Joel Sarakula

Singer-Songwriter + Producer

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13 Reviews (9 Verified)
Joel Sarakula on SoundBetter

I am a full-time singer-songwriter, producer, multi-instrumentalist and artist. Writing, producing and performing under my name I have specialised in Soft-Rock, Soul and Disco releases with a vintage flair. My tracks are regularly playlisted on national radio in Europe and the UK and I've performed at SXSW, Primavera (Spain) and Glastonbury (UK).

Firstly, I offer my songwriting services in almost any capacity. I have honed my creative, technical and editing skills in songcraft over a lifetime spent in the music industry. I am happy to engage in co-writes on any theme or genre, to write bespoke songs based on style and reference suggestions or to edit and ultimately improve a song: making changes to melody, lyrics and harmony. Every songwriting process that I engage in will result in an authentic and artistic result. My songs have been on rotation on national radio stations, charted and selected for editorial playlist on Spotify so I have a proven track record in songcraft.

I also offer my production and editing in many capacities. I am a self-produced artist and I have a particular flair for combining vintage production styles with some modern tricks. Within the production world I have many skills: band arranging, string and horn arrangements, vocal tuning and vocal comping and general editing and comping. I would be happy to bring my skillset to an existing production or to help start a production from scratch taking particular care to improve the arrangement of the song.

Finally, I am a professional singer and pianist, I play guitar and bass at production level and I can suggest affordable drummers. I offer my services to remotely record these instrumental tracks for any production.

Click the 'Contact' above to get in touch. Looking forward to hearing from you.

Credits

AllMusic verified credits for Joel Sarakula
  • Sarakula
  • Joel Sarakula
  • Joel Sarakula
  • Joel Sarakula
  • Riptide Movement
  • Joel Sarakula
  • Joel Sarakula
  • Joel Sarakula
  • Joel Sarakula
  • Joel Sarakula
  • Joel Sarakula
  • Riptide Movement

Languages

  • English
  • German
  • Spanish

13 Reviews - 2 Repeat Clients

Endorse Joel Sarakula
  1. Review by John Malone & Friends
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    I had a great time working on a new composition with Joel. Joel brought his unique sound to the project and transformed the song into exactly what was in my head. He has a wonderful edginess to his work and look I forward to doing another track. Highly recommended!

  2. Review by Ade C.
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    by Ade C.
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    Joel is a phenomenal arranger, composer, and all-around genuine human being. He's also patient and a great communicator. Through working on this project, I found clarity and purpose as a creative. Each step was as if we were solving a jigsaw puzzle of musical information. Even with perplexity, and the inertia of the ages, we solved a beautiful enigma that will bind us together throughout time!

    Love.

  3. Review by Zac C.
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    by Zac C.
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    I can't recommend Joel highly enough. Not only is he an excellent and accomplished musician, engineer, producer and arranger but he is such a gent to deal with. His re-tracking, arrangement and product of my music lifted it beyond my hopes. I look forward to working with Joel again soon.

  4. Review by Vijay S.
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    Joel is a highly skilled producer and multi-instrumentalist, he helped me transform my dodgy acoustic demo into a full band 60s soul track, horns n all!

    Joel was very accomodating to my vision for the song, as well as giving his own opinion and guidance, a great balance. Very happy with the result, would highly recommend working with him.

  5. Review by Craig H.
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    Joel was very pleasant to work with. He took a keen interest in the song and was sensitive to any requirements I may have needed. I think Joel's vocal tone was just what I was looking for when envisioning my song's outcome. I Highly recommend Joel.

  6. Review by Jim G.
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    by Jim G.
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    Joel was a total star - a great collaborator and came up with a top notch topline and vocal performance.

  7. Review by Nhan Nguyen
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    Joel was able to deliver the vocals I needed for the track. He was also able to provide production tips which were very useful in the collaboration. Going back and forth working on this record was really fun.

    Cheers

  8. Review by Felipe Benavides B.
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    Joel is a highly creative and collaborative professional. I feel really lucky to finding someone who was able to re-write some lyrics from Spanish into English. Hope I can submit a new gig for him soon.

  9. Review by Greg V.
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    Joel was absolutely great to work with. This was my first time using SoundBetter and I am really happy I found Joel. He understood what I was looking for and was open to all of my ideas. He came up with great lyrics, wonderful arrangement and really made my song special. Thank you, Joel!

  10. Review by Anthony V.
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    Joel is an artist with a brilliant mind for musical composition. Great personality, Super professional, and a pleasure to work with!

  11. Review by Phil Martin
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    by Phil Martin

    Joel is such a talented musician. As a producer/songwriter/drummer myself I have worked with him on his latest album and now he is working on my album. We wrote some nice tunes together. Really inspirational and Easy to work with. He always has got great ideas for songs, instrumentation, arrangements and production. I hope to work with him more often.

  12. Review by Simon Eugene
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    Joel is a brilliant songwriter and producer, particular in the fields of vintage disco pop, soft rock and soul, he's one of the best guys I've worked and a really inspiring presence in the studio. I really recommend him as a great artist to work with to help develop songs and give them a real unmistakable flair. He's also a piano/keyboard player par excellence!

  13. Review by Simon Eugene
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    Joel is a brilliant songwriter and producer, particular in the fields of vintage disco pop, soft rock and soul, he's one of the best guys I've worked and a really inspiring presence in the studio. I really recommend him as a great artist to work with to help develop songs and give them a real unmistakable flair. He's also a piano/keyboard player par excellence!

Interview with Joel Sarakula

  1. Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

  2. A: I use RME products for audio interfacing - a Babyface and a RME AD-2 pro which gives me up to 4 hi quality analog ins and outs. It's enough for me as I don't track drums. I have a pair of Dynaudio BM5a speakers to monitor and Beyerdyamic DT-770s, DT-150s and DT-990s. I have a great collection of vintage dynamic and ribbon mics from Sennheiser and Beyerdynamic. Instruments include an acoustic upright, Nord Electro, DSI Mopho x4, Korg EX-8000, Yamaha CS-15 Ibanez bass, Westone guitar. Lots of toys.

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

  4. A: Too many great artists to mention. I'm really inspired by the vision and work ethic of the classic self-contained artist/writer/producers - namely people like Prince, Todd Rundgren, Marvin Gaye and Paul McCartney. However, there are some current self-contained artist-producers I love too like Adrian Younge, Toro y Moi, Young Gun Silver Fox...

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

  6. A: Writing, arrangement and production are my three greatest skills and the most common types of work I've done. I've also tracked keyboard parts and vocals independent of my own productions/arrangements.

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Understanding by Joel Sarakula

I was the Producer, Arranger, Singer, Keyboards in this production

Terms Of Service

My songwriting process will allow for multiple revisions and typical turn-around time on remote work would be within three days under normal circumstances.

GenresSounds Like
  • Steely Dan
  • The Beach Boys
  • Daryl Hall & John Oates
Gear Highlights
  • Dynaudio BM5
  • RME ADI-2
  • Sennheiser MD-441
  • Beyer M-160s
  • RFZ pres
  • Neve 2254 comp
  • Fender Rhodes Mark II
  • Nord Electro
  • Hohner Pianet
  • Moog Prodigy
  • Yamaha CS-15
  • DSI Mopho x4
  • Korg EX-8000
  • Korg KR-55B
  • Fender Stratocaster
  • Epiphone Sheraton
More Photos
SoundBetter Deal

I offer a special price of $650 for writing a song in all its elements: music, lyrics and topline. We can adapt any ideas or riffs that you may already have or I could start from scratch. Either way it will be a beautiful work of songcraft.