Master Your Mix Podcast

Mike Kalajian: Building Systems To Improve Your Audio Skills

Mike Kalajian is the owner and chief engineer of Rogue Planet Mastering in New York’s Hudson Valley, where he’s worked with artists including All Time Low, Saosin, The Devil Wears Prada, Saves The Day and Emmure among many others.
IN THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL LEARN ABOUT:
Balancing your focus between the big picture and little details
Determining the value of your time
Transitioning from being a mixer to mastering
The importance of having consistency in your process
Optimizing your systems to work faster
Mike’s go-to tool for project management
Incorporating social impact into your business
Building a mastering studio
Picking monitors for mastering
Using speaker calibration software
To learn more about Mike Kalajian, visit: https://www.rogueplanetmastering.com/
To learn more tips on how to improve your mixes, visit https://masteryourmix.com/
Download your FREE copy of the Ultimate Mixing Blueprint: https://masteryourmix.com/blueprint/
Get your copy of the #1 Amazon bestselling book, The Mixing Mindset – The Step-By-Step Formula For Creating Professional Rock Mixes From Your Home Studio: https://masteryourmix.com/mixingmindsetbook/
Join the FREE MasterYourMix Facebook community: https://links.masteryourmix.com/community
To make sure that you don’t miss an episode, make sure to subscribe to the podcast on iTunes or on Android.
Have your questions answered on the show. Send them to questions@masteryourmix.com
Thanks for listening! Please leave a rating and review on iTunes!

Dave Schiffman: How To Rise Up The Ranks As An Engineer

Grammy Winner and Multi–Platinum selling producer, mixer, and engineer came up the ranks as Rick Rubin’s engineer. Together they produced monster hits such as Red Hot Chili Peppers’ ‘Californication’, System Of A Down’s ‘Toxicity’, which reached # 1 on Billboard, certified double platinum, and earned multiple awards and nominations. They also produced ‘Hypnotize’ which once again hit Billboard #1 and led the band to be the first-ever rock outfit to have two #1 LPs in one year.
Dave’s production and mixes have topped the charts recently with The Strumbellas Hope from which the single ‘Spirits’ hit #1 on the Billboard Alternative charts, took home the Juno Award for Single of the Year (2016), received an iHeart Radio’s Best New Artist nomination, and won Much Music’s Best Alternative Video. 
Dave produced Pup’s 2019 ‘Morbid Stuff’ which debuted #1 on multiple Billboard charts including Rock, Heatseekers, Alternative, and Independent Albums – it also landed at #14 on Billboard top 200 charts. The album went on to be shortlisted for the prestigious Canadian Juno Award for Album of The Year. 
Dave has also worked on Smashing Pumpkins’ latest album CYR, The Killers’ critically acclaimed LP Imploding The Mirage, Grammy Award-winning album Father Of The Bride by Vampire Weekend, and Haim’s Days Are Gone, which reached #2 on both the Billboard top Rock and Alternative charts.
IN THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL LEARN ABOUT:
Adapting to the different ways different studios work
Navigating subjectivity and understanding the “right way” to do things
Being proactive and creating opportunities for yourself
Overcoming imposter syndrome to take advantage of opportunities when they present themselves
Deciphering the vocabulary people use in the studio
Recording Chris Cornel’s vocals
Stories from working with System Of A Down and Jimmy Eat World
How to dial in the right amount of drive with guitars
Getting heavy guitar tones that still have clarity
Double-tracking vs multi-amping
How to make a living as an engineer
Why there is a massive opportunity for engineers who understand ATMOS
Dave’s predictions on the future of ATMOS
To learn more about Dave Schiffman, visit: http://daveschiffmanmusic.com/
To learn more tips on how to improve your mixes, visit https://masteryourmix.com/
Download your FREE copy of the Ultimate Mixing Blueprint: https://masteryourmix.com/blueprint/
Get your copy of the #1 Amazon bestselling book, The Mixing Mindset – The Step-By-Step Formula For Creating Professional Rock Mixes From Your Home Studio: https://masteryourmix.com/mixingmindsetbook/
Join the FREE MasterYourMix Facebook community: https://links.masteryourmix.com/community
To make sure that you don’t miss an episode, make sure to subscribe to the podcast on iTunes or on Android.
Have your questions answered on the show. Send them to questions@masteryourmix.com
Thanks for listening! Please leave a rating and review on iTunes!

