Women Music Producers?

I had a revelation and a little giggle tonight while I was listening to some mixes and was thinking about the recording process and where we might want to record our third album and whose influence we would like to have on it... and for some reason, I thought, "What would it be like to work with a woman producer?"

And then I thought... and I thought some more... and I realized I couldn't think of one producer that is a woman.

Which I think is pretty interesting!

From what I've observed, the role of a producer is never completely the same from one project to the next, and I imagine it's hard to know what you're getting into with any project. A good producer has to be pretty versatile from one role to the next.

And that's generally true when you're working with musicians- whether you're the sound guy (or girl!) or the person printing our flyers, or the person designing our flyers, or the person taking our order at the cafe... musicians are funny people and you never really know what you're going to get. Some weeks I spend about three or four days living out of a backpack with one or two showers and not brushing my hair, wearing dirty clothes, and the other three or four days of the week I walk around town with a laptop, drinking espresso, and feeling like some weird business lady. We play a lot of roles too.

Anyway, what I was getting at is that since their are so many different roles a producer could fill on any album, I'm surprised that there aren't more women producers. I'm curious... if there had been, say, if Bob Dylan had done some albums with a woman producer, or the Beatles, or Radiohead for that matter, I wonder how that could have changed music? And maybe it's not such a thing.. I mean, any person on any project being different, especially the producer, that would change everything regardless of gender.


It turns out there are some pretty cool women producers out there. A woman named Sylvia Massy produced Tool's Undertow. I also ran across a woman named Susan Rogers. Currently a professor at Berklee, she worked with David Byrne, Prince, Edie Brickell, Violent Femmes,... I did a little bit of research- there are actually quite a few articles about why there aren't many women producers. I found a list of the "50 Most Influential Producers" and not one was a woman. I found lots of speculation on why there aren't more women producers, all just speculation it seems.


I should also definitely mention a pretty rad recording engineer I personally know named Natalie Fores. She was our sound person for a while before she moved to Madison to do an internship at Paradyme Productions, where she recorded the audio for our video to "Eureka Bridge." She was a pleasure to work with at shows as well as in the studio.

And who knows, maybe I'm overlooking some well-known women producers. Do you know of any?


That's it for me.

Five Albums of My Infatuation

ALBUM INFATUATION/LOVE- A Preface

Every album is different, but in general I fall hard and fast. Whether it's a melody, word or string of words, rhythm, or some other aesthetic seasoning, I hear and feel and think and I am so quickly infatuated. I've fallen in love with many albums throughout my short life- all different kinds and for all different reasons- sometimes it lasts for a long time- continually finding new things to love about the music- and other times it's more short lived... Either way I'm thankful for all my relationships with music. In regards to music, I suppose you could call me a polyamorist?

So here we go- judge me or don't, try out these albums or don't, here are five noteworthy albums I've been infatuated with this summer:

                                                     1. Beck- Morning Phase 

Released in February of 2014, I first heard this record on vinyl on a sunny, lazy day in my apartment at the tail end of last winter. It's got a polished sound. It's slow, it's melodic, it's heartbreaking and captivating. I have had some of the most intense conversations of my life while listening to this album. I fell in love within the very moment I heard the first note- an indulgent symphonic chord. Morning Phase is so thick I could drown in it. It is music that makes my heart well way up to the brim and I can surrender to that.

                                                 2. Tallest Man on Earth- There's No Leaving Now

I've been enamored with Tallest Man on Earth since I first heard him around five or six years ago. The Pabst Theater was doing a run of free shows on Tuesdays. There were maybe 50 people there or less! I really enjoyed his first two albums, but "There's No Leaving Now" really stole my heart. The song-writing is over-all beautiful, but there are certain strings of words that really stick out to me. His nitty-gritty voice attracts me as well as his rhythmic and decorated guitar playing. Released in 2012, I have come back to this album time and again.

   

                                             3. Damien Jurado- Brothers and Sisters of the Eternal Son

This one is new to me and I haven't listened to it more than a couple of times. It's spiritual, interesting rhythmically. I don't really know what he's talking about, but I know what he's talking about! It's great driving music- especially on sunny September days. There are many layers to this album but it's not complicated. It makes my body flow with its rhythms. This is a feeling album primarily- sensual.. trippy.. instantaneous connection.

                                                      4. Radiohead- In Rainbows

Oh man! I re-stumbled onto this one again sometime in early summer. It made so much sense to me. It melted me into an excited little puddle of a girl. It's genius. It takes you for a ride that can become almost too intense at times depending on where you're at... This album is powerful and shakes me to my core.

                                                      5. Sun Kil Moon-Ghosts of the Great Highway

Of the five, this is sort of my soul mate album. It's got a timeless feeling, an organic vibe. The whole thing is consistently good. It's sort of simple and subtle as well as graceful and gentle. If it were landscape it would be gently rolling hills with a big open sky, sharp greens and blues and puffy white clouds. I fell in love with this album late spring-time this last year and soon after realized that it was recorded at Hyde Street Studio- where we recorded Space and Time. Beautiful Beautiful Beautiful. 

There they are! I could name several more but I wont. Well, I will make two more notable mentions! And they are:

Jim James- "Regions of Light and Sound"

Townes Van Zandt- "Our Mother the Mountain"

Cheers!