Rob Newman
…on running a recording studio, pushing creative boundaries and DIY music.
Like any other business owner much of Rob Newman’s time is spent answering emails, filing receipts and fixing recording equipment, something that he jokes is ‘the real reason you get into the music industry.’ When he isn’t spending his time running the Derby based Snug Recording Co he says, ‘I try to keep balance by having other things to engage with. Like learning to cook new things, trying in vain to get my step-kids to play Dungeons and Dragons or losing many hours designing a four-bar loop on a modular synth that I’ll never end up using.’ He says that having a career he enjoys is something that he is not only grateful for but also mindful of, that in his line of work it’s easy to blur the boundaries between work and non-work time. Finding that balance is just one of the many challenges that he faces day to day.
The complications of working with a variety of artists are often presented in challenging ways but experience helps Rob to find each artist’s individual style and establish a healthy working enviroment. ‘The process is different for every artist, despite the aims being the same’ he says. Recognising the tentative needs of everyone he works with isn’t always a straightforward process. ‘Sometimes an artist may think that a song is one thing when it’s actually pulling in another direction. Reframing the perception of a song can be a difficult experience but so rewarding at the end when they realise they’ve expanded their output.’ Although bringing an artist out of their comfort zone isn’t an easy task, it’s one that he relishes and is willing to take the time and effort to do. It’s such care that makes working with Rob and his co-pilot at Snug, Richard Collins, a unique experience.
It is a fundamental part of Rob’s process to push the artist whilst also ensuring long sessions in the studio are kept from becoming tedious. ‘I’m a big believer in trying to generate change and some amount of unplanned exploration’ he explains, going on to say that providing artists with a variety of challenges is an important part of the process. Creating limitations is a productive technique that helps him to push boundaries. ‘We could say, “we’re only allowed to use three drums on this song, work out how to play them in new ways to create interesting parts”, or it might be through pushing an artist to make a sound using an instrument they’ve never played before.’ These are ways for Rob to keep up energy levels not only for himself but for his clients as well. ‘The general rule for me is to keep things focussed and productive, without making them stale. My job involves switching the focus between technical considerations like microphone positions or signal fidelity to performance factors such as tuning and arrangement. Then I have to consider everyone’s confidence, excitement and energy levels.’
‘Mentally glimpsing behind the curtain’ is a phrase that Rob uses when talking about becoming aware of the recording process for the first time. The allure of the work being done behind the scenes brought him to where he is now with his own studio and a large back catalogue of artists worked with. ‘I remember being a kid and listening to one of The Beach Boys box sets belonging to my dad. It had demos, outtakes and radio performances which contained all this behind the scenes chatter before the songs kicked in and that was the first time I remember being aware of “The Studio” or thought about how records were made.’ Once he’d exposed himself to this grittier side of recording it became something he found he had an ear for. ‘Years later I heard stuff like the early Bright Eyes records or The Good Life. Those early Saddle Creek releases that Mike Mogis and people like that worked on. They seemed to have captured that same tangible sense of “the recording” that I’d got from those Beach Boys tapes.’ Rob not only became aware of the subtleties of recording he also became conscious of the care and effort that goes into music production. He explains that a recording is ‘almost always inherently inauthentic’ but as a producer he strives to regain some sense of artistic authenticity in his recordings.
But the music industry has changed significantly over the past decade for producers and artists alike. The DIY mindset of self-producing and self-releasing music independently has become the norm. Rob points out that anyone is now able to release their music on the same platforms as the biggest artists in the world. Such things have, to an extent, taken business away from recording studios but Rob says it’s an ‘undeniably good thing’ that music has taken on this DIY attitude. ‘It means that if you have a great idea for a song, you can create it affordably and release it. You technically have the same access to music-making and audiences which would only be available to major label artists before.’ There are downsides to this though, disadvantages for newcomers, indie artists and those on the fringes of the industry, which Rob says makes it hard for them to gain any headway in the industry. ‘Independent artists don’t have the marketing reach, the advertising spend, the connections in the media or the profile. It’s almost impossible to get a critical mass of people streaming their music and make a living off of it. At the other end, consumers are saturated with music. You have an industry which has major problems for anyone but those at the top of the pyramid.’
Rob still sees the value of the studio experience and says it still has its benefits to a recording artist. ‘I would argue that in a situation where the market is becoming saturated with often poorly produced content, prioritizing your recorded output is actually the best investment you can make. Without great records, you don’t sell merchandise. Without your music inspiring audiences, they don’t come to shows. Without the momentum of frequent new releases, fans can forget about you. Music connects with other humans and creates amazing, joint experiences. Which is the reason you make it in the first place.’ From the first moment he heard the chatter in the background of those Beach Boys tapes he had found a passion for something and from that formed the qualities that make him such a stand out producer, that spurs him on to be so attentive with recording and push artists to be the best they can be.
You can follow Rob on instagram here and Snug Recordung Co here. For more informtion about Snug Recording Co follow this link.
Originaly posted 01/10/20 by Alex Bamforth
