Five Sounds With

Tamar-kali is an accomplished composer and performer, best known for her work on critically-acclaimed films such as The Assistant, The Last Thing He Wanted, and Shirley, all of which received high praise at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival. In addition to her work as a film scorer, Tamar-kali also writes and performs with her rock band and her string sextet and voice project. We recently sat down with Tamar-kali for our Five Sounds With... series. Read on to learn about her approach to film scoring, her experiences recording a 16-person ensemble, and how she got her start in the New York punk scene. Continue reading →

Pinar Toprak is a renowned composer and instrumentalist with a diverse body of work spanning film, television, and video games. Known for her work on sci-fi hits like Marvel Studios’ Captain Marvel, DC Comics’ Stargirl on The CW, and SY-FY’s Superman prequel series Krypton, Pinar is a powerhouse in the superhero circuit. Born and raised in Istanbul, Turkey, Pinar began her classical music education at the age of five before moving to Chicago to study jazz. She went on to earn a degree in film scoring from Berklee College of Music, and a Master’s Degree in composition at CSUN. We recently had the pleasure of chatting with Pinar for our Five Sounds With... series. Read on to learn how she captured the iconic sounds of Captain Marvel, Stargirl, and other projects including the extremely popular Fortnite video game. Continue reading →

Maria Elisa Ayerbe is a Miami-based recording, mixing and post-production audio engineer who has worked with GRAMMY and Latin Grammy-nominated artists such as Mary J Blige, Ricky Martin, Marc Anthony, JLo and more. Maria was also recognized by the Latin Recording Academy with the Leading Ladies of Entertainment honor in 2019, for her outstanding performance as a professional and socially conscious woman within the arts and entertainment fields. We recently sat down with Maria for our Five Sounds With... series. Read on to learn about her approach to working with up-and-coming songwriters, her favorite technique for recording acoustic guitar, and how she recorded 120 drum tracks in one recording session. . Continue reading →

In our new series, Five Sounds With..., we talk with world-renowned engineers and producers about how they got five sounds from your favorite records. Johnny K is a Grammy Award-nominated producer and mixing engineer based out of Chicago, Illinois. Best known for his work in the hard rock and heavy metal scene, Johnny K has a long list of impressive credits under his belt, including Disturbed, 3 Doors Down, Staind, Finger 11, Plain White T’s, Sevendust, Megadeth and more. We recently had the pleasure of chatting with Johnny K for our Five Sounds With... series. Read on to learn more about how he crafted some of the heaviest guitar tones, made one of his favorite records in a barn, and gets DIY making his own gobos. Continue reading →

In our new series, Five Sound With…, we talk with world-renowned engineers and producers about how they got some of the sounds on your favorite records. Vance Powell is a six-time Grammy Award-winning record producer, engineer, and mixer, whose impressive list of credits include everyone from rockers like Jack White to country crooners like Chris Stapleton to pop icons like Alicia Keys. Known for his creative and experimentative approach to engineering and producing, Vance currently works out of Sputnik Sound studio in Nashville. We recently had the pleasure of chatting with Vance about five records that he's worked on during his illustrious career. Check out our conversation below to learn more about his approach to tracking the first Dead Weather record, moonlighting for Radiohead while tracking Sturgill Simpson, and what it was like recording Chris Stapleton on the front lawn of the studio. Continue reading →

In our new series, Five Sound With..., we talk with world-renowned engineers and producers about how they got five sounds from your favorite records Justin Meldal-Johnsen got his start as a bassist playing for artists like Beck, Nine Inch Nails, and more. Since he started his producing career around 2005, Justin has assembled an astounding catalog of visceral, immersive records, including a number of critically acclaimed and career-defining albums with artists like M83, Neon Trees, Metric, Young The Giant, Jimmy Eat World, Paramore, Tegan and Sara, Ken Andrews and more. We recently had the pleasure of chatting with Justin for our Five Sounds With... series. Check out our conversation below to learn more about how he created a signature sound for M83’s Junk, orchestrated an epic live performance piece with Jimmy Eat World, and recorded the loudest sound he’s ever heard with Paramore. Continue reading →

In our new series, Five Sound With..., we talk with world-renowned engineers and producers about how they got five sounds from your favorite records. Jim Reeves... No, not the country superstar, the legendary recording and mixing engineer. He's been engineering and producing records for more than sixty years, when the world was mono. After 10 years of engineering for Tonight Show musical director, Skitch Henderson and Atlantic Records founder, Herb Abramson, Jim got his major start as a staff engineer at Columbia Records before leaving to freelance for the biggest record labels in the country. Jim has been awarded multiple Gold Records, as well as Emmy and Effie awards, and has worked with world-class recording artists such as Lou Reed, Bob Dylan, George Harrison and more. Continue reading →

 In our new series, Five Sound With..., we talk with world-renowned engineers and producers about how they got five sounds from your favorite records. Mitch Easter is an acclaimed producer and engineer, best known for his work on R.E.M.’s first three albums, including 1983’s critically acclaimed Murmur. He's also a talented musician in his own right, whether releasing solo records or as the frontman and lead songwriter for Let’s Active. When it comes to recording Mitch built his first studio in the garage of his parents’ house. In 1980, he opened the aptly named Drive-In Studio. It was here where he cut the demo for R.E.M's “Radio Free Europe” and launched his career. His innovative approach to recording finds Mitch using a combination of classic vintage gear and esoteric budget mics to capture a one-of-a-kind sound. Continue reading →