Joseph Holiday makes music as Snakes of Russia. His new album, True Surrender, releases on Friday, October 13, 2023. Joseph also creates soundscapes for films and sound design work for Ableton and Spitfire Audio.  For Joseph’s second appearance on the Music Production Podcast, we discussed his workflow and process for his new album. Joseph spoke about traveling to Salem, MA to God City studio where he ran his synths and drum machines through guitar amps and PA loudspeakers. We talked about...

Peter Bell is a guitarist, singer, songwriter, producer, and teacher at Berklee College of Music. He composed the themes for This Old House, New Yankee Workshop, Victory Garden, the ABC After School Special, the award-winning film Radio Cape Cod, and countless jingles and production tracks. He recorded with Bonnie Raitt and the James Montgomery Band and has two Emmys, seven NEBA awards, and six ASCAP awards. Peter and I had a great conversation following our week together during the Monterey...

Jörgen Kjellgren is a musician and producer from Sweden. His new album, Bluebird, comes out September 14th and combines singer-songwriting and ambient music beautifully.  Jörgen and I spoke about his new album, Bluebird. Jörgen shared his songwriting and recording techniques. He went into detail about how the songs were started with lyrical writing and the production techniques he used to bring each track new dimensions. Note: There was a glitch in the audio until minute 27. I don't think...

Bobby Owsinski is an audio engineer, producer, author, and educator. His book, The Mixing Engineer's Handbook is in its 5th edition and is a foundational part of college classrooms. Bobby writes about music production and gear on his blog Music 3.0. He also hosts the Podcast Bobby Owsinski's Inner Circle, which covers the latest industry news and features interviews with assorted music professionals. I've been following and learning from Bobby's work for the last decade, so speaking with him...

Lynden Williams makes music as Divorce Court. His new album, Two Hours, marks a new direction with his collaboration with Chase Lambert. Lynden also works as a documentary filmmaker for Ableton.  It was great to reconnect with Lynden! His music and workflow have evolved tremendously in the years I've known him. Lynden shared insights he learned from artists while filming documentaries with Ableton. He spoke about the power of creativity and the fun and challenge of bringing his music to the...

Our favorite artists inspire us to make our own music. But it's easy to get caught up in trying to replicate their sound. In doing so, we ignore what is our number one advantage over every other music producer in the world. In this episode, we talk about why we can't and don't even want to sound like our favorite artists and what we can do to unlock our own musical super-power that can set us apart from the crowd. Listen on Apple, Spotify, Google, YouTube Show Notes: Brian Funk Website...

JP Rende and Kat Raio Rende are a husband and wife songwriting team and founders of Earworm Music. JP and Kat write and produce music for kids television, animation, film, and commercials. They won an Emmy for their song "Friends with a Penguin" sung by Billy Porter on Sesame Street. They've produced music for various shows including Gabby's Dollhouse, Baby Shark's Big Show, Barbie's Dreamhouse Adventure, and more. JP and Kat shared details about their unique collaboration, allowing them...

Sarah Belle Reid is a performer and composer. She plays trumpet, modular synthesizers, and a wide array of electronic gadgets. Sarah holds a Doctorate of Musical Arts from the California Institute of the Arts. She teaches music technology and modular synthesis at universities and her own online programs. Sarah spoke about how she combines her classical training with electronic music production and sound design. She explains how she keeps curiosity and joy central to her work. Sarah and I...

James Patrick is a music producer, educator, and author of the new book Sound Design for Electronic Music. James is one of the first Ableton Certified Trainers and he co-founded the electronic music school Slam Academy.  James and I spoke about his work as an educator, the history and philosophy behind Slam Academy, and his new book Sound Design for Electronic Music. James shared how everything in music can be boiled down to relationships in vibrations.  Listen on ...

Dave Gebroe is the host and creator of the show Discograffiti, a music podcast that delivers the objective truth about the entire discography of every single artist and band that ever existed. He has written, produced, and filmed two feature films, The Homeboy and Zombie Honeymoon.  Dave and I spoke about his show Discograffiti and the depths he goes to ensure that he and his guests leave no stone unturned in their exploration of the artist in question's life and career. We spoke about some...

Ross Lara is a music producer, film composer, and the CEO and founder of Archipelago Entertainment. His studio is the highest-altitude Dolby Atmos installation in the world. His music is inspired by nature and he has worked for brands like Red Bull, Meta, and Epic Games. Ross and I spoke about the importance of bringing emotional impact into our music. Ross went into depth about how he builds worlds in his music through nature and natural sounds. He also gave an in-depth explanation of Dolby...

Brandon Reed is the creator of the 12 Hour Sound Machine (No Loops or Fades!) Podcast. The show provides listeners with 12 hours of soothing sound to help people relax and sleep. Episodes feature 12 hour stretches of white, pink, and brown noise, as well as environmental sounds like babbling brooks and forests at night, and even more unusual sounds like popcorn popping and diesel engines. To date the show has been downloaded over 95 million times. Brandon spoke about some of the technical...