Jason Livermore: Recording Punk Music

Jason Livermore received his first snare drum at the age of three. Years later, Jason took up bass and guitar, but returned to drums because he liked them better. In junior high Jason discovered punk rock. His first vinyl purchase was the infamous, “Milo Goes to College”. He played in various bands throughout high school and college, recording some of these himself. After college, he decided that recording was probably going to be cooler than selling beer for Miller, his job at the time. 
Upon hearing that ALL was opening the Blasting Room in 1994, he moved to Fort Collins to land the job of a lifetime. Jason has been working at the studio ever since and in 2015 he became co-owner alongside Bill Stevenson. He has worked on about 95% of the albums that have come out of the studio. Jason has also played drums for Wretch Like Me, Drag the River, Bill The Welder, Soul City Missionaries, and The Virginia Sisters.
IN THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL LEARN ABOUT:
Finding trust in yourself that you know what you are doing
Mixing punk drums
How a drummer’s technique will change your approach to micing and tuning
How to tune drums
To polish your tracks or keep them raw? How to know when to edit
Creating tempo maps
How a particular type of guitar bridge cut his recording time in half
Choosing string gauges for getting the most clarity with your guitars
How to set up multi-amp blends
Using phase alignment tools
To learn more about Jason Livermore, visit: https://theblastingroom.com/To learn more tips on how to improve your mixes, visit https://masteryourmix.com/
Download your FREE copy of the Ultimate Mixing Blueprint: https://masteryourmix.com/blueprint/
Get your copy of the #1 Amazon bestselling book, The Mixing Mindset – The Step-By-Step Formula For Creating Professional Rock Mixes From Your Home Studio: https://masteryourmix.com/mixingmindsetbook/
Join the FREE MasterYourMix Facebook community: https://links.masteryourmix.com/community
To make sure that you don’t miss an episode, make sure to subscribe to the podcast on iTunes or on Android.
Have your questions answered on the show. Send them to questions@masteryourmix.com
Thanks for listening! Please leave a rating and review on iTunes!

Jim Stewart: How to survive as a studio owner

Jim Stewart is a Mixing Engineer and Producer based in Cleveland Ohio. Over the past 15 years he has worked with some of the most promising local, regional and national artists. Songs Jim has mixed, engineered or produced have been featured in tv shows, movies, commercials, as well as garnering millions of streams across streaming platforms.
IN THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL LEARN ABOUT:
Building your own studio
Working on a budget
Lessons learnt from failed studios
The important budgeting tip that can make or break your studio business
Getting clients for your studio
Growing your clientele beyond only local artists
Helping artists promote their music once they’ve recorded
The reason most band’s record sales flop
Mixing cello in rock music
How to get your kick and bass to work together to create a solid low-end
Distorting bass
How to mix snares to sound big and fat
Using room samples to get more control over your drum tracks
To learn more about Jim Stewart, visit: https://www.jimstewartmixing.com/
To learn more tips on how to improve your mixes, visit https://masteryourmix.com/
Download your FREE copy of the Ultimate Mixing Blueprint: https://masteryourmix.com/blueprint/
Get your copy of the #1 Amazon bestselling book, The Mixing Mindset – The Step-By-Step Formula For Creating Professional Rock Mixes From Your Home Studio: https://masteryourmix.com/mixingmindsetbook/
Join the FREE MasterYourMix Facebook community: https://links.masteryourmix.com/community
To make sure that you don’t miss an episode, make sure to subscribe to the podcast on iTunes or on Android.
Have your questions answered on the show. Send them to questions@masteryourmix.com
Thanks for listening! Please leave a rating and review on iTunes!

