Kick&SnareRecordingTechniques

Tried&TestedTechniquesFrom50TopProducers
PublishedinSOSJune
2008

Technique:Recording/Mixing

Wepassonthehardwonwisdomoffifty
topproducersintheessentialSoundOn
Soundguidetorecordingkickandsnare
drums,thebackboneofmodernmusic.

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MikeSenior

Whenitcomestodescribingininterviewhowtheyrecorddrums,topproducers
seemtospendmoretimediscussingtechniquesforsnaredrumandbassdrum
thananythingelse.ThereasonIknowthisisthatI'verecentlybeen
combingSOS'sinterviewarchiveandHowardMassey'sbookofinterviewsBehind
TheGlass,lookingfornuggetsofwisdomonthisverysubject.Intheprocess,I've
comparedthesnareandkickrecordingtricksoffiftyhighprofileproducers,who
arecollectivelyresponsibleforhundredsofmillionsofrecordsales.Myaiminthis
articleistodistilthatinformationforyou,tohelpyouonthewaytoyourperfect
drumsound.
Clearly,differentmikingmethodssuitdifferentrecords,andeventhestudiogreats
disagreeaboutwhichtechniques'soundbest',soultimatelyit'suptoyoutodecidewhichworksforyou.However,drum
mikingislongonoptions,whereasmoststudiomusiciansareshortonsessiontimeanddon'thavetheluxuryofcomparing
lotsofsetupswhilethebandarebreathingdowntheirneck!SoI'vecreatedaudiofilestodemonstratedozensofthemost
commonlyusedmicsandplacementsforbothsnareandkick,usingthesamedrumkit,thesamedrummer,andthesame
room.Thismeansthatyoucanauditionandevaluatethemallsidebysideatyourleisure,anddecideonthemostuseful
contendersbeforeyournextsession.
I'llbedroppingalotofproducers'namesinthisarticle,someofwhichyoumaynotinitiallybefamiliarwith,eventhough
you'veprobablyheardalotoftheirrecords!Toavoidanavalancheofparentheses,I'velistedalloftheminseparateboxes
throughoutthisarticle,togetherwithahandfuloftheirmostrelevantcreditsforreference.

FixItInTheLiveRoom
Aswithrecordinganyinstrument,thechoiceofdrumandthemannerofitstuningandpreparationcanmakeahuge
differencetothesoundyoucapture,sothisshouldalwaysbetheplacetostart.Evenifyoudon'tplaydrumsyourself,it
makessensetodiscussthesoundwiththedrummer,encouraginghimorhertomakeanyadjustmentsthatmightimprove
thesound.WhendiscussinghisrecordingsforTheDarkness,RoyThomasBakeralsostresseshowthetypeofmusic
dictatesthetargetsound:"You'regoingforasoundthat'sappropriateforthesong,notnecessarilywhat'sagoodsound,and
what'sappropriatecanvarygreatly...That'swhywehadthreedrumkitsandamultitudeofdifferentsnaredrumsandtom
toms."
NileRodgerstakesasimilarview,adjustingthekittosuitthesong:"Evenifthebandusesonedrumkitforthewholerecord,
Iwantittunedrightforeachsong.We'llchangetheheadsortuneitdifferently,allthatkindofstuff.Sometimeswechange
thebeaters...Italldependsonhowthosefrequenciesarerespondingtothekeyofthemusic,tothepulseofthemusic.
Everyrecordisdifferent,everysongisdifferent,everytapeisdifferent."
Thatsaid,AlanWinstanleyfoundthatstickingwithaparticularmodelofsnaredrumthatsuitedhissoundconstituteda
usefulproductionshortcut:"IrememberrentingaLudwigBlackBeautysnaredrumfromarecordcompanyfor[Madness'
TheRiseAndFall],and[theirdrummer]actuallyendedupbuyingonebecausehelikedthesoundofitsomuch.Atthesame
time,itbecameastaplepartof...mydrumsoundforquiteafewyears'Ifyouhaven'tgotaLudwigBlackBeauty,we're
goingtorentonein'."

SnareMiking:Over,Under,OrBoth?
Importantasitistogetthesoundrightatsource,themainfocusofthisarticleisonhowtotranslatethatsoundintorecorded
form.Inthiscontext,thepredominantstudiotoolformanipulatingsnareandkicksoundswhilerecordingistheclosemic.In
thecaseofthesnaredrum,althoughthedrumoverheadswillusuallyincludeagreatdealofthesnaresoundalready,a
carefullyselectedandplacedadditionalclosemichasthepotentialtosignificantlyremouldthesound.Forthisreason,most
engineershavehighlydevelopedpersonalpreferenceshere.
Mikingthesnaredrum'sbatterheadisanalmostuniversalfirstchoice,eitherwith
Togivesomeideaofthekindsoftonal
onemicortwodifferentmicstogether,butopinionsaredividedastowhetherthe changethatfinepositioningcanbringabout
drumshouldbealsobemikedfrombelow.JohnAstley,JoeBarresi,Dave
whenusingasnaredrumclosemic,weset

Eringa,ChrisThomasandAlanWinstanleyareamongstthosewhoregularlymic
bothsidesofthedrum,butSteveChurchyardismorecircumspect("I'llput
somethingunderneath,butinvariablyIwon'tuseit"),AlanParsonsislessofafan
("Itryandsteerawayfromusingtwomicsonthesnare.Ipreferagoodoverthe
topsnaresound"),andJohnLeckieavoidsitmostofthetime(Iveryrarelyuse
anunderneathmicit'sverydangerous").Bywayofcontrast,though,Bruce
Botnickregularlyusedtheundersnarepositiononitsown,combiningthiswith
justoverheadandkickmicstoprovideacompletedrumsound.

upsixdifferent
ShureSM57s
asshownhere,
generatingthe
'SnareTopPos'
audiofiles.

Eventopandbottomsnaremicstogetheraren'tenoughforsomepeople,though.
WhenIinterviewedtheFeelingrecently,theyhadalsosetupalargediaphragm
condenseratthesideofthesnaredrum.Theyexplainedwhytheyusedit:
"Wheneveryougetreallyclosetoadrumheadyougetallsortsofstrange
frequenciesyoudon'thearfromadistance,soitsoundsreallyodd.Thesidemic
getsamuchmoreoverallview,andcapturesthetopandbottomsounds
together,butwithouttherealupfrontsound...It'sbeenmuchmoreusefulhavingthatsidemicthanevenabottommicalot
ofthetime...Yougetthe'crack'fromthetopmic,fizzinessfromthebottommic,andthenthissidemicseemstofindthat
'beef'area."

DealingWithPhase
WhenTonyViscontiusesanundersnaremichegatesittokeepitcarefullyundercontrol:"IfI'mnotgettingbrightness,ifit's
averydullsnare,orsomething'swrongthatday,orit'sjustnotcracking,thenIwillputanundermicin,butIwillalwaysgate
itIdon'tlikeitrattlingaroundallthetime...Iwanttocleanthatbuggerupbeforeitgetstotape."Healsotouchesonthe
importanceofthephaserelationshipbetweenthetwosnareclosemics:"Invariably[theundersnaremic]isoutofphase
withthetopone.Ihavenevereverhadthegoodluckofhavingbothmicsinphasenaturally,soifyoudothattrickyoumust
checkit.Eventhoughit'sbeinggated,you'llhearabigdifferenceifyoujustplaywiththephasebutton,andyou'llfindthat
thelowendwilldisappearifit'soutofphase."

andC451EB.

