As many recording studios and live music venues have closed their doors, the music industry has faced heavy losses. Like we have seen in the rest of the country, countless professional musicians, live sound engineers, recording engineers, producers, and roadies have all been sent home with little information regarding their return. Unfortunately, many citizens are facing the unknown. Some studios, like the historic Hype Street studio in San Francisco, are facing permanent shutdowns. Nashville’s “Music Row” has come to a complete halt. One branch of studios still remains: Mastering studios. As one of the most overlooked steps in the music-making process, I was surprised when I discovered many are still operating as normal.
Mastering, known by some in the engineering world as “the dark arts,” is the final step in the long staircase of releasing a song to the public. Good mastering can have an immense impact on the user’s listening experience. I spoke with Brent Lambert, Mastering Engineer, and owner of the “The Kitchen,” an award-winning mastering suite located in Carrboro, NC. He has been working as a professional mastering engineer for 25 years. “Simply put, Mastering is realizing the mixes the clients want, at the best potential in the given constraints of a [playback] medium.” More simply put, Lambert works to ensure that every song he hears will sound good through any system it could be played back in. He does this using software that manipulates the audio to sound like it is coming out of that medium (a phone speaker, car stereo, streaming platform, etc.) Furthermore, The Kitchen also offers mastering services for any streaming platform, including YouTube. According to Brent, “It is really important to know what the song will sound like on all platforms. For example, if you just put a CD master on the internet it will sound completely lifeless.”
In an article on billboard.com, using data from a Nielsen/MRC study, it was reported that 60% of people are “engaging more with entertainment during this time” while 24% have signed up to a new subscription service – with 79% of them intending to keep paying for it after the pandemic ends. This isn’t just music, but entertainment more widely – streaming video for example.” Streaming is one of the few ways, besides radio or TV, that an artist can communicate with and be supported by their fans. Unfortunately, it is not possible to Master a live stream. At a time like this, having music that stands out on Spotify, iTunes, or YouTube could keep an artist and their team afloat until the industry can get back on its feet. Of course, mastering a full album can cost an arm and a leg, with streaming masters costing $20 a song and a full album will cost about $1200 at The Kitchen. Interestingly enough, Brent mentioned that he has not seen a noticeable rise in requests for streaming masters since the COVID-19 pandemic. The Chicago mastering studio—“Soundscape”— has been offering free mastering services to local Chicago musicians to get their music on Spotify. Owner Michael Kolar told ABC7 Chicago he was driven by the community to do so. “This community has given me so much thus I don’t want to see it get wiped out.” Lambert is also very active in his community and loves to work with local musicians and people he considers his friends. He does a bit of work for charity events, but expressed that he feels that no one should sacrifice their own pay at a time like this. The only real difference in his daily work is that he no longer invites musicians to the sessions.
Lambert works very closely with a lot of artists local to North Carolina but has found that during the COVID-19 pandemic most of his work is coming in from touring artists trying to remaster old work. Lambert explained: “Artists who have a lot of staff, and are no longer touring are trying to release ‘bonus’ work to make some money to pay their employees.” In fact, The Kitchen has actually been busier than normal. Lambert has sometimes been working 12 hour days to keep up. The bonus content Lambert has been working with has been mostly for CD and vinyl, presumably for artists to create deluxe albums. In addition to artists releasing bonus content, Lambert has found that some artists are also revisiting unfinished projects, recording and mixing at home, and sending him tracks to be mastered. Surprisingly, he has not yet had to turn a project away because of recording or fidelity issues, even though he expressed some worry about receiving tracks done in home studios. One reason that Brent Lambert, as well as many other mastering studios, can continue to work during the COVID-19 Pandemic is that his role is very independent. Lambert works alone and can share files digitally with artists. As his sole source of income, he is very grateful that his work has remained steady. While Lambert does take some comfort in knowing he is working steadily, he is facing the feeling of the unknown. How much longer will he work like this? How will it affect him in the future? Will artists continue to have content to release? Lambert’s role is dependent on musicians continuing to create. Like many, Lambert hopes to see his music community thrive again.
Mastering is a crucial part of the digital music world. Without it, there would be no consistency in streaming music. As streaming becomes our only avenue to support our industry, it is imperative that studios like The Kitchen are able to continue to operate. Brent Lambert, and other mastering engineers across the globe, add uniqueness, life, and color to music. Today, we need those things more than ever.
Sources
“COVID-19 Tracking the Impact on the Entertainment Landscape: Release 1.” Billboard, 13 Apr. 2020, www.billboard.com/articles/insight-reports/9355929/covid-19-tracking-the-impact-on-the-entertainment-landscape-release-1.
“Do I Need to Use Professional Mastering?” Q. Do I Need to Use Professional Mastering?, 1 May 2020, www.soundonsound.com/sound-advice/q-do-i-need-use-professional-mastering.
“Historic San Francisco Recording Studio Ineligible for COVID-19 Relief, in Danger of Closing.” KTVU FOX 2, KTVU FOX 2, www.ktvu.com/video/676942.
Merritt, Dean M. “Discussion With Brent Lambert on COVID-19 and Mastering Studios.” 1 May 2020.
Richards, Holden. “The Kitchen – Mastering.” The Kitchen – Audio Mastering, www.kitchenmastering.com/#booking-section.
Warner, Val, and Wls. “Chicago Recording Studio Helps Local Musicians Create Music, Make Money amid COVID-19.” ABC7 Chicago, 11 Apr. 2020, abc7chicago.com/coronavirus-music-studio-chicago/6094898/.
