Time to burn? I
“
I spent a lot of time on the studio version of Wicked Game and it was only something that started to come to fruition about a month or two into it. Mark Neeham
n the unlikely event that an Audio Pro reader has delved deep enough into my prior ramblings to realise that the following is a near word-for-word repetition, I apologise for my geriatric-like reportage. However, should they exist, said reader(s) may recall that I have a cheap yet pleasingly effective pair of off-the-peg KRK monitors in my lounge-come-studio that I am rather proud of on account of their impressive sonic quality, relative to what I stumped up for them. Tempted as I am to further explain the extent of my fondness for these loudspeakers, I realise that this feature is, in fact, supposed to be about LA-based engineer and producer Mark Needham, whose own Genelec 1032s and Yamaha NS10s would make them look (and sound) like an oversized iPod dock, so I’ll get to the point.
They [the KRKs], residing where they do in the ‘living
room’, attract a fair amount of attention from my musical friends. Of course, I am only too happy to entertain their enthusiasm and play for them, at very high volumes and much to the chagrin of my girlfriend, my ‘test’ record – the live MTV Unplugged recording of Chris Isaak’s Wicked Game – a rather wimpy song, the metal brutes among them sometimes remark,
34 audioPRO December/January 2010/11
Producer and engineer Mark Needham has cranked out big records for The Killers, Chris Isaak and Elton John. Rob Hughes talks to him about hits that take months and quick mixes that sell millions…
but one that undeniably lets these inexpensive monitors sing, demonstrating a remarkable transparency; a rare victory for the cash-strapped audio prosumer. Like the original, this song was recorded and mixed by Mark Needham.
So what is it about this track that sounds so wonderful? Well,
it’s beautifully dynamic, in a way that, when cranked, is at first nerve-wracking and then immediately reassuring. Softer notes find such a presence that you begin to think an unrestrained plosive might at once cause damage to the speakers and your ears. But, almost as if the sound waves are feathering the brakes a little as they approach the side of your head, this never happens. Neither does the full power of Isaak’s upper register or the twang of his top E string sound underwhelming as a result; quite the opposite in fact. And to say every sound has its own space in the mix would be like saying that people in the Outer Hebrides have their own gardens. You can imagine my excitement then, when I got the opportunity to explain this to Needham and gauge his reaction. I hoped and really expected that he would confirm it as one of his proudest moments. But instead, to my surprise (and slight dismay, initially) it went somewhat the other way.
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