Mixing & Mastering Engineer

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

A: There are 2 projects I'm the most proud of. The 1st is a video game for some friends that I made all the music for. It was a music & timing based world exploration game where all the pieces of music needed to come from different cultures and be able to be played together at once to form a full song but also hold their own individually. I'm not sure whatever happened to that game or where it is now. The 2nd is the first EP I ever released with a friend over a decade ago. Listening back with the audio engineering skills I have now I can hear so many changes I would make. But I've also learned to make peace with how it came out and it marks a specific time in my life that I wouldn't change for anything. I fear the individual audio track files have been lost to time so unfortunately I have very little hope of being able to remix those songs again.

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: My side projects right now are minimal as I've been working on family life. The next couple projects I plan on investing time into are learning to build acoustic guitars and creating a full-length concept album about my life.

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

A: I'm new to SoundBetter, so not yet! But I'm hoping to meet some of the other people here and make some connections!

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: I used to be a die-hard analog fan but in recent years I feel that analog recreations digitally are about as realistic as any human can tell. That was probably the last thing holding me back from full endorsement of digital.

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

A: My promise is that you will be happy with your project after I'm finished with it. That's why I offer unlimited revisions. I/We are going to work on your project until you're completely satisfied with it. I don't want clients walking away feeling like they didn't get something they were expecting nor do I want to put my name on something I feel is subpar.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: My absolute favorite part about my job is listening to all the different music I get to work on. When I mix I'm often jamming out to the songs as I go through the process and getting into the groove. If you could be a fly on the wall in my studio...

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

A: Q: How can I make my music sound good? A: Hire a professional! Q: Do I need to go to audio engineering school? A: No, though it does offer a great structured environment to learn!

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

A: 2 biggest misconceptions are 1. With modern tech anybody can mix their own music (You can! But you have to spend time learning first!) and 2. This is purely a technology audio based job. There is so much creativity still involved in the mixing process.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: What are you looking for? | What will this audio be used for? Demo? Full album release? Hit single? Radio? | 2-3 Artists you think you sound like? | 2-3 Artists you WISH you could sound like? | Are there any non-negotiables? Like no auto-tune/samples or no adding anything to the song and only mixing?

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

A: Look for somebody who you feel is going to be a good fit for you. In my experience a provider's mentality is often a dead giveaway on the type of focus they're going to have on your project. It's always good to make sure everybody is on the same page before moving forward.

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

A: Does a computer count? And is there internet? Aside from that, necessities would be: Acoustic Guitar, Audient iD44 Interface, Ollo X1 Headphones, AKG c214 and a Shure SM7B Microphones.

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

A: Music in general has always been my true passion and career - even though there have been many hiccups along the way. I started Piano in 2nd grade. Going through the school band system I eventually picked up woodwinds like Saxophone, Flute, & Clarinet. It was in the school jazz band that I learned to play Bass because we had too many Piano players. Around the end of high school I wanted to learn more about how we could record my friends and I's band. Ever since that moment I've always had this itch to figure out how to make the best sounding records possible.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: Somehow both Laid Back and OCD at the same time. I'm pretty chill and enjoy longer running small edits, but once I get an idea of something I'm going down a rabbit hole until it sounds exactly the way I hear it in my head.

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

A: Recording: I would LOVE to run a full recording & mixing session for the Red Hot Chili Peppers. They were my first real jump into music learning to play bass Flea's playing just felt different. Once I began to learn guitar as well John Frusciante became the primary influence for my playing for many years. Despite all I've been able to learn from their music, I believe I could learn so much more going through the recording process with them. Songwriting: Would have to be Kendrick Lamar. He was my first introduction into longer form concept albums which have ultimately led me to the audio engineering industry I'm in today. Jamming: Sitting down with Dispatch and jamming with them would be a dream. They truly excel at live music and have shown me what kind of energy bands generate while live and have caused me to think more during the recording & mixing process how to bring that kind of energy off the stage and into the recordings.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: DON'T EVEN THINK ABOUT TOUCHING THE EQ UNTIL YOUR MIX IS BALANCED!

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

A: Rock, Reggae, Hip-Hop/Rap, Pop, Metal, Indie, Singer/Songwriter, Electronic

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: Creating a unique space in songs for every piece using frequency and stereo imaging.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: Life. My primary goal, regardless of what role I play in the creation of a song, is to bring it to life and give it a soul.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: 80% of the mixing process is volume and imaging balance. That's the first thing I dedicate a significant amount of time to. Next if needed I'll use subtractive EQ to fight any frequency build-up issues. Next is gain automation, compression and additive EQ for everything except vocals. Around here I'll take a small break to let my ears rest. Come back and give a quick listen through then run through the vocals with a fine-tooth comb. Vocals alone usually take about as long as the entire process up to that point. I make sure the vocals sit in the mix appropriately and then it's time to give some life to the song with bus work and finalize! I'll always give a final listen after another break before confirming it's up to my standards.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: My studio is located in a large refinished 3-bay cinderblock garage. No sound is getting in or out of this monstrosity. Inside is my life's collection of instruments and audio gear. About a dozen guitars/basses, Live and Electronic MIDI Drumkit, and Marshall/Carvin/Fender Amps all run directly to my Audient iD44 and asp800. Depending on the project I do my editing on either a Mac Mini with Logic Pro or my custom built Windows PC with Pro-Tools.

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

A: Bob Ludwig - Gateway Mastering Adam Ayan - Ayan Mastering

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

A: The most common work I do it Mixing & Mastering individual songs and full albums.