Recording

With their oblique, short and often brutally noisy songs, The Pixies reinvented rock music at the turn of the '90s, and influenced almost everyone who picked up a guitar in the following decade. Producer and engineer Gil Norton helped them to shape their breakthrough single.

He took an unusual and unhurried career path, but Toby Wright has helped to create some of the most influential hard rock records of the last 20 years, including Metallica's definitive ...And Justice For All, and is now one of America's most sought-after engineers and producers.

With his searing version of 'All Along The Watchtower', Jimi Hendrix set a standard for Dylan covers that has rarely been equalled. Eddie Kramer was behind the glass as the sessions moved from London to New York.

The Go! Team's debut album, a glorious pile-up of mangled samples and lo-fi home recordings, is now attracting widespread acclaim — but its path to Mercury nomination and commercial success has been anything but smooth.

He is one of the most famous drummers in the world, having played on more than 200 records. His CV reads like a Who's Who of English, American and French popular music, and even if he prefers not to lose himself in computers, he always takes a PowerBook with him, to write songs, at home or on tour. Meet Manu Katché, drummer extraordinaire.

The Hollies were the third artist in as many years to cut Albert Hammond and Mike Hazelwood's pop ballad, yet it was their version that became a worldwide top 10 hit. In 1974, Alan Parsons was behind the mixing desk at Abbey Road for the recording.

Production pioneers Massive Attack are going through exciting times — they've built an awesome recording studio, moved into surround soundtrack work, and they have a new album on the way. We take a spin around their new workspace.

This issue's Studio SOS comes to you from the other side of the world, as we help an Australian reader sort out his vocal recordings.

For his latest album, musician/producer Brian Eno has returned to the world of songwriting. But his ideas about music are as radical as ever...

Steve Albini has become a legend in the world of alternative music by championing traditional engineering skills, respecting the opinions of the artists he records, and doing business ethically.

In 1982, the Pretenders responded to desperate circumstances with some of the strongest material they would ever produce. Engineer Steve Churchyard was there to record it.

For over a decade, Nainita Desai has earned her living designing sounds and composing for film and television. She speaks about her experiences in the industry, and explains what opportunities there are for newcomers who want to get their foot in the door.

Disco was an American phenomenon, but its greatest hits were recorded in France by an English band who were trying to play R&B...

Recording acoustic keyboard instruments in a home environment can be pretty demanding, but with a little care you can still get professional results.

Jeff Wayne's classic musical adaptation of H.G Wells' novel The War Of The Worlds was a technical tour de force and an enduring commercial success. 27 years after its release, it has undergone a complete rework for 5.1 surround using Pro Tools.

It's not a bad gig being chief engineer to the world's hottest production duo, Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo. But it takes a lot of hard work to keep up with The Neptunes...

Producer/engineer Peter Henderson spent nine months recording an album that neither he nor the A&M label could afford to fail. Yet when he handed in the masters, Henderson was convinced that Supertramp's Breakfast In America would finish his career...

Our resident specialist offers his demo diagnosis and prescribes an appropriate remedy.

Queens Of The Stone Age's fourth album Lullabies To Paralyze has cemented their position as the biggest and most exciting rock band in the world. Engineer and co-producer Joe Barresi describes the combination of old-school technique and far-out experiment that went into its making.

Disagreement can be destructive, but it can also drive a band on to new heights. So it was when 10cc's Kevin Godley turned up his nose at a love song penned by Eric Stewart and Graham Gouldman, insisting that it would have to be completely reinvented in the studio...

Will Mowat made his name first as a sequencer expert and then as a writer with Soul II Soul. As a world music producer, his recent projects provide inspirational examples of how to combine performance with programming and overcome the limitations of a bare-bones budget.