Mixing Engineer

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

A: I mixed a record by Gregory Page called "So It Goes". It was really outisde my comfort zone at the time, but turned out so wonderful, I'm very proud of that one.

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: A lot of local bands stuff. I work with a lot of independent artists.

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

A: Mark Robinson from Robinson Mastering (Sounden) would. Hi Mark!

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: Different horses for different courses. I love digital because I can pull up a session that I did 2 years ago, raise the hi-hat by .5db and re-bounce it. When I integrate my analog, it's a bit more time consuming and never sounds *exactly* the same.

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

A: They they will be 100% happy with the final product. If not, they don't pay!

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: Helping musicians realize their potential.

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

A: "How quickly can you mix this?" and my answer is usually "less than 48 hours".

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

A: That it's black magic. It's not, it just takes A LOT of the three P's: Practice, Persistence, and Patience.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: I usually ask what sort of deadlines they're up against, what sort of musicians and albums their project was inspired by, and also how they like to be contacted. With email, texting, Social Media, phone calls, and more being used to communicate these days, it's important be in the artists comfort zone with regards to communication.

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

A: Hit me up for a test mix so I can show you what I can do. I'll prove it to ya before I ask for a penny.

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

A: 5 pieces? My ears (I'm counting those as 1), my Amphions (again, counted as 1), my interface, pro tools computer, and an 1176. Blue Stripe.

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

A: 10 years. Most mixing engineers are failed rock stars, I can say that that's true for myself.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: Personality wise? Laid back, serious when necessary. Musically? Exciting.

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

A: Alive or dead? Dead: Kurt Cobain. Alive? Father John Misty. Both incredible talents, in my opinion.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: Um, get it right during the recording process! I can do some pretty cool "fixing" in the mix, but it will NEVER be as good as getting it right before I get my hands on it.

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

A: I usually do rock, all types, but I have also ventured more into country, pop, folk/acoustic, classical, jazz, and some rap/urban.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: My strongest skill would have to be the one I'm hoping you hire me for, mixing! But aside from that, I would say communication/punctuality. I am a stickler for being on-time.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: I bring the ability to listen both as an audio profession and as a musician. I've been a musician since I was 10 years old, and have been around music all my life. I can read music, know all my scales and whatnot, so one could say I "speak the language".

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: Well, first things first I have a discussion with the artist about their vision for the song/songs. I ask them for any references they have (meaning an album or singles that they love the sound of and would like a similar vibe). After this communication, I import the tracks into Pro Tools, get organized, and get to work. I usually mix pretty quickly, because I mix "from the gut", meaning I trust my instincts. Usually I can do a first pass of a mix in a few hours, which I then like to send to the artist to get their feedback on. I find this is better than spending 8 hours on a mix only to be told that they want to go in a 180 degree opposite direction. Better to get on the same page early on. Once I get the artists notes on the mix back, I go back and revise until they are happy.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: It's not the gear, it's the ear! But in all seriousness, I have a fully-treated mix room. I mix on Amphion monitors and I also have a sub in here just to make sure the mix translates without blowing up any car stereos. I have some outboard gear (1176's, Pultec, 2A, analog summing box, etc.) that I use or not depending on whether I feel the mix needs it or the artist wants it.

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

A: Oh geez, too many musicians to list. But as far as people on "my side of the glass", in no particular order: Andy Wallace, Chris Lord-Alge, Tom Lord-Alge, Serban Ghenea, Rich Costey, Eric Valentine.

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

A: The most common type of work I do for clients is taking delivery of their songs, more specifially their raw tracks, and making a cohesive, compelling mix out of them. Getting the emotion of the song to be conveyed is a big point for me. Really, just helping the client get what they hear in their head to come out of the speakers.