Unstoppable Recording Machine Podcast

Producer/mixer/songwriter David Bendeth is one of the all time greats; we're honored to have him on the show for a wide ranging, thorough discussion about his career, the psychology of working with musicians, and the importance of evolving with not just technology, but also emotionally. “Music is ever evolving, and you have to keep up with whatever the technology is; that’s important. But, at the same time, if you don’t keep up with the emotional, inner side of creativity, it doesn’t matter what kind of technology you’ve got, you’re not going to do anything that means anything or that inspires anybody.” - David Bendeth ON THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL LEARN ABOUT: 3:55 The feeling that music has chosen you, rather than the other way around 7:00 David’s perspective on the 60s as transformative years 18:40 The importance of demonstrating that you can follow instructions 25:37 The importance of figuring out your passion, and why David is drawn to producing rather than engineering 27:49 Frustration as a motivator and learning at the side of masters 30:53 Record label staff producers 33:52 Working on multiple projects at the same time 39:53 Going independent after years of working at labels 46:16 How pay worked with a label, and how David made going it on his own work 53:30 Perspective on the modern state of the industry to the way things used to be 59:07 The goal of stripping away the bullshit and how to know when you’re actually getting deep with an artist 1:03:11 The value of verbal communication over written communication 1:09:35 The psychological difficulties of the music industry, and strategies to face them. 1:30:20 Getting great drum source tone while also maintaining the performer’s vibe 1:33:26 How to evolve without losing your signature sound 1:35:18 What David wanted to bring to Underoath’s “Lost in the Sound of Separation” 1:37:54 The snare sound on Bring Me The Horizon’s “Sempiternal” 1:45:46 David’s experience working with Candiria 1:49:02 Reverb and delay strategies 1:52:31 Setting the best key and tempo for a song 1:58:39 Dealing with layered vocals 2:01:48 Logistical systems to facilitate a smoother recording process 2:05:31 Recording vocals with Breaking Benjamin 2:07:32 Getting low end in your snare 2:10:09 What a producer’s involvement in rolling out a record should be 2:13:17 David’s advice for his younger self Thanks for listening! Leave us a comment or review! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dave Otero and Archspire guitarist Dean Lamb discuss the production of the band’s album Relentless Mutation. We also talk pre-production, the importance of work scheduling, and the state of technicality in modern heavy music. I use my experience from every project I work on, but I look at it through the lens of the project I’m working on at that time, and what they want, and what their fans want, and what’s best going to represent them. - Dave Otero ON THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL LEARN ABOUT: 6:00 How Archspire and Dave Otero connected, musicianship as more than just a gimmick 15:00 Archspire’s extensive pre-production, and actively working on other aspects of the record during downtime 18:00 Having working hours so that the recording schedule is predictable and as stress-free as possible while working under time constraints 26:00 “Music prison” - cabin fever in the studio and how bands deal with it 35:00 Writing together in a room as a technical death metal band and having real respect for other band members’ opinions, how writing in Guitar Pro can negatively affect songs 54:00 The evolution of technicality in guitar playing, other instruments 1:09:00 How far to go when suggesting ideas as a producer, potentially pushing bands out of their comfort zone 1:15:00 Managing artist preferences against what a producer knows will work 1:20:00 Tracking guitars with a low-gain Podfarm tone in preparation for reamps 1:34:00 Dean on the process of playing fast and recognizing that you likely use completely different muscle groups when you play a riff at different speeds 1:50:00 Orchestral influences and neo-classical metal versus a more authentic orchestral compositional style 2:00:00 Recording real gunshots for Archspire - ‘Callous Will Animate Our Souls’, approaching drum edits for technical metal Thanks for listening! Leave us a comment or review! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We’re talking marketing and when and how to invest money into your music career with Finn McKenty and Dan Tsurif. Social media, paid engagement, buy ons, video content, paid mentorship: where modern marketing elements such as these fit into a music or production career and when to incorporate them are always at the top of the list of questions people ask. They’re also at the top of the list of things people tend to get wrong, and getting them wrong can be a waste of money and derail a career. If you want to know how to get them right then you’re definitely going to want to pay attention to what we’ve got to say on this episode. “If you’re not getting traction, instead of thinking that money is the answer, 99 times out of 100 the answer is that you need to keep working on the product.” - Finn McKenty ON THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL LEARN ABOUT: 3:30 ‘Buying success’, having the resources to open doors 36:00 Paying for advice from successful people as a useful resource 42:00 Talking numbers on views/likes and when it’s time to invest in a project 48:00 URM Podcast and Asking Alexandria as case studies of developing a successful project 1:00:00 Bands buying on to tours - when it makes sense and when it doesn’t 1:17:00 The dynamic between in person events like NAMM or URM Summit and online interaction 1:30:00 Facebook ads, likes, and the evolving social media landscape 1:42:00 Graduate school, higher education - when does it help or hurt your career opportunities 1:58:00 Learning from the media approach of this generation of up and coming rap artists, music videos - “what’s the twist?” 