Pop Indie Producer, Songwriter

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

A: In 2022, I was working with an artist in Australia. We wrote a song together which ended up being taken to different producers and shopped around. The artist got messed around by overpromising people. A whole year went by, and to my surprise the artist hadn't found a producer they were happy with. In a full circle moment, we ended up bringing the song into my studio and working on it together and creating something we should have done in the first place. Their manager was stoked, we were stoked, and the song is now on their release schedule for later this year. I was most proud of the fact that the artist was on the verge of giving up, and we were able to make something really beautiful out of a season of disappointment for them. That is why I do this.

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: I'm currently producing some projects for Australian based artists, as well as finalising mixes and mastering on 6 of my own singles, set to roll out from May/June onwards, 2024. Yahoo!

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

A: I'm relatively new to SoundBetter, but I have worked with Nico Essig in the past and he was fantastic to work with. He mixed 4 of my songs, one of which is released, the other 3 landed me my artist development deal. He also introduced me to Grammy-winning mastering engineer Emily Lazar at The Lodge, NYC, who has delivered incredible results for me.

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: Both! Without the analog hardware first, we wouldn't have the digital emulations we have at our disposal today. My workflow is mainly digital, and I know many other engineers have switched to digital, even some of the biggest names like Michael Brauer (who I had the privilege to work with recently). The way I look at it, is whatever is going to work best to achieve the goal you have within the intended timeframe. Digital tools have become phenomenally powerful in recent years and sound almost identical to their hardware counterparts. I have a UA 610 channel strip, and also the plug in version - both are great and I use them both in different ways. But hear me when I say - I will never turn down the opportunity of recording vocal tracks on a real, vintage Telefunken 251 through great pre's, EQ's and comps.

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

A: I will do everything I can to understand your creative vision and direction. I will keep you informed on every part of the process and I will clearly lay out my intentions and projected time frames. Communication is key to healthy creative work.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: There is literally always something new to learn. A new tool to use, or a new technique you pick up from another engineer or producer. You're always finding new ways of implementing endless creativity into every project. I also love the feeling of contributing to someone's growth. Together we're literally making something that becomes part of their 'forever' catalogue. That is pretty special for me.

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

A: Question - Can you make me sound like "insert Grammy winning artist"? Answer - We can certainly reference them, but my goal here is to make you sound like the best version of you possible, so you too can win a Grammy one day.

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

A: I am Australian and currently live here, but the majority of my professional music work/development and networking has happened within the American music market. This gives me a very different perspective as my thinking is for a much more global market than perhaps only Australian niches. In saying that though, I have a deep love for Australia and love finding ways to incorporate our uniqueness into our creativity.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: 1. What exactly would you like to walk away with from this? (I.E. One mastered single ready for release, or just a finished demo I can show my friends). 2. What is your expected time frame and deadline? 3. Who are your references? 4. Are there any instruments / sounds that you feel are unique to you or the song? 5. Is the song "finished" or do you want to re-work parts of the arrangement? 6. Do you have other work released? And if so, are you wanting me to reference this or get as far away from this as possible? 7. Coffee or wine?

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

A: The clearer you can be about what it is you're trying to achieve, the easy it is for me to guide you as a producer. This also helps me know if I potentially not the best fit for what you're looking for.

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

A: Oooo good question: 1. An acoustic guitar for songwriting 2. A solar-based generator to power my gear (that's not a thing to my knowledge but I'm claiming it) 3. A laptop with Logic & all my plug ins 4. Audio Interface 5. Microphone This way I can still make drum samples out of coconuts and palm leaves.

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

A: I have been playing guitar since I was 7! I started playing in high school punk bands when I was 12 and playing 18+ venues when I was 15 (shhh don't tell). I got my first professional touring gig with an Australian country/gospel artist straight out of high school doing approximately 100+ dates per year in Australia and the USA. I started producing music way back then in 2010 with different original projects. Producing music was always a happy escape for me, I never actually considered doing it for other artists. I ended up leaving Australia for the majority of my twenties, working in the US as a touring guitarist out of Los Angeles and Nashville. In 2019, I was living in Nashville with my wife and an entertainment industry veteran heard some of my songs and asked me why I was only playing guitar for other artists. I told him that the world was noisy enough and didn't need my songs. He firmly rebuked me and told me to take my songs seriously, which ironically flung me back onto the artist/producer path. The pandemic hit not long after and I decided to come back to my home town in Australia to completely rebuild from the ground up and take his advice seriously. In cool news, he is now my manager, and we've been working together on Trentan over the last couple years getting ready to release in 2024. SO in that long winded answer - I've been doing musically 'professionally' since I was 17 (15 years ago).

