Production, Mixing, Mastering

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

A: I engineered the basics session and overdubs for a group called La Colectiva Corazón at a studio in Valencia, Spain. It was a huge session, a genre I'd never worked with before, and we ran in to a few grounding issues, but at the end of the day the session was a huge success, and the final track is beautiful. For me, it was an enlightening day, I learned that I could be truly flexible in the studio, trust my instincts, and come out with a great product even in a situation I wasn't sure about.

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: I'm currently mixing this beautiful, soft, electro-pop album by Olivia Dawn.

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

A: Nathanial Bridges and I collaborate on a lot of projects together. I frequently use him as a mastering engineer for projects that I mix, and vice versa.

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: This argument rages on- They honestly both have their place. I love analogue toys as much as the next engineer, but you can get great results with software alone. It depends on the context.

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

A: The only promise I can make is to communicate clearly, and put everything I've got in to your work.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: One of my clients told me recently that she'd gotten a comment about a track we worked on together- She said that someone told her that her music was helping them through a really dark time. I started making my own music to get through a dark time myself, so to have had a helping hand in bringing the world a song that helped even one person, that's my favorite thing in the world.

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

A: Most common question: "Can you do this by tomorrow?" My usual answer: "Yes, but not well."

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

A: That there's any one particularly correct way to do it.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: What do you want this to sound like? Who are you listening to in the back of your head when you're writing this music? What kind of timeline are we looking at?

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

A: The best end products come from healthy communication, and a clear understanding of all the relevant deadlines.

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

A: I've been making my own music for 10 years, but it wasn't until I went to Berklee for my Masters in music technology and production that I started mixing and engineering for bands and other artists. Now I have a passion for so much more than just producing electronic music.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: Relaxed, but slightly ominous.

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

A: There's a Japanese rapper named DAOKO who has a really laid back style- I'd love to work with her because I think her voice and her flow really suit the kind of music I make for myself.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: The best production tip I've ever heard was: Never do anything to a sound without understand why you're doing it. A lot of people follow tutorials to get a sound dialed in or to get a "Perfect Mix" without understanding why they're doing what they're doing, and I feel like that's a very dangerous way to work.

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

A: Primarily softer electronic stuff like IDM, Jazz-based Hip-Hop and R&B, as well as straight Jazz, but I've also worked with classical, folk, and world-music artists.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: Keeping the momentum of a track alive from start to finish.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: I love dreamy textures and lots of space, so I'd say my biggest talent when it comes to mixing is helping a song breath and expand. I've had a couple of clients remark that my work with vocals is like butter in their ears. In my own work though, I like dirty, crunchy sounds mixed in with my vibes, so I can go both ways.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: I start with a general assessment of the task at hand and narrow it down from there. I don't like to start working on something until I really understand what I'm starting with and where I (and my client) want to be when I'm done. I typically listen to the track first, listen to what my client wants next, give them my assessment about what it's going to take to get there, and then proceed with what I think is the best course of action.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: I have access to several studios with large format consoles and racks of outboard gear, but my home studio is set up as a small format production and mixing studio, centered around a Focusrite Clarett 8prex.

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

A: I love producers like Tokimonsta and Flying Lotus, people who really pull the juice out of their equipment and who know how to pull something primordial out of their music.

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

A: Mixing and remixing, though I have plenty of experience working in several large format studios as a recording engineer as well.