Fiveclassicsnaremicswerecomparedover
thetopofthedrumforthe'SnareMics'audio
files(left,clockwisefromtopleft):aNeumann
KM84,aShureSM57,anAKGC451EB,a
NeumannKM86andanAKGC414BULS.
Above,underthesnarewereafurtherSM57

Whentwodifferentoversnaremicsareusedsimultaneously,phasecancellationcanalsoeasilymakeamessofthe
instrument'shighfrequenciesifthemiccapsulesaren'tcarefullyaligned,butphaseisevenanissueifyouoptforjusta
singlesnaremic,givenitsinteractionwiththeoverheadsandanyotherclosemics."Imixalotofotherpeople'sstuff,"says
SteveChurchyard,"andbyfarthemostcommonproblemwithdrumsoundsparticularlywhenthey'remultimikedis
phase.Typicallytheoverheadsareoutofphasewitheverythingelse,becausethey'rehearingthingslaterthanthecloser
mics.SotypicallyI'll[invertthepolarity]andusuallyallthesoundskindofcomeforward.Whenyou'vegotthingsoutof
phase,itsoundslikethesnare'skindofsuckedintothekitandthebottomendisgoneit'sastrangething."
"Anythingandeverythingshouldalwaysbecheckedforphase,"concursThomPanunzio."Icheckthebassdrumphasewith
theoverheads,Icheckthesnarewiththeoverheads,Icheckthetomswiththebassdrum,Icheckthetomswiththesnare...
Allyou'vegottodoisjusthitthe[phaseinvert]buttonontheconsoleandseeifitsoundsbetterinoroutofphase...Ittakes
notimeifittookanhour,itwouldbewellworththetroubleitsavesyoulater."

ThePerfectMicPosition?
Mostengineersrecognisethattheexactpositionandangleofthesnaremicareveryimportantconsiderations.IanGrimble:
"Anothercrucialfactorismicpositioning...Youhavetogetthesoundrightatsourceandusetherightmicintheright
position.Thisresultsinamuchcleanersound.SoItendtofiddlearoundwithmicsalot,andoftenspendmoretime[inthe
liveroom]tryingoutmicpositionsthaninthecontrolroom."JonKellyalsorecallsGeoffEmericktaking"immensecare
positioningthemics"whenrecordingdrums.
Despitethis,however,alltheproducersIresearchedremainedstaunchlynoncommittalastotheexactmicpositionsthey
use.Ifyou'rethekindofpersonwholinestheirhatwithBacoFoil,thenyoumightsuspectanindustrywideconspiracyto
closelyguardtradesecrets,butCraigLeonprovidesamoredowntoearthexplanation:"Howyoumicsomethingandhow

youEQitinfact,everythingthatyoudoisactuallydrivenbythewaytheinstrumentisbeingplayed...sothereisn'ta
standardsetupthatworksnoonethingworksallthetime."SteveAlbinielaboratesalittle:"It'shardtodescribewhereI
place[themics]anditvariesalot.Ifthedrummerplaysverylightly,thenthere'salotofattackandnotalotoftone,andI
wantthemicrophonetolookatthecontactpointofthesnaredrum.Ifthedrummerisplayingveryhardandhe'sexcitingthe
wholedrum,Iusuallyhavetobackthemicrophoneoffalittlebitsothatit'snotoverloading."
Asdefensibleastheseviewpointsmightbe,it'snotmuchhelpforthoseshortondrumrecordingexperience.Afterall,ifyou
don'treallyknowwhatdifferencesyoucanachievewithchangesinmicpositioning,thenfollowingAlbini'sadviceandtrying
tomakeadjustmentsinresponsetothedrummer'splayingstylewillbeabitofastabinthedark.SotohelpoutI'vecreated
asetofaudiofilestodemonstratethesoundsofclosemicsinavarietyofpositions.Bycomparingtheaudiofiles,youcan
getafeelforthesonicoptionsavailableandtherebyspeeduptheprocessoffindingagreatsoundintheheatofyournext
session.Theseaudiofiles,likealltheothersinthisarticle,areavailabletodownloadfromtheSOSwebsite
atwww.soundonsound.com/sos/jun08/articles/kickandsnareaudio.htm
*SnareTopPos1inchMidway
*SnareTopPos3inchMidway
*SnareTopPos8inchMidway
TheserecordingsweremadewithShureSM57saimedatapointhalfwaybetweenthecentreandedgeofthehead,at
distancesabovethebatterheadofoneinch,threeinches,andeightinchesrespectively.Averycloseplacementwilltendto
emphasisecertainfrequenciesinthedrumunduly,whereasmovingthemicfurtherbackgivesamorenaturalsound,albeit
withincreasedlevelsofspillfromotherinstruments.
*SnareTopPos3inchCentre
*SnareTopPos3inchMidway
*SnareTopPos3inchRim
FortheserecordingsIusedShureSM57sthreeinchesabovethebatterhead,aimedrespectivelyatthecentreofthedrum
head,halfwaybetweenthecentreandedge,andattheedge.
*SnareTopPosC414Shell
IalsosetupanAKGC414BULSlargediaphragmcondensertomimicthesetupI'dseentheFeelingusingaboutsix
inchestothesideofthedrumshell.
*SnareTopPosOH
*SnareTopPosKick
Whilelisteningtotheindividualmicpositionssoloisinterestinginitsownright,it'sdifficulttoreallyevaluatetheir
effectivenessinpracticewithouthearingthemmixedinwiththeoverheadmics(astheywouldnormallybeduringmixdown).
Forthisreason,Irecordedastereooverheadmicpair(ShureKSM141sinanX/Yconfiguration)alongsideeverysetofaudio
examples,sothatyoucancomparesoundsincontext,andtherewasalsoanAKGD112micsetupjustinsidetheholein
thekickdrum'sresonantheadforsimilarreasons.Tomixandmatchallthesefiles,though,you'llhavetoimportthe
examplesintoyourMIDI+Audiosequencerandlinethemupsothattheyallstartatexactlythesametime.

HowardMassey:BehindTheGlass
Thisgreatbookofinterviewsis,inmyopinion,one
ofonlyahandfuloftrulyessentialrecordproduction
books,andispackedwithdowntoearthrecording
adviceaswellasdiscussionsoftheartof
production.InadditiontotheinterviewsI'vereferred
tointhisarticle,thebookalsofeaturessuchgreats
asGlenBallard,ArifMardin,BrianWilson,Phil
Ramone,MitchellFroomandGeorgeMartin,and
oneofthestrengthsofMassey'sapproachisthathe
oftenasksthemsimilarquestions,whichmakesfor
interestingcomparisons.Therearealsotwo
interestingpaneldiscussionswhereseveralofthe
featuredproducersdiscusstheirtradeheadtohead.
BehindTheGlassbyHowardMassey(ISBN
0879306149),16.95includingVAT.

SnareMicsToTheStars
IfyoureadmyarticleonrecordingelectricguitarsbackinSOSAugust2007
(www.soundonsound.com/sos/aug07/articles/guitaramprecording.htm),you'llknowthatShure'sSM57canlayastrongclaim
tobeingthekingofguitarmics.However,thisruggedlittlemicisalsothemostcommonlycitedchoiceforsnaredrum:alist

