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Sep/Oct 2022
Welcome to issue #151 of Tape Op.
When this magazine began, one aspect of the music creation process I decided not to write about was how the finished recordings actually get to the listener. I'd already seen several iterations of how music was physically delivered come and go, such as 8-track cartridge, flexi disc, cassette, Digital Audio Tape, Digital Compact Cassette, MiniDisc, and Super Audio CD, which basically left us with vinyl LPs and 45s, as well as optical-based CDs. Do we even need to discuss landfills full of iPods, PonoPlayers, and those ugly Rio units?
This ever-shifting landscape has never felt like something I'd be interested in continually discussing. Instead, I chose to focus the pages here on the creative aspects of capturing and working with music during the recording process. The exciting part to me has always been where the art is born.
In my opinion, the main point of recording music is to capture something to share with the world. To present to the audience a vetted version of the song or album that is meant to be heard, far and wide, by potentially anyone. How this audio gets to the listener will always change over the years, but the fact that it gets heard is what is important. Did the music reach someone? Good!
But what if the audio that's captured and labored over is not allowed to be heard by the public-at-large? What if it's a one-off "piece of art" sold to a millionaire? Flip to the End Rant John Baccigaluppi and I composed this issue for a terrifying example of the battle between high art and distribution. It's pretty interesting…
Bob Clearmountain's cat, Walter, photographed by Aya Muto in Los Angeles, CA August 21, 2022. See interview (with Bob, not Walter) here.
— LARRY CRANE,EDITOR & FOUNDER
IN THIS ISSUE
Niko Bolas: No Right or Wrong
Niko Bolas is a class act. For over 40 years he has operated as an engineer, mixer, and producer. One look at his extensive discography immediately evidences the fact that he is beyond skilled and obv...
Suzy Shinn: Soaking Up the Sun
Suzy Shinn was just a little kid in Wichita, Kansas, when she began exhibiting the instincts that have since made her a rising star producer and songwriter. "I forced all my friends to be in bands wit...
Lyle Lovett
During the early pandemic lockdowns my wife, Jenna Zine, and I searched out interesting online streaming performances as a way to keep connected to the experience of going out to see live entertainmen...
Jacob Collier: It's Proper Special
I first heard of Jacob Collier when I watched his arrangement and multitracked solo performance of Stevie Wonder's "Don't You Worry 'Bout a Thing" on YouTube almost a decade ago. Jacob's creativity ca...
Craig Leon: Repeated Listening
Craig Leon produced a host of who's who New York band debuts in the mid-1970s, including Blondie, Richard Hell the Voidoids, and Suicide. He went onto work with many stalwart artists such as Guy Clark...
Will Yip: Sheer Will Power
Will Yip's rise to fame is the stuff of legend. After digging for production credits on locally-produced hip-hop by Schoolly D and Fugees, he discovered that Studio 4's Phil and Joe Nicolo (The Butche...
Shahzad Ismaily: Filling in the Rest of the Puzzle
I first heard about Shahzad Ismaily when our pal and Tape Op contributor, Eli Crews [Tape Op #88] told me he was moving to New York to help his friend Shahzad open a studio. Soon, I realized we'd work...
Sam Cohen: Comfortable in All the Roles
For Sam Cohen, what started as a means to an end as a teenager in a band has blossomed into a long, fertile career in record production. Sam and I spoke about his recent works with Curtis Harding, his...
