"You're the cat on the date!" Mark talked about session mindset with Hall Blaine, vocal arranging for the Fairfield Four, a Meat Puppets session in Pheonix, how to play the right bass note, why your headphones matter, and how to rock online sessions.

My guest today is Mark Prentice, a Grammy-winning Record Producer, studio musician, music director, and hit songwriter. His versatile and exhaustive music industry resume includes recording and performance credits with renowned County Artists as well as various Internationally known Pop, R&B, and Rock-n-Roll Artists, including: Elvis Costello, John Fogarty, Jonathan Cain, Desmond Child, The Fairfield Four, Steve Earle, Lyle Lovett, BJ Thomas, Frankie Miller, Delbert McClinton, Ricky Skaggs, Olivia Newton-John, Amy Grant, Vince Gill, Johnny Cash, Don McLean, Crystal Gayle, Kevin Griffin (Better Than Ezra), Jennifer Nettles, Michael McDonald, Bruce Springsteen, Steven Van Zandt, Bruce Hornsby, Felix Cavaliere, The Young Rascals, Charley Pride, Allison Morer, Sam Moore, Billy Preston, Ben E. King, Michelle Wright, Jennifer Hanson, John Oates, Pat Boone, Patti Page, Lady Antebellum, Rodney Atkins, Chuck Wicks, Paulette Carlson, Bruce Cockburn, Holly Williams, Bo Diddley, Mitch Ryder, others.

I met Mark in the past couple years through mutual friends who gather to talk about music, life, and what the hell just happened to music and the world recently, and when I was invited to the annual Christmas party and saw how Mark could sit at the piano and play any song just by thinking about how should probably go I knew I was in the company of some serious musical talent.

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Website Links:

AllMusic: Mark Prentice

Additional podcast editing and production by:
Brayden Stremming
Vlad Vasilcenko

You're not serious until Taylor Swift fires you! Todd talked about playing the guitars on Kacey Musgraves records, songwriting with Lera Lynn, keeping the magic in the music during tracking sessions, and how to find new chord shapes for your guitar.

My guest today is Todd Lombardo, an ACM acoustic session guitar player-of-the-year nominee, producer and songwriter living in Nashville TN. Most notably known for his contributions to Kacey Musgraves “Golden Hour”. He is also responsible for Canadian platinum productions as well as numerous number one country hits as a session player.

I first met Todd when he brought the artist Mickey Cash over to The Toy Box Studio for me to mix. I was struck by his great production ideas, arrangement decisions, and guitar playing. Years later we reconnected over at Craig Alvins East Nashville studio which he occupies now. It also turned out we were both interested in weird stuff beyond music like Wim Hof and cold exposure Ice Baths for good health and ultimately we became neighbors.

More recently I got to hear a new record he recorded with his partner in life and music Lera Lynn that sounds amazing. So I'm psyched to learn more about what Todd is doing in the studio and get some great recording, production, and mixing tricks for you Rockstars.

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Website Links:

Instagram: @tolomusic

Additional podcast editing and production by:
Brayden Stremming
Vlad Vasilcenko

My fingers are in tons of pies! Hugh talked about songwriting from dusty notes, Monty Python animations, shooting music videos, piezo mics for guitars, creating sounds from voice memos, pushing through writer's block, and podcast editing for money.

My guest today is Hugh Macdonald aka Fairhazel a British/South African singer songwriter, artist, producer born in Brighton but raised in London, Cape Town and Paris. Hugh left Berklee College of Music in Boston in 2018 returning to London to work with Communion Music under the name Fairhazel, releasing his first single 7x7 in February 2018 to critical acclaim. Roisin O’Connor of The Independent described it as having "tender, whispering vocals that recall the likes of Villagers, Ben Howard and Sufjan Stevens”. Inspired by artists France Gall, Harry Nilsson and Andy Shauf among others, Fairhazel has established himself as a musical storyteller blurring the lines between fiction and true stories. 