ofusersincludessuchaudioluminariesasSteveChurchyard,BobClearmountain,MikeHedges,JohnLeckie,Elliot
Scheiner,StephenStreet,BillSzymczyk,ChrisThomasandTonyVisconti,tonameonlyafewandatleasthalfadozen
ofthemarehappytouseSM57sforboththedrumheads.
Giventhespatialrestrictionswhenplacingsnareclosemics,theSM57'slowend200Hzrolloffisdoubtlesspartofits
appeal,combatingproximityeffectbassboostwhenit'susedupclose,aswellasminimisingkickdrumspill.Theother
responsecharacteristics(a300500Hzdipandagenerous212kHzpresencepeak)servetoreducemuddinessandadd
more'snap'.However,themic'srapidslumpinsensitivityabove12kHzmeansthatsomeengineersusingthismicalways
reachforEQboost:SteveChurchyardmentionsthe10kHzregion,whileJohnLeckiegoesforaround8kHzandJimScott
5kHz.TheSM57'sfairlytightcardioidpolarpattern,designedwithonstagefeedbackreductioninmind,alsohastobea
factor,helpingtoreducespillfromotherdrums,andparticularlyfromtheneighbouringhihat.
OtherthantheSM57,twoothermics,bothsmalldiaphragmcondensers,alsostandoutasleadersofthepack:AKG's
C451EBandNeumann'sKM84.Whathascometobeknowncolloquiallyinthetradeas'the451'wasactuallypartofa
modularsystemofmicpreampbodiesandinterchangeablecapsuleswithdifferentpolarpatterns.However,it'sprobably
fairlysafetoassumethatitisthemic'sCK1cardioidcapsule(theoneoriginallyshippedasstandardwiththepreampbody)
thatisbeingreferredto,giventhatnomentioneverseemstobemadeofthetypeofcapsuleused.Indeed,AKG'smodern
reissueofthismic,theC451B,onlyoffersaCK1stylecardioidpolarpattern.Tonally,theC451EBisabrightsoundingmic,
withagood4dBfrequencyboostinthe1015kHzareaaswellasaverygentlelowendrollofffrom200Hz,andit'sno
surprisetofindJoeBarresi,BobClearmountain,DaveEringa,ButchVig,andTobyWrightallusingitalongsideanSM57,
therebycompensatingforthelattermic'sHFrolloff.ThreeofthemactuallystrapittotheSM57withgaffertapetomakethe
setupeasiertomanage.Otherproducers(suchasJohnLeckie,IanLittle,andAlSchmitt)arehappytousethismiconits
ownaswellalthoughJohnLeckieusuallyusesanSM57,headdsthat"sometimesIsubstitutetheAKGC451withthe
padinifthedrummerisplayingwithbrushesorisplayinglightlythenit'sbettertouseacondensermic...itgivesyoumore
ofa'sizzle'."
Neumann'scardioidKM84givesamuchmoreneutraltonality,withafrequency
responsethat'sessentiallyflatbetween100Hzand15kHz,andonly2dBdownat
50Hzand20kHz,soit'seminentlycapableofcapturingprettymuchanyinstrument
allonitsown.AlanParsonsuseditonPinkFloyd'sDarkSideOfTheMoon,for
example("IcouldnevergetasoundIwashappywithusinganymicotherthana
KM84."),directlyinfluencingPeterHendersontodothesamefor
Supertramp'sBreakfastInAmericasessions.JohnFrychoseoneforhisworkwith
BigStar,andJohnAstleyputKM84saboveandbelowthesnarewheninthestudio
withGlynJohnsandtheWhotheextendedfrequencyresponseofacondenser
makesitwellsuitedtocapturingthecomplexundersnaresignal.TheKM84's
neutralityandextendedbandwidthalsoprovideagoodcontrasttotheSM57'smore Thethreedifferentdrumsusedforour
'SnareMics'audiofiles(lefttoright):a
characterfulsound,andcombiningthetwomicsisatechniqueforwhichJimScott
LudwigBlackBeauty14x5inch
andIanGrimblehavebothexpressedapartiality.
hammeredbrasssnare,anOrange

County14x5inchmaplesnare,anda
Thereare,ofcourse,manyothermicsthatarethepersonalpreferencesof
Gretsch14x6.5inchmahoganysnare.
individualproducers,butnoneofthemareascommonlysingledoutastheSM57,
C451EBandKM84.Nevertheless,afewothersareworthyofmentiongiventhatdifferentproducersindependentlyagreeon
theirmerits.Forexample,JoeBarresishareshispreferencesforNeumann'sdualsmalldiaphragmKM86andAKG'sdual
largediaphragmC414BULSwithChrisThomasandGilNortonrespectively.BarresialsojoinsTobyWrightinselecting
Sennheiser'swidebandwidth,supercardioiddynamicMD441asasuitableundersnarecontender.Anothershared
preferencearisesbetweenBruceBotnickandSteveAlbini,whohavebothmadeuseofSony's1950svintageC37single
diaphragmcondenser(aprecursortothecurrent,breathtakinglypriceyC800G).

Toillustratethesonicdifferencesbetweensomeofthesemics(intermsofbothtimbreandspillrejection),andtoshowthe
impactonthesoundofusingdifferentdrums,Ilinedupfiveoversnaremics(ShureSM57,AKGC414BULS,AKGC451EB,
NeumannKM84andNeumannKM86)andtwoundersnaremics(ShureSM57andAKGC451EB),andrecordedthemwith
thestereooverheadsandkickclosemictocreatethreesetsofaudiofiles,onesetforeachofthefollowingdrums:an
OrangeCounty14x5inchmaplesnare(forthe'Snare1Mics'setoffiles)aLudwigBlackBeauty14x5inchhammeredbrass
snare('Snare2Mics'),assingledoutbyAlanWinstanleyandadeeperGretsch14x6.5inchmahoganysnare('Snare3Mics').
IwascarefultotrytophasematchthepositionsoftheSM57,C451EBandKM84,soyoushouldbeabletoexperimentwith
typicalcombinationsofthesemicsignalswithoutencounteringsignificantcancellationproblems.

ClassicKickMics
Whenitcomestochoosingwhichmicstouseforkickdrum,allsortsofdifferentmodelscropupininterviews,butsomemics
arecitedagainandagain.ProbablythemostcommonlymentionedareAKG'sD12largediaphragmdynamicmicandits
morerecentD112successor,usedbyproducerssuchasSteveAlbini,RoyThomasBaker,SteveChurchyard,Bob
Clearmountain,ElliottScheiner,StevenStreet,ChrisThomas,ButchVig...thelistgoesonandon.Atightcardioiddirectional
characteristicandtheabilitytocopewithjustaboutanySPLfeaturehighonthelistofreasonswhythey'vebecomeso
popular,butitalsohastodowiththewaytheirtonalityisspecificallytailoredtoflatterrecordingsofbassinstruments.In
particular,aspecialresonantchamberincorporatedinbothdesignsintroducesconsiderableaddedweightataround100Hz,
whiletheD112alsohasapronouncedpresenceboostat3kHzthatreallyemphasisesbeaterdefinition,perhapsonereason
whyAlanParsonshasreferredtoitas"thepunchiestdrummicI'vefound".Asignificantminority,includingTonyPlatt,Geoff
EmerickandChrisKimsey,turninsteadtoAKG'scosmeticallysimilarD20andD25,whichusesimilarlargediaphragm
capsulesvoicedwithaflatterbassresponse.Bothmodelsaretechnicallyidentical,buttheD25isbuiltintoarathergroovy

lookingelasticatedshockmount.
AnotherlargediaphragmdynamicmicthatisafavouriteofJoeBarresi,
JohnLeckie,PeterHendersonandTobyWrightisSennheiser'sMD421.On
accountofits100Hzlowfrequencyrolloffandhefty58kHzsensitivitypeak,
itisinpracticeoftenusedincombinationwithanother,bassiermic(suchas
theD12/D112),althoughHendersonhasuseditonitsowntoo.Shure's
ubiquitousSM57isnamecheckedforkickdrumrecordingbyIanLittleand
ToreJohansson,butgivenitsevenhigher200Hzbassrolloff,Little'stactic
ofcombiningitwithAKG'sC414BULS,notableforitsextendedLF
response,comesasnosurprise.BothSteveChurchyardandJohnLeckie
mention,though,thatsuchcombinationtechniquescaneasilycause
disastrousphasecancellation,justaswithsnaremultimiking,sobe
preparedtofinessemicpositionsandexperimentwithphaseinversionfor
themostsolidsound.

Thispictureshows
thesixclassickick
drummicswe
comparedinthe
'KickMics'audio
examples.Inthe
middleisthe
ElectrovoiceRE20,
aboveitisthe
NeumannU47FET,
andbelowittheAKG
D12.Totherightis
Sennheiser's
MD421,whilea
ShureSM57andan
AKGD112aretothe
left.

