125 episodes

My name is Jamie Lidell and I'm gonna delve into the heady magic of creating music in a modern studio, probe the depths of production, get tech crazy with mixing tricks, studio skills and equipment. I'll be joined by fellow musicians, engineers and all-round audiophiles who kindly share their tips, stories and ingenious insight from the bizarre world of music production. I shall answer questions and seek knowledge from other music makers on a quest to discover how to make things sound RIGHT. I will also share some studio trickery on each episode as I explore some of my favourite innovations in music tech and my creations... outpourings from the weirdo brain! Welcome to a place for musicians, producers and listeners alike as we "cheers" our love of everything audio.

hanging out with audiophiles hanging out with audiophiles

    • Music
    • 4.8 • 238 Ratings

My name is Jamie Lidell and I'm gonna delve into the heady magic of creating music in a modern studio, probe the depths of production, get tech crazy with mixing tricks, studio skills and equipment. I'll be joined by fellow musicians, engineers and all-round audiophiles who kindly share their tips, stories and ingenious insight from the bizarre world of music production. I shall answer questions and seek knowledge from other music makers on a quest to discover how to make things sound RIGHT. I will also share some studio trickery on each episode as I explore some of my favourite innovations in music tech and my creations... outpourings from the weirdo brain! Welcome to a place for musicians, producers and listeners alike as we "cheers" our love of everything audio.

    HOWA EP 122 - ROBERT HENKE

    HOWA EP 122 - ROBERT HENKE

    were you the co-developer of ableton live?
    ah no
    but Mr Henke
    very much was.
    Think about that for a minute.
    It’s easy to forget as he’ll never bring it up without being prompted.
    He’s not big on the dwelling and far more interested in his current obsessions.
    Special interests (SPINS) as they are called are the things driving the REAL artists of which Robert is most certainly one.
    I had one “job” interviewing him at this time. We were supposed to talk about the re-release of a classic monolake (Robert’s musical moniker) LP “Hong Kong” on Field Records.
    There was a hint of that here. It loomed in the fog over the hills as we, the ramblers, became fascinated by objects more close at hand.
    His tremendous work with the commodore PET platform as a primitive yet potent synth and drum machine for example.
    His encounters with the art world (which he is not fond of)
    his dislike of the infernal machine reverb ! ha. (also not fond it seems)
    His connection to the tonal land of the PPG wave and the Synclavier (yes, he’s fond)
    ah yes
    I loved reconnecting with him after all these years.
    He was always a brilliantly bright mind and continues to probe his passions to deliver wildly unique sound and light shows that stand apart from his peers.
    oh and dont forget he’s the co-developer of ableton live!

    • 1 hr 33 min
    HOWA EP 121 - JESSE HARRIS

    HOWA EP 121 - JESSE HARRIS

    With 20 albums under his own name and his instrumental group Cosmo, the man knows how to make a record.
    He is a wildly accomplished and successful songwriter. For example in 2003 Harris he received the Grammy Award for Song Of The Year for Norah Jones’ breakout hit “Don’t Know Why,” from her debut album, Come Away With Me, which has sold almost 30 million copies worldwide.
    Versions of his songs have been sung by artists as diverse as
    Willie Nelson, Emmylou Harris, Cat Power, Feist, The Black Keys, M. Ward, Brad Mehldau, Bright Eyes, Smokey Robinson, George Benson, Pat Metheny, Kandace Springs, and Solomon Burke.
    I mean WHAT a list that is!
    Songwriting collaborations have included Maya Hawke, John Zorn, Madeleine Peyroux, Melody Gardot, Papooz, and Lana Del Rey.
    If you didnt think you knew Jesse, I bet you’ve heard his writing out there in the known universe of sound and by gosh he’s a real potent force. Even after all this success, he is very mild mannered and thoughtful in this nice rambling interview. He’s generous with his knowledge and a very easy guy to get along with.
    I must say I hang my pod head slightly when reflecting on how old this interview is. Like a fine wine, I hope it’s benefited from a little time in the digital cellar.
    Drink in the wisdoms y’all !