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: Musically my vibe is - Strong melody, vocal forward, deep pocket, lush production. Personality wise - Approachable, honest, transparent. This works into my music.

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

A: John Mayer. For me, John is one of the few legacy artists of my lifetime that seems to embody everything I love about making music and writing songs.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: Always aim for the best possible performance and quality of sound at the recording source! You can make incredible records in bedrooms when you pay attention to the details along the way and don't rush the process.

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

A: I've spent a lot of time in Nashville, so the quality of the songwriting is important to me. That being said, I'm not just a classic country producer. Somewhere in the genre bending world of pop, indie, country, folk and adult contemporary is my happy place. I've also done a lot of composition for short films (and even won awards for it!), so I can have a little cinematic flare when needed too!

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: My holistic approach to music. I'm not just a 'producer', I truly believe in building sustainable artists. If an artist is working with me, I can't help but think of other details and aspects of their career that could be strengthened, or alternative ways to use the asset we're creating together. I think in the modern music industry, those that think holistically are the ones with super-powers. Maybe one day I'll actually get into artist management, haha. But until then, managing my own artist development is enough for now.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: Honesty and vulnerability. I always strive to make a song as human as possible, because at the end of the day, it is real people that listen to our work. Songs should move us and make us feel, in whatever way the song's purest form is.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: Every artist has different needs and every project needs a unique approach. But I always strive to bring some level of order and process to ensure that the project gets done on time and on budget. My typical workflow looks a lot like this: - Meeting with and understanding a clients' needs, expectations and timeframe. - Present production options to the client based on what they've communicated to me. - Get into the studio (or on Zoom) for pre-production day (or days) to finalise songwriting, arrangement etc - Allocate however many days needed to production (this may or may not involve other musicians) - Vocal tracking day, or vocal editing day, pending if I'm working with the artist in real life or remotely. - Pending budget, either provide a mix myself or prep the song to be mixed by another engineer. - Pending budget, provide the main master file, or coordinate having a mastering house like Sterling, The Lodge etc master the track. - Celebrate with the client that we've made something beautiful !

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: First and foremost - music studios should be safe spaces. I take pride in ensuring that artists always feel a sense of calm and safety in my space. We take adequate breaks, we don't hustle unnecessarily, we focus on our tasks at hand and make art in the process. On the technical side - I run a predominately in-the-box setup in Logic Pro X at my home, with a focus on vocal, guitar, bass and keys tracking. I have an Apollo Twin Audio interface as well as a hardware UA LA-610 channel strip for external sources. I don't typically track live drums, if this is something a client specifically wants, I usually contract one of my connections in Nashville and ensure they connect with the artist before-hand. Alternatively, I do A LOT of drum programming and sampling and get phenomenal results with my many drums packs from companies like 'That Sound'. My go to mic is a UAD Sphere DLX (incredible on vocals and literally everything) which models dozens of the world's most sort after mics with incredible precision. I also have the classics like Shure SM7B, SM57 etc. Software wise I have the UAD Signature Edition plugin suite, Sound Toys 5, Native Instruments Komplete 12, Melodyne Studio, Synchro Arts VocAlign, Serum and more. For monitoring, I have a pair of KRK V6 speakers, treated with Sonarworks SoundID software to enhance my critical listening ability. I like to invest in quality over quantity and understand every ability and detail of my gear and what it can bring to a song. I'm a sucker for a Black Friday sale :D

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

A: Any artists, players, producers or engineers who truly believe in the magic of the song inspire me. It's about bringing all the right elements together to serve the song. Sometimes that means pumping the track full of energy, other times it means stripping it right back to an acoustic and roomy vocal. Producers who do this incredibly in my opinion are Jack Antonoff, Mason Stoops, Michael Sonier and Mike Crossey (plus so many others).

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

A: I predominately work as a producer and songwriter with my clients, but with that being said - I find more often than not I end up operating in a mentor-like capacity with new or seasoned artists during our sessions. Helping to navigate the waters of the music industry, while making music with clients is what of my all time favourite things to do. Working as a producer also allows me to usually play my main instrument (guitar) on my clients tracks, and leverage my vast relational network to approach other musicians to fill in any necessary gaps should the project need it.