New Year Panic
New Year Panic! Get used to it, it is a feature of our profession.
Being a Sound Engineer
Is Mixing Personal?
To whom is a sound engineer responsible when creating a mix? Thanks again to all who turned up at PLASA to hear me rant on about stuff. Apologies for running out of time and for having to shout over some very rude speaker demonstrations from just outside the lecture area! For those who missed it, I was exploring the idea of creative input in a mix. My personal opinion is that it is an essential part of the process.
Competence, Confidence and Connections
Gaining the Three C’s is a sure path to success – but you might need to give up some of your time to get there.
Working Together
At the studio we are preparing for a bit of an exodus. I am looking at tours and festivals with The Prodigy and Dave is off with, amongst others, our other studio colleague Thomas with his band Frogbelly & Symphony. Exciting times with lots of releases coming out this month.
Getting Paid
One of the thorniest problems you will ever have to deal with as a sound engineer is nothing to do with sound. It is also a subject that I hate to deal with and yet is one of the most important in our careers – wages.
Restricted Choice
As a sound engineer I am supposed to know how things work. Part of my job is to understand how equipment works and how to get the best out of it to produce the desired result- a great sound.
Looking Forward to Work
An engineers’ forum posed the question on how many extra hours we all put in on recording sessions. This is a good question and one that needs considering. Wouldn’t it be great to clock on, take a regulated lunch break and finish after our statutory eight hours?
Preparing to Speak at PLASA
Preparing my talk for PLASA in Glasgow, it has struck me how once again I have managed to pluck out of the air what I thought would be a simple subject. I was approached a month or so ago to speak, and as I have now spoken at PLASA a few times, a new subject was again needed.
International Mixing
It was a great idea and involved international cooperation and the internet. Friends in Serbia were recording an album, would I be involved with recording and mixing? The answer was of course yes, if I could make time. This was 12 months ago. Today I hopefully sent off the last minor mix changes and the album will be mastered and due for release. So why so long you say? Well, life never goes quite as planned.
Bad Day At Work
Having just spoken to one of the Soulsound Agency engineers who had an especially bad day at work last night, I was reminded of this article I wrote in 2012 for FOH Online magazine. So, if you’ve had a really bad day at work, where everything has gone wrong, fear not. You are not alone! In the following post I ‘fess up to the worst day I have ever had at work…