Drum and Percussion tracking

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

A: Playing drums and percussion on Kylie Minogue's 'Abbey Road Sessions' album was a wonderful experience. To work in those great rooms and re-create her songbook was a once in a lifetime situation.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: Being in the studio is one of my favourite things to do. Witnessing and being a part of the initial creative process is hugely exciting. Walking in with nothing in the morning and leaving with something sensational in the evening is genuinely amazing.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: Are you looking for a total re-creation of the demo? Are you looking for creative input from me? Do you have any audio examples of what you're looking for?

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

A: I've been touring and recording for 25 years, starting in the jazz world, moving on to working with singer/songwriters and graduating to high profile major label recording artists.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: First and foremost, it's musicality. The music tells us what to do as long as we're really listening.

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

A: Pop, rock and classic singer/songwriter.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: I like to have an in-depth conversation with the client upfront in order to understand exactly what their end goal is e.g. Am I copying the demo exactly or just using is as a reference, what is the sonic pallet they're looking for? In terms of the session, if they can be on FaceTime/Skype while I'm tracking that is great, otherwise I'll send an mp3 for reference and then send two full takes of stems for them to work with once they're happy with the direction of the track.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: I've built up a beautiful collection of vintage drums and snares as well as a great selection of modern kit, with a huge range of Istanbul Agop cymbals. I use great high-end mics from Neumann, Sennheiser, Aston and Shure alongside Focusrite and API interfaces with Pro Tools as my main DAW.

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

A: I've always been inspired by the great players of song - Russ Kunkel, Jim Keltner, Jeff Porcaro, Steve Gadd, Steve Jordan...the list is endless! In terms of production and composition there are many but Bon Ever, Peter Gabriel, Craig Armstrong, Brian Eno are constant inspirations.

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

A: The majority of my touring and recording work is within the pop, singer/songwriter and rock worlds but I have experience playing across a wide range of styles with diverse artists.

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

A: Communicate, communicate, communicate!

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: A definitive groove and a sense of musicality. My aim is to enhance everything that's already there and bring it all to life.