    • 1 hr 28 min
    HOWA EP 120 - JIM KELLER

    HOWA EP 120 - JIM KELLER

    I met Jim thanks to the wonderful master of mastering Heba Kadry who's based in New York (whi btw that just finished mastering my new LP!) 
    She used him to assist in the making of her room and that set me on a journey to get my place into shape too. Him and his team at Sondhus did an excellent job and I've been loving my light and airy attic so much!
    I've talked about my space a little on the show and I've shared a few pics and videos from the spot so there's evidence of it out there. 
    I look forward to being in here every day. 
    Jim's story is really interesting and it's an angle that's not been covered thus far on the pod. 
    He has knowledge and passion on all manner of issues relating to studio spaces, from the flow to the sound and the minimal aesthetic that is a through line in his work. 
    He's made rooms for Martin Gore, Laurie Anderson, Heba Kadry, Philip Weinrobe, the Juliard School in New York to name but  a few.
    Wild !
    In this show I demonstrate the sound of my rooms and why using a binaural head for interviews and voice over is a terrible idea :) ha

    • 1 hr 30 min
    HOWA EP 119 - MEDASIN

    HOWA EP 119 - MEDASIN

    I have Patreon :)
    https://www.patreon.com/HOWA
    You can join now for as little as $1.50 a month. 
    All sounds from this episode will go to those on the upper tier and I want to thank everyone for their support! It really helps me keep the show going.
    _____
    Medasin aka Grant Nelson is a feeler.
    I was initially drawn to his sample packs like a moth to the fire.
    The fire it turns out has many a hue and the music goes deep.
    It was excellent to speak to the man himself and uncover his philosophical side.
    We battle for who’s more of a hippy. It was close but
    as all hippies know there is no winner in this game.
    so just jump in the rambling river with us 🙂
    Here’s some useful links to Grants work
    his website:
    https://medasinmusic.com
    his sample packs which are great!
    also he is selling all the stems to his last LP (the one he is discussing in this interview )
    all here:
    https://medasindrumkits.sellfy.store
    he’s a fan of
    Theo Vaughn and the Kill tony YouTube
    I thought I ought to mention that 🙂
    Thanks to Baby Audio for their kind sponsorship of this pod!
    I’ve LOVED using their new synth ATOMS as you can doubtless hear from the fun I had in the intro.
    I literally spent hours just making sounds for fun. It’s such a yielding instrument. I can highly recommend it!
    all the sounds I made go to the patreons on the soul science level of course.
    GOOD NEWS
    If you type AUDIOPHILES in the check out you get 15% off
    here’s the link you need!
    https://babyaud.io/atoms
    YEP!!

    • 1 hr 39 min
    HOWA EP 118 - KID KOALA

    HOWA EP 118 - KID KOALA

    If you want to directly help support me in the pod work please consider joining my
    Patreon
    https://www.patreon.com/HOWA
    All sounds from this episode will go to those on the upper tier !
    There’s over 4GB of audio from the experiments I did with the Oxi one using a custom tape machine, wild analog gear and generally odd stuff to yield those good samples.
    ok, let's get on with the show!
    Kid Koala is not like the others.
    I mean who else gets the idea to do a scratch routine with moon river?
    Who thinks (and pulls off) a show where everyone has their own turntable in the audience to interact with a performance?
    He's the creator of wonderful graphic novels Nufonia Must Fall and Space Cadet
    He’s opened for Radiohead
    He’s worked on movies like The Great Gatsby, Baby Driver and Scott Pilgrim vs the world
    Creativity to the max. Joy to the max.
    It really is a treat to have him on the show.
    I’ve always been a big fan and Eric really couldnt be any more humble and wonderful !
    ___
    in the show the MUSIC is back !
    Yes for this episode, the musical connections come from the rather brilliant mind of bossada
    I got the cassette of this btw and it’s a thing of beauty.
    This is great work. Let’s support the good art x
    LINK LINK LINK
    https://bossada.bandcamp.com/album/cantina-days
    Kind show sponsorship comes from oxi instruments
    makers of the excellent oxi one sequencer
    Here’s a link to it
    https://oxiinstruments.com/oxi-one/
    if you want to buy one with a HOWA affiliate link together with perfect circuit go
    here :)
    there's a little video about the oxi as omnichord here 

