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to any of the other engineers at EA -
Do you get alot of work, considering that steve is an icon to the recording industry?

also do you guys practice the same styles of micing, and recording and hold the same philosophies (i.e. anti-digital recording, anti-corporate record labels etc.) as steve?

Thanx
Jerm Snyder

This is a good quesiton which I was hoping would be answered.
Could Russ, Greg or Steve please answer this one?

These questions are kind of awkward.
I get a bunch of work. Not all of it at the studio because of $.
I learned a ton working here from Steve, and all the other engineers that have come through. If I see/hear something that sounds good, I'll appreciate it whether it comes from Pro tools, or a 4-track. The analog-digital fight is a tired one. In my opinion, both have a place depending on what you want to do. Resiliency is one field that analog has a severe advantage in.

Jerm Snyder wrote:to any of the other engineers at EA -
Do you get alot of work, considering that steve is an icon to the recording industry?

also do you guys practice the same styles of micing, and recording and hold the same philosophies (i.e. anti-digital recording, anti-corporate record labels etc.) as steve?

Thanx
Jerm Snyder

I should point out that I have learned a lot from both Greg and Russ, and previously I learned a lot from Rob and Bob Weston. I assume I will someday learn something from Andrew, but I don't want to jinx it.

As far as my "philosophies" go, I think they're my own, and I wouldn't expect anyone else to think like I do.

It is simplistic and misleading to paint them in terms like "anti-digital" or "anti-corporate," but I get your point.

For the record, I have no objection to digital recording for most things, but I don't think it is suitable for making records. I am opposed to anyone taking advantage of another person's ignorance, whether it be a record label, booking agent, realtor or a guy at a yard sale. I think it's creepy to not be on the level with everyone, all the time.

That's about it for "philosophy," I guess.

There is a corrollary, in recording: The band is in charge, and what they want is (or should be) what they get. I take offense when engineers (producers, managers, whoever...) start pushing a band around to suit their own agendas.

best,

Intern_8033 wrote:And yes, I agree that music is the soundtrack to our lives, but to reduce my reasoning to the fact that Steve repeats it so often would trivialize the integrity of the idea.

Sincerely,
Andrew

Andrew, Andrew. I teach few things, but I thought I had taught you to construct sentences that didn't require the use of ugly verbs like "trivialize."

Some things can certainly be made trivial, but I fear correcting you on this trivia is itself trivial.

best,

How do you (Andrew can answer if he so desirelizes, because he is at least standing right there, watching and learning) feel about/respond to, say, a band who come to you (after tracking) and says "Hey I think the guitars are too loud" or even more straight forward, "I think the drums sound too wide and they're too loud, can you turn it down?" or even MORE, "Can you mix this more like this (holding out the newest 12 stones CD and/or the newest Evenescense CD)" These questions may not sound too intelligent but I find myself, in my head, preparing to say "This is how I do it." or "Are you the engineer? then don't tell me what you think." but when it comes down to it, I find myself trying to work with the band, politely, adjusting what I can, without rupturing my integrity.

oh yeah, I didn't mean JUST Steve,Russ, or Greg, but those are who I personally wanted to hear from. So anyone.

I dunno, personally, I feel that I would be doing far more to damage my integrity by not doing what the band asked me to do. I mean, they're paying me (haha, I wish) to record their music. They know what they want better. I may offer suggestions on what I think might sound good, but beyond that, I don't really see it as being my decision.

I say to them, "Are you really gonna question the guy who programmed all the sequencers on the last Disturbed album?"

That usually settles it.

-russ

Chris Hardings wrote:How do you (Andrew can answer if he so desirelizes, because he is at least standing right there, watching and learning) feel about/respond to, say, a band who come to you (after tracking) and says "Hey I think the guitars are too loud" or even more straight forward, "I think the drums sound too wide and they're too loud, can you turn it down?" or even MORE, "Can you mix this more like this (holding out the newest 12 stones CD and/or the newest Evenescense CD)" These questions may not sound too intelligent but I find myself, in my head, preparing to say "This is how I do it." or "Are you the engineer? then don't tell me what you think." but when it comes down to it, I find myself trying to work with the band, politely, adjusting what I can, without rupturing my integrity.

Maybe a simple way of avoiding such situations in the future is to try to complete and mix a song before moving on to the next one. For a number of reasons, it’s more efficient to work on a song-by-song basis rather than do all the mixing in the end, including helping to establish a schedule and pace for the project. You tend to save the band a bit of time in the long run, time which can be used later to remix anything if the band wants to or if you discover the magic secret to the mix. It also helps the band understand early in the process what the end result will be like, rather than having to deal with all their reservations in the end. Be prepared to tell a band they should re-record a song if they want it to sound like the Stones or something, and be prepared to change your recording techniques (you might learn something along the way), or to say you can’t get the sound they’re looking for if you don’t know how or if it offends you.

As for rupturing your integrity, is it your integrity that’s being challenged by such situations, or your own ego? Are you making the record for the band's sake, or because you’re concerned about how the outcome might reflect on you? Making the band happy is more likely to ensure working with them again, more so than is your own opinion of how the perfect record should sound. If you don’t like or understand the band or their music, you always have the option of not working with them, and it’s a good idea to establish an open line of communication early on, preferably even before you accept the task.

C'mon,

NOBODY says the guitars are too loud.



Well, maybe the drummer.




Oh, and the singer.