Simon Grove: How to Get Killer Bass Tones

Simon Grove is a music producer based in Sydney, Australia. 
Having an equally strong musical background as a bass player and guitarist, he is able to seamlessly bridge the division between engineer and musician. This allows him to create records with technical precision whilst retaining the music's intended character and dynamic. 
Simon has built a vast catalogue of clients from around the world including Protest The Hero, Plini, Intervals, Richard Henshall, Stephen Taranto, Owane, Tashka, and many more.
IN THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL LEARN ABOUT:
Becoming a session musician
What makes a great bass tone?
Using parallel processing on bass
Simon’s live and in-studio signal chains for bass
Kick and bass relationships: Deciding whether the bass should sit above or below the kick drum
How to shape your kick drums to fit the tempo of your songs (to get more clarity out of them)
His plugin, Grovebass
How to make ghost notes be heard clearly in a mix
Giving snare drums their own space
How the thickness of a drum affects the tone
Why he avoids using gates on drums
Why editing is so important (even if you have great musicians and performances)
Working on instrumental music: How to give lead guitars their own space
Tracking techniques for getting tighter guitars
The importance of tuning for tone
To learn more about Simon Grove, visit https://simongrove.com/
To learn more about joining the MasterYourMix Academy, visit: http://masteryourmixacademy.com/
To get tips on how to improve your mixes, visit https://masteryourmix.com/
Download your FREE copy of the Ultimate Mixing Blueprint: https://masteryourmix.com/blueprint/
Get your copy of the #1 Amazon bestselling book, The Mixing Mindset – The Step-By-Step Formula For Creating Professional Rock Mixes From Your Home Studio: https://masteryourmix.com/mixingmindsetbook/
Join the FREE MasterYourMix Facebook community: https://links.masteryourmix.com/community
To make sure that you don’t miss an episode, make sure to subscribe to the podcast on iTunes or on Android.
Have your questions answered on the show. Send them to questions@masteryourmix.com
Thanks for listening! Please leave a rating and review on iTunes!

Jay Ruston: Mixing Rock Records With Feel

Jay Ruston began his recording career in Canada in the early 1990’s, training under legendary producer Jack Richardson (Alice Cooper, Bob Seger, The Guess Who).  In 2003, Jay relocated to Los Angeles where he quickly fell in favor of producers such as Desmond Child and Peter Asher.  Since then, Jay has produced or mixed records for Anthrax, Steel Panther, Diana Ross, Wilson Philips, American Idol, Stone Sour, Meat Loaf, Better than Ezra, Killswitch Engage, Everclear, Bowling for Soup, Theory of a Deadman and many others.  Jay currently works from his studio in Sherman Oaks producing, mixing and mixing in 5.1 surround sound.
IN THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL LEARN ABOUT:
Stacking vocals & creating harmonies
Pushing singers to get great performances vs relying on tuning
Lessons learned from famed producer, Jack Richardson
Working for free to start your career
Working with Steel Panther
Writing lyrics with artists
To recording with click track or not
Tempo mapping
Preserving natural feel vs hyper-editing
Top-down mixing
Vocal compression for rock music
To learn more about Jay Ruston, visit http://jayruston.com/
To learn more tips on how to improve your mixes, visit https://masteryourmix.com/
Download your FREE copy of the Ultimate Mixing Blueprint: https://masteryourmix.com/blueprint/
Get your copy of the #1 Amazon bestselling book, The Mixing Mindset – The Step-By-Step Formula For Creating Professional Rock Mixes From Your Home Studio: https://masteryourmix.com/mixingmindsetbook/
Join the FREE MasterYourMix Facebook community: https://links.masteryourmix.com/community
To make sure that you don’t miss an episode, make sure to subscribe to the podcast on iTunes or on Android.
Have your questions answered on the show. Send them to questions@masteryourmix.com
Thanks for listening! Please leave a rating and review on iTunes!

