Though a large portion of the projects I worked on this last year are either still in progress or are unavailable online, here's a couple that are available online to share:
"The Heart is a Howler"
Assistant Engineer
One of the first big projects I got to work on at VMS. A folk rock group in Columbus that are a bunch of cool dudes with a lot of passion! Mark Abrams did all the heavy lifting on this one (including a sick mix), but I got to come along for the ride and I learned a lot!
"Party Insomnia", "Own the Night", "Crown Seven Mafia"
Engineered, Mixed and Mastered
A hiphop project I worked on a couple singles for in the fall of 2013. A rapper from Russia with a huge EDM influence in his music and a lot of potential in his work. A few of his beats were created by my co worker Andy Miller, a super talented writer who also works at VMS.
Gritty Women of God EP
"Set the World on Fire"
Engineered
"I Hate Poverty", "Better Days"
Engineered, Mixed, Mastered
An EP and a few singles I worked on with Moses Garcia, a hip hop artist with a lot of soul and heart. I really like working with Moses because of the heart and purpose in his music. He did the Gritty Women of God EP for a women empowerment conference in Columbus, which I think is really great.
The Rust Belt EP
Engineered, Mixed and Mastered
This was a rock project I worked on during the summer of 2013. A short two song EP with a ton of energy! Definitely one of the high lights of the year, Carlin is an amazing musician and a blast to work with. It even got onto the local radio for a few weeks!
Though technically a 2014 project, we just wrapped up his second EP, Chaser, in the first week of January 2014 and it hits the world in a few weeks on February 4th.
Here's the first single off of the Chaser EP...
You Know
Here's a few other artists I worked with last year that you should keep an eye out for in the coming year...
Meechie Nelson
A super talented rap/hip hop artist with a lot of creative energy. I can't say a lot about the project as its largely still in progress but his flow and talent are great. You can check out some of his older pre-VMS stuff at his Facebook.
Under the Sun
A retro rock band that's currently working on a full length album at VMS. I assisted Mark Abrams with the full band tracking process and engineered a lot of the overdubs and vocal sessions. I can't wait to hear the complete product!
Playing to Vapors
These guys are an amazing indie math rock group currently working on a few singles that are being mixed and produced by their guitarist, Darren DiSabato. I had the fortunate opportunity to track the drums for a couple of their songs over the summer. Really excited about what these guys are putting out! Check out their latest single here: "A New Direction"
Mike Robinson
An incredibly talented high school student that I worked with during the summer and fall. He wrote and produced an entire EP including one song with a full string quartet arrangement! Super awesome!
The Archive
An acoustic duo that recently started working with me on a very ambitious project. The project as a whole has a very unique sound, Think Bon Iver and Sigur Ros had a child. I'm very excited to see how this unfolds going into 2014!
Also...
Columbus Indie Music Underground
Lets not forget CIMU! I worked on a couple dozen episodes of CIMU this last year wearing many hats including miking, running cameras, and organizing set design.
Here's a couple of my favorite episodes from last year:
Lastly a more personal project...
Two good friends of mine, Ian Bentley and Conor Breen, came out from Connecticut over the summer and we worked on a single together that my friend Ian had been working on for a while. It was really fun to get into the studio with some of my old friends and it definitely threw me off a bit to be on the other side of the studio glass for once.
You can check out the single here: "Lauren"
And with all that said, Cheers to a new year!
-Matt
