1. When did you start dabbling in music?
I've been dabbling in music for as long as I can remember in one way or another. As a toddler, my Dad used to sit me at the piano while he played and I'd just bash the keys! But it was in my early teens that I first started trying to write electronic music and learning to program MIDI. I wasn't great at it then but I really enjoyed it and I knew from then on that all I wanted to do was music. When I was 14 I made a CD of my own self made house tunes and persuaded them to sell it in my local record shop down the road. The tracks were pretty basic but I sold all 20 copies!
2. What training have you had?
I did an A-Level in Music Technology, it was pretty retro; we were recording onto analog tape with a Tascam MSR-16 and there were usually only about 8 or 9 channels on the 16 channel desk actually working at any given time! Then I did a BA (Hons) in Popular Music Production at the University of Huddersfield, they were a lot better equipped! I also spent a year working as a trainee studio engineer at ICC Studios, a great recording studio down on the south coast of England. That was really where I cut my teeth, learning to use with Pro-Tools and SADiE. It was hard work but also great fun. ICC was also where I learned the people skills necessary to be a studio engineer. Helping musicians feel comfortable and relaxed so they can give a great performance is a vital part of the job and those skills have come in very handy when working with vocalists on my own music.
3. When did you get into recording?
I first got into recording when I did my A-Level, before that I was really just making crude general midi tracks using a really basic version of Cubase called Cubasis AV. That was a really important step on the road to becoming a producer, before then I didn't really know how to use EQs and compressors effectively. Given that most of my experience up to that point had been teaching myself how to use various bits of software to write dance music, getting some proper training in micing up guitar cabs and drum kits, all using analogue equipment was really valuable.
4. People you have worked with/for?
I'm one third of Rebel Sonix, audio visual bass merchants based in Brixton, London. I joined after having done a few collabs and remixes with them over the last year. I've also worked with Adam Freeland, most notably on a dubstep remix of the James Bond theme for the launch of the videogame Goldeneye Reloaded. I've remixed several tracks by FeralisKinky, the UK's first ever white, female raga vocalist, and I remixed Delirious' last ever single before they broke up, which was a real honour since I remember going to their gigs as a teenager! Other artists I've worked with include Whiskey Pete, Adam Fielding, Steve Leach, Tom+Olly and You And What Army. I get approached quite a lot to do remixes and collabs and I try to do as much as I can, with the inevitable consequence that I'm always really busy!
5. Why are you so good at training people?
I've spent more than 10 years now learning about studio recording, computer composition and sound design and music production. As a producer I never stop learning because I'm always trying to improve my own production skills. I'm comfortable working in a diverse range of genres as well as a diverse range of software and plugins. I also believe I'm clear, concise and articulate (a trait I've absorbed via osmosis from my parents who are both teachers.) But most of all I'm really passionate about this stuff, music production is my life and when I discover something new I get really excited and want to tell people (just ask my wife!)
|
All-Access Pass
