Mixing / Production

Following the success of their recent 'Best Of' album, James first single for over a year was much anticipated — especially as it saw them renew their relationship with production legend Brian Eno. Tom Flint reports

Sue Sillitoe talks to one of the most influential British record producers of the '90s, Stephen Street — the man behind a string of hit albums for the Smiths, Blur, The Cranberries, Catatonia, Sleeper, Shed Seven and many more.

Janet Harniman-Cook concludes her two-part feature with a guide to creating your own Enhanced CD.

'90s glamsters Suede wanted a more electronic, produced feel for their latest album, Head Music, so they linked up with production supremo Steve Osborne. Tom Flint talks to Steve about the complex production of the group's latest Top 20 single.

The way you use effects and processors can make or break a mix. Paul White offers 20 useful tips to help you get it right first time.

Legendary US record producer Bob Clearmountain undoubtedly has his name on more hit records than anyone else in the history of popular music. Dave Lockwood asks the man who invented the role of 'specialist hit mixer' to reveal the secrets of his success.

A successful DJ-turned-remixer/producer, Justin Robertson has also found fortune with collaborator Roger Lyons as Lionrock. Now the Sherlock Holmes-obsessed duo have relocated to their own studio, Moriarty's Cavern, and have a new side project, Gentleman Thief. Tom Flint gets an elementary education...

The single by Johnny Marr and Bernard Sumner's 'Supergroup' Electronic is closer to traditional rock and roll than electronica, with its driving guitars and bluesy harmonica riff. But there's more to the simple-sounding production than meets the ears, as Matt Bell finds out from programmer Merv De Peyer and engineer Jim Spencer.

Catatonia's rise from indie obscurity to pop dominance seems unstoppable and, with the first single from their new album, they're even targetting Radio 2 listeners. Matt Bell talks to producer Tommy D about the track's transformation from Akai DPS12 demo to Top Ten hit.

Paul White comes up with a few tips for using the processing power of your computer audio sequencer to turn one or two voices into a complete backing ensemble.

The first single from the Manic Street Preachers' This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours album entered the UK charts at no.1 — even though the band had adandoned their traditional power‑chord approach in favour of acoustic guitars, string machines and unusual synth effects. We talk to Dave Eringa, the producer who oversaw this successful change of direction.

By the time you read this, he could be clutching his first Oscar for his soundtrack for the historic blockbuster Elizabeth. David Hirschfelder discourses with Richard Buskin about the art, science and pyschology of scoring for the moving image.

Every week, BBC1's new Saturday night show Get Your Act Together takes an aspiring singer or group and attempts to transform their musc, image and performace, to turn them into true professionals — in two days. Among the eminent record producers chosen to work their magic on these acts is Steve Levine, who talks to Sam Inglis about the unique challenges involved.

Seven years ago, teacher, musician and engineer Howard Turner transformed himself into The Studio Wizard and placed an ad offering his services as studio trouble shooter and consultant. It worked like a charm...

A co-founder of US electro-pioneers Information Society, Paul Robb recently scored the new movie form the creators of South Park. He has a new band signed to Virgin and a dance side-project, yet still manages to write award-winning music for TV. Sam Molineaux joins him and his various alter egos in his new Los Angeles studio, Digitalis.

The Cardigans are the biggest thing to come out of Sweden since, er, Ace Of Base, and their recent hit 'My Favourite Game' represented a successful change of musical direction. Sue Sillitoe tracks down their regular producer Tore Johansson in his Country Hell studio to talk about how the song was put together. Reasearch by Matt Bell.

Paul Tingen catches up with the musical innovator and legendary force behind BeBop Deluxe at his minimalist home studio, and finds him producing more music than ever before.

It was the best-selling single of last year, and signalled a radical change of musical direction for Cher — complete with bizarre vocal processing. Yet, surprisingly, it was produced in a small studio in West London. Sue Sillitoe relates the astonishing tale of 'Believe'.

It's ever SOS reader's dream to make a record at home and have it go straight into the top five. David Lowe tells Paul White how it's done.

The Honeyz are a new R&B act, but behind the smash success of their debut single 'Finally Found' sits a familiar figure — Culture Club producer Steve Levine. Matt Bell dissects the track, and finds out how it was put together in Steve's compact digital home studio.

More than 15 years after the release of their last album The Hunter, the four original members of Blondie are about to make a comeback with a brand-new album due out early in the new year. Long-time friend and producer Craig Leon tells Sue Sillitoe how this latest offering was recorded.