Electrovoice'sRE20isanotherpopularchoice,withafrequencyresponse
that'sunusuallyflatforadynamicmic,andgoodresistancetoproximity
effect.GlenKolotkin,JimScottandChrisTsangarideshaveallbeenhappytousethismiconitsownontheirrecordings,but
DonSmithandTonyViscontihavebothcombineditwiththemoretonallysculptedD12inVisconti'scaseusingtheRE20
tofocusonthebeaterdefinitionwhilelayingtheD12onapillowinthedrumtocatchthelowend.
Althoughthereareanumberofpopularpreferenceswhenitcomestodynamicmicsforkick,inthefieldofcondensermics
onemodelreignssupreme:thelargediaphragmNeumannU47FET.JoeBarresi,SteveChurchyard,EddieKramerandJon
Kellyarejustsomeoftheproducersusingthismic,andmanymorementiontheU47withoutspecifyingtheFETorvalve
modelsalthoughgiventhatnoneoftheintervieweesmentionedtheU47valvespecifically,I'dsuggestthattheFETdesign
isfairlyuniversallypreferred.It'snotthatothermicsaren'tmentionedforuseonkickdrum(theAKGC414BULS,Blue
MouseandSennheiserMKH20allpoppedupinmyresearch),it'sjustthattheU47turnsup20timesasoften!
Sowhat'ssospecialaboutthismic?Wellitprobablygoeswithoutsayingthatthelowendresponseremainssubstantially
flatdownbeyond30Hz,butthisisalsocombinedwithalittlepresenceboostinthe25kHzrangeandalargersensitivity
peakupat10kHzforclarity.ThemicwillhandleamaximumSPLof147dBfor0.5percentdistortion,anothergoodreasonto
goforitinthisapplicationoverthevalveversion,whichmanagesjust120dB.However,anotherimportant,andoften
overlooked,factorofitsdesignisthewellcontrolledsupercardioidpolarpattern,apatternthattypicallypicksuplessroom
ambiencethanthemorecommoncardioid,helpingtokeepthekicksoundclearandfocusedevenwhenmikingfromoutside
thedrum.
Enoughoftalkingaboutallthesemics:howdotheyactuallysound?Togiveyouanidea,Ilinedupsixofthem(AKGD12,
AKGD112,ElectrovoiceRE20,ShureSM57,SennheiserMD421andNeumannU47FET)rightnexttoeachother,18
inchesoutsidethefrontofthekickdrum,andrecordedthem(alongwithusualstereooverheadssetupandaShureSM57
snareclosemic)tocreatethe'KickMics'setofaudiofiles.Checkthemoutanddecideforyourselfwhethertheyliveupto
thehype!

MicPositioningInsideTheBassDrum
Itprobablygoeswithoutsayingthatthekickdrumwillbenefitfromthesamecareandattentionasthesnarewhenitcomes
topreparingitforrecordingtuninganddampingcanoftensolveproblemsmuchmoreeasilythanmictechnique.Youcan
alsotryusingdifferentheadsorbeaters,although,ontheevidenceofmysurvey,producersseemlessinclinedthanwith
snarestotryoutdifferentdrums.Onefactorthatneedsextrathoughtwiththekickdrumiswhattodoabouttheresonant
head:leaveiton,takeitoff,oruseonewithamicaccessholeinit?Thereappearstobenorealconsensusamongstthe
producerinterviewsastowhichoftheseapproachesyieldsthebestresults,despitetheobvioussonicdifferencesbetween
them.
Takingtheresonantheadoffcompletelyorusingaheadwithamicaccesshole
meansthatyoucaneasilymicupthebatterheadtogetaprominentbeater'slap',
whilethekickdrum'sshellhelpskeepspillfromotherinstrumentstoaminimum.
Theproblemwithmikinginsidethedrum,though,isthattheresonantmodeswithin
theshellcausethesoundtovarymuchmoreforsmallchangesinmicpositionthan
youmightnormallyexpect."It'samazinghowmuchthesoundchanges,"remarks
SteveChurchyard,"ifyou'recompletelyonaxistothekickdrumpedalbeaterrather
thanmoreoffaxisandtothesideofthekickdrum."Takingtheresonantheadoff
completelymakestheseinternalresonantmodesalittlelesssevere,butitalsolets
inmorespillandgivesadifferentcharactertothesound."Iusedtotakethefront
headoff,withacushioninside"saysJohnLeckie,"butnowIprefertoleavethe
Hereyoucanseetherecordingsetupfor
the'KickHeadOffMid'audiofiles,
frontheadon,butwithaholecutinititsoundsabitmorecontained."
Itmaybebecausesmallplacementtweaksmakesuchabigdifferencethatfew
producersgiveanyexactindicationofwheretheyplacemicsinsidethekick.
However,thereisonediscernibletrendinthewaythesoundchangesthat'sworth
bearinginmind:you'llgetmorebeaterpresencewhenyou'remikingclosetothe
batterheadandmoretoneasyoumovethemicfurtheraway.Youcanalsoadjust

demonstratingthesoundsofdifferent
micsandmicpositionsinsidethekick
drum.ThefiveAKGD112swereatequal
distancesfromthebatterhead,butin
differentlateralpositions.(Thissame
multiD112rigwasusedforalltheother
'KickHeadOn'and'KickHeadOff'filesas

well.)Abovethem,atthesamedistance
thetimbreandlevelofbeatersoundbyadjustingtheangleofyourmic.These
fromthebatterhead,were(lefttoright)
principlesnotonlyallowyoutobalancethedifferentelementsofthekicksoundto
tastewithcarefulmicpositioning,butcanalsobeusedtoseparatethe'beater'and anAKGD12,aSennheiserMD421,and
anAKGC414BULS.
'tone'characteristicstodifferenttracksformorecontrolatmixdown,muchasTony
Viscontidoeswithhis'D12plusRE20'technique(seeabove).Inadifferent
interview,TonyViscontialsosuggestsanalternativeplacementfortheD12,rightintheholeoftheresonanthead,andthis
isasetupthatofferssimilarpracticaladvantages.

Intheabsenceofmuchexactplacementinformationfromthepros,I'verecordedsomeaudioexamplestotrytodemonstrate
thewaysthesoundvariesasyouchangemicpositionsinsidethedrum,bothwiththeresonantheadremovedandusinga
resonantheadwithamicaccessholecutintoit.Todothis,IsetupfiveD112sinalinenexttoeachother,tocoverfive
differentlateralpositionsinsidethedrum:miconewasalittletotheleftofcentre(fromtheaudience'sperspective),mictwo
wasroughlyinthecentrefacingthebeater,andmicsthreetofiveworkedtheirwayouttowardstheshell.Irecordedthisrig
atthreedistancesfromthebatterhead:ascloseaspossible('KickHeadOnClose'and'KickHeadOffClose'sets)abouteight
inchesback('KickHeadOnMid'and'KickHeadOffMid'sets)andasfarbacktowardsthepositionoftheresonantheadasI
could('KickHeadOnFar'and'KickHeadOffFar').Listeningtothesefilesnotonlyillustrateshowdramaticthetonalvariation
canbeevenformicsatthesamedistancefromthebatterhead,butalsoshowshowthesoundchangesinageneralwayas
youmovethemicforwardsorbackwards.Theusualstereooverheadsandsnaredrumclosemicwererecordedalongside.

RecordingTheAudioExamples
Theaudiofiles(whichwe'veplacedontheSOSwebsiteatwww.soundonsound.com/sos/jun08/articles/kickandsnareaudio.htm)
wererecordedovertwodaysintheColinHillRecitalRoomatHillsRoadSixthFormCollege,Cambridge,makinguseoftheir
MusicTechnologydepartment'sadjoiningcontrolroom:thankstotheDirectorofMusic,JonathanSanders,formakingthisall
possible.ManythanksarealsoduetoAntFox,ourlongsufferingdrummer,andtoTomAdams,MattCoulsonandGeoffSmith,
whoallhelpedouttremendouslywiththesessionlogistics.Likewise,I'mgratefultoFXRentals(+44(0)2087462121)for
supplyingmanyofthehighlydesirablemicswetested.Ifyoufancyusinganyofthemonyourownsessions,youcanrentthem
forjustasingledayifyoulike.Forratesanddiscounts,seewww.fxgroup.net.

OutsideTheBassDrum
Withanunperforatedresonantheadinplaceyoutendtogetthemostresonantsound,andifyoumicattheusualfrontal
positionyouwon'tgetanyrealbeaterdefinition(becausethemiccan'tseethekickpedal)andyou'llpickupquiteabitof
spillfromtherestofthekit.Whiletheresonancecanbereducedifrequired,byvirtueofextradampinginsideoroutsidethe
drum,JohnLeckiepointsoutthatyoucanalsodealwiththissimplybymikingfromagreaterdistance,aboutthreefeet
away.InthispositionhesometimesusesanRCA44DXribbonmicrophone,atypeofmicthatisveryrarelyassociatedwith
kickdrumapplicationsonaccountofthemechanicalfragilityofribbontransducers.
Toincreasebeaterdefinition,youcansimultaneouslymicupbothdrumheads:RobbieAdamsfavouredaSennheiser
MD421onthebatterheadwhenworkingonU2'sZooropa,whileSteveAlbinisuggestsasmalldynamicorcondensermic,
suchasShure'scardioidelectretSM98.BillyBushandEddieKrameralsomentioncoveringthemicsandthefrontofthe
drumwithblanketstocutdownonthespillifnecessary,averycommonstudiotrick.Soevenifyoucan'tgetinsidethedrum,
there'sstillalotyoucandotocatchatighter,punchiersoundwhenyouneedit.

Therecordingofthe'KickHeadOnOutside'
audiofilesplacedfiveAKGD112satfour
inchesfromthekickdrum'sresonanthead,
andcombinedthemwithaSennheiser
MD421andaNeumannKM84mikingthe
batterheadside.Youcanalsoseethe
positionsofthetwoexternallypositionedU47FETsrecordedalongside
allthe'KickHeadOn'and'KickHeadOff'files,whichwerethereto
demonstratethepotentialofanumberofcommondualmiking
techniques.

RiggingupmyfiveD112saboutfourinchesawayfromthedrum(whichhadafullresonantheadfitted),Irecordedsome
moreaudiofiles('KickHeadOnOutside'),withtheusualoverheadsandsnareclosemic,sothatyoucancomparethissound
tothoseproducedbythevariousinternalmicpositions.Inaddition,IsetupanMD421andaKM84overthetopofthekick
drumpointingdownatthebatterhead'sbeatercontactpoint,alongthelinessuggestedbyRobbieAdamsandSteveAlbini.
Externalmikingpositionsaren'tjustforwhentheinsideofthedrumisinaccessible,thoughcombiningthesignalsfrom
internalandexternalmicsisactuallyaprettycommonprotechnique.TheconceptbehindthisisverysimilartothatofTony

Visconti'sinternalmultimikingtechniquesthemicsprovidecontrastingtimbres,whichcanbebalancedtogettherequired
compositesoundwithoutheavyprocessing."Iuseathreemicrophonetechniqueonbassdrum,"saysEddieKramerofhis
variantonthisapproach:"AShureSM52andSM91insidethebassdrumandaU47FEToutsidethebassdrum.Byplaying
gameswiththevariousqualitiesofeach,IgetthesoundI'mafter.I'magreatbelieverinthesoundqualityofeach
microphone,andyoudon'thavetousealotofradicalEQtogetgreatsoundsifyouchoosemicrophonesfortheirparticular
qualitiesandputthemintherightplace."
SteveChurchyardandSteveMarcantonioindependentlydescribealmostidenticaltechniques,pairingaD12orD112inside
thedrumwithaU47FEToutside.Marcantoniomakesitclearthathepositionstheinternalmicrightnexttothebeaterskin,
andtheresultanthard,clickysoundbalanceswellwiththeU47which,remarksChurchyard,"addsalotmorefullnessand
roundnesstothesound."BillyBushwentforafairlysimilartechniqueinhisworkwithButchVig'sbandGarbage,but
selectinganAudioTechnicaATM25fortheinsidemic,andoccasionallysubstitutingaBlueMousefortheU47.
JoeBarresi,ontheotherhand,preferstheMD421orShureBeta52inside,andalthoughheliststheU47asoneoptionfor
theexternalmic,thealternativesheoffers(aBeyerdynamicM160ribbonmicortheoldstudiotrickofusingaYamahaNS10
speakerconeasamic)implythathe'slookingtoitmoreforauniquecharacterthanforgeneralpurposewarmth.Another
differentapproachcomescourtesyofIanLittle,whoturnsthetypical'dynamicinside,condenseroutside'ideaonitshead,
puttingaC414BULSinsideandanSM57outside.Andthere'snoneedtoabandonthiskindofdualmictechniquejust
becauseyoucan'tgetamicinsidethedrum,either.IanGrimbleusedacombinationofaD12closetothedrumanda
SennheiserMKH20smalldiaphragmcondenserfurtherawaywhenrecordingtheManicStreetPreachersThisIsMyTruth
TellMeYourswithMikeHedges.

HowFarIsFarEnough?
Afinalquestiontoansweris:howfarfromthedrumshouldanoutsidemicbeplaced?SteveChurchyardandSteve
Marcantonioareprettymuchonthesamepageagainwith"justoutside"and"fourto10inchesawayfromthehole"
respectively,whereasRobbieAdamswentouttoabout18inchesforU2'sZooropa.JoeBarresiandIanGrimbleconstitute
the'threefeetaway'camp,presumablyroughlyinlinewithAlStone'sunusualthreemicsetupforJamiroquai'sTravelling
WithoutMoving:"TravellingWithoutMovingwasathreemicjob,notevenclosemikedonemicafewfeetinfrontofthe
bassdrum,oneoverthedrummer'sshouldercoveringthehihatandsnare,andanothertothesidetocoverthecymbals."
TogiveyoutheoptiontoexperimentwiththesoundsofthesekindsofmultimictechniquesItooktheopportunitytoaddina
fewextramicswhilerecordingthe'KickHeadOn'and'KickHeadOff'setsofaudiofiles.Alongsideallthesefilesets,you'llalso
findfilesfortwodifferentU47FETs,oneplaced12inchesfromthedrum,andtheotheratthreefeet.Thismeansthatyou
canfreelysubstitutedifferentinternalmicpositionstoseehowtheycombinewitheitheroftheexternalmicpositions.
InspiredbythedualmicapproachesofSteveChurchyard,JoeBarresiandIanLittle,IalsoslungupadditionalD12,MD421
andC414BULSalongsidetheD112swhilerecordingthe'KickHeadOffMid'files,togiveanimpressionofthedifferent
flavoursimpartedbythosespecificmicswhenthey'reusedinsidethekick.

Thetoneofthekickdrumchangesdramaticallyasyoumoveawayfromthebatter
head,sowerecordedfiveAKGD112satdifferentdistancestodemonstratethis,
generatingthe'KickDistance'filesets.Theamountofspillfromotherinstruments
alsoincreaseswithdistance,andmanyproducersbafflethemicstandsandkick
drumwithblanketstoreducethis,sowecreatedthe'KickDistanceBlankets'filesto
showhowmuchofadifferencethiscanmake.Inthesephotosyoucanseethe
finalbaffledsetupandhowthemicswerepositionedinside.

Inthelightoftherangeofopinionsasregardsthebestmikingdistance,I'vealsocreatedaseparatesetofaudiofiles
('KickDistance')toillustratewhatkindsofsoundsareonofferhere.Fittingaresonantheadwithaholeinittothekickdrum,I
reusedthesamefiveD112sinaline,roughlyoneinfrontoftheother:miconewasinsidethekickdrum,about12inches
fromthebatterheadmictwowasdirectlyintheholeintheresonantheadandmicsthree,four,andfivewere10inches,18
inches,andthreefeetawayfromtheresonanthead'sholerespectively.Theusualoverheadsandsnareclosemicwere
recordedalongside.
Oneofthethingsyou'llnotice,ofcourse,inthesefilesisthatthere'squitealotofspillfromtheotherinstrumentsinthekitat
largermikingdistances.Thismeansthattheyaren'tnecessarilyveryrepresentativeofthosetechniqueswherethekickmics
havebeenbaffledwithblanketstoreducespill,soIalsorerecordedthesamesetofmicrophonesforthe
'KickDistanceBlankets'files,usingafewsparemicstandstosupportaclosedtunnelofblanketsandfoamsuspended
aroundallthemicsandgafferedtothedrumitself.
Inadditiontothis'blankettunnel',Ialsosetupadifferenttunnel

Forthe'KickDistanceTunnel'audiofiles,wesetupatechnique

techniquewhichButchVigdescribedwhentalkingabout
recordingNirvana'sinfluentialalbumNevermind."Inthecaseof
DaveGrohl'skit,IusedanAKGD12andaFET47onthekit,
andthenwebuiltadrumtunnelconsistingofolddrumshells
attachedtothebassdrumandextendedoutaboutsixfeet.That
wayyoucanmovethemicbackthreetofourfeet,andtheU47
wasalittlefartherawayfromwherethefrontheadwouldhave
been.Byhavingthedrumtunnel,youisolatetheroom,soyou
don'tgetallthecymbalbleed."

describedbytheproducerButch
Vig,wherethekickdrummicsare
protectedfromspillusingasix
footlongtunnelconstructedfrom
kickdrumshells.Themicsinside
thetunnelarethesameasthose
usedfortheother'KickDistance'
files,butarealsojoinedbyan
AKGD12threefeetfromthe
drum,andaNeumannU47FET
attheendofthetunnel.Forthe
recordings,wealsocoveredthe
wholeassemblywithblanketsto
dampthedrumshellsandfurther
reducespill.

