Max Derkum on SoundBetter

With years of experience as a producer, mixing engineer and multi-instrumentalist, I can let my creative energy flow in if you wish - to make your vision a reality. I give your music the clarity, the pressure and the character that will take your project to the next level.

I love turning good recordings into even better mixes. I have been producing music since 2001 and have pushed forward numerous projects of my own bands. After a while I started working for other artists and have since specialized in my passion, rock music.

Would love to hear from you. Click the contact button above to get in touch.

Credits

3 Reviews

Endorse Max Derkum

by Johannes K.
„In 2021 we recorded a live radio session at a recording studio in Bonn, Germany for the „beat route radio show“. We focused on the new song: „Limoges- the city is alive“ for mixing and producing. We submitted the song for the 2020 price „best rock group, Germany“ (Deutscher Rock-und Poppreis, Hauptkategorie, Beste Rock Band 2020 in Germany) and won the 1st price. Max did a great job in producing the song. The mix came out very powerful, transparent and musically. Max turned our live performance into a fine produced piece of music of that we are all proud when It came out on the radio.
by Christian Müller
Max was responsible for the mix of two Songs from the "atma" EP. From the very beginning we had a tremendous level of trust. I like how he responds to requests and his empathy and precision run like a thread through his work. Thank you, Max!

Christian Mueller // This Fear Became Mountains
by Jens Silz
I had the pleasure to produce a rock album back in 2018 with Max. This was fun and overall very professional. Max has a special drive in his daily work and he knows no limits regarding different production techniques.

Interview with Max Derkum

Q: What's the biggest misconception about what you do?
A: That I earn money with what I love seems to disturb some people. Most of the time, however, these people have nothing to do with music or creative professions.
Q: What questions do customers most commonly ask you? What's your answer?
A: What does mixing cost and what does mastering cost? - First let's talk about your project, your title, your idea, the number of recorded tracks and your vision. My pricing depends on this.
Q: What are you working on at the moment?
A: Right now I'm writing songs with a good friend. We take the ideas together and work on the arrangements. We are curious where this will lead us. Week after week I work on customer projects from podcast mixes, voice over recordings, re-ampings to hard rock productions.
Q: What do you like most about your job?
A: To organize my daily routine flexibly and to be able to do what I love!
Q: Which artist would you like to work with and why?
A: Dave Grohl, because I think that our way of looking at things and working is similar in many ways and that his musical background as a drummer is like mine.
Q: What's your 'promise' to your clients?
A: I always promise to do my best to satisfy my customers with the best possible result that my skills and my technique produce.
Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?
A: What they intend to do with their work, what their goals are, what they want to achieve with it and who they want to achieve with it.
Q: Tell us about a project you worked on you are especially proud of and why. What was your role?
A: To write, record and produce the album "An Land" of my former German rock band. The organization of the recordings, which took place in different locations, was a particular challenge, but the whole thing could be done efficiently and the entire production was completed quickly. That was a good test run for international productions in which different studios, cities or even countries play a role and yet are not an obstacle at all.
Q: Is there anyone on SoundBetter you know and would recommend to your clients?
A: nope. not yet.
Q: Analog or digital and why?
A: Depends on the style of production but I would say a hybrid setup of both worlds is my goto environment because I do more modern rock productions. I believe there is no "analog is better", i think it really depends on what the audio visual picture in your head wants to translate.
Q: What advice do you have for a customer looking to hire a provider like you?
A: Having good quality tracks recorded is always a good starting point. Doesn't matter if the goal is a full production, a mix or a master.
Q: If you were on a desert island and could take just 5 pieces of gear, what would they be?
A: MacBook, Guitar, Audio Interface, Headphones and an instrument cable
Q: What's your typical work process?
A: First, I get an overall impression of the project and put myself in the right mood that the content conveys to me. Second, I analyze the audio tracks and start with sergical EQs, noise reduction and gain staging. I create a rough basic mix that can only be created through leveling. This is followed by different styles of compression and several EQ-techniques, routing in busses and VCAs. At this point I usually give my ears a break in order to give the mix that certain magic at a later point by raising the project to the next level.
Q: Tell us about your studio setup.
A: I work with analog hardware and software plugins and look for the perfect hybrid method from project to project. For me, analog pre-amps and an analog bus compression at the end of the signal chain are very important.
Q: What other musicians or music production professionals inspire you?
A: Chris Lord Alge, Jay Ruston, Mark Tremonti, Silverchair, Slash and many more
Q: Describe the most common type of work you do for your clients.
A: Mixing and mastering is really the most common service I do. This is very easy to implement internationally as an online service.
Q: What was your career path? How long have you been doing this?
A: I have been producing music since 2001 and have pushed forward numerous projects of my own bands. After a while I started working for other artists and have since specialized in my passion, rock music.
Q: How would you describe your style?
A: Modern rock with influences from blues, country and nu-metal.
Q: Can you share one music production tip?
A: Don't follow every rule.
Q: What type of music do you usually work on?
A: Rock
Q: What's your strongest skill?
A: Re-amping Guitars, recording and comping vocals, mixing and mastering rock music
Q: What do you bring to a song?
A: Mixing your music is a crucial process. This is where that certain magic arises that your music deserves. With my award-winning service, you will soon no longer have to hide from your reference artists.