WILLIAMSBURG, BROOKLYN: It’s fun to imagine what Matt Boynton, founder of the thriving Williamsburg studio Vacation Island, might do if someone presented him with a marketing plan.
He might make it into a little hat. If it had a lot of pages, he may be able to construct some type Read more...
The Sound
On their latest release, Bloom, Beach House picks a mood and sticks with it in earnest. To their fans, the atmosphere of this album is sure to be a familiar one, and record reviews are abuzz this week with all the expected adjectives – “hypnotic”, “aching”, “sultry”, “languid.” Read more...
FLUX Studios and a Friday night proved to be a killer combination once again, as the “Demystifying Mastering” event went down last week.
A full house of producers, engineers, mixers, artists and – of course – mastering engineers kicked off their weekend with knowledge and networking at the always-buzzing East Read more...
During the final weeks of April, I had the opportunity to sit down with iZotope’s new sampling re-synthesizer, Iris. Upon first opening it, I instantly recognized and felt comfortable with the spectral analysis view. If you’ve ever used iZotope’s RX software then you’re already familiar with the basic layout of Read more...
Pulling up to Steven Slate’s offices in Laurel Canyon, my first thought was to double-check the address. It’s a quiet, residential neighborhood, albeit known for its rock-and-roll residents going back to the 60s (Jim Morrison, Frank Zappa, etc.). But you don’t expect many businesses to be tucked away in these Read more...
MIDTOWN, MANHATTAN: The New York City-based mixer and sound designer JD McMillin recently made a move, taking over Studio F at midtown heavyweight facility Nutmeg Post.
Working with clients including Nickelodeon, Food Network, AMC and Oxygen, McMillin has joined a golden-ears team at Nutmeg. After a five-year stint at Bionic, Read more...
LOWER EAST SIDE, MANHATTAN: Imagine being fully in touch with all of your senses. Would that be a blessing…or a curse?
That’s the delicious predicament borne by Jack McKeever, founder of the fascinating LES facility known as The Maid’s Room. As you talk with this quietly devoted creator of sounds Read more...
Despite stories of big studio closures and contracting CD sales over the last decade, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) suggests that the audio engineering profession has grown considerably since 1999. Although competition remains fierce and growth is expected to slow, median annual incomes have increased in recent years, Read more...
Phase problems are the bane of any engineer’s existence. A typical tracking setup in a recording studio will almost always include sound sources being captured by multiple inputs or microphones. When recording drums, bass, guitar cabs, room mics, and anything in stereo, for example, phase-related issues will come up.
On Read more...
To all Sovereign Soldiers of the Music Industry…
If you’re reading this, there’s a good chance that “independent artist” is part of your job description:
You write your own material, you run your own social media marketing, you rehearse in someone’s basement, you sleep on strange floors while you’re on Read more...
