You have a physics degree?

Yep. And I chose to become a recording engineer. It’s as simple as that.

When I graduated high school in 2000, I had a fairly good idea of what I wanted to do. I was interested in working in the automotive industry, specifically with fuel cell technology. But I wasn’t completely certain, so I went to Emory University in Atlanta, GA, a liberal arts school with a dual degree program with Georgia Tech. If it turned out science wasn’t my thing, I could switch to something else, like English or History. I played in a few bands with Ari Zelig in college, and we got the chance to record a demo at Tree Sound with Zack Odom in early 2003. Up until this point, I didn’t know what a recording studio was – I was under the impression that bands recorded albums in their garages and basements. As soon as I realized there was such a person as a recording engineer/producer, I wanted to be one. Working in a studio encompassed all the things I was (and still am) interested in: listening to music, crafting songs, capturing sound, and working with computers.

While I was still in school I started recording songs for my band in our practice space at (now defunct) Blackbox and tried to learn the basics of mixing by reading books and experimenting with Cubase SX on a computer I borrowed from the university. By the time I graduated, I knew I definitely didn’t want to do any more physics or math, ever again, and that I wanted to pursue a career as a recording engineer. But I wasn’t sure where to start. I broke it to my parents that four years of higher level education wasn’t going to be used (directly). They weren’t too upset about it, because I was clear about my desire and plan to be a recording engineer. I still wasn’t quite sure how, though. Thanks M+D!

I was at a DIY car wash in the summer of 2004, a few months after graduating. I had a sweet Anniversary Edition VW GTI. There was a guy there washing his silver Porsche 928, and we got to chatting because his girlfriend had just bought a GTI. I asked what he did – he had a recording studio. Bam. That’s how I met James Salter. The following week we met at his studio, then called Berkeley Park Studio, where Southern Living At Its Finest run by the late Ricky Keller once had its home. James and his partner Vic Stafford produced and engineered records there, almost non-stop. I started interning with them in September of 2004, and jumped right into being a full-fledged studio intern slave. I spent every minute I could there. My first task as an intern was to pick up an eighth of Jack Daniels for one of the guys in Hermano, who were recording their album at the time. My hours at the studio consisted of making coffee (which I’d never done previously), picking up food from Taqueria del Sol, cleaning the studio, organizing Vic’s gear, and watching James and Vic work. I was exposed to all kinds of bands and artists, including James and Vic themselves. Both worked on their own projects from time to time.

I enjoyed my first three months of learning at the studio more than my entire college education, and it’s safe to say that most of what I learned at that point, I still use every day. I am very lucky to have worked with two talented individuals, as producers, engineers, and musicians. I also feel that it was to my advantage that James and Vic weren’t running a full-scale commercial studio for a label. We worked with mostly local bands and independent artists. Working at a smaller studio meant I picked things up quicker because I had more face time in the control room. A lot of folks who want to become producer/engineers through traditional (interning at the studio) means have to spend years slaving away, cleaning porcelain most of the time. Luckily I didn’t have to do that, but I still learned everything I needed.

After about a year, James sat me down and told me it was time for me to start getting my own work. I was ready to find bands and do some recording by myself. Sweet! Around the same time, James and Vic decided move out of Berkeley Park and go to Exocet with Mike Adams. Mike’s studio was under renovation, so I ended up being a roofing insulation intern for a few months, working with Dave Rochester to get the rooms sounding great. I did some recording, too. One of the bands that I worked with was The Escape Artists, fronted by Mike Willis, with Daniel Gardner playing guitar. They were looking to record drums for their EP with us. Somewhere along the way Mike told me that he needed a bass player, and I volunteered. The band had changed lineups, and they wanted to record a full-length album, which I was played on. We ended up at Tree, back with Zack Odom. Full circle, years later. Daniel and I eventually started our own studio together, but that’s another story.