Gaming Spotify, Touch-Sensitive Laptop, And Bassist Stu Hamm On My Latest Podcast

My guest on the podcast this week is Stu Hamm, who’s one of the world’s premier bass players and clinicians. His unique and innovative two-handed tapping technique proves that even the bass can be a solo instrument in the hands of a virtuoso player. Stu has recorded and toured with a who’s who of guitar heros, including Steve […]

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A Guide To Disinfecting Your Microphones

We’re gradually all getting back to work, and while it’s great to be busy again, it also means that increased precautions against virus infection are necessary. A new level of studio cleansing is required and that especially includes microphones. DPA has some guidelines for disinfecting your microphones and accessories that I’ve paraphrased and excerpted here. […]

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New Music Gear Monday: Blue Cat Audio Re-Head Headphone Response Plugin

Once upon a time any thought of doing serious mixing on headphones would have been laughable, but we live in a different world now. With artists, engineers and producers constantly on the go and under deadline, having the luxury of mixing in the studio is now a luxury, and headphone mixing is a very real […]

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The First Socially-Distanced Concert, Slick Quarantine Band Videos, And Zack O’Malley Greenburg On My Latest Podcast

My guest on the podcast this week is My guest today is Zack O’Malley Greenburg, who’s a senior editor of media & entertainment at Forbes and author of four excellent music oriented business books.  His latest, A-List Angels, is how a band of actors, artists and athletes cashed in on the latest tech boom and changed the face […]

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The Producer’s Guide To A Great Vocal Performance (While Keeping The Singer Healthy)

The voice is just as much of an instrument as any other in the band. That means that it must be looked after the same way even during a session to ensure that the singer provides his or her best vocal performance. While vocalists that have lots of studio experience know this already, they often […]

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New Music Gear Monday: Final Mix ParallelDrums Plugin

Back in 1999 I wrote in my first edition of the Mixing Engineer’s Handbook about how mixers based in New York City used a lot of parallel compression on their rhythm section tracks, which I called, for lack of a better term, New York City Compression. That expression as well as the use of the […]

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Demystifying Streaming Royalties, Inside Gear Reviews, And Agent Jack Forman On My Latest Podcast

My guest on the podcast this week is Jack Forman, who’s a senior vice-president at BiCoastal Productions, the New York City-based concerts and theatrical booking agency.  Originally spearheading the agency’s coverage of the Western United States, Jack now oversees the core agency staff and global touring strategy. Jack provides an agent’s perspective of working with an artist, as […]

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Getting Yourself In The Right Headspace To Mix

One overlooked area of mix prep is personal preparation, which means getting yourself into the best physical and mental state to mix. Each mix requires focus and concentration, and this time is where you get yourself into that proper headspace. This excerpt from the 4th edition of my Mixing Engineer’s Handbook can help set the stage […]

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New Music Gear Monday: Joué Play MIDI Controller

I think just about everybody having something to do with music already has a MIDI controller of some sort. That’s why you probably read the headline and thought, “The last thing I need is another controller,” but I think you’ll find the new Joué Play controller is different, especially if you’re looking for speed when […]

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Music Exec Camille Barbone, YouTube Views Increase And So Do Music Gear Sales On My Latest Podcast

My guest on the podcast this week is Camille Barbone, who’s done just about every behind-the-scenes job in the music business you can think of.  From working as a label executive for Columbia and EMI, to managing Madonna, to owning the famous Longview Farm and Gotham Sound studios, to producing major concerts and tours and more, Camille has […]

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The Not-So-Subtle Differences Between White, Pink, Brown And Blue Noise

I know you just read the title and thought, “I knew about white and pink noise, but what the heck is brown and blue noise?” Well, they’re a real thing and used more often than you think. But the differences between white, pink, blue and brown? It all comes down to frequency and amplitude. What […]

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New Music Gear Monday: Audio Thing Type A Enhancer Plugin

If you ever recorded to magnetic tape, then you know that tape hiss was something that most everyone hated. It wasn’t too much of a problem on loud program, but it really stuck out during a quiet section of a song. When Dolby noise reduction first came on the scene it was a godsend for […]

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Musician Relief Funds, Fender Stops Using Ash, And Composer Joe Renzetti On My Latest Podcast

My guest on this week’s podcast episode is Joe Renzetti, who started in the studio band of the Cameo Parkway label in Philadelphia playing on hits like “Let’s Twist Again,” “South Street,” Palisades Park,” and “Limbo Rock.” He then moved to New York where he worked as an arranger on huge hits like “Sunny” by […]

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The 3 P’s – The Keys To An Outstanding Vocal Recording

My good buddy and fantastic engineer/producer Ed Seay has a saying that I’ve used in a number of books about the 3 P’s or “Pitch, Passion and Pocket.” That refers to the 3 things that every great vocal must have, although you can apply it to other musical performances as well. Ed is not only one of […]

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New Music Gear Monday: Sonible Balancer Smart Plugin

In a world where everything around us is getting smarter and easier to use, why shouldn’t that happen with audio as well? There are a number of companies now making audio software based around artificial intelligence, and while there’s push back from older engineers used to doing everything manually, others embrace the new technology as […]

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