I see you’ve recorded mostly rock. Do you record other kinds of music?

I just finished a project with two brothers Dante & Eros Faulk for their debut album “Beirt.” They are a fiddle and cello duet. They also added a few acoustic instruments – bodhran, banjo and guitar. I am very pleased with the result and look forward to recording more music in this style.

I’ve never recorded in a studio, how long should I expect it to take?

A lot of that depends on how well prepared you are before you record and how picky you are about your results. It also depends on what kind of band you have. A rock band with a full drum kit takes simply longer to set up and get your sounds set than an acoustic duo (I am happy to go to a local studio with you to track your drums, then do overdubs, mix and master here). If you want to set up with your band and record live, figure it will take you a day to record 6-10 songs and another day to mix them. If I have done the whole project mastering usually is a fairly quick process. If you want to overdub a lot of parts, that takes longer. That said, long ago I recorded a 5-song EP with a band Swelter Cacklebush that took 5 hours to record and mix. It sounded very good. That is my all-time speed record. I have also recorded a band that didn’t get a single take they liked in their first day. That is pretty unusual.

What should I do to be ready when we record?

Most of it should be pretty obvious. Be sufficiently rehearsed – what that means will vary for everyone. If you are a band, get the songs you are going to record tight. Make sure your instruments are in good working order. New strings! Decent drum heads. The kick pedal doesn’t squeak. If you are a guitar player – here is a fine article on guitar tuning to read before comintg in from my pal Jack Endino http://www.endino.com/archive/tuningnightmares.html.

What’s the deal with baking tapes?

Tape “baking” is the process of making old reel-to reel tapes playable again. Some brands of tape, particularly ’80’s Ampex tape physically deteriorate with age. If you put them on a tape deck to play you will see little bits of brown stuff falling off the tape and sticking to the tape heads. Essentially the glue that holds the magnetic particles on your tape is failing and the tape is falling apart. That process can be temporarily reversed by baking the tapes at a low temperature, after which you can play the tape and transfer your audio to a more stable medium. I’ve done a bunch of that with very successful results.

If you record my music will I get released by Green Monkey Records?

Let’s start with most probably not. When I record someone I am into the project and work with them to get a great end result then and there. I have recorded barbershop quartets and choirs before. It was really fun. Came out great. Didn’t release them. Recording is a pretty separate beast from what I do as a record label. If somewhere down the line we both think that is an idea worth discussing, I’m sure we will get there.