EmmoLei Sankofa is a composer, producer, musician, and artist. Credits include Emmy award-winning “Watch Out For the Big Grrrls,” the Lizzo documentary series, STARZ’s “Step Up”, and newly released, “Three Ways,” which recently premiered on Hulu.  EmmoLei and I had a wide-ranging conversation about her career and creative process. We wound up exploring some deep philosophical and evolutionary aspects of music, art, and simply living. EmmoLei's deep insights about the power of music and human...

How come we get so good at creating one short section of music only to get stuck when it's time to create the next section? If a song is a collection of different sections, why is it so hard to string a few sections together to make a song?  In this episode of the Music Production Podcast, we explore a big mistake that all but prevents us from finishing songs.  Listen on Apple, Spotify, Google, YouTube Show Notes: What Bob Ross Teaches Us About Music Production - ...

Ameya is a prog rock musician living in Philadelphia by way of India. He has a master's degree in biomedical engineering. Ameya shares his process and songwriting techniques on his Instagram and YouTube. His new EP is due to be released towards the end of this summer. Ameya and I had a great conversation about his work, the prog rock genre, guitar playing, and his love of learning new things with steep learning curves. He shared some of the breakthroughs he's experienced as a guitarist and...

Will Doggett is a musician, sound designer, and Ableton Certified Trainer. He runs the popular YouTube Channel From Studio to Stage where he teaches musicians how to use Ableton Live in their live performances. He discusses all aspects of live performance on his podcast Behind the Spacebar. I had a great conversation with Will about his work as a playback engineer. Will has tons of insight on what makes a great live show using Ableton Live. We discussed everything from redundant backup...

Zach Robinson and Leo Birenberg are film score composers whose credits include Weird: The Al Yankovic Story, Cobra Kai, Pitch Perfect: Bumper in Berlin, and Florida Man.  Zach, Leo, and I had a great conversation about their work with the Weird Al biopic and scoring Cobra Kai. Both shared their thoughts about bringing films to life, working together and with others, and how they seek to challenge themselves and bring their best to every project. Listen on Apple, Spotify, Google, ...

Even though I spend most of my days wishing I had more time to make music, when that time arrives, I find myself avoiding the task.  Why do we Procrastinate? What can we do to end procrastination and get to work? In this episode of the Music Production Podcast, I share 3 techniques that have worked for me over the years. Watch this episode: https://youtu.be/XYhsBdo__80 Listen on Apple, Spotify, Stitcher, Google, or watch on YouTube Show Notes: Seth Godin on Chores -...

Zack Zarrillo is co-founder of Alternate Side, a full-service music company that represents over 30 artists in the alternative/rock/pop/electronic/metal genres. He also co-founded Bad Timing Records, and he began writing his popular music blog "PropertyOfZack" when he was just 16 years old. In addition to helping artists build their careers, Zack is co-owner of Hello Donuts + Coffee in Philadelphia, PA. Zack spoke about the ways the music industry has evolved over the last 15 years and the...

Making Music is hard. Even when we have attained all of the skills and knowledge to create music, it's still extremely difficult to finish music. Along the way, there are thousands of tiny decisions that need to be made. At each decision lies the risk of running into self-doubt and a crippling inner critic. In this episode of the Music Production Podcast, we explore the importance of almost recklessly making decisions and committing to them. Listen on Apple, Spotify, Stitcher, Google, or...

Amadeus360 started his career as a DJ and came up under the mentorship of the legendary Kid Capri. He's also produced records for Rap legends like Kool G Rap, Busta Rhymes, Paul Wall, Sheek Louch of The LOX, etc. His new album The MPC Jedi releases on May 12 Amadeus and I spoke about his work as a boom bap hip hop producer. He shared his experiences collaborating with a wide range of artists and how his work ethic and dedication to quality and authenticity have served him during his...

Paul Laski is a music producer, sound designer, and Ableton Certified Trainer. He designs sounds in the factory preset bank of XFER Records Serum and sample and preset packs for Sample Magic, Splice, and Sonic Academy. Paul teaches computer music production, sound design, and live performance with ICON Collective in Los Angeles. I had a great conversation with Paul about how he has carved out a career in music via producing, teaching, and sound design. Paul went into detail about the...

Ariane Paras helps artists define their vision, build confidence, and find the strength to reach their goals. She runs Olympia Coaching and has 15 years of experience in the music industry and has been coaching artists along their journey for 8 years.  In our second conversation on the podcast, Ariane and I spoke about fears and struggles artists face. Ariane shared how we can pay close attention to our mindset and thoughts to reframe challenges and criticisms into learning and growth...

Keppie Coutts and Benny Romalis are professional songwriters who run the website and YouTube Channel How to Write Songs. Both have released numerous albums, written songs for many artists, and teach songwriting. Their YouTube channel is one of my personal favorites and their courses have helped thousands of songwriters. Keppie, Benny, and I had a great discussion about writing music and their new course on Udemy: The 5 Most Powerful Songwriting Exercises... Revealed. Keppie and Bennie...

Matthew Patrei is a music producer and teacher who releases music under the name Yasei Mare, which means "Wild Ocean." Matt just released his new album, EP Two. He teaches music at the Steeple Street Music Academy in Massachusetts. Matt and I had a great conversation about the creation of his new Yasei Mare album, EP Two. We discussed his songwriting methods, vocal production, and sound design. Matt shared how he manages to overcome creative challenges in himself and his students. Listen on...