Multi instrumentalist,Producer

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: ...Both. I started with analog, and I kinda miss the limitations of it, and there's nothing that sounds quite like tape, but let's be real... Do you wanna cut tape with a razor ? If you do, you're a better human being than I.

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

A: Just make sure you have your files all properly timed, and recorded as cleanly as possible.

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

A: My Fender strat. My jazz bass. My PC. My midi controller.... And of course one of those bicycle/hamsterwheel type power generators where I have to pedal the thing for like three hours to get about a half hours worth of energy.... Because, what the hell else am I gonna do ?

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

A: I first started recording when I was barely a teen, one boomboxes with shitty keyboards and drum machines in my first punk band in Staten island, NY. Later on, I advanced to four track recorders.. And then once digital recording was finally affordable and practical, around the early 2000's I got a copy of cakewalk pro audio 9, and Fruity loops... My life was never the same... I eventually interned and worked in a few studios in Florida, and NYC, before really starting to put together my own home studio.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: ....Dense and detailed....

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

A: ... jeeeez.... You'll have to get back to me on that one...

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: Don't overuse your plugins. And if you don't know what you're doing with a compressor or limiter.. Don't use it. Just don't. Also, no amount of mixing or editing will ever be able to fix a lousy performance....

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

A: My main area of experience is in rock, industrial rock, prog, alternative and punk. I mess around with hip hop and electronica as well.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: it's a tossup between mixing/equalizing/editing and instrumentation... I'm pretty solid at both. Although I guess I would have to say editing ultimately, because as an instrumentalist, there's definitely somethings that are difficult for me to play... But thanks to my editing skills, while I may not be able to shred a two minute neo classical guitar solo in one take, I can do a ton of takes and comp them together until i sound much better than I actually am.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: Each song I work on, besides twenty years of experience, I bring my own instinct and sensibilities. I'm a big fan of layers, and the wall of sound approach, so I like to mess about with sonic ear candy as often as possible, provided the song calls for it, although if the song requires a more minimalistic approach, I'm a fan of space. All in all, i always strive for instrument clarity, and maximum separation... Unless I am recording a doom or sludge metal band.. which in that case... I am going to do my best to blow up your speakers.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: It all depends. if I am mixing a song, usually I will sit down and listen to the rough mix a few times to get a good idea of what the song is all about, then i go to work and let my instinct take me from there. I'll start with the edits on a track by track basis, where I'll iron out whatever noise or artifacts might show up on the tracks. Then I'll begin to balance, eq, and finally apply whatever bus compression and eq I might need to. If I'm producing a song from scratch, I'll usually start with either a groove, bassline or melody and build the tune around that... Then I head to the mixing phase.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: I do all of my mixing in the box, on my custom built FrankenPC in Cakewalk Sonar 6, with an arsenal of about a hundred or so fancy plugins, of which I usually only really use about ten. I use behringer Truth series studio monitors, which are comparable to the YAMAHA NS10s.

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

A: As far as musicians: Rush, Skinny Puppy, Nine inch nails, Tool, King Crimson, Genesis, Pink Floyd... As far as producers and engineers: David Ogilvie, Trent Reznor, Alan Moulder, Butch Vig, Steve Albini, Alan Parsons, David Botrill

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

A: I do anywhere from editing and mixing entire songs, albums or sometimes just small podcasts. Sometimes I'll be asked to compose and produce a piece of music for some. It varies, client to client.