or tour with various bands.

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

A: Oh... too many... If I had to mention a TOP5 in no particular order: Radio Haze (Strangers), GumoManiacs (By Endurance We Conquer), Young Fast Running Man (Young Bird), Burden Of Life (The Makeshift Conqueror), and AntiPeeWee (Infected By Evil).

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

A: I will 100% satisfy all your musical needs - the only thing that can stop us from achieving that is time and money.

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

A: Stephan Ebn, he's a great drummer and producer... I regularly work with him on various projects!

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: Making it possible to capture mere thoughts and manifest them as a piece of art (best showcased on a physical product like a vinyl record)...

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

A: Sitting in the studio all day long and working on music... Oh wait... that's true!!?

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

A: The latest MacBookPro, UAD Apollo x4, Guitar, Bass, Townsend Labs Sphere L22 Mic - everything you need to make a great record...

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: Record like there's no mixing, mix like there's no mastering, then you can truly master your music!

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: Well, whatever it needs, I suppose... I try to squeeze the best out of the musicians, throw in ideas or parts that contribute to the song, and in general bring the song and its arrangement to life, and that will result in conveying the emotion the artist wants.