Vocal Engineer

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

A: I recorded a gospel choir that I had been coaching. They had a very limited budget but we did the best we could and ended up with a great result. Had a great day recording everyone too

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: Currently rebranding my studio and working on a pop/r&b album for a client

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

A: I'm very new to SoundBetter but I'm sure this answer will change soon

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: Analog is inaccessible due to cost, upkeep, scarcity and knowhow for lots of people while digital allows everyone to make music. Plus emulation is only getting better and better.

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

A: I'm only happy when you're happy. My job is to serve the song and my clients.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: Getting to work with likeminded people. Working on something I'm good at and incredibly passionate about.

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

A: Do you want to just do the backing vocals yourself? This is something I have done many times and I'm more than happy to. Can I have more reverb in my headphones? Sure!

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

A: That mixing is simply level balancing. People also don't tend to know the difference between a mixing engineer and a producer.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: How do you take your coffee? Do you have a demo? Any Mix References?

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

A: Prepare to drink lots of coffee. Have a clear vision for your music while still being open to new ideas.

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

A: Vintage Neumann U87, Neve 1073, 1176, LA2A, Pultec

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

A: Started in science but decided to sing and perform more. Then realised I preferred my time in the studio and people started asking for my help recording and mixing and I have been doing that for the last 8 years.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: Polished

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

A: Taylor Swift for the money Jonah Nilsson because he's the best singer ever

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: Don't rely on processing. Get a good recording

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

A: Vocal heavy pop

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: Attention to detail

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: Punchy, complex vocals!

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: I am methodical so I always start a mix by labelling, colour coding, routing and then a quick level balance and filtering. With regards to a recording session, I always start with a coffee and a chat and then have a fun day of recording.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: I have a large dedicated home studio geared towards vocal recordings. I have a Neumann U87ai, Avantone CV-12 among other mics. There is a vocal booth for singers as well as video recording equipment and audio is all run through my Apollo x8p.

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

A: Zac Cervini's vocal production on 'Just Pretend' by Bad Omens

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

A: I am either mixing entire tracks for clients, mixing vocals for clients or working with vocalist in my studio.