Findingfourextrakickdrumshellsisbynomeanstheeasiest
thingintheworldtodo,butonceI'dtrackedthemdownI
removedtheblankettunnelI'dusedforthe
'KickDistanceBlankets'filesandslottedtheshellsinplace
instead,gafferingthemtogetherbeforecoveringtheminallthe
blanketsagainforgoodmeasure.InthelightofButchVig'sstatedmicchoices,IthenaddedinaD12nexttomicnumber
five(threefeetfromthedrum)andputupaU47FETrightattheendofthetunnel.

Wasitallreallyworththetrouble?Well,theresonantqualitiesofthetubularstructurecertainlyimpartauniquecharacterto
thesound,andwhatparticularlyimpressedmewasthewayinwhichaU47sixfeetfromthedrumcouldbemadetosound
aspunchyasamicsittingrightintheholeintheresonanthead.Butdon'ttrustmyearstakealistentothe
'KickDistanceTunnel'filesanddecideforyourself!

TheRoleOfTheRoom
InadditiontothevariousclosemikingtechniquesI'velookedatsofar,roomambienceisregularlyusedspecificallyto
supportthekickandsnaresounds,givingthemanextraimpressionofpowerandsize.However,you'dbeforgivenfor
wonderinghowit'spossibletodothis,giventhatambientmicpositionswillpickupamixofthewholekit,ratherthanjust
kickorsnare.
Evenifyou'vesomehowmanagedtoavoidPhilCollins''InThe
AirTonight'you'lldoubtlesshaveheardoneofthemost
commontacticsprofessionalengineersuse,namelygatingthe
ambientmictracksandthenkeyingthegatesidechainsfrom
thekickand/orsnaremics.Beforeyouwriteoffthistechniqueas
somethingonlyfitfor'80sthrowbacks,though,bearinmindthat
ithasbeenusedmoresubtlyonamuchwiderrangeofrecords
thanyoumightinitiallyimagine.Youcanhearsomethingofthis
natureonthesnareinAC/DCs'BackInBlack',forexample,and
BillPricehasdivulgedthatkeyedambiencewasusedallover
theSexPistols'NeverMindTheBollocks.

Ambiencemicsareoftenusedby
producerstobolsterthesoundof
bothsnareandkickclosemics,
sowerecordedsomeextra
ambiencemicsforthe'Amb'files,
toletyouexperimentwiththe
possibilitiestheyafford.Apairof
EarthworksTC20omnimicsare
suspendedhighabovethekiton
thetallstandaSennheiser
MKH416riflemicisalsoabove
thekit,angledtoemphasisesnare
ambienceandapairofCrown
PZMmicsareonthewallbehind
thekit.ThePAusedforthe
'AmbPA'fileswasmountedonthe
walloppositethePZMs.

"Variousstrategicambiencemicsthatsuitedthetaskwere
placedaroundtheroom,"Pricerecalls."AcoupleofoldBBC
ribbonswereliterallyatfloorlevelbehindthedrumstotrytopick
uptheambienceofthebassdrumandthebottomskinsofthe
tomtoms,andacoupleofNeumannKM84swereslungabovethekittopickuptheambienceofthecymbals...[Thedrum
sound]involvedmekeyingdifferentambiencemicsoffthedrumsastheywerebeinghit,usingtheoldfashionedKepexes.
TheseweretheearliestAmericangatesavailable,andusingthemwasprettymuchanintegralpartofthesound.[The
producer,ChrisThomas's]suggestionthatwecouldshortentheambiencewithgates,providingmorewithoutitsoundingtoo
distant,allmadetotalsensetome."
Whichclosemicchannelsyoufeedtothegate'ssidechainandhowthegatingparametersaresetupbothmakeabig
differencetothefinalsound.Soratherthantryingtodemonstratesome'readymade'gatedambiencedrumsound(for
whichyoumightaswelljustputononeoftherecordslistedabove)I'vejustrecordedabasickitsetupalongsideafew
differentambiencemicstocreatethe'Amb'setofaudiofiles.ThisallowsyoutoimportthefilesintoyourMIDI+Audio
sequencerandtryoutdifferentgatingstrategiesforyourself.Thekitwasmikedwiththeusualstereooverheads:anSM57
andaKM84overthesnareanSM57underthesnareaD112insidethekickdrum,pokedthroughtheholeintheresonant
headandaU47FETplaced18inchesoutsidetheholeintheresonanthead.BasedonBillPrice'smicpositions(andavery
similarsetupusedbyIanLittle),Imikedinstereobothfromaboveandbehindthekit.AspacedpairofEarthworksTC20
micsoccupiedthehighpositions,theiromnipolarpatternsemphasisingtheroomambience,andapairofCrownPZM
boundarymicswereplacedaboutameterupthewallbehindthedrummer.Boundarymics(usuallyreferredtoasPZMsor
PressureZoneMicrophones,althoughbothtermsaretrademarksofonemanufacturer),areacommonchoiceforambience
miking,countingJoeBarresi,DaveEringa,KenNelson,IanLittleandTonyViscontiamongsttheirfans.

AdjustingTheAmbienceMix
Analternativestrategyforsupportingthekickandsnaresounds,inparticular,usingambienceistoadjustthemixpickedup
bytheambientmics.AlanWinstanleyhadatrickfordoingthisbyusingahighlydirectionalriflemic,"positionedhighand
pointingdownonthekitasanextraroommic,tryingtopinpointthesnaremorethantheotherstuff."Iriggedupa
SennheiserMKH416riflemicinthisway,alongsidealltheothermics,whilerecordingthe'Amb'files,soyoucanhearwhatit

soundslike.Onapracticalnote,though,Ifoundittookalittlewhiletofindapositionforthismicwherethesnarelevelrose
abovethecymbalspill,soifyoudodecidetogiveitago,makesuretoworkwiththeplacementforthebestresults.
Amuchmorecommontechniqueforincreasingthesnareand/orkicklevelsintheambientmics,however,istosetupaPA
systemintheroomandfeeditwithamixoftheclosemicsignals.ChrisKimseyadoptedthisapproachforthesnareonthe
RollingStones''StartMeUp',forexample("ThePAwasaimingatthedrums,sothesnarewouldactuallycomeback
throughtheoverheadmicandcreatethisquiteuniquesound."),whileSteveChurchyardusedtinnylittleYamahapowered
speakersbehindthedrummerwhenrecordingthePretenders.Healsosenttheodddelayeffectthroughtheretoo.
ChrisFogelhasappliedasimilarapproachwithkickdrum."Iruneverythingthat'satthebottomend,likekickandlowtom,
intoapowered18inchsubwoofersituatedrightbehindthedrummer...Basicallyitextendsthebottomendonthekickdrum,
andwhenthedrummerhitsthekick,youreallyfeelit...Infact,insomecasesIdidn'thavetoEQthedrumsatall."Jack
Douglastakesthisideaandturnsitupto11:"AnothertrickI'mtryingthesedaysistospreadoutabunchofpowered
subwoofersmaybesixofthemintheroom.ThenI'llputacontactmiconthebassdrumandusethatasatrigger,so
wheneverthedrummerhitshisbassdrum,everythingfromabout80cyclesdownto20suddenlyshakestheroom.Thesubs
filltheroomwiththislowwave,whicheverythingpicksuproommics,guitarmics,everything.That'dbeprettytoughtodo
inaprojectstudio,though..."
Formyfinalsetofaudiofiles,'AmbPA',Ifedamixofthekickandsnareclosemicsinthe'Amb'setuptoasmallPAsystem
whichhappenedalreadytobeinstalledinthehallwherewewererecording.AlthoughthePAwehadwasnotthemost
powerfulofsystems,thewaytheextrasnareandkickambiencechangesonallthemicsbetweenthe'Amb'and'AmbPA'
setsdemonstratesthepotentialofthisidea.

