Our MPG Studio Spotlight takes a look behind the scenes of those making moves in studio spaces across the motu. This week we're hearing from Sam Johnson of Rhythm Ace Studio.
Firstly - where is your Studio located?
Oakura, just outside New Plymouth, 2 mins from the beach!
How did you first get started as a producer or engineer, and what inspired you to pursue this career?
Initially, I never really thought about it as a dedicated career move. Back in London I was in bands and had a record contract so I was in and around the process of making records and it slowly evolved into a realisation that I’m more interested in the engineering and producing side than I am in the purely playing side. I also find it easier to realise an idea through this side of the glass than I did when I was writing and playing music.
The Atari ST was a bit of a breakthrough - it arrived at the same time as I was getting into electronic music and I remember getting a super simple set up at home -Atari, Roland S10, Alesis SR16 drum machine, Tascam 4 track, and being about as happy as I’ve ever been!
Loads of lessons learnt from those days that still stand up today I think. London was such a melting pot of music and I was listening to so many different styles, old and new, and thinking about how wonderfully varied music is and can be and how, from a production perspective you have all these thrillingly different sounds happening, often from wildly different ends of the sonic spectrum. I’m a firm believer that humans can handle a much wider breadth of music than perhaps the algorithms are currently feeding us!
What’s been your favourite project to work on, and what made it stand out for you?
An almost impossible question to answer! Not because I’m trying to avoid playing favourites! But any session where you snap into that wicked flow of ideas being realised is such a thrill. I still think making a record isn’t far off capturing lightning in a bottle, so being in and around that process on a daily basis is pretty life-enhancing.
There are some bands I’ve been lucky enough to work with quite regularly since opening the studio here and the flow you can get into with people you know and respect is something I love. When the engineering, producing, songwriting and playing all start to coalesce into one big ball is when I’m happiest
Can you tell us about your studio setup? What gear or plugins do you consider essential for achieving the best sound?
I have mixed feelings about this question! I don’t think any bit of equipment is more essential than a great song well played. That said, I do love my equipment!! Hopefully I’m able to combine both and then the equipment here can inspire and help bring to life the ideas of the artists. I do think tactile, hands-on equipment that has a definite sound tends to provide the most impact. I’ve never felt that a screen or a mouse can connect in quite the same way as a knob turned or a key pressed. I’m not sure I’d be as efficient without a nice analogue desk. I like having everything within reach - not having to visit too many hateful onscreen menus helps me to keep sessions moving nice and briskly. ‘Best sound’ is also such a fluid idea and can mean really different things depending on the project - worst can often be best if you know what I mean! In a world where everyone has access to a studio in a laptop, I’m a big fan of providing some other options here. Apart from being indulged and looked after and generally helped to express an idea, I think a studio can help put sonic options in front of artists that perhaps they hadn't thought of before or hadn't had the chance to experiment with.
Are there any specific pieces of equipment—hardware or software—that you find yourself using on nearly every project? Why do you rely on them?
I’m really interested in seeing what musicians and artists gravitate towards in the studio. Over the years clear favourites have emerged; Fender Rhodes, Wurlitzer, Mellotron, Upright Piano, Space Echo - these tend to get used in some way or another on just about every session. They each do that amazing thing of having a unique sound whilst still slotting into a wide variety of music. They are hands-on pieces of gear and, apart from the Mellotron, quite simple. They tend to provide a sound without a thousand options, although there are thousands of options in how you play them! There’s often a sense of ‘odd’ about these instruments - sometimes something wobbly or even just the dense build up of interesting sonic mist you can get from the upright piano that I really believe we respond to - they all vibrate! The Rhodes, for example, is not the easiest keyboard to play. In many ways it’s quite compromised. Mine is a bit like playing a bag of bones (it's never truly bang in tune, some notes bark more than others, the sustain rod is a horrible thing, it only has two controls) but never has anyone ever played it and not immediately smiled! I think it ties into the idea of perfection being a terrible idea most of the time!
What’s the most underrated piece of gear in your studio that you think more people should know about?
I love Greg at Ekadek’s approach to making equipment. I have a valve spring reverb from him that’s absolutely fantastic, I’ve used his FatLady comps, and have a Klankaswoopa preampEach piece of equipment is packed full of character, interesting to use and interact with, and they’re all one-offs. Saving up for something bespoke from a maker who is as passionate about their craft as I am about mine feels like a much better use of money for me these days. I've definitely been down the cheap and cheerful route in the past but I can’t honestly say any of that equipment has lasted the test of time. Moving all my gear from London to NZ was a great exercise in only taking what you love! Also anyone who has made a record here in the last few years has had a moment or two with the Neon Egg Planetarium - a reverb/delay/compressor that has to be heard to be believed!
Can you walk us through your typical workflow when working with an artist or band, from pre-production to the final mix?
This can really depend on the project. For younger bands or artists who are coming in to record perhaps for the first time, I think it's essential to spend some time talking about what they are hoping to achieve, what the timelines are like, and what we can expect to get done in a certain number of sessions. Until you’ve made a couple of records it can be hard to picture what the studio has to offer and what you might want to take from it.
For some bands a pure representation of how they sound live is what they’re after (although even this often involves the odd tasty double or overdub to help support the excitement you get hearing a band play live and loud) and for others there’s a desire to see what the studio and the production process can add to their existing sound. Once we’ve got a good sense of how we’d like the record to sound we can get a better idea of how long it might take and how we might tackle it. It’s been really encouraging over the last few years to work with bands who are happy to play without clicks and happy to track as much of the bones of the record together in the room as possible.
I think the grid and the click track have been hugely overhyped as essentials - a few bands I’ve worked with recently had been told that you can't make a record these days without it being tied to tempo and grid. I could not disagree with that more! It can absolutely suit some styles of music and there are definitely drummers I work with who find more freedom when they’ve got that support of set time in their cans but the song and the players should always determine the approach. There isn't a right or a wrong way and it infuriates me when you see musicians feeling obliged to make their art in a way that a Youtuber has told them is gospel! So many of my all time favourite moments in the studio have arisen from mistakes, serendipity, accidents and out-of-the-blue moments that were never planned or painstakingly sweated over - we should always leave a bit of wriggle room for the unexpected.
Do you have a particular philosophy or approach when it comes to mixing? Are there any mixing techniques you find yourself using consistently?
Mixing, along with just about every other aspect of recording, feels like a never-ending road - in the best possible way. Love that about music - it should feel like a bottomless pit of discovery as far as I'm concerned. It’s what still makes me nervous every morning when I open up the studio - the unknown, the variables! But over time, there are definitely techniques that I've found really helpful when approaching a mix. Having a consistent, repeatable monitoring level was a big revelation. I like to mix at 75-80dB (with occasional power blasts for checking the subbier end and some time spent listening a lot quieter on the Aurotones) but 75% of the time, keeping that level consistent means the room is more or less taken out of the equation and I’m not knackering my ears. Balance issues make themselves known far more quickly when you’re used to hearing a blend at a regular level I find.
I really enjoy a hybrid approach to mixing and despite so many compelling reasons to keep everything in the box I'm still a fan of an analogue mix bus chain and some key pieces of outboard on things like the drum bus (distressors set at 20:1 - thank you Eric Valentine!). I get all the heavy lifting done in the box (automation, routing, panning etc.) and have the mix pretty much sorted, feeling good, and at a point where I know I can break eight or so stereo stems out onto the desk sitting around that old 0VU level. Jjust doing that always sounds immediately better to my ears. There’s every chance it’s a placebo and my brain is just feeling more important and proper, but who cares! It helps me get into that last stage of the mix. From there the 2-bus will often have some combination of the Handsome Audio Zulu, A Designs HM2 EQ, Spectra 1964 C610’s, Culture Vulture, SSL Bus Plus, Chandler Germanium Comps - nothing working too hard, the compressors just tapping away very gently, usually a wee bit of bottom and top lift from the HM2, and everything just feels wider, deeper and more involving. Pperhaps it's me justifying the brutal expense of it all! But I come back to it time and again and it always beats the inbox equivalent. Plus we’re making records - it should be exciting and thrilling and there should be lights flashing and needles moving!!! (I don't entirely believe this - many a fantastic record has been made on a laptop - it’s just my opinion).
What advice would you give to someone just starting out in music production or engineering?
Do it. It's the best possible use of a life. Don’t do it for money (although there is money to be made - not loads of it but you can make it your career) but do it for the love of the craft and the huge sense of thrill and enjoyment you can get from helping an artist or band to realise an idea - there’s really nothing better. Plus we need heartfelt music more than ever these days - it's a civic duty! Record as much as you can on whatever you've got. Don’t wait for a bit of equipment to arrive before you press record or you’ll never press record. There’s always another bit of gear but I think it's an exercise in time served and the more you can do the more you’ll learn and the clearer a sense of identity you’ll find for yourself and your clients.
If someone wanted to set up their own studio, what would be the most important investments to make, and what are some common mistakes to avoid?
I’d encourage the idea that communication, a good spirit, a good vibe, an open mind, and an enthusiastic, positive approach to helping artists bring their songs to life will always beat a posh microphone or that new set of speakers. We can all fall into the trap of gear lust and feeling like its a lack of x or y that's holding us back, and it does obviously require a certain amount of stuff to make a record, but it's still a human endeavour far more than a technical one. I don’t think that will ever change. If you can get the human interaction right, then amazing records can be made with relatively little equipment. Get a couple of solid mics, spend as much time with them as you can recording as many different sources as possible, and understand how distance and placement can make a huge difference before moving on to the next purchase. Repeat that a few times and you’ll have a lot of the tools you need.
Are there any upcoming projects you’re particularly excited about that you’d like to share with our readers?
So many! On a local level the Taranaki music scene is absolutely bursting with talent. Recent projects from the studio from The Mons Whaler, Courtnay Low and the Unholy Revelry, The Mara, Frau Knotz, ack Moser, Fin Rah Zel, Hamish Cameron, Liana Hart, Moemoea, Infinity Ritual are all stunners. I’ve missed a load there as well that will come to me the minute I finish writing this - there’s honestly such an abundance of good work being done. We had the brilliant Sandy Sheets over from Hawkes Bay recently and their new EP is promising to be a corker. NZ feels alive with music.
Where can people follow your work or get updates on your latest projects?
Instagram for studio updates, gratuitous gear shots, videos from sessions etc. - @rhythmacestudio