Guitarist/Bassist/Mixing

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

A: I am especially proud of a recreation of Bring Me The Horizon's song "Throne" - I did all of the production for the first time by myself but also the mixing and mastering working with over 30 tracks of vocals, 100 tracks total for the mix to have a full, huge sounding song just like the original. It was a proud moment knowing that no matter the count of tracks that it can all be balanced and turned into a proper sounding mix no matter how chaotic and overwhelming it originally seems.

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: Finishing original music, recording vocals for a band and some full production covers for some YouTube vocalists.

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

A: Oden Johansson - he's a fantastic Australian guitarist who does great work.

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: Digital because it allows much more variety in what I can use to mix with, how quickly I can mix, recalling settings that I used on a different track, the ability to automate settings in a way that is impossible with analog equipment.

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

A: That I will treat all of your projects as if I were releasing it under my own name - I won't send you something you will be embarrassed or disappointed in putting out into the world.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: Being able to hear how creative so many people around the world can be and how everyone's voice can come through in what they write.

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

A: "Why should I trust you rather than the expensive studio in the next city over?" My answer always that you should let your ears be what you trust - listen to their sample mixes versus mine and let your brain choose the one that it likes more. If that's mine, then I'd love to work with you.

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

A: That professional, industry-standard mixes have to be done in a huge, multi-million dollar studio with only analog gear and a huge console. The digital tools that are available to mixing engineers now are almost indistinguishable from many of the pieces of gear they replicate and can be much more reliable.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: Who are your inspirations, what albums/songs do you go back to again and again, are there any elements that you really want highlighted?

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

A: Ask all your questions up front, feel free to provide references for mixes/playing that you enjoy and give as much information as possible. The better feel I can get for what you are looking for, the more I can do for you to get you there.

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

A: My Strat, a tuner, cable, a Fender Twin and a generator because then I could be loud enough to be heard anywhere in the world and be rescued.

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

A: I started out playing in funk and rock bands in junior high and did drum line in high school. I went to college for Jazz Guitar Performance at BGSU in Ohio before moving to California to focus on live performance. I began recording about 5 years ago due to several disastrous experiences with engineers in the area. I wanted to be able to give local musicians an option to work with someone who actually cared about helping them sound their best.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: Easy-going and professional. I strive to make the process of working with a stranger feel as comfortable as working with a close friend.

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

A: I would love to work with David Maxim Micic because his brain works in some wondrous ways that are incredibly inspiring.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: My best tip is that the extra time you take to get something properly tracked pays off a hundred-fold in the mixing process. Ensuring that levels are not clipping, that all instruments are in tune and in time makes you whole project sound infinitely better.

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

A: I typically work on rock, post-hardcore, punk, metal, djent, indie and acoustic.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: My strongest skill is my flexibility with genres and ability to improvise and write my own parts for clients who may not know exactly what they want or are unfamiliar with an instrument.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: I bring care, passion and precision to all the work that I do - the same that I would put into my own music and productions. Music is extremely personal and close to the heart of those who create it and the best thing I can do for any client is bring everything that I have to what they've poured themselves into.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: For mixing, I always start with building a proper foundation with the drums and bass, then bringing the guitars in once there is an extremely solid base for them to shine over. Vocals come last because they are the most important element and everything else needs to be in its place so that the vocals can really fit in properly and be brought to life. Mixing references are always brought in to compare warmth, punch, volume, clarity, etc and keep everything to a professional level. For tracking/writing music for a client I always try to understand their desires for what will really compliment their song, not what I think will sound good. Listening to references so that I am able to bring their vision to life. I will record 2-3 versions of improvised parts so that they have several options to think about what works best for them.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: I record guitars with a Countryman 85 DI Box into a Scarlett 18i20. My mixing is done in Logic Pro X using plugins from Waves, Slate Digital, Fabfilter, Neural DSP, oeksound (soothe), SyncroArts (VocAlign) Celemony (Melodyne) and many more to get a professional and polished sound, geared toward the clients expectations.

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

A: David Maxim Micic, Plini, Spiritbox, Periphery, Thrice, Architects, Bloc Party, Bring Me The Horizon, Thursday - all sorts of rock, metal, etc. Producers I have really been learning a lot from lately are George Lever, Nolly Getgood, Jordan Valeriote and Warren Huart. They all have very different approaches and sounds which helps to pick and choose what works well for a variety of applications.

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

A: I typically am mixing rock and metal bands, or creating full tracks from scratch for clients. I often also record guitar and bass parts for musicians who need someone who can handle complicated riffs/rhythms/solos.