Mixing, Mastering & Production

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: I like to bring what's needed, which is not always the same thing every time. Most of the clients I work with these days have small rigs at home and can do alot of the grunt demo work there, but usually when it comes to the foundation of songs, i.e. drums and/or bass, a lot of the time a programmed parts just can't hack it or it's just not right for the song and they need the really thing. Same thing with mixing, I truly love helping clients realize their vision or even beyond, because sometimes even just another person with a fresh perspective can be highly beneficial to the end product.

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: I am in the middle of mixing an indie singer/songwriters full length album that we did all the tracking to at Kaleidoscope Sound over the past 6 months. I'm also working with 2x clients who need songs mixed for sync licensing submissions. As well as, a solo artist who I've been helping to produce and develop his songs. He's mainly a singer and guitar player, and I've been do things like live drums, electric bass, guitars, synths, and other various instrumentation to his productions, which I love to do.

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: Both. I was fortunate to work at a studio for 10+ years(which I still bring projects to) that has an amazing vintage mic and outboard collection, as well as, a 24-tape machine and vintage 48-channel API Legacy Plus Console. When I track bands I like to fully utilize the console and print all of my EQ and compression, because if it sounds good why not, right?...On the filp side, when I mix, these days I prefer to do most of the main processing and levels in the box. I then sum analog, go though an analog compressor, and back in to print my mix. I like the flexibility plugins can give me and I know that if I have to do revisions, a day or week later, that I don't have to spend a ton of time recalling all of the settings on the console and a bunch of outboard, hoping that everything sounds spot on to the last mix. And if you've ever dealt with a vintage analog console for mixing you know exactly what I mean, lol.

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

A: My 1969 Ludwig Kit(hope the counts as 1, lol) and maybe a Guild D-40, that's good enough

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

A: I guess technically 25 years? Lol...So, I started playing drums around 3rd grade(maybe 9 or 10 years old), played in school band all the way through high school, and started taking private drum lessons when I was about 14 and up through college. Also, during my high school days I began playing in bands, and shortly there after became completely infatuated with gear and studio-life while recording our first 2x records. At about 19, I started a small home studio, taught myself ProTools, and began recorded bands in the local NJ scene. Shortly there after, I went off to college, taking courses in sound engineering, music theory, etc. 4 years later, I attended SAE NYC, where I spent a year all-intensive, soaking up all the knowledge I could. Once I graduated, I got an internship placement at Kaleidoscope Sound around 2009, worked up the ranks to Studio Manager and Staff Engineer, followed by Chief Engineer from 2012-2020. Early 2020 the studio dynamic was changing and since there was less demand of in-house engineers I decided to move to "Freelance" engineer to open up more opportunities for myself.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: Get the foundation right, especially the drums.

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

A: A decent variety of things, I have weeks I'm doing Singer/Songwriter production and mixing, sometimes Jazz, Pop-Rock, instrumental tracks for sync licensing, Indie Rock, Ambient/Soundtrack type stuff.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: Oddly enough, I think my strongest skill is being well rounded. I have to wear alot of hats sometimes, so I like to diversify.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: My home rig is a ProTools HDX system, running ProTools Ultimate and Logic Pro X, and a Lynx Aurora 16 converter. I'm using an API 8200 summing mixer, API 550's and Dramastic Audio Obsidian Compressor(think SSL, but better!) for most of my analog mixdown. I also have an API 512c, Rupert Never 511, Empirical Labs Distressor that I use for vocal overdubs and Guitar/Bass overdubs. ***Additionally, I also book a commercial studio with a 48-channel API Legacy Plus, plethora of vintage outboard, vintage mics, Otari 24-track tape machine, and spacious liveroom. I mainly use this studio for drum tracking and mix referencing.

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

A: Mainly tracking and mixing with artists and bands, along with the occasional mastering project. I also love when I get a chance to work with Singer/Songwriters on songs, developing ideas and doing production work to help their ideas come to fruition.