There’s A Scientific Reason For The Instruments In The Rhythm Section

Rhythm Section

You’ve probably never wondered why the drums and especially the bass hold down the rhythm section, but it turns out there’s a very specific scientific reason. A recently published study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences found that perceptions of time are much more acute at lower registers, and those that play […]

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The Producer’s Basic Tracks Checklist

Music Producer's Handbook 2nd edition cover

There’s always so much going on during a tracking session (especially one with a lot of players involved) that it’s pretty easy to get overwhelmed with the details and demands and overlook some of the things that can really help the session along. Here’s a Basic Tracks Checklist from my latest  Music Producer’s Handbook 2nd edition book that […]

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Plugin Developer Joey Sturgis On My Latest Inner Circle Podcast

Joey Sturgis

I’m happy to have producer/engineer and plugin developer Joey Sturgis from Joey Sturgis Tones on my latest Inner Circle Podcast. Joey makes some of my favorite plugins (I love Finality on Kick drum), and in the interview he tells you all about the process of creating a plugin, as well as why being a user […]

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New Music Gear Monday: Yamaha TransAcoustic Guitar

Yamaha TransAcoustic guitar

OK, this is pretty wild. What if you want to add some extra ambience to your acoustic guitar, but hate the idea of plugging into an amp or adding effects pedals. If that’s the case, then the Yamaha TransAcoustic guitar might be the thing for you. The Yamaha TransAcoustic guitar lets you add reverb and chorus […]

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Blue Oyster Cult – “(Don’t Fear) The Reaper” Isolated Backing Tracks

There’s been a lot of hits from the past that you continue to hear on the radio, but a perennial favorite is “(Don’t Fear) The Reaper” from Blue Oyster Cult. The song comes from the band’s 1976 album Agents of Fortune album, where it hit #12 on the Billboard charts and has been around ever […]

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The “When All Else Fails” Recording Checklist

When All Else Fails Recording Checklist

It happens to all of us. We’re trying to recording a sound source and for some reason it’s just not happening. What to do? It’s easy to just try a bunch of random things but sometimes that makes you more confused than ever. That’s when to try this following recording checklist when all else fails. […]

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Louis Armstrong In The Studio In 1959

Louis Armstrong studio 1959

Here’s a great piece of archival footage that shows the only film ever taken of the legendary Louis Armstrong in the studio. This was during the 1959 recording of the album Satchmo Plays King Oliver and it shows Armstrong and his All Stars recording the master take of “I Ain’t Got Nobody,” as well as silent footage […]

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Re-recording Mixer Michael Perricone On My Latest Inner Circle Podcast

Michael Perricone

My guest this week is Michael Perricone, who’s not only a movie and television re-recording mixer (mean post-production mixer), but a musician and screenwriter as well.   Michael has worked on tons of movies and television shows, and has mixed a number of music episodes involving Heart, Cheap Trick, ZZ Top and many others as […]

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New Music Gear Monday: Softube Modular Eurorack Emulation Plugin

Softube Modular

Those tiny Eurorack synth modules have been growing in popularity, going from a simple 10×20 foot booth down in the no-mans-land basement at NAMM to a huge pavilion on the main floor. While everyone loves hardware, for many of us its just impractical in our musical creation so the new Softube Modular Eurorack emulation plugin addresses […]

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How To Time Your Reverb Decay To The Track

Reverb front to back

When signal processing is timed to the pulse of the track, everything in the mix sounds a lot smoother. This applies to compressors, delays, modulators, and especially reverb. One of the questions I get a lot is, “How do you time your reverb to the track?” There’s a step by step tutorial in my Audio Mixing […]

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Rapper/Entrepreneur Manafest On My Latest Inner Circle Podcast

Manafest - Chris Greenwood

My guest this week is musician, rapper and entrepreneur Chris Greenwood, who goes by the stage name of Manafest. Chris has released 8 critically acclaimed studio albums that have either won or been nominated for a host of GMA and Juno awards, and he’s self-financed his last 3 projects with crowdfunding campaigns. Chris has also […]

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