Russell Broom (Jann Arden, Leeroy Stagger)
Canadian songwriter, producer, and mix engineer Russell Broom is a Winner of JUNO Songwriter of the Year (with Jann Arden), has been JUNO nominated for Producer and Engineer of the Year, is a six-time WCMA Award winner, and two-time AMPIA Award winner. In addition to being the composer for season three of JANN on CTV/Hulu, Broom‘s recent productions include Jann Arden, Leeroy Stagger, The Dungarees, Art Bergmann, Jeffrey Straker, Sykamore, and Belle Starr.
Tell us about your current studio set-up.
I use Pro Tools primarily these days, with UAD Apollo interfaces. For monitoring, I alternate between APS Audio Aeons and the Avantone CLA10’s.
After years of using analog outboard gear, I finally sold my 1073’s, API mic pres and UA Compressors in favour of the UAD Apollo emulations (this was done after using both for a number of years, A/Bing them, and feeling confident that the UAD plugs were comparable to the original outboard gear).
For mics, I use a vintage Neumann U47, Gefell MT71 and Shure SM7 for vocals, SM57, Royer 121 and TUL G12 for guitars, and the MT71 as well as Telefunken C37 and AT4041 for acoustic guitars, and percussion.
My favourite plug-ins include UAD, SSL, and Slate.
Having worked on so many songs over the past few years, how do you stay fresh and excited about making music these days?
I listen to a lot of new music, and find it’s not hard to be inspired by the sheer amount of great stuff out there. It always amazes me how people can make the same chords, notes, and sounds that we are familiar with sound fresh, urgent, and completely new to my ears.
Intent and truth are the most important things I always try and bring out of an artist or a mix, and by focussing on an artist’s unique qualities, these elements resonate with an audience in a deeper way.
How do you typically approach the mixing of a song: what's your process for setting the mix up? How do you A/B test the mix?
I try and find the unique heart and energy of a song and bring those elements to the forefront, building the track around what is the most vital piece. I compare mixes to paintings, and generally, the vocal, lyric, and instrumental hooks make up the picture, while the other elements are the frame that enhances and support the picture without taking too much away from it.
I like to A/B with music I love the sound of in the same genre to make sure the balances are in the ballpark, but find the most important way to keep perspective is to take frequent ear fatigue breaks and keep the energy compelling by not over-working it too much.
It’s surprisingly easy to mix the life out of something if you don’t keep a healthy perspective.
What advice do you have for aspiring mixers looking to get a break in the industry?
Reach out to mentors and people you admire, ask questions, listen to things in mixes that you like and reverse engineer them, and keep the music and the energy of the songs you work on at the forefront.
There are a lot of mediocre songs that sound great, but a great song that may not be sonically perfect still has more impact on the listener.
It’s art, so learn the rules, then break the rules.
In the immortal words of one of my mentors and colleagues Ed Cherney: “It takes 10 minutes to talk about it, 30 seconds to try it, so let’s just try it and see how it feels."