Need a real 'musician' to mix a cheeky song soon or do a jazzy or funky live drum track? You're in luck. Regi Ashman can do both of those things (and maybe more).
Regi has been interested in the many facets of music since childhood ranging from the traditional aspects of performance, composition, song writing and arranging; to the more modern & technical aspects such as mixing, recording and production. This multi-faceted approach to music allows Regi to have a greater and more informed perspective when it comes to both playing drums and mixing. If you want a real 'Musician' to lay down some drums or mix your track, Regi has got you.
Having been playing music for most of his life and having also studied jazz performance, composition and drums at the James Morrison Academy of Music under the likes of David Jones, Darryn Farrugia and Andy Fisenden, Regi is well equipped to provide solid grooves and creative flair to any live drum tracks you require.
With over 9 years of mixing experience, Regi can take your raw recordings and polish them so that they literally (well almost literally) jump out of the speakers and smack you in the face.
While Regi specialises playing and mixing jazz, funk and everything in between, still feel free to get in touch if your music doesn't easily fit into these listed musical genres.
I'd love to hear about your project. Click the 'Contact' button above to get in touch.
Credits
11 Reviews - 2 Repeat Clients
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Its always a big pleasure working with Regi!! Great engineer and musician!!
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This is the second time I've worked with Regi, he's an extremely good mixing engineer, especially with his understanding of jazz and his high level of technical skills that help us take the quality of our work to a higher level!
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Regi is an amazing musician and mixing engineer! I highly recommend Regi if you're looking for a mixing engineer with experience of jazz performance! He took our song to a higher level. He was able to accurately control the balance between the instruments while highlighting the characteristics of each instrument. We look forward to working together again!
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I loved with Regi, he went above and beyond to bring outstanding quality for our song!
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Hi quality drumming and sound. Easy communication . Fast delivery. Highly recommended.
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Beautiful drum sound, musical performance, and perfectly recorded. Looking forward to more work with Regi.
Regi did both the recording and mixing for a live performance recently and did an incredible job. He made everything very easy for me, was prompt with adjustments at my request and happy to put in the work to make my vision a reality.
I used Regi to record six songs in a studio for my jazz quartet. He was amazingly efficient and supplied lots of great gear. His mixing skills were also great as he has an immense musical knowledge, which helped him make tasteful decisions. I would definitely use Regi again!
I asked Regi to do a live recording (jazz) for a gig and he was great! Incredibly cooperative, knows his craft and did a great job with the recordings. Well worth bringing him onboard for your project!
Regi filled in as a drummer for my jazz trio recently and did an excellent job with very little rehearsal time required. I would definitely recommend having Regi play for your group.
Regi did the recording and mixing for a live gig I put on a few month ago. The quality of the final poduct was fantastic, as was the experience of working with him. Would highly recommend!
Interview with Regi Ashman
Q: What do you bring to a song?
A: When mixing I aim to capture the artist's unique sound and faithfully recreate it over the speakers in the best way possible. That is my ultimate goal. When playing drums my main goal is to provide an undeniably strong groove and pulse that makes everyone in the band sound better. In both cases I want the music to sound good and any choices I make to serve the music.
Q: Is there anyone on SoundBetter you know and would recommend to your clients?
A: I would recommend David Jones Drums. He's one of my past drum teachers and mentors and he's a legend in the Australian drumming community. David brings a fire and joy to anything that he plays and it always brings a smile to my face whenever I see him play. If you have the opportunity to see David play or work with him I would strongly recommend it, as he's a true master at what he does.
Q: If you were on a desert island and could take just 5 pieces of gear, what would they be?
A: I'd take my NUDE stereo ribbon microphone, my matched pair of NUDE ribbons, my Fethead inline preamps (for the ribbons), a matched pair of small diaphragm condensers and my Audio Technica large diaphragm condenser. I love the sound of ribbons microphones and I try to use them whenever I can, but the highly detailed sound of some good condensers are also a must. I'm still searching a dynamic microphone that really works for me, so apart from the ribbons I wouldn't bring any.
Q: What other musicians or music production professionals inspire you?
A: In terms of mixing engineers Al Schmitt (R.I.P.) would be a big inspiration. He worked for such a long time and with so many different artist, including the greats! He truly was a master. For drummers it'd be Mark Guiliana and Jojo Mayer. They both have such creative voices on their instruments but can also mold themselves to fit within any musical context they find themselves in.
Q: Tell us about a project you worked on you are especially proud of and why. What was your role?
A: I previously live recorded 14 different jazz groups over the span of a couple weeks. The whole thing was very impromptu and there no time to check sound between different groups' sets (of which there 2 to 3 each night). It challenging but through trusting my experience and instincts I managed to get some decent recordings out of each performance with little prep time. Once I finished mixing all 76 tracks I was particularly proud of how I managed to get such quality recordings in such a high intensity and uncontrolled environment.
Q: Analog or digital and why?
A: Digital. It's more affordable, more portable, less finicky and you can get results that are just as good as analog. With the majority of the music being released today being mixed digitally I see no reason to give up and convenience and ease that using it brings. Also not all of us are made of money.
Q: What's your typical work process?