    • 1 hr 33 min
    HOWA EP 117 - DJ SHADOW

    HOWA EP 117 - DJ SHADOW

    Merriment abound ! It's that time again when sonic stockings are stuffed. This time with a fireside ramble twixt myself and the legend that is Dj Shadow as we celebrate his new LP "Action Adventure"
    Welcome. 
    I hope this finds you in good health and merry mood as the season sheds it's joy upon you. If joy is in short supply and the period feels claustrophobic and the family is doing your head in then I trust yule be able to duck out for a spell and use this as an escape pod.
    Who am I rambling with on the sonic sleigh?
    Dj Shadow really needs no Endroducing but in case you’re not hip to his MPC60 masterpiece from 1996 you MUST inhale that now.
    What a record. I recall having both of my Christmas stockings blown off by this LP and it’s humbling to be sat on a zoom with the chap now. 
    Such is the mystery of the digital time ghosts. 
    Twas a mighty pleasure to chew the cud with such a master of the chops.
    I hope this offers you some sonic solace this holiday 
    ______
    I wish to alert you to a new way to give to this show, should you find it appealing :) 
    https://www.patreon.com/howa/membership
    It's the new $1.50 tier on Patreon, a wonderful idea that came from Hainbach. 
    A way to chip in and directly support the show as a kind of digital high five :) I really do pour my heart Into the HOWA podcast. As you can imagine, it all takes loads of effort. From finding the guests and organizing the chats, to trying to find new areas of sonic joy to explore and share in the episodes. Then there's all the time editing, uploading, promoting and all that. If you enjoy the show and feel you can spare a little over a dollar a month to help me carry on, that would be rather ace! thanks!!
    _____
    Sponsorship comes from Distrokid
    Did you know that there's a new iOS and android app that lets you
    - Upload
    - Find out when money hits your bank 
    - Check streaming stats and loads more
     
    Take advantage of the savings HOWA offers ya!
    Use this 30% off code
    http://distrokid.com/vip/lidell
     

    • 1 hr 41 min

Customer Reviews

4.8 out of 5
238 Ratings

238 Ratings

Theo in SD ,

Epic Style!

Jamie is a legend in his own right, and this is reflected in his interview style; a little bit loose while improvising and searching for a groove. He allows his guests time to warm up and have in depth conversation. There will be a lot of references that are worth a quick pause and looking up for educational purposes. His intro and outro jams are so good!

cardindex ,

Awesome hang out

I listen to a lot of music and music production podcasts and this one is one of my absolute favorites. It’s “insider-y” in the best possible sense as you get to hear the way producers and musicians really talk, think and work. In that sense, it occupies its own special niche in a crowded field of music-related podcasts, a bit like the (now defunct?) First/Last Party on Earth podcast hosted by Tiga, which I also really loved.

Jamie is a great host and you can tell how excited he is to meet with all these people. Also, as I’m so an expat Brit (and big prince fan) of a similar age to Jamie, living in the US, listening to this is like checking in with a good friend. Come back soon, Jamie!!

Zolandr ,

Production Podcast Perfection

So much amazing information, history lessons, and creative ideas in these interviews.

Jamie is a great host and the guests are all industry heavyweights in their respective fields.

Well done. A must listen for anyone into music production or the creative process.

Thank you!

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