Music Producer

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

A: I'm really proud of my work on the Escapyst music video. At this point I think the music and visuals are inseparable. I did all the music and video production work. The song is a bit old but I've just released the video here: https://youtu.be/tWn32qtuzxk

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: I just finished an EP and am updating all my sites and social media at the moment. I have 30 or 40 song ideas that I'm going to go through next and choose some to develop. I can't wait!

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: Both, because that's my M.O. I love the blend. Guitars, vocals etc. are going to go in analog, but everything is going to come out digital, unless you want a tape or vinyl.

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

A: I treat music like a doctor and take the Orphic Oath (something akin to the Hippocratic one) to provide the utmost creativity, craft and spirit into my works.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: Channeling my creative drive through a lot of technology. To me, every knob, dial, slider, fader and parameter is a creative tool.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: What is your timeframe? Who are the stakeholders? What platforms are the deliverables going to? How much creative freedom can you give me? Do you have any references? What animal spirit should be involved in the production?

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

A: Try to leave ample headroom for me to be creative, I'm not a session musician here to play sheet music, I'm a producer who is enticed to listen to your ideas and react to them with musical alchemy.

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

A: A solar energy generator with lots of I/O that doubles as an audio interface with tube-driven preamps and phantom power and a pair of KRK headphones hanging off it, a macbook pro loaded up with all my software, Komplete Kontrol, a guitar, an SM57 (Hey, I need an all-around mic that can take the heat, alright?)

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

A: I've always straddled the humanities and technology and music production has been the perfect realm to bring it all together. I've been doing music production since the early 2000s and its been a crescendo of activity in terms of frequency, devotion and depth. Now I am completing a master's degree in music production at Berklee and its been the most amazing experience ever. I will graduate in early 2023 and hit the ground flying. I love every aspect of it from listening to demos and analyzing, songwriting, recording, comping, mixing, mastering and any other post-production.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: Creatively, I like to react to things and synthesize them into structurally sound productions, rather than just write into a template. It could start with a rhythm, a melody, a sound design, a riff, or a lyric idea that will inspire a whole new set of sounds and then eventually I will corral them into a presentable format.

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

A: I'd love to work with Dua Lipa and take her in some new directions. She has so much talent and is not averse to highly creative processing on the production side. I'd just love to work with her caliber of vocals from the recording process through the mix to the master.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: Absolutely. Ozone EQs can automate their band toggles, Neutron EQs can't (when you close the plug-in, they'll reset). This means you can do super-cool automated bandpass filters with Ozone EQs, but not with Neutrons.

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

A: Usually its a blend of rock and electronica with elements of folk and world music. But it can go in many directions. Sometimes it depends on what's in front of me, or of course, upon what is required.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: My musical intuition for quickly figuring out what sounds need to go where and how.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: As much as it needs. I've taken skeletal riffs and brought them to structure, lyrics, counterpoints and all the trappings and overdubs that make it a full track.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: It really depends on if I'm producing, recording or mixing/mastering. Or all of the above. I have many modes: Songwriting mode, Sound Production Mode, Recording Mode, Comping Mode, Mixing/Mastering Mode. It really depends on the job. I'd be glad to delve into those modes with anyone who wants to talk about them.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: I run Ableton and Pro Tools on a Macbook Pro with 64GB of RAM and an M1 Max processor. I monitor on KRK Rokitz with 7" woofers and run my gear through a Focusrite 18i8. I have Komplete Kontrol, guitars, Ableton Push and other MIDI controllers, 3 Samson mics, SM57s, AT-2050s and an MXL Ribbon Mic. That's at home, I also have access to two partner recording studios near me at pretty much all hours.

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

A: DeadMau5 for his technological prowess mixed with incredible aesthetic taste, both visually and sonically. Guy Stevens for keeping the spirit of rock alive in the studio and making recording AN EVENT. Sylvia Massey for truly thinking out of the box in the recording phase.