A: For drumming I'll first listen through the whole song a few times and take notes on what ideas come to me. During this stage I'll map out all the sections of the song and take note of particular musical moments that stand out to me. Then I'll get behind the drum kit and try out some of those ideas until I find the ones that fit. Once I have the part figured out I'll then record and then listen back as many time as needed until the part sound finished. For mixing I'll first listen through the song and make some notes. I'll then do some basic organisation tasks and audio clean up as is needed. I then mix and make revisions as many times as I need until I can't think of anything else that needs improving.
Q: Tell us about your studio setup.
A: I have a modest home studio where I both track drums and mix. It's not the fanciest nor the most expensive setup but it gets results and that's all that matters. I run KRK Rokits for monitoring and KRK KNS 8400s for my headphones. I track and mix in REAPER on a Windows PC.
Q: Describe the most common type of work you do for your clients.
A: Most of my work is as a mix engineer and recording engineer for jazz. I do a lot of a live recordings of local gigs, so many that it's become my specialty. For most of the live gigs that I record I end up being the mix engineer as well.
Q: What are you working on at the moment?
A: At the moment I'm working on mixing a live recording I made of a local jazz quintet. Most of the tracks are original compositions, so it's very exciting to be a part of the creative process in bringing this music to life.
Q: What's the biggest misconception about what you do?
A: That I can fix a bad performance. My job is to try present an artist's recorded performance in the best possible light. There's a lot that I can do to cover up mistakes, but ultimately if the performance doesn't sound good at the start of the mix, by the end it won't sound much better. You get out what you put in as they say.
Q: What advice do you have for a customer looking to hire a provider like you?
A: Providing me with reference tracks to listen to as an example of the sound and vibe you're going for is invaluable. In these instances music is just so much more effective at communicating than words.
Q: What was your career path? How long have you been doing this?
A: I've been playing drums for sixteen years and mixing for over seven. I've been interested in making music since I was a child and have been playing in bands and making my own home recordings since I was a teenager. After high school I spent four years studying drums, jazz performance and composition at the James Morrison Academy of Music. I've been doing freelance mixing and drums for the past three years.
Q: Which artist would you like to work with and why?
A: The bass player Avishai Cohen, as either a mix engineer or a drummer. In both situations there's so much that I could and learn and gain from that experience. Musically he's a huge inspiration to me and any opportunity to collaborate with him would be a dream come true.
Q: What's your strongest skill?
A: Staying true to the artist's intentions, vision and sound. Jazz musicians spend a lifetime crafting their unique sound so as mix engineer I need to try and put similar amount of care and attention in making sure that their sound is represented faithfully on the finished recording.
Q: Can you share one music production tip?
A: If you want instant lo-fi hip hop vibes, just run your entire mix through tape emulation with a slow 'wow' or 'flutter' effect and slow-down the playrate with pitch compensation off (this will detune the whole track slightly). Instant vibes achieved.
Q: What type of music do you usually work on?
A: For both drumming and mixing I mainly work on the jazz and funk genres. I do a lot of live recording jazz gigs and that recording mentality and approach is the same in the studio. Whenever possible I prefer to record bands playing together in the same room. This approach is ideal for jazz where the musicians are constantly improvising interacting with one another.
Q: What do you like most about your job?
A: Being able to contribute to someone else's musical endeavour is such a satisfying thing. Particularly when you finish your contribution and listen back to the completed project. It's exciting every time.
Q: What's your 'promise' to your clients?
A: To be honest and to try and give all that I can give to their project. They've decided to spend money on my services so I want them to able leave them smiling and full of excitement when they hear back the finished track. When I take on a project that I know I'm not the best fit for, I'll tell them straight up. Because ultimately we both want to create the best music we can, and if that means I need tell them I'm not the best choice, then that's exactly what I'll do.
Q: How would you describe your style?
A: For mixing main style could be described as 'naturalistic'. For acoustic instruments I want them to sound both musical and real to life. I want the track to sound almost as if the listener is sitting in front of the musicians in the same room. For drums my style focuses around the groove. I aim to play as simply as possible while keeping it undeniably groovy. By doing this I'm focusing on trying to support all the other instruments and make the entire track sound as good as possible.
Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?
A: For both drumming and mixing I'd ask them about the style and of the track and the general musical direction. I might ask for some reference tracks in terms of how they want either the drum part or the mix to sound. The most important thing for me would be to try and understand what a client wants to achieve musically and where they are coming from. If I can learn this early on in the process, it makes actually doing the work much smoother as I know what I'm trying to do and what limitations I have.
I was the Mixing & Recording Engineer in this production
- Mixing EngineerAverage price - $150 per song
- Live drum trackAverage price - $125 per song
Mixing: 1 revision included. Turnaround for a single track will be 3-4 four days.
Drums: 1 revision included. Turnaround will be 7 days (for most jobs). No revisions for rush jobs.
- Two ears. Some drums. Both work great. Grestch Drums
- Paiste Cymbals
- NUDE Ribbon Microphones
- RODE & Audio Technica condensers.
Hire me to mix or play drums on four or more tracks at once and get 10% off the total cost
- My new EP 'Prologue' released!Oct 16, 2023
My EP 'Prologue', the first part of an imagined film score performed by a jazz octet is available on Bandcamp and major streaming services! I composed, arranged, mixed and mastered the whole EP and I'm extremely proud what myself, the band and all my other collaborators managed to achieve.