Maor Appelbaum: Creativity In Mastering

Maor Appelbaum is a mastering engineer and musician.
After working as staff engineer (mixing, recording and mastering) for famed record producer Sylvia Massy Shivy at Radiostar Studios in Weed, California, Maor moved to Los Angeles where he opened his private mastering suite.
Maor has had the pleasure of mastering recordings for major international acts such as: Rob Halford, Sepultura, Yngwie Malmsteen, Fates Warning, Cynic, The Prog Collective, Nekromantix, Armored Saint, Lita ford, Fight, Angra, Walter Trout, Treponem Pal, Seven The Hardway, Marco Mendoza, The Top Chops and more…
He has mastered the works of well-known music producers such as: Toby Wright, Justin Gray, Roy Z, Sylvia Massy, Gilby Clark, Warren Riker, Ryan Greene, Ulrich Wild, Fabrizio Grossi, Greg Hampton , Logan Mader, Stan Katayama, Ben Schigel, Mark Lewis, Jacob Hansen, Tue Madsen, Eyal Levi, Jason Suecof, Thomas Lang and more… Also, he does mastering for unsigned artists of all genres from all over the world.
IN THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL LEARN ABOUT:
Should a mastering engineer offer constructive criticism to their clients?
How to be tactful with client communication
Working with Sylvia Massey
How to be creative with mastering music
Understanding how your gear affects your sound
Remastering records: How to preserve the legacy of an artist
Building custom gear
Modeling hardware for plugins
What makes a great master?
How your portfolio helps you grow your career
To learn more about Maor Appelbaum, visit: https://maorappelbaum.com/
To learn more tips on how to improve your mixes, visit https://masteryourmix.com/
Download your FREE copy of the Ultimate Mixing Blueprint: https://masteryourmix.com/blueprint/
Get your copy of the #1 Amazon bestselling book, The Mixing Mindset – The Step-By-Step Formula For Creating Professional Rock Mixes From Your Home Studio: https://masteryourmix.com/mixingmindsetbook/
Join the FREE MasterYourMix Facebook community: https://links.masteryourmix.com/community
To make sure that you don’t miss an episode, make sure to subscribe to the podcast on iTunes or on Android.
Have your questions answered on the show. Send them to questions@masteryourmix.com
Thanks for listening! Please leave a rating and review on iTunes!

Andrew Scheps: Streamlining Your Mixing Workflow

A Long Island native who got his start playing jazz trumpet, Andrew Scheps has mixed records for artists such as the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Adele, Metallica, Jay-Z and many others. After graduating from the Recording Engineering Program at the University of Miami, he spent some time working for New England Digital as a field service technician for the Synclavier, one of the first digital synthesizers / samplers / workstations, then on the road with Stevie Wonder (as a keyboard tech) and Michael Jackson (mixing live sound), before settling in LA.
Having got into mixing a few years before the analog-to-digital revolution, Andrew worked with a collection of vintage gear at his Punkerpad West studio in Van Nuys, California, including a Neve Electronics BCM-10 with ten 1073s that were used for reference during the Waves Audio Scheps 73 plugin modeling process.
In July 2015, he made the switch to working completely “in the box”
Scheps is known for his balanced, modern sounding and often loud mixes. 
He is also the owner and president of Tonequake Records and Punkerpad UK (formerly Punker Pad West).
IN THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL LEARN ABOUT:
The importance of having skills that go beyond basic audio engineering
Diversifying your skills and musical genres
Being proactive vs reactive in the studio
Why he switched working on analog gear to being 100% in the box
Creating efficiencies in your workflow
How using macros will make you a better engineer
His go-to macros for saving time
Andrew’s new app, Bounce Factory
The various mixes you should be delivering to every client
How he uses his “rear buss” system to make his mixes feel bigger
His approach to creating ambience in a mix
Various ways you can manipulate your plugins to get a cooler sound
To learn more about Andrew Scheps, visit: http://www.mcdman.com/scheps
To learn more tips on how to improve your mixes, visit https://masteryourmix.com/
Download your FREE copy of the Ultimate Mixing Blueprint: https://masteryourmix.com/blueprint/
Get your copy of the #1 Amazon bestselling book, The Mixing Mindset – The Step-By-Step Formula For Creating Professional Rock Mixes From Your Home Studio: https://masteryourmix.com/mixingmindsetbook/
Join the FREE MasterYourMix Facebook community: https://links.masteryourmix.com/community
To make sure that you don’t miss an episode, make sure to subscribe to the podcast on iTunes or on Android.
Have your questions answered on the show. Send them to questions@masteryourmix.com
Thanks for listening! Please leave a rating and review on iTunes!
Photo Credit: Mix With The Masters