2:21:00 The importance of having a social media following for a band versus a producer/engineer/mixer Thanks for listening! Leave us a comment or review! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We talk to Colin Brittain (Dashboard Confessional, Papa Roach, All Time Low) about feeding your successes with passion, why you should maintain a vast musical knowledge, and mentorship. “Keep your eye on the ball. Look at the big picture. Don’t get caught up on what compressor to use. If your song sucks it doesn’t matter.” - Colin Brittain ON THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL LEARN ABOUT: 0:05:30 The evolution of heavy music fusing with electronic music and pop. 0:13:00 People paying you for your taste as a producer. Your musical knowledge needs to be vast. 0:25:00 URM and the new landscape of mentorship in engineering and production. 0:32:00 Alex Prieto and the process of establishing relationships with the intent of finding mentors. 0:40:00 Gradually transitioning a career into different roles but always in the realm of music. 0:44:00 Vocal production and communicating with vocalists, keep it to a few takes and keep your session moving. 1:00:00 Papa Roach's temporary beach and pre-production strategies. 1:12:00 The journey should be the reward; on Gary V. 1:18:00 Artists responding to a lack of fear and confidence in the project from the producer. Thanks for listening! Leave us a comment or review! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Michael Beinhorn (Red Hot Chili Peppers, Korn, Soundgarden) brings his immense experience to the topics of leaving your mark, building a career, pre-production, and much more. If we listed all of the important records Michael has worked on this page would be way too long. He’s made his mark at the upper echelon of multiple genres. There’s a lot to take away from his perspective on how he’s gotten to where he is, and how he continues to blaze new trails. “It’s important to have a sense of recognizing what your name means on someone else’s work.” - Michael Beinhorn ON THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL LEARN ABOUT: 7:30 Meeting and working with Bill Laswell and Herbie Hancock. 17:30 The reality of what is likely to follow initial success. 27:00 Getting to do Red Hot Chili Peppers record and identifying with the ‘black sheep’ of record labels 32:00 Dealing with drug abusing musicians and their individual personalities 39:00 Working on Korn’s ‘Untouchables’ - super high budget and production values 44:00 The importance of pre-production - cutting from 40+ demo ideas with Korn, artistic intent and self-knowledge 59:30 Why, on any record where a band member has had to have been fired, they were at a place of no coming back 1:07:00 Michael’s philosophy on editing drums/rhythm section, editing by hand, with/without a click Thanks for listening! Leave us a comment or review! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We’re incredibly excited to have Billy Decker back on the show to talk beating cancer, Nashville standards, and maintaining motivation. Mixing is almost as much a state of mind, as it is a state of hearing. - Billy Decker ON THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL LEARN ABOUT: 5:00 How Billy’s Attitude towards life has changed post-cancer 17:00 Adding extra production elements or vocals that aren’t strictly part of the mix process, where do you draw the line? 23:00 The Nashville work ethic and quality of musicianship, full sessions recorded in a half-hour. 28:00 Starting to track one piece at a time, mixing heavy rock with female vocals, how that has changed Billy’s process. 32:00 Applying other people’s settings with context to your own mixes rather than simply copying. 37:30 Learning from other Nail the Mix sessions and what those mixers are great at. 51:55 Dealing with disgruntled clients. 1:00:00 Producing as a way to maintain motivation, other ways to prevent burnout. 1:07:00 Parallel compression strategies, using Gain Reduction on lead vocals instead of 1176, sneaking in a Def Leppard snare sample into a country mix. 1:18:00 Country-based Nail The Mix sessions, audience feedback. Thanks for listening! Leave us a comment or review! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mike Mowery is back, and we’re going deep on the subject of building and maintaining business relationships. “Being busy, in and of itself, is not necessarily being productive.” - Mike Mowery ON THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL LEARN ABOUT: 10:00 Mike’s take on nurturing relationships - good intentions and burning bridges 13:28 Why you shouldn’t “fight over a slice of pizza” 25:00 Being proactive instead of instantly reacting to stressful situations 30:00 Mike’s URM Summit presentation 45:00 Following up and putting Summit knowledge and strategies into practice, not getting discouraged when relationships don’t immediately work out 1:00:00 Why ‘busy’ does not always equal ‘productive’, priority on quality over quantity Thanks for listening! Leave us a comment or review! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Guitarist, songwriter, and producer, Jasen Rauch (Red, Breaking Benjamin, Love & Death) joins us to give his perspectives on work ethic, navigating personalities, and dealing with higher profile clients and song briefs. The music industry requires constant and quick adaptation, and Jasen embodies that. If, for some reason, you feel like your career is requiring too much attention or you think you’re working too hard, and you’re starting to doubt yourself, this is one you need to hear. “Learn who you’re working for.” - Jasen Rauch ON THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL LEARN ABOUT: 9:00 Why, even with Full Sail and recording schools, work ethic and attention to detail is often under-emphasized in terms of getting your career off the ground 27:00 Figuring out the personalities of A&R guys, bands, etc and finding common ground solutions for all parties 35:00 Jasen’s experience joining Breaking Benjamin 39:00 Working with higher profile clients and “song briefs” 49:00 Jasen’s take on work/life balance, being careful with taking on projects 1:00:00 Using pure tactics vs having the right strategy for each project 1:16:45 Jasen’s advice for advancing your career 1:22:00 Working with Brian “Head” Welch on his band, Love and Death; working on the last two Breaking Benjamin records Thanks for listening! Leave us a comment or review! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jesse Cannon returns to the show to discuss his new podcast “Inside the Album,” emotion in lyrics, and details about the URM Summit. We always have amazing discussions with Jesse when he joins us on the show, and this time is no different. If you have a tendency to get hung up on the technical side of recording there are some truth bombs in here that you really need to hear. “It was very interesting that a band that’s regarded as so musically adept and technically proficient, but also emotional as fuck, their delivery would also get sloppy in those moments. It doesn’t matter who you are, the moment that that emotion comes out your skills will go down the drain.” - Eyal Levi ON THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL LEARN ABOUT: 4:00 How lyrics depend on the emotional delivery 5:38 Working with Ross Robinson and Korn 9:30 Jesse’s view on divergent streams - people who overthink vs not enough concentration and how producers can manage personalities 15:00 Jesse’s URM Summit discussion - dealing with inherent limitations in creative ways to get the job done 20:00 Good faith/bad faith arguments when it comes to mix notes and taste decisions 32:00 Jesse’s work on Atlantic Records “Inside The Album” podcast, Jesse’s time management strategies 40:00 Document your failures and focus on them rather than putting them aside, on the hour reminders 52:00 The process of quickly becoming friends with strangers from the music industry perspective 58:00 Shotgun mics and incorporating new ideas into your process 1:05:00 The URM Summit and the importance of networking Thanks for listening! Leave us a comment or review! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We’ve got a double dose of greatness on this episode, as we’re joined by Lamb of God’s Chris Adler and Machine The Producer. “I need to see the end game before I start the game.” - Machine ON THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL LEARN ABOUT: 10:00 Nature vs nurture in musical upbringing 16:00 Chris’s family musical upbringing 22:00 Teaching Machine about ‘real’ metal 30:00 The process of learning what a producer actually does from a musician’s standpoint 50:00 How Machine was able to pick out the moments that would resonate with a larger audience 1:00:00 How the producer’s role is like a shrink, and why bands need to be careful with finding the right match when finding producers. 1:14:00 Starting from the idea of a “brutal” version of “Operation: Mindcrime” and using keyboards/psychoacoustics 1:20:00 The learning curve for separating hands/feet, creating a ‘new’ drum sound 1:25:00 Creating the best album sound possible and worrying less about how it will be reconstructed live 1:30:00 Why mixing never stops, you just surrender 1:35:00 Creating tempo maps during pre-production, programming custom click samples 1:45:00 Room mics - using your ears to listen to a room as a microphone would listen to it 1:50:00 The typewriter kick sample, having a signature sound like Meshuggah 1:55:00 Chris Adler and Jason Lekberg’s new management company for Dyscarnate 2:00:00 Chris Adler’s entrepreneurship in and outside of the band 2:10:00 Playing drums out of necessity for the band rather than as a passion Thanks for listening! Leave us a comment or review! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices