Speaks Volumes - A Podcast About Mastering and Life Outside Mastering – Details, episodes & analysis

Our guest today is Natalie Bibby, a mastering engineer based out of London, England.  She has worked with Bimini, Cinderella Balthazar, Howard Lee — 真心話, 163 braces, Jimmy Eat World, and so many more.

We talk about not working in a siloed environment, the future of spatial audio, talking on the phone with clients, having a sound of your own, mastering DAWs, the future of larger-than-life rock bands, the de-localization of scenes since the advent of the internet, and the lasting effect of Nirvana and music of the 1990s.

This episode’s music is brought to you by Muttering also from London, England. For more information on Muttering, point your web electrons to https://www.mutteringband.com

For more information about Natalie:

https://www.thisismetropolis.com/engineers/natalie-bibby/

https://www.instagram.com/compress_her

Our guest today is Dave McNair - a mastering engineer based out of Winston-Salem, North Carolina.  He has worked with Bob Dylan, Patti Smith, Los Lobos, Mavis Staples, David Bowie, Bruce Springsteen, Sara Bareilles and many many more.

We talk about transitioning from a producer to a mastering engineer, having kids and how that changes your life, Grammy anxiety, knowing when you are done, approaching mastering as a technician vs. a musician, how to get loud masters with out fucking it up, when clients go to other engineers, and when it’s time to raise the rates.

This episode’s music is brought to you by Max Cinnamon from Paris, France. For more information on Max, point your web electrons to https://www.maxcinnamon.tv

For more information about Dave:

http://www.davemcnairmastering.com

https://www.instagram.com/mcsnare

Our guest today is Jessica Thompson - a mastering and restoration engineer, audio preservationist, studio owner, and mom based out of San Francisco, California.  She has worked with the Bottom Line, Caffè Lena, Woody Guthrie, Erroll Garner, and Barbara Dane Archives. Jessica has also mastered records for Kurt Vile, Pachyman, Michael Daves, Chris Riffle, Occurrence and many more

We talk with Jessica about what audio preservation is, cassettes, trends in audio, studio construction, client expectations with change, the gap between analog and digital, and the difference between working with a team or working solo

This episode’s music is brought to you by Kitchen Slug from Tulsa, Oklahoma produced by Chris Bell. For more information on Kitchen Slug, point your web electrons to https://linktr.ee/kitchenslug

For more information about Jessica:

https://www.jessicathompsonaudio.com
https://www.instagram.com/jathompso/

Our guest today is Raelynn Janicke, a mastering engineer for Infrasonic Mastering, based in Nashville, TN. Raelynn has mastered and assisted on projects for The Shins, Kayla Hall, Nefesh Mountain, Talia Stewart, Big 50, and Eli Howard.

We talk about family supporting our decisions, analog gear vs. plugins, our favorite plugins, keeping your body active, ATMOS’ relevance, the Hudson Valley music scene, and going down the message boards’ rabbit hole.

This episode’s music is brought to you by Hammer No More The Fingers Durham, NC produced by J. Robbins. For more information on Hammer No More The Fingers, point your web electrons to http://hnmtf.com

For more information about Raelynn:

https://www.infrasonicsound.com/raelynn
https://www.instagram.com/raelynn_jae/

EP6 - Justin Perkins - Humans Mastering

Our guest today is Justin Perkins - a mastering engineer and based out of Madison, Wisconsin.  He has worked with The Replacements, En Vogue, Ol’ Dirty Bastard, Busta Rhymes, Jellyfish, Michael Franti & Spearhead, G Love, the Figgs and many more. Before transitioning to mastering full-time he also spent time recording and mixing at Butch Vig’s Smart Studios in Madison Wisconsin.

We talk with Justin about the evolution of the mastering process, pros and cons of AI “mastering”,  the importance of monitoring, upgrading your studio’s weakest link, and coping with and learning from mistakes.

This episode’s music is brought to you by Have Mercy from Baltimore, Maryland produced by Brian Swindle. For more information on Have Mercy, point your web electrons to https://www.havemercymusic.com

For more information about Justin:

https://justincarlperkins.com
https://www.mysteryroommastering.com

Our guest today is Jonathan Wyner - a mastering engineer and educator based out of Boston, Massachusetts.  He is the chief engineer at  M-Works Studios in Somerville and teaches at Berkeley College of Music. In 2021 he was president of AES, The Audio Engineering Society. He’s worked with Jean-Claude Risset, James Taylor, David Bowie, Aimee Mann, and Miles Davis, among many others.

We talk with Jonathan about transferring and mastering reels of David Bowie records, spawning creativity in a world of limitless possibilities, AI and getting beyond the lowest common denominator, conversations and expectations with mixing engineers, deconstructing what loudness actually is, and caring about yourself and your craft.

This episode’s music is brought to you by nxtime from New York City produced by Mike Rogers. For more information on nxtime, point your web electrons to ⁠https://⁠nxtimemusic.com

For more information about Jonathan:

Our guest today is Rachel Field - a mastering engineer based out of Seattle, WA, who co-founded Resonant Mastering. She’s worked with Pearl Jam, Brandi Carlile, Thunderpussy, and Whitney Mongé.

We talk with Rachel about jumping in to the audio industry, mastering for streaming, running a mastering studio with multiple engineers, pricing, and we do a gear rundown.

This episode’s music is brought to you by His Father’s Voice from Limerick, Ireland. For more information on on His Father’s Voice, point your web electrons to https://hisfathersvoice.bandcamp.com

Our guest today is Jett Galindo - a mastering engineer and vinyl cutter who works out of the Bakery Mastering Studio in LA. She has worked on albums spanning a wide array of genres and artists including Barbra Streisand, Haley Reinhart, Weezer, and the La La Land Official Soundtrack.

We talk with Jett about minimalism in mastering, how a degree in Psychology and a Filippine upbringing can help you in the music industry, leveling the playing field in the audio engineering profession, and Dan presents the first 5 Commandments of mastering.

For more information about Jett:
https://www.jettgalindo.com

https://womeninvinyl.com https://womensaudiomission.org https://www.wearemovingtheneedle.org https://soundgirls.org

Our guest today is Adam Gonsalves - he is a mastering engineer based out of Portland, Oregon. He owns Telegraph Mastering and has worked with Elliot Smith, Peter Buck, Willie Nelson, Sufjan Stephens, Vampire Weekend, The Jayhawks, and Team Dresch

We speak with Adam about the proximity effect of your studio’s location, the struggles of building a mastering studio and he took Dan’s vinyl mastering quiz!

This episode’s music is brought to you by Ryan Wright, from Washington DC. For more information about Ryan and her music click here.

For more information about Adam and his studio: https://telegraphmastering.com

Our guest today is Maor Appelbaum - a Gold and Platinum awarded, Grammy nominated & Juno winning mastering engineer based out of LA. He’s worked with Faith No More, Dream Theater, Rob Halford, Meat Loaf, YES, & Today Is The Day, among others.

We talk with Maor about taking breaks, analog vs digital, gear choices, business strategy and, investing in gear.

For more information about Maor: https://maorappelbaum.com

This Episode’s music is brought to you by Alex Silva, originally from Galicia Spain, and now living here in the States in Baltimore.  For more information on Alex and his music: https://canadianducktapes.com