Vance Powell: Making Mixes With Character

Vance Powell is an American six-time Grammy Award winning record producer, engineer and mixer. His credits include Phish, Chris Stapleton, Jack White, Tyler Bryant & The Shakedown, The Raconteurs, The Dead Weather, The White Stripes, Arctic Monkeys, Wolfmother, Deadly Apples, Seasick Steve, Black Prairie, The Revivalists, Tinariwen, JEFF the Brotherhood, Daniel Ellsworth & The Great Lakes, and Martina McBride, among many others.
IN THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL LEARN ABOUT:
Working with Jack White and Chris Stapleton
How his live sound experience influences his work in the studio
The importance of “making decisions” while tracking
Why he doesn’t edit his tracks
Should you record with a click track?
Imposter syndrome: How to learn from it
Why doing “shootouts” is a bad idea
Reverb vs delay: When it’s better to use one vs the other
Using saturation: 
How to dial it in
Where to use it
His go-to pedals for saturation
How using tape can give your drums a bigger sound
Mixing Snare:
How to make your snares sound more like a note vs a quick hit
His go-to compression settings
How to use a transient designer
How to get the right tuning
How to create ambience through mic positioning
To learn more about Vance Powell, visit: http://www.sputniksound.com/vance/
To learn more tips on how to improve your mixes, visit https://masteryourmix.com/
Download your FREE copy of the Ultimate Mixing Blueprint: https://masteryourmix.com/blueprint/
Get your copy of the #1 Amazon bestselling book, The Mixing Mindset – The Step-By-Step Formula For Creating Professional Rock Mixes From Your Home Studio: https://masteryourmix.com/mixingmindsetbook/
Join the FREE MasterYourMix Facebook community: https://links.masteryourmix.com/community
To make sure that you don’t miss an episode, make sure to subscribe to the podcast on iTunes or on Android.
Have your questions answered on the show. Send them to questions@masteryourmix.com
Thanks for listening! Please leave a rating and review on iTunes!

Daniel Rowland: The role of AI in music

Daniel Rowland is an audio engineer, producer, educator, and music tech executive. He holds both a B.S and M.F.A in Music Technology, and is currently Head of Strategy and Partnerships at Montreal’s LANDR Audio, and longtime professor at MTSU in Nashville.
Daniel has been part of numerous international tours; produced the music for an Oscar-winning Pixar film; and mastered multiplatinum/Grammy-nominated albums, while working on projects for artists as varied as Nine Inch Nails, Seal, Meek Mill, Phillip Glass, and Gwen Stefani, along with dozens of Disney properties such as Star Wars and Marvel. 
Helping to grow LANDR to nearly 4 million users, Daniel has worked to refine their AI mastering engine and develop numerous virtual instruments, plugins, and other products, while crafting acquisition and partnerships deals with a wide range of startups and iconic brands/artists.
IN THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL LEARN ABOUT:
Using LANDR for mastering
Who is LANDR for and not for?
When you might want to use LANDR vs. when you shouldn’t
Creative uses for LANDR 
How AI technology can be used in music
What the future of music technology looks like
Using AI for mixing
Finding the balance of embracing technology vs. holding onto traditional methods
ATMOS mixing & mastering
Should you be mixing your records with spatial audio in mind?
How to get started with mixing in Atmos
To learn more about Daniel Rowland, visit: https://www.rowland-studios.com/
To learn more about LANDR, visit: https://www.landr.com/ 
To learn more tips on how to improve your mixes, visit https://masteryourmix.com/
Download your FREE copy of the Ultimate Mixing Blueprint: https://masteryourmix.com/blueprint/
Get your copy of the #1 Amazon bestselling book, The Mixing Mindset – The Step-By-Step Formula For Creating Professional Rock Mixes From Your Home Studio: https://masteryourmix.com/mixingmindsetbook/
Join the FREE MasterYourMix Facebook community: https://links.masteryourmix.com/community
To make sure that you don’t miss an episode, make sure to subscribe to the podcast on iTunes or on Android.
Have your questions answered on the show. Send them to questions@masteryourmix.com
Thanks for listening! Please leave a rating and review on iTunes!