At his Los Angeles studio, he works on creating all aspects of his music himself from songwriting to arrangement, production, and engineering. He also frequently produces and mixes music, primarily rock, folk, jazz, pop and soul. Although Fairhazel is a solo venture, a band often accompanies him at shows and he has opened for Agnes Obel, Banfi and Astræa. Recently he played Whispering Bob Harris's Under the Apple Tree, and featured thrice on the lineup of the Counting Crows Underwater Sunshine Festival. As well as the Fairhazel project, Hugh runs a monthly live music event with his wife, Danielle, soon to be growing into a day long monthly festival. Hugh and Danielle also direct, shoot and edit music videos for independent artists. 

I met Hugh back in 2019 when he came through Nashville at 21 years old and we did a live stream for our Youtube channel where Hugh wrote a song on the spot using lyrics from you Rockstars in the comments and everything was recorded on the Roswell Pro Audio Delphos and Colares mics. And Hugh has since worked with me a couple of years as the head videographer for our NAMM videos in Anaheim CA.

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Website Links:

Instagram: @fairhazel_
TikTok: @fairhazel
http://fairhazelmusic.com/

Additional podcast editing and production by:
Brayden Stremming
Vlad Vasilcenko

Give it all you've got because that might be all they get! Chuck talked about Nashville history, mixing "Money For Nothing", how to record acoustic and vocals, and why your favorite microphones could change in the future of mixing for immersive audio.

My guest today is Chuck Ainlay, a four time Grammy winner with Ten ACM, Two CMA’s Awards & Two Tech Awards. Chuck has over thirty five hundred credits to his name, including work with legendary and defining country music artists such as George Strait, Miranda Lambert, Steve Earle, Lee Ann Womack, Lyle Lovett, Emmylou Harris and The Chicks. 

Chuck has placed his distinctive production and engineering stamp on projects with more mainstream artists such as Dire Straits and nearly the entire solo career of Mark Knopfler as well as Peter Frampton, Taylor Swift, Lionel Richie, Ann Wilson, James Taylor, Jewel, Bob Seger, Pentatonix and Sheryl Crow. 

His work in immersive mixing has resulted in ground-breaking projects such as the 25th and 35th anniversary remix of Peter Frampton’s Frampton Comes Alive and the Grammy award winning 20th anniversary remix of the Dire Straits album Brothers In Arms. 

He is currently serving as Trustee for the Nashville chapter of the Recording Academy and numerous terms as a Governor. He has chaired the Nashville P&E Wing and is the current Co-Chair the Recording Academy P&E Wing National Steering committee. Chuck has been a coauthor of the majority of the P&E Wing Guidelines and recommendations. Chuck is also currently on the board of directors for the Country Music Association. Belmont University awarded Chuck with the Robert E. Mulloy Award of Excellence. 

Chuck is a founding member of  the METalliance, committed to promoting standards of quality in the art and science of recorded music through education and product certification.

Thank you to Phil Wagner at SSL for the introduction!

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Website Links:

Instagram: @chuck_ainlay
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cainlay
METalliance
AES Recommendation for delivery of recorded music projects

Additional podcast editing and production by:
Brayden Stremming
Vlad Vasilcenko

Nothing is bigger than you! Joakeem (our youngest guest yet) talked about producing Hip-Hop-J-Dilla-Haitian-Komba music, midi studio signal flow, AI studio assistants, why you need Twitch & Discord, and a thorough breakdown of iZotope plugins & apps.

My guest today is Joakeem Gaston a Boston-born musician, producer and photographer growing up in Dorchester, Massachusetts, and a graduate of the Full Sail recording program. As a first-generation American of Haitian immigrants, Joakeem was exposed to a variety of artists, music and people. Hearing different languages and different genres were hand in hand with his upbringing. Through his networking skills he learned in High School he was able to land at iZotope where he worked on the Customer Care and Artist Relations team.

I met Joakeem through his time working with iZotope and we got to connect at AES 2022 when I heard some of the cool vocal featured groove-based music he was creating. Joakeem is both musically and technically proficient in creating music on the computer so I thought it would be a great opportunity to learn more about some of the cool things that he learned at iZotope and talk about how he is making his tracks. I use iZotope all the time (and a ton for this podcast) but I also know there are many other musical uses we could learn about.

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Additional podcast editing and production by:
Brayden Stremming
Vlad Vasilcenko

Does your mix need a spanking? Tom talked about mixing on SSL consoles and the UF8 & UC-1, why Pro Tools works great for mixing, how to get a bigger chorus, set up your monitors, how to create a killer snare, and the secret to nailing your vocal mix!

My guest today is Tom Lord-Alge aka TLA a Multi Grammy winning mixer who started out as a young engineer in New York like his older brother Chris Lord Alge. Tom began his career as a touring lighting director before being thrown into the FOH seat when the original FOH engineer went ill. 

After 5 years of touring, Tom moved his focus to studio work and with his brother Chris worked at Unique Recording in New York. Then he was the resident mixer at what used to be known as "South Beach Studios", located on the ground floor of the Marlin Hotel in Miami Beach Florida.

TLA received two Grammy Awards for his work on Steve Winwood's Back in the High Life (1986), and Roll with It (1988), both winning in the 'Best Engineered Recording – Non-Classical' category. His third Grammy was for Santana's Supernatural (1999), which won Album of the Year. 

Tom has mixed records for U2, Simple Minds, The Rolling Stones, Pink, Peter Gabriel, OMD, Sarah McLachlan, Dave Matthews Band, Blink-182, Avril Lavigne, Hanson, Sum 41, Live, The Wallflowers, Weezer, Manic Street Preachers, New Found Glory, Story of the Year and Marilyn Manson, among others.

He now resides in Austin Texas where he has built 2 mixing rooms. SPANK Studios ATX houses TLA's SSL 4064G+ console and ORG Studios ATX houses TLA’s SSL Origin console.

Thank you to Phil Wagner and Fadi Hayek at SSL for connecting us.

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Additional podcast editing and production by:
Brayden Stremming
Vlad Vasilcenko

So comfy luck can't find you? Jacob talked about beating imposter syndrome, building a commercial studio with a staff of session musicians and teachers, how to get great vocal, guitar, and drum recordings, and how to be super organized in business!

My guest today is Jacob Light a musician, record producer, and audio engineer based in the San Francisco Bay Area. He has been playing, writing, performing and recording music with bands and solo artists on stage and in the studio for 25 years. He has been credited on hundreds of commercial recordings for his work as a producer, engineer, guitarist, bassist, vocalist, songwriter, and arranger.

Jacob is the founder, owner, musical director, and head engineer of ModernTone - a full-service recording studio and music education facility in Lafayette, CA. Jacob runs the studio with his team of pro session musicians, producers, audio engineers, and educators. Together they cater to recording artists, bands, aspiring musicians and music students of all ages and levels. Driven by their love of music, they aim to provide professional instruction, guidance, and support that empower people to realize and fulfill their potential and achieve their musical dreams.

I met with Jacob at NAMM 2022 and we got to hang out my the poolside bar and talk studio stuff. He had emailed me about the podcast and how it helped him put himself out there through his studio and production and getting over imposter syndrome, not to mention surviving musically through the 2020-2022 years.

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Website Links:

https://moderntonestudios.com/

Instagram: @jacoblightguitar

Instagram: @moderntonestudios

https://www.facebook.com/moderntone/

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCch_QUAoMsMg-JDJQWnnshQ

Additional podcast editing and production by:
Brayden Stremming
Vlad Vasilcenko

Which panels sound-proof your studio? Wrong question! Wilson explained the difference between sound-treatment and sound-proofing, how to deal with floors, walls, and windows, how to build your studio, and where to set up your perfect mix position.

My guest today is Wilson Harwood a producer and mix engineer in Nashville, TN. He founded his company Soundproof Your Studio in 2020 after building a soundproof studio in his backyard. He knew the world needed better explanations of how to soundproof a recording studio so he set out to teach soundproofing through his Youtube channel, podcast, blog and courses.

Harwood's goal with Soundproof Your Studio is to provide scientifically backed approaches to Soundproofing that are easy and practical to implement. He now helps thousands of people from all over the world with their own DIY soundproofing projects whether it is a shed out back, a basement in a house or a spare garage.

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Website Links:

https://elevatedmusic.co/
YouTube
https://www.soundproofyourstudio.com/

Additional podcast editing and production by:
Brayden Stremming
Vlad Vasilcenko

Six ingredients can make a masterpiece or a bowl of dog food! Kevin talked about mixing in mono, stereo or Atmos, how to set up a home studio and get a pro sound using headphones and a bucket for monitors, when your mix is done, and how to backup!

My guest today is Kevin Paul an audio engineer, mixer, and mastering engineer who worked with the Kinks at their studio before moving to Mute records to become head engineer. While there worked with pretty much every artist on the label including Depeche Mode, Goldfrapp, Erasure, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Luke Slater and many many more. 

He also worked with David Bowie and recorded his album Hours and after leaving Mute records began working for Apple and iTunes in their festival season where they recorded and mixed Bruno Mars, Adele, Ed Sherran, and Fleet Foxes among many many others. Kevin recorded and worked with Nick Cave for over 10 years and run his own online mixing mastering service. 

He is also the host of the podcast “Mixbus with Kevin Paul” and has lectured for over 15 years on surround sound mixing and now atmos/immersive. 

Thank you to Simon Taylor for the introduction! 

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Website Links:

www.kevin-paul.com
Instagram: @kpmixbus

Additional podcast editing and production by:
Brayden Stremming
Vlad Vasilcenko

Find the universal in the specific! Colin talked about writing grant proposals for records, organizing local show live albums, drum edits, and mixing templates in Logic Pro X, and how to create cool vocal harmonies in a "rock-in" closet home studio.

My guest today is Colin Scharf a songwriter, producer, filmmaker, author, event organizer, occasional actor, and English professor living in Mankato, Minnesota.

He moved from NYC to Mankato Minnesota and has an indie rock band with his wife called Good Night Gold Dust. Conlin has been on the podcast before to talk about his discovery of this podcast in 2020 and how it helped him make his best record ever to produce his first major album: a holiday compilation featuring musicians from my city performing standard and original songs.

Colin has also produced over a dozen short films and starred as Buddy Holly in the biographical musical Buddy! The Buddy Holly Story (2016, 2022). He is the recipient of numerous arts grants, including a 2021 Minnesota State Arts Board grant, and the author of two young adult novels.

In February 2021, Colin officially opened Gold Mine Studios. Since then, he has produced numerous albums, EPs, and singles for local bands, including the Golden Hour Live Album, which features live recordings of 14 Mankato-area artists that performed during Colin’s summer 2022 Golden Hour Concert Series. Colin has also produced promotional videos for the Mankato chapter of the American Lung Association and Open Arts Minnesota’s Aktion Club Theater.

Colin is also producing the debut albums for his new band Silver Summer and his wife Laura’s all-girl band Given Names. These albums will be released on Precious Metals Records, the DIY label Colin founded to help keep track of his and his friends’ musical endeavors. “At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter what sort of project Colin is involved with; he just wants to create and help others create great art.”

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Website Links:

RSR322 – Colin Scharf – Home Studio Rockstar Success Story!
Facebook: Colin Scharf
Instagram: @colinscharf

Studio:
Facebook: @goldminestudios507
Instagram: @goldmine.studios

Band:
Facebook: @goodnightgolddust
@silversummerlovers
@preciousmetalsrecords
Instagram: @goodnightgolddust
@silversummerlovers
@preciousmetalsrecords
Twitter: @gngolddust

Additional podcast editing and production by:
Brayden Stremming
Vlad Vasilcenko