101WaysToSkinADrum
Itshouldbeprettyobviousbynowthatthere'snostandardwaytomikeupasnareorbassdrum,withdifferentengineers
gravitatingtowardscertaintechniquesbasednotonlyonhowtheysound,butonhowmuchcontroltheyprovideatthe
mixdownstage.Ifyou'velistenedthroughtoalltheaudiofileswhichaccompanythisarticle(or,betterstill,ifyou'veimported
themintoyoursequencerandA/B'edthemincontext),youshouldbemuchbetterequippedtochoosetherightmethodto
deliverthegoods,whateversoundyou'reafter.
AboutTheAuthor
ExSOSReviewsEditorandregularcontributorMikeSeniorhasworkedprofessionallywithartistssuchasTheCharlatans,Nigel
Kennedy,Therapy,andWetWetWet.HenowrunsCambridgeMusicTechnology,deliveringcoursesandtrainingbasedonthe
studiotechniquesoftheworld'smostfamousproducers.
www.cambridgemt.com

Who'sWho:SelectedDiscography
Hereisalistoftheproducersmentionedinthisarticle.I'veputthesourceoftheinterviewinparenthesesaftereachnamein
caseyoufancyreadingmoreaboutthem,andhavealsoappendedaselectionofthemostinfluentialrecordingsthey'vebeen
involvedwithforreference.
RobbieAdams(SOSMarch1994&July1997)
U2:AchtungBaby,ZooropaPattieGriffin:ImpossibleDreamSmashingPumpkins:Adore
LaraFabian:AWonderfulLife,OneDonnieOsmond:WhatIMeantToSay.
SteveAlbini(SOSSeptember2005)
ThePixies:SurferRosaNirvana:InUteroBush:RazorbladeSuitcasePJHarvey:RidOfMe
JimmyPage&RobertPlant:WalkingIntoClarksdale.
JohnAstley(SOSMay2005)
EricClapton:Crossroads,JustOneNightTheWho:WhoAreYou.
JoeBarresi(SOSJuly2005)
QueensOfTheStoneAge:QueensOfTheStoneAge,LullabiesToParalyzeTool:10000
DaysTheMelvins:StonerWitchHole:CelebritySkinLimpBizkit:ChocolateStarfish&TheHotdogFlavouredWaterTheLost
Prophets:StartSomethingSkunkAnansie:Stoosh.
BruceBotnick(SOSDecember2003)
TheBeachBoys:PetSoundsLove:ForeverChangesTheDoors:TheDoors,Strange
Days,WaitingForTheSun,TheSoftParade,LAWoman,MorrisonHotelTimBuckley:Happy
Sad.
BillyBush(SOSJune2002)
Garbage:BeautifulGarbage,BleedLikeMe,Version2.0PatMonahan:LastOfSeven
AgainstMe!:NewWave.
SteveChurchyard(SOSSeptember2005,BehindTheGlass)
ThePretenders:LearningToCrawlCountingCrows:RecoveringTheSatellitesCeline
Dion:FallingIntoYouRickyMartin:Vuelve,AlmasDelSilencio,SoundLoaded
Shakira:LaundryServiceTheStranglers:LaFolie,FelineBigCountry:WonderlandBryan
Ferry:Boys&GirlsINXS:ListenLikeThieves.

BobClearmountain(SOSJuly2006)
ThePretenders:GetCloseBryanAdams:IntoTheFire,Reckless,CutsLikeAKnifePaul
McCartney:TrippingTheLiveFantasticmixingforBruceSpringsteen(BornInTheUSA),The
RollingStones(TattooYou),BonJovi(TheseDays,Crush),RoxyMusic(Avalon),DavidBowie
(Let'sDance),INXS(Kick),andTheCorrs(TalkOnCorners).
JackDouglas(BehindTheGlass)
Aerosmith:GetYourWings,ToysInTheAttic,Rocks,Draw
TheLine,RockInAHardPlace,Honkin'OnBoboJohn
Lennon:DoubleFantasyCheapTrick:CheapTrick,AtThe
Budokan,StandingOnTheEdge.
GeoffEmerick(BehindTheGlass)
TheBeatles:Revolver,Sgt.PeppersLonelyHeartsClud
Band,MagicalMysteryTour,AbbeyRoadPaul
McCartney:BandOnTheRun,FlamingPieElvis
Costello:ImperialBedroom,AllThisUselessBeauty
Badfinger:NoDiceRobinTrower:BridgeOfSighs.
DaveEringa(SOSApril1999)
ManicStreetPreachers:EverythingMustGo,ThisIsMyTruthTellMeYours,SendAwayTheTigersIdlewild:100Broken
Windows,TheRemotePart.
ChrisFogel(SOSMarch1997)
AlanisMorissette:JaggedLittlePill,SupposedFormerInfatuationJunkieUnderRugSwept.
JohnFry(SOSApril2006)
NumerousStaxlabelreleasesbyIsaacHayes,TheStapleSingers,andBookerT&TheMGs
BigStar:#1Record,RadioCity.
IanGrimble(SOSJune1998)
ManicStreetPreachers:EverythingMustGo,ThisIsMyTruthTellMeYoursTexas:WhiteOn
BlondeTheBeautifulSouth:WelcomeToTheBeautifulSouthSiouxsie&The
Banshees:ThroughTheLookingGlass.
MikeHedges(SOSJune1998,BehindTheGlass)
ManicStreetPreachers:EverythingMustGo,ThisIsMyTruthTellMeYoursTexas:WhiteOn
BlondeTravis:TheManWhoTheBeautifulSouth:WelcomeToTheBeautifulSouthThe
Cure:ThreeImaginaryBoys,SeventeenSeconds,Faith.
PeterHenderson(SOSJuly2005)
Supertramp:EvenInTheQuietestMoments,BreakfastInAmerica,FamousLastWordsFrankZappa:SheikYerboutiPaul
McCartney:TrippingTheLiveFantastic,FlowersInTheDirtJeffBeck:WiredRush:GraceUnderPressure.
ToreJohansson(SOSMarch1999&June2004)
FranzFerdinand:FranzFerdinandTheCardigans:FirstBandOnTheMoon,Gran
Turismo,LongGoneBeforeDaylight,SuperExtraGravity.
JonKelly(SOSJune2004)
KateBush:Lionheart,NeverForEverTheWholeStoryChrisRea:RoadToHell,Auberge
TheDamned:PhantasmagoriaTheBeautifulSouth:Gaze,Miaow,PaintingItRedHeather
Nova:SirenPaulMcCartney:PressToPlay.
ChrisKimsey(SOSApril2004)
TheRollingStones:StickyFingers,SomeGirls,EmotionalRescue,Undercover,SteelWheels
PeterFrampton:FramptonComesAlive!TheChieftains:LongBlackVeilKillingJoke:Laugh?
INearlyBoughtOne,ForBeginnersTheCult:DreamtimeMarillion:RealToReel/Brief
Encounter.
GlennKolotkin(SOSJune2000)
Santana:Supernatural,Caravanserai,Borboletta,MoonflowerTheRollingStones:Their
SatanicMajestiesRequestJimiHendrix:ElectricLadylandJanisJoplin:Pearl.
EddieKramer(SOSNovember2005,BehindTheGlass)
JimiHendrix:AreYouExperienced?,AxisBoldAsLove,ElectricLadyland,BandOf
Gypsys,TheCryOfLoveLedZeppelin:LedZeppelinIIKiss:Alive!,AliveIIPeter
Frampton:FramptonComesAlive!.
JohnLeckie(SOSMay1997,BehindTheGlass)
PinkFloyd:MeddleRadiohead:TheBendsMuse:Showbiz,OriginOfSymmetryTheStone
Roses:TheStoneRosesTheVerve:AStormInHeaven.
CraigLeon(BehindTheGlass)
TheRamones:TheRamones,RamonesManiaBlondie:Blondie,NoExit,TheCurseOfBlondieTheFall:Extricate,Shiftwork
RodneyCrowell:ButWhatWillTheNeighboursThink.
IanLittle(SOSJuly2004)
RoxyMusic:AvalonDuranDuran:First,Seven&TheRaggedTiger.

SteveMarcantonio(SOSOctober2002)
RascalFlatts:StillFeelsGoodFaithHill:FirefliesKeithUrban:KeithUrbanBrooks&Dunn:HillbillyDeluxeKenny
Chesney:TheRoad&TheRadioTimMcGraw:NotAMomentTooSoonGeorgeStrait:CarryingYourLoveWithMe,LeadOn.
KenNelson(SOSOctober2000)
BadlyDrawnBoy:TheHourOfBewilderbeastColdplay:Parachutes,RushOfBloodToTheHead,X&YPaoloNutini:These
StreetsKingOfConvenience:QuietIsTheNewLoudGomez:LiquidSkin,BringItOn.
GilNorton(SOSDecember2005)
ThePixies:TrompeLeMonde,Bossanova,DoolittleFooFighters:TheColourAndThe
ShapeThrowingMuses:ThrowingMusesJimmyEatWorld:FuturesJames:'SitDown'Echo
&TheBunnymen:OceanRain.
ThomPanunzio(BehindTheGlass)
U2:Rattle&HumDeepPurple:TheBattleRagesOnBlackSabbath:ReunionOzzy
Osbourne:LiveAtBudokanBruceSpringsteen:Tracks,18Tracks.
AlanParsons(BehindTheGlass)
TheBeatles:AbbeyRoadPinkFloyd:DarkSideOfTheMoonAlStewart:YearOfTheCat
TheHollies:'HeAin'tHeavy,He'sMyBrother','TheAirThatIBreathe'.
TonyPlatt(SOSApril2001)
BobMarley:CatchAFire,Burnin'Toots&The
Maytals:FunkyKingstonAswad:AswadAC/DC:Highway
ToHell,BackInBlackForeigner:4BoomtownRats:The
FineArtOfSurfacingAnathema:Eternity.
BillPrice(SOSSeptember2004)
TheSexPistols:NeverMindTheBollocksTheClash:The
Clash,Give'EmEnoughRope,LondonCalling,Sandinista!
ThePretenders:Pretenders,PretendersIIEltonJohn:Too
LowForZeroPeteTownshend:EmptyGlassTheJesus&
MaryChain:DarklandsTheLibertines:TheLibertines.
NileRodgers(BehindTheGlass)
AnyrecordbyChicSisterSledge:WeAreFamilyDianaRoss:DianaDavidBowie:Let'sDance,BlackTieWhiteNoise
Madonna:LikeAVirgin.
ElliotScheiner(SOSFebruary1996)
SteelyDan:Aja,Gaucho,TwoAgainstNatureDonaldFagan:NightflyBillyJoel:SongsInThe
AtticFleetwoodMac:TheDanceRoyOrbison,BlackAndWhiteNightJohn
Fogerty:PremonitionVanMorrison:Moondance.
AlSchmitt(SOSOctober2005,BehindTheGlass)
GeorgeBenson:Breezin'SteelyDan:Aja,FM(NoStaticAtAll)Toto:TotoIVNatalie
Cole:UnforgettableDianaKrall:WhenILookInYourEyes,TheLookOfLoveRay
Charles:GeniusLovesCompanyJeffersonAirplane:AfterBathingAtBaxter's,CrownOf
Creation,Volunteers.
JimScott(SOSDecember1999)
RedHotChiliPeppers:Californication,ByTheWayDixieChicks:TakingTheLongWay
Sting:DreamOfTheBlueTurtlesJohnnyCash:AmericanRecordings,UnearthedFooFighters:OneByOneLucinda
Williams:CarWheelsOnAGravelRoad.
DonSmith(SOSDecember1994)
TheRollingStones:VoodooLoungeRyCooder:ChavezRavine,MyNameIsBuddy
StevieNicks:RockALittle,TroubleInShangriLaTheTragicallyHip:UpToHere,Road
ApplesTomPetty:LongAfterDark,SouthernAccents,FullMoonFever,TheLastDJ
RoyOrbison:MysteryGirl.
AlStone(SOSDecember1999)
Jamiroquai:ReturnOfTheSpaceCowboy,TravellingWithoutMoving,Synkronized
DanielBedingfield:GottaGetThroughThisStereoMCs:ConnectedBjork:Debut,Post
TurinBrakes:TheOptimistLamb:FearOfFoursEagleEyeCherry:SubRosa.
StephenStreet(SOSJuly1994&January2005)
TheSmiths:MeatIsMurder,TheQueenIsDead,StrangewaysHereWeCome
Morrissey:VivaHate,BonaDragBlur:Leisure,ModernLifeIsRubbish,Parklife,TheGreatEscape,BlurThe
Cranberries:EverybodyElseIsDoingIt,SoWhyCan'tWe?,NoNeedToArgue,WakeUp&SmellTheCoffeeKaiser
Chiefs:Employment,YoursTrulyAngryMob.
BillSzymczyk(SOSNovember2004)
TheEagles:OnTheBorder,TheLongRun,OneOfTheseNights,HotelCaliforniaTheWho:FaceDancesBBKing:Live&
Well,CompletelyWellJGeilsBand:TheMorningAfterJoeWalsh:Barnstorm,TheSmokerYouDrinkThePlayerYouGet.
ChrisThomas(SOSSeptember2004&September2005)
PinkFloyd:DarkSideOfTheMoonDaveGilmour:OnAnIslandRazorlight:Razorlight
U2:HowToDismantleAnAtomicBombPulp:DifferentClass,ThisIsHardcoreINXS:Listen

LikeThieves,Kick,XThePretenders:Pretenders,PretendersII,LearningToCrawlTheSex
Pistols:NeverMindTheBollocksRoxyMusic:ForYourPleasure,Stranded,Siren.
ChrisTsangarides(SOSJuly2001)
ThinLizzy:Renegades,Thunder&LighteningOzzyOsbourne:BlizzardOfOzJudas
Priest:PainkillerBlackSabbath:TheEternalIdolGaryMoore:BackOnTheStreets,The
PowerOfTheBlues,BackToTheBlues.
ButchVig(SOSMarch1997&June2002)
Nirvana:NevermindSmashingPumpkins:SiameseDream,GishGarbage:Garbage,Version
2.0,Beautifulgarbage,BleedLikeMeSonicYouth:ExperimentalJetSetTrash&No
Star,Dirty.
TonyVisconti(SOSOctober2003&October2004,Behind
TheGlass)
TRex:ElectricWarrior,TheSliderDavidBowie:Diamond
Dogs,YoungAmericans,Heroes,Low,Scary
Monsters,Heathen,RealityIggyPop:TheIdiotTheMoody
Blues:TheOtherSideofLife,SurLaMerThinLizzy:Bad
Reputation,LiveAndDangerous,BlackRose.
AlanWinstanley(SOSJuly1998)
Madness:OneStepBeyond,Absolutely,Seven,TheRise&
Fall,KeepMoving,MadNotMadElvisCostello:PunchThe
Clock,GoodbyeCruelWorldBush:SixteenStone
HothouseFlowers:People,HomeMorrissey:Kill
Uncle,BonaDrag.
TobyWright(SOSDecember2005)
Slayer:DivineInterventionAliceInChains:JarOfFlies,AliceInChains,UnpluggedKorn:FollowTheLeaderMetallica:And
JusticeForAllMotleyCrue:GirlsGirlsGirls.
Published
inSOS
June

2008