Recording

Blockbuster video game Horizon Zero Dawn took six years to make, and required its three composers to invent an entirely new sound world.

Soulful electronic artist/producer SOHN shows us how he layers up, edits and processes his own vocals, and uses Auto-Tune in an unconventional way to create ear-catching textural and percussive elements.

With the Screamadelica album Primal Scream didn’t just reinvent themselves as a band, they reinvented what it meant to be a band.

M-S miking is already a versatile technique, but it can be built upon to provide surround-sound recording and a whole lot more besides!

Recording Steel Drums: Our engineer rises to the unfamiliar challenge of capturing a loud steel band in their octagonal rehearsal building.

The sessions for Divide saw singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran exploring the possibilities of home recording for the first time, courtesy of engineer Joe Rubel.

How much preparation is required before a recording session, and when should it all begin? We asked some top producers to share their wisdom.

I’m currently setting up a small home studio for songwriting and demos and I’d like to use split-input monitoring, so I don’t have to worry about latency...

Inspired by Norman Petty and Sam Phillips, studio owner Dean Amos has lovingly built a perfect recreation of a 1950s recording environment — right down to the dimensions of the pegboard!

I recently bought a Zoom H6 recorder, and am confused how its Mid-Sides recording works. Could you explain?

It sometimes makes economic sense to use a commercial studio, and you’ll often learn a thing or two while you’re there as well.

Creating alien worlds, bringing droids to life and giving Star Wars more realism. We talk sound design and foley with the team behind the critically-acclaimed Rogue One.

Neneh Cherry’s breakthrough 1988 single melded hip-hop and cut-and-paste sampling into a perfect pop record.

Not many dance acts start life as string quartets — but Clean Bandit’s fusion of classical and electronic music has powered them to worldwide success.

Watch engineer/producer extraordinaire Eric Valentine as he crafts a shimmering surf guitar sound, in the vein of Smash Mouth or Third Eye Blind, that employs three amps and judicial use of modulation effects.

We sat down with songwriter/producer Jake Gosling ahead of his masterclass at ACM in Guildford, UK, to talk about creating better arrangements, getting the best out of performers, and the advantages of having a simple recording setup. 

Perhaps I do not understand the proximity effect very well! But my question is this: can you decrease the proximity effect solely by lowering the volume?

Maximising A Minimal Arrangement: Our engineer tackles the recording of some stripped-down electric-guitar and vocal arrangements.