Open Minds, Open Ears
by Scott Anthony
"No drum machines were used on this album!" "No synthesizers!" These liner note proclamations were, for a time, a "cool" way to indicate a declaration of purity. But bands like Queen, who made these...
Columns
Sporadic and regular articles from our contributors.
What the F#ck is “Industry Standard”?
by Larry Crane, Garrett Haines
After receiving negative feedback regarding her release, a talented artist I’d worked with dropped me a line. Apparently a random critic of her album had declared that “the song was...
Gear Geeking w/ Andy...
by Andy Hong
For quite a time surrounding the year 2000, I was known as “the guy who records Karate” — their de facto recording engineer. Following the completion of their third album, The Bed is...
Gear Geeking w/ Andy...
by Andy Hong
I’m writing this just a couple weeks after the AES Show in New York City. This was the first major Pro Audio convention that I’ve attended since the Pandemic, and I very much enjoyed...
Amazing Emotional Responses
by John Plymale
When producing a record one of the main tenets I follow relates to how I get others to use their ears, brains, and – most importantly – their emotions when they listen back to...
The End of the Unknown Craftsman?
by John Baccigaluppi, Larry Crane
The recent sale of Bob Dylan’s one-off recording of “Blowin’ in the Wind” for $1.7 million dollars has left me reflecting on a very different way of evaluating art and...
Gear Geeking w/ Andy...
by Andy Hong
In my previous Gear Geeking roundup of true wireless earbuds [Tape Op #150], I mentioned how I prefer Google Pixel Buds A-Series for making calls and listening to news, since they’re very...
How to Make a Record
by John Simon
Reprinted from Truth, Lies & Hearsay by John Simon.See interview here (on page 28 in print). Book and poster: www.johnsimonmusic.net/shop
Gear Geeking w/ Andy...
by Andy Hong
Ever since the first-generation Apple AirPods became widely available in 2017, “true wireless earbuds” (as the category is called) have become ubiquitous. Now, it seems rare to step into a...
Gear Geeking w/ Andy...
by Andy Hong
F. Reid Shippen [Tape Op #125], Pete Lyman of Infrasonic Mastering, and I are breaking ground on a 15,000 sq ft media production and mastering facility in Nashville. One of the rooms in our complex...
Sorting it Out
by Larry Crane
Recently, I was helping out a client via one of my Virtual Recording Workshops. In his single song session, there were almost 100 guitar tracks, with multiple amps and mics for every part and...
Rob Christensen, a Big Star to Me
by Larry Crane
When I founded Tape Op twenty-six years ago, I had no concept of the ways in which this magazine would change my life. Professionally, it’s been amazing to visit studios and recordists all...