Producer

Where to start writing a testimonial for David Earl? I think I would need to write a novel to cover all the good things I have to say about this genius of a human being.

I'll summarize by saying this: David and I have now worked on my own full length album, Heart Machine in 2012. We have co-produced an album for the artist Emily Afton in 2015, we have worked on several singles together, and we have also collaborated on a couple of tracks from scratch. In every scenario, I have always had the most incredible time working with David. Not only is he incredibly well versed at his programs, he is also a trained musician, and so his ear is on point. He is an amazing listener in regards to hearing a desired direction, and is on all levels a very professional, well mannered, and drama free type of guy. It's the best of all worlds. My only question is why he isn't enormously famous yet, but I think that's coming for him....

I can see myself not only working with, but being close to David forever. He's the kind of person you want to keep close forever. I consider him family at this point, and feel beyond grateful to have him in my life.

Life Sentence is the sixth album project on which I've had the great fortune to collaborate with David Earl. We've been musical co-conspirators since 1998, and his work continues to astound and delight me. He's a creative giant with golden ears, a galactic imagination, and fluency in musical expression, as well as in every aspect and tool of recording and production. His compositions and contributions breathe technicolor intelligence and dimension into every project he gets his hands on, regardless of genre or style.

I've also learned at least half of everything I know about audio engineering, recording, mixing, mastering and using Logic from David.

Producer, teacher, composer, performer - he approaches all these roles with the aim of excellence, and he achieves it. Driven by integrity and generosity, David cares about people and understands them well - part of why he excels at helping others to develop and realize their artistic visions. Working with him is always both a pleasure and an enormously inspiring creative conversation.

David Earl is a musical force of nature. His musical roots are not only formal (classical, jazz, african rhythm,) but he also has the technical engineering and production knowledge to bring your musical visions to life. In addition to his deftness in all things “music studio” David has a deep understanding of ALL classical, modern and post-modern styles of music.

While in sessions, we often talk in references. “I think I want to have a Trent (Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails) moment here” or “how about a Skrillex noise maker synth for this part” or “how about something like Ravel”.

David is not a fan of preset or out of the box sounds. He tends to build or augment a lot of sounds from scratch, either designing them by hand or recording the instrument outright, giving your music a unique sound that will become your sonic identity.

David hears music like painters see pictures. The colors, saturations, textures, highlights, lowlights all in service to the moment in time your compositions are evoking. And he feels the music even more. As a client you could not have a better person at the helm of your session. I trust him with my more than 20+ year musical career.

Producer David Earl is the "5th Beatle" for many of the very best bands because, like George Martin, he not only makes the band realize its own highest level, he also takes it to the NEXT level by adding his own musical touches. With his mastery of Logic and other software, his great musical ear (how appropriate is his last name, EAR-L!), and his ability and willingness to disappear into the musical intentionality of his client-collaborators, David is simply the best producer any of us will ever work with... Which is why I have worked with him for over 20 years!

It's very rare to find a pair of ears as acutely attuned to music as David Earl's. His mastery of production, his tireless dedication to his peers and his boundless imagination are just a fraction of his genius. He's been my music guru and friend for two decades and continues to bring out the best in me and my music.

David Earl is everything you could want in a producer--a combination of technical prowess, attention to detail, and deep passion for the craft of music production. But...David is a lot more than just a producer. He's an incredible teacher.

During the year-and-a-half that I worked with him on my last album, I learned a tremendous amount from him about the art of optimizing sound with subtlety. Whenever I asked questions, David would explain things to me in a way that made sense, and that I could incorporate into my own growing base of knowledge.

Above all, he has patience in spades, and is super reliable. When I ran into issues while recording my vocals at home, David always availed himself to troubleshoot with me, either via Skype or over the phone. Whenever I needed something from him--newly adjusted stems late at night, or mixes bounced out while frantically working on my backing tracks before my album release show--he would send them to me right away. And just when I was starting to feel like a total pain in the arse, he would simply say, "No problem."

Seriously...what more could you ask for? Oh. And he's just an awesome human being! Period.