Producer, Sonic Sculptor

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: I have a custom Hybrid setup combining the digital clarity, increased headroom, and clocking power of the Antelope Orion's 32 channels of A/D D/A Conversion with the warmth and analog fatness of the Burl B32 Analog Summing Mixer. I have a My mixing rig is optimized for Cubase, Pro tools, and Ableton Live. I'm stocked up with hundreds of plugins including the full bundles of Waves, Native Instruments, Fabfilter, Soundtoys, Slate, Plugin Alliance, Goodhertz, and many more. These along with a complement of analog hardware from Antelope, API, Neve, Bettermaker, Burl, Universal Audio provide the toolset to do just about anything. But the most coveted part of my studio is my ears! The years of experience and training is what makes all these tools useful.

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

A: Thats tough.. I believe there is a lot of unknowns for the common artists, manager, fan, etc. about music production. Not to mention the mystique behind the art of mixing. There is a lot of room for crossover between the 2 disciplines, and I try to approach them all independently, and in their time. I think mixing seems to most like magical moves happening behind the proverbial curtain, and in some ways they are right. It does take a well seasoned veteran to possess the skillset, tools, and decisiveness to make a mix great. But it's not magic. It's years of experience spent training our ears, and the using all the fancy tools and gadgets with all the colorful knobs and blinking lights, until we could hear very subtley or not so subtley what it is actually doing and how to apply it to give us control. I also know that some view mixing & mastering as something that is helpful but unnecessary. If you want your songs to truly shine, it is imperative to have them properly mixed and mastered by an industry professional in a treated facility or room. If not, there are all types of pitfalls that will befall your music. To me the idea is simple. You spent countless days and hours crafting and writing and shaping your song to get it to a point you are happy with. Since you have invested that time and effort into it, is it not appropriate to spend the equivalent energy and resources to properly finish it?

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: Communication is a key to my workflow. I always begin with a discussion. Together with the client i like to gather all the information possible regarding the musical goals, emotional message, and sonic benchmarks for the project. We then put together a few reference songs that speak to these goals in one way or another. I begin this way almost always, whether it's for a record i'm producing, or a mix project. After all the files have been transfered and the session is loaded into one of my templates, I spend some time listening around, soloing parts, muting parts, and playing with quick panning ideas. Essentially familiarizing myself with the emotional energy and heart of the song. My next step is to do a bit of clean up. I usually start with the vocals, cleaning up tracking artifacts, taming excessive sibilance, dealing with room noise, anything that falls into the analytical task side of the brain. After I address all these items, I move on to getting a first decent balance of the main musical and rhythmic elements. From there it becomes a process of massaging and sculpting where ever the emotional energy takes me. Think of it like how a sculpter begins with a cube of stone. His first cuts and chisels are large moves but as the statue emerges his moves become finer and finer. One move informs the next and so on back and forth until the final piece is revealed. Once i'm finished with your mix or production i will send you a printed version in whatever format to be evaluated along with a questionaire to help you express and process any mix or production notes you may have. Sometimes new notes arise once the first round was dealt with. That's no problem. I am dedicated to the perfection of your music and your satisfaction, we can revise your mix until you are happy with the results. My goal is always the music first... everything else comes second!

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

A: It's an ever changing evolving list of artists and creatives! There is so much talent in the world, I'm blown away every day.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: Depends on the job and the client. Every project is different and requires different questions to get the information needed for success. But I assure you my goal is to gain all the information possible to push your song to its max.

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: Analog and Digital. Hybrid setups are the best, By combining the two, I get to have my cake and eat it too. I don't feel the need to be held back by either medium. By integrating the digital world into my rig, I am able to reap the benefits of hundreds of processing plugins, infinite recall, intricate automation, and insane track counts. I get the digital clarity and sound but with the added warmth and fatness my analog gear brings to the table as well. I love the stereo width and beefiness we get from the Burl b32 analog summing mixer in combination with my outboard gear and synths.

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

A: I promise all our clients that I am just as invested in the music and sound as you are. I stop at nothing short of excellence and cut no corners. I promise to take your project and elevate it to the highest form!

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

A: I am a graduate of the Oberlin Conservatory of music with a degree in Audio Engineering. I've worked in several major recording studios, production / jingles houses, and have been writing, recording, mixing, mastering music for over 17 years.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: In mixing, I work fast and aggressive, while maintaining a meticulous approach. I don't shy away from tedious intricate automation. If its what will make the music sing, I do it! In mastering I am as transparent as requested, or as aggressive as a client would want me to be. My goal is to carve and massage my way to enhancing the music without being noticed, unless the you want it to be. In production our style is gargantuan. We pride ourselves on producing larger than life music ready for the radio and billboard charts.

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

A: I'd love to work with Francis Starlight from Francis and the Lights. He's a creative genius with an incredible voice and an amazing knack for writing... Would be a dream come true.

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

A: I produced, mixed, and mastered the Sony's official remix of Prince Royce's "Darte Un Beso". He is an international mega pop star and an incredible talent. It truly was a dream come true and opened the door for me to remix for more of their star studded talent.

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

A: Jake Birch, is a long time friend, colleague, and collaborator of mine. He is an extremely talented Producer, Mixer, and Mastering Engineer as well. When the workload gets a little much, I can always count on him to lend a supreme quality hand. Or if I feel the project needs another set of ears for mixing or mastering, i'll recommend he is the engineer to use. We know each other well, and I can always trust that he will fully understand and interpret the notes given to him accurately and how I and the artists would have wished.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: I love the complexity of our hearing and how it can evoke such a strong enough emotion to bring us to tears or make us elated with joy. I love how, through a true understanding of psycho-acoustics we can transport a listener to a different time and space. I love the science behind the sound and I love how in the right hands it can enhance the art of sound to such wondrous levels.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: I bring my musically trained ears, 20+ years of experience creating music and mixing it. I bring an open mind and a love for music so profound the joy is overflowing. I enjoy what i do, and my love for music comes through in my work. I take no shortcuts, and will not rest until a song is as best as it can be!

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

A: Music production, mixing, remixing.

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

A: Electronic, Pop, Rock, EDM, Indie, Folk, Trap, Hip Hop, Country, Bass, such a wide array.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: Although I am well versed and experienced in crafting all genres of music I excel at Pop, Electronic, and EDM production and mixing. I can Master everything equally!

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

A: Make sure you choose a professional that you vibe with and can communicate clearly with. This although most oftenly overlooked, can reap the biggest rewards, when trying to get your music or project to its final vision. If you can't clearly communicate with the producer or engineer what you are looking for than chances are, no matter how good they are, it won't come out how would like.

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

A: I would take the Roland Juno 106, computer, Antelope Orion, Neve 1073, and a great pair of headphones probably the seinheisser HD600's. Should be able to accomplish pretty much anything with those! But then again what are you doing mixing on a desert island?

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: The most important piece of advice when starting a new project is to have the proper mindset and a focused goal or idea. When you know where you want to go, you will get there 10 times faster, and the project will be stronger as a result.