Music that's listenable

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

A: Ladybug, it's a track I produced with my friend Marc Cotter for our upcoming project. It's the first song he's ever recorded, we had no expectations and had a ton of fun with it. I helped him round out the form, then I played all the instruments and engineered the session. I used every tool in my studio and pushed my skillset into a new frontier.

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: Writing songs, making demos, finishing up a record with a friend of mine that is gonna be so funky.

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: Digital because it's what I have. It's a silly debate, go make music.

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

A: I will give you my full attention, and I will make every decision in the best interest of your project.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: Who inspires you? What album defined your childhood? What do you want this record to sound like?

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

A: Form a team of people you can be vulnerable with. Chemistry is more important than anyone's skillset.

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

A: 4 Taylor guitars and an iPhone to record Voice Memos.

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

A: I studied musicology in college, then I spent 5 years working for a plugin company. Those experiences helped form a rounded approach to both songwriting and music production

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: Funky and modern.

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

A: Dave Bayley of Glass Animals, because everything he does is so dang crunchy.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: Treat every idea equally, and give each idea a fair attempt. If you don't like it, mute it or do it again. But always try it.

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

A: Poppy-alternative music. Anything where the goal is to be listenable.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: Listening

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: An ability to identify the most expressive elements of a composition or performance, and a sense of arrangement and production that help make those elements shine.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: A great record consists of a compelling performance of a great song. It's important to build from the ground up: Make sure the song is great, and all the pieces are there. After that, make sure the artist can deliver a compelling performance of the song. Once those pieces are in place, capturing it is easy. Having the performances locked allows you to experiment! In the studio I focus on being organized. Having my routing templated and DAW organized allows me to have fun with the sound. I like to move quickly and not think too hard about anything.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: Everything I do is centered around my Output Platform and an Apollo X8P. I have a collection of Warm Audio condenser microphones, a KM184, R121, and an SM7B. In addition to some additional drum mics and other auxiliary equipment, this gear forms the foundation of my sound.

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

A: Dave Matthews Band is my #1 influence. Dave's guitar playing and songwriting have formed the foundation of my musical development. Glass Animals feature my favorite modern production. The way Dave Bayley approaches saturation and timbre is fascinating to me. I'm a big fan of Tame Impala - I admire Kevin Parker's one-man-band approach. I love Jack Johnson and John Mayer, their music is always easy to listen to. I try to combine my favorite elements of everything I hear.

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

A: I read the situation to see where I can be most useful. I can't do everything, but I can