RSR425 - Joe Pisapia - Producing Guster, Ben Folds, and KD Lang in a Home Studio - Recording Studio Rockstars

RSR425 – Joe Pisapia – Producing Guster, Ben Folds, and KD Lang in a Home Studio

The standard guitar tuning is only a suggestion! Joe talked about Mellotron, Cubase and Pro Tools, creative guitar tunings, recording piano and drums, training your ear for eq, headphones vs speakers, home studios and the sound of drywall vs volume.

My guest today is Joe Pisapia a singer, songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist best known for his work as a member of Guster and k.d. lang and the Siss Boom Bang. He co-produced and co-wrote Guster’s 2006 release, Ganging Up On the Sun, an album that cracked Billboard’s Top 25 and was one of the best selling internet albums of the year. He did the same on the band’s 2010 Easy Wonderful. He produced and penned the title track for Lang’s 2011 album, Sing It Loud, and acted as music director for the accompanying tour.

As a producer and mixer Joes credits include: Ben Folds Five’s, The Hush Kids, Zac Clark, Drew Holcolmb, Chuck Mead, Josh Rouse, Courtney Jaye, Matt Wertz, William Tyler, The Silver Seas and The Pierces and when the Grammy Award-winning band Fun needed orchestral recording for its Grammy performance, they called on Joe.

Originally from New Jersey Joe moved to Nashville with his band Joe Mark’s Brother in the 90s with whom he has made beautiful sounding records and Joe has continued to record as a solo artist producing from his own studio Middle Tree in East Nashville.

His 2002 release Daydreams was given four stars and called “stellar” by AllMusic.com. Ron Sexsmith called 2015’s Nightvision, “amazing” and the “best thing” he’s “heard in a long time.”

In 2016 Pisapia collaborated with singer/ songwriter Kate York for the duet E.P. “Kate York And Joe Pisapia.” and in 2018 Joe released two full length solo albums. “Connection” and “Cosmic Christmas”.

In 2019 Pisapia recorded his first instrumental album, “Imbolc.” For a 2020 release of the album, he made music “videos,” which consisted of him making some of his favorite comfort foods. Joe also produced much of, and mixed all of Pam Tillis’ “Looking For A Feeling.” Tillis cut Pisapia’s song “Better Friends,” which was originally released on his solo album, “Connection.” NPR’s Ann Powers singled out Tillis’ version of “Better Friends” calling it a “quintessential country song.” Also in 2019 Joe produced Jillette Johnson’s “It’s A Beautiful Day And I Love You,” and was part of the live ensemble whom recorded the album “Outside Child” by Allison Russell, produced by Dan Knobler which Joe described as “tantamount to a holy experience.”

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Website Links:

Instagram: @joepisapia
Facebook: JoePisapiaMusic

Additional podcast editing and production by:
Brayden Stremming
Vlad Vasilcenko
Liz Hulitskaya

MixMasterBundle.com Learn how to mix using stock and free plugins in Pro Tools. Get a look at how I recorded my song "American Winter" with downloadable multitracks to mix in your own studio and even include in your mixing portfolio. Are you ready to make your best record ever? Then go to MixMasterBundle.com to get started for free now!