About Ken

RECORDING HISTORY: I’ve been writing, performing and producing music since 1970, in ever-increasing surges of professionalism and equipment upgrades. Adding in my many hours of practices and live performances in bands, I have well over 10,000 hours of experience!

I began sound-on-sound recording in my late teens (early 1970s), inspired by Paul McCartney’s first solo album (you can DO THAT?! Play every instrument yourself?!), and have been at it in blocks of time since. Starting with two very cheap 3” reel recorders (see Photos), I initially “bounced” tracks back and forth…called “sound on sound” at the time. Eventually, I moved up to a 7” reel machine (again bouncing tracks back and forth), then a 4-track mixer-cassette recorder (with a rack of compression, EQ and effects units to assist sound shaping) going TO the 7” reel. As an aside, I got one of my radio ads on the air in the early 90s!

CURRENT ERA: After a roughly 24-year break (1994-2018) for family and work concerns, I finally jumped into the digital studio age, first with Garageband for my first two “CDs” (Hidden In Plain Sight and Kids On Bikes). Since March 2020, I have been immersed in Logic Pro X. I also have bought many pro-level plugins, including the Waves software suites. This essentially brings me right into studios such as Abbey Road, as I fulfill my dream from teenage hood. See my “Tools” page for a full list of my plugin helpers..

RECENT ISSUANCES: I have continued to post my new works as both highlighted tracks on the New Music! page, and the full catalogue of albums/playlists on the Recent Works page. While I don’t have everything up there, most of it is.

OTHER ARTISTS: I also have been producing other local artists. In particular, Kenny Dodge has two products out now on which I played many of the instruments, and then mixed and mastered. There are tracks from this collaboration in “Key Tracks” and “Recent Works”. Also, I have been working with former bandmate Dave Hallinan on tracks (also on the above pages) that he has written and recorded with guitar, and that I subsequently added instrumentation to, then mixed/mastered. We present ourselves as Roadtrip. Very recently I began work with local artist Davis Hathaway Moore, and our first collaboration is already the 5th most popular track on my Soundcloud page.

INFLUENCES: My production influences include George Martin, Phil Spector, and Brian Eno. My studio name, MARE, reflects this: Martin-Abbey Road-Eno. I am very particular in my work…I believe, as George Harrison once said, the recording should be as close to “perfect” as possible. However, we do not want a sterile, non-human-sounding product…so I only edit out “flaws“ that do not contribute well to the final result. Sometimes the Universe has a better idea. I have a set of Brian Eno’s and Peter Schmidt’s Oblique Strategies that help keep me try to break creativity log jams. One of the Oblique Strategies cards reads, to the effect, “Honor Thy Error.” Creation of music is just that: creation. And it should be and is joyful…and fun! So while I strive for near-perfection in actual performances, mixing and mastering, I also thoroughly love when the “ether” suggests something unexpected and unusual. And I often go with its “change in plans”. Still, if I am producing for you, you have the final say as to what stays and goes…I am your guide on your journey.

SKILLS: I started my performance life on drums (lefty…totally) made of milk cartons and wax paper, with water color paintbrushes for drumsticks, but quickly co-opted my sister’s acoustic guitar and began playing…and writing! I am self-taught in all my instruments. Soon after realizing acoustic playing had it limits for a Beatles-ultrafan, I got an electric guitar, followed by a much better acoustic, and then a very cheap-sounding organ. This instrument set formed the basis of my initial recordings. Mid-period, I added a MIDI-based keyboard and the appropriate rack signal processors. The latter has now been replaced with a high-quality MIDI keyboard, and I am spending hours a day in upping my piano playing skills. Now, of course, Logic provides a slew of software instruments. I have always been able to mix well…but now my mastering abilities are getting honed as well. I hold my own here, I believe.

THE NOW: I have recently added a Fender Telecaster, electric bass, two audio interfaces, and three condenser mics to supplement my Shure 58s to the line-up. I record onto an IMac, and mix/master with studio-reference speakers/headphones, aided by Waves Abbey Road Studio 3/Ocean Way/CLA Nx software to turn the headphones into a mastering-studio sound.

THE FUTURE: So, if you wish for me to add tracks, including vocals, to your project (such add-ons are actually one of my strong assets for you), it can basically run the gamut. Horns and strings are added through software instruments. I also use loops, and even sound effects…but quite sparingly, as I like to play everything I can live!

GROUP WORK: I also have been a lead singer, and played drums and guitar, in covers bands both in the 1980s, and since 2009, the NH-version of Revolver, primarily a Beatles/60s band at first, with a drift toward more modern works toward the end). Originally I was the drummer and co/harmony singer. When our primary singer/guitarist retired in 2015, I took over as rhythm guitarist and continued singing, with a wonderful female artist, wife of our bassist. I sang both leads and harmonies. The band dissolved under the pressure of losing our keyboardist/lead guitarist just before Covid finished us off.

SOLO WORK; I was able to perform in Exeter NH open mic sessions at both Sea Dog and at The Tavern By The River’s Edge, at the invitation of good friends Elijah Clark and Kenny Smaldone, respectively. I discovered there that I am not really cut out for SOLO performance in the area I live in. I am more a band singer/performer, not really suitable for quiet restaurant work, and even more a studio performer/producer. So I no longer do that public work except, like some of my influences, in rare instances.

SO: If you hire me, you are getting a lot of all-around producer, performance and mix/master skills. And I never give up until I think the track/project is as good as we can get it…together.

Contact me.