Way Out
Production, Songwriting, Engineering, Mixing, Guitar Playing, Vocals, and Field Recordings
“Way Out” is the second album from my band Insoms. I recorded it over two years across two countries and with fifteen collaborators. It started with instrumental tape recordings my drummer and I tracked in a garage in 2022. From there, I roped in friends from California and the UK. This list included a classically trained cellist, violinist, Turkish poet, Slovakian pop singer, jazz vibraphonist, and a 60-year-old shenai player/throat singer. It was a creative challenge to arrange and mix music that spanned multiple kinds of media and genres. I finished mixing it with analog hardware in my garage studio this Spring. Mastered by Timothy Stollenwerk.
Friktion
Engineering, Mixing, Production
Friction is one of the hardest-working bands in Brighton, UK. In the fall of 2023, we tracked a five-song EP to a 24-track tape in the UK. I did a rough mix on a Neve 66 console at the University of Sussex and added finishing touches at my garage studio in California. Mastered by Timothy Stollenwerk.
PSDSP
Engineering, Mixing, Production
Physical Suicide Deterrent System Project (PSDSP) is an avante-grunge band from Fairfax, California. They have been one of my favorite Bay Area bands for a long time because of their exhilarating blend of progressive rock, punk, and psychedelia. I was very excited when they approached me about recording for them. This is a clip of their upcoming sing “Dog Job Girl”. It's a departure from their usual art-rock inclinations but it was really exciting to record and mix. I processed the vocals through three solid- state practice guitar amps. The drums, guitar, and bass were tracked live digitally in my garage studio and I used my analogue outboard gear to add some texture and charm. Mastered by Timothy Stollenwerk.
Swan Circus
Engineering, Mixing, Production
Natasha Bailey (aka Swan Circus) never ceases to impress me as a multi-instrumentalist and songwriter. We started recording her upcoming single “After Midnight” with just an acoustic guitar take on my tape machine without a click. With that foundation, she was able to effortlessly track drums, percussion, vocals, electric guitar, and keys all in a matter of hours. We got almost every instrument in a matter of one or two takes. If I was not in the room when it happened, I would have thought she assembled one of the tightest bands in California. We filled my 8-track and then moved to digital overdubs. Everything was processed on my analogue outboard gear with a couple of plug-ins here and there. This is a sneak of the unreleased track. Mastered by Timothy Stollenwerk.
Jas Stade
Engineering, Mixing, Production
Jas is one of the most talented guitarists I’ve met let alone recorded. When she isn’t blowing minds and melting faces in her avant-math band Gumby’s Junk, she is warming souls and soothing hearts with her solo-guitar project. We tracked her second solo album entirely to tape in the fall of 2024 in my garage studio. Jas especially liked the tape hiss and misusing the dbx noise reduction on my Tascam 388 became a cornerstone on the record. This is a clip of “Moon is Full Fog is Thick” which will be released in the spring of 2025. I played a lot with gradually changing the tape speed as we tracked so elements could go in and out of tune with each other. Recorded and mixed 100% on tape and analogue outboard equipment and spatial effects. Mastered by Timothy Stollenwerk.
Tortured Devices
Engineering, Mixing, Production, Arrangement, and Guitar Playing
My friend Baris Isik (aka Tortured Devices) is a talented Turkish songwriter with a prolific output. I first heard his music when he performed a solo acoustic set opening for my band Insoms at an illegal show on my balcony in Brighton, UK. Baris approached me about expanding Tortured Devices to a full band. I worked with him to arrange his acoustic music for a fleshed-out ensemble. We were able to track down a wonderful group of musicians to join. I recorded everything through a Neve 66 console to a 24-track tape machine in Studio A at the University of Sussex. I used all analog hardware, including homemade slinky reverbs, which appear on the vocals and guitars. Mastered by Timothy Stollenwork.
Blaire
Engineering, Mixing, Production
I was excited to record Blaire after seeing them at a DIY skramz show in LA. We recorded 12 songs across 4 days in my garage studio this summer. It was an exciting change of pace for me. We utilized everything my garage studio has to offer. Some songs were recorded exclusively to tape, digitally, and a combination of both. I wanted to capture the energy of Blaire’s live sound so we didn’t use any samples, pitch correction, or quantization. This track showcases the scope of analogue distortion through tape saturation and transistor-based grime. Mastered by Timothy Stollenwerk.
Gumby’s Junk
Engineering, Mixing, Production, Arrangement, and Guitar Playing
On New Year’s Eve 2022, Insoms and our friends Gumby’s Junk wrote a song together. We tracked two drum kits and a guitar to tape in my garage studio and built the song on top of that in Logic Pro. It was inspiring seeing Gumby’s Junk’s creative process unfold in real time. Combining both bands was an exciting arrangement and mixing process.
Catnip
Engineering, Mixing, Production
Catnip are a force to reckoned with in the San Francisco underground scene. I was lucky enough to record their first EP. We were able to track a layered and expansive 6-song EP in just 19 hours. The bass, guitar, and drums were all recorded live and we built it up from there. Time was an issue, so we recorded in Logic but used analogue hardware for mojo. They recently signed to Psyched Records to release these tracks. I am very excited to see what this young band does next!
Insomania
Production, Engineering, Mixing, Songwriting, Field recording, guitar playing.
Insomania is my most ambitious project to date. I wrote it as an abstract recreation of a panic attack I had while driving on the Golden Gate Bridge. I was lucky enough to be able to work with some very talented friends (20 to be exact). The drums, bass, and guitar were tracked live to tape in my garage in The Bay Area. Horns were tracked individually in Boston and Novato. The vocals were recorded in Sonoma. The spoken word section was recorded in Falmer, UK. I used the real reverbs of my hallway and bathroom as well as a massive dome church at my University to glue together these disparate performances. The final mix was done using Logic Pro X alongside my analog outboard gear in California. Mastered by Timothy Stollenwork.
Great Blue Heron
Engineering.
I had the pleasure of recording Great Blue Heron’s Estuary EP. We tracked about 5 hours of thrashy improvised free jazz on tape in my garage studio. I then bounced those analog recordings into a few lenghty Logic Projects for GBH’s drummer Beau to edit down, mix, and master. I’m amazed at how well these recordings captured the feeling of hearing these takes live in the studio.
Moms with Bangs
Production, Engineering and Mixing.
Moms with Bangs are everything that makes garage rock exciting. To keep in line with their grimy aesthetic, I requested that we track and mix everything on tape in my garage. Fitting everything the band and I wanted to include on 8 tracks was a challenge that gave this album a unique scrappy sound. After releasing Jazzersized, they signed to Jello Biafra’s legendary San Francisco punk label Alternative Tenticles. They are poised for great things and I am so happy for them! Mastered by Tom Deis.
Insoms
Writing, performing, engineering and mixing.
I wrote this song around a live guitar and drum take for a University assignment due the very same day. The result is a raw time-crunched amalgam of gibberish and noise. It was recorded and mixed entirely on my tape machine with analog limiters being pushed to their max. Mastered by Tom Deis.