Canadian producer/engineer/mixer Mike Fraser has worked on many multi-platinum selling albums and artists. These include AC/DC, Aerosmith, Metallica, Chickenfoot, Airbourne, Buckcherry, Corrosion of Conformity, Theory of a Deadman, Van Halen, Slipknot, Bad Religion to name but a few.
In the Ultimate-Guitar’s popular and continuing series, "The Producers and Engineers", this installment sees Joe Matera speaking to Mike Fraser who discusses his career working with some of rock and metal’s biggest acts, his approach to the recording process and mixing.
UG: Your big break came via assisting on a session with producer Bob Rock. What did you learn from that session that has held you in good stead during the course of your own career?
Mike Fraser: Bruce Fairbairn, Bob Rock and I got the call to work on Aerosmith’s come back record Permanent Vacation (1987). Bruce producing, Bob engineering and myself assisting Bob, but a week or so into the basic tracking of the record, Bob’s band [The Payola$] got booked on a six week tour so Bob had to leave. Bruce asked me to finish recording the record. Towards the end of recording Bruce had to go on a trip for three days and asked me to rough mix all the songs so they could search for someone to mix the record. So then next, while I was mixing the first song, Steven and Joe came in to hear what I was doing. After listening Steven said, “You don’t want to do this [rough mixing] do you? You want to mix the whole record” So in three days we mixed three songs. When Bruce got back he was a little choked I hadn’t mixed all the songs but Steven insisted he listen to what was done. Bruce loved it and I got to mix the whole record. It was a giant break for me!
You then engineered and mixed Aerosmith’s next album Pump (1989), what were those sessions like?
Pump was a great record to be involved with. After the success of Permanent Vacation, everyone was really charged up to be working together again. The recording went very smoothly and we some fun experimenting with things. An example would be the little segues between the songs. Bruce had come across a guy called Randy Raine-Reusch who is an accomplished musician and a multi-instrumentalist specializing in wind and string instruments from around the world. Randy collects and plays all sorts of weird and bizarre instruments so Bruce and the band had him bring a bunch of stuff into the studio and we experimented with various sounds. The result was all these little pieces of music we decided to make into the segues between songs.
How did you go about capturing Joe Perry’s guitar tone in the studio?
Joe is a great guitarist and really likes playing around with various amps and blending multiple amps at a time to create a specific sound. To be honest, I don’t really remember all the amps we used but for sure there were various Marshall amps, a Fender Showman, a Fender Bassman …A lot of Joe’s sound comes from the way he plays.
"Metallica have always done the record they wanted to do."
AC/DC are always a joy to work with. They’re such normal unassuming guys and are great to work with. Once the gear is setup in the studio and they plug in it’s usually only a couple of takes before they nail the song. Almost all the songs on the records I’ve done with them are pretty much live off the floor. The only things that are over dubbed are the lead and solo guitars and the vocals. They are machines in the studio!
How did you go about capturing Angus’ guitar tone?
For Angus’s guitars we would go through their collection of Marshall heads and cabinets and pick out the best sounding combination. We usually will pick a 50 watt head and a 100 watt head and a couple of different cabinets. Angus always plugs straight into the head with no pedals at all between him and the head, I always use the shortest guitar lead and speaker lead I can so there’s no degradation of sound. I place Shure SM57s on the cabinets and just hang on!
And you have also worked with Jimmy Page, which according to an interview you once gave mentioned how you told Jimmy to redo one of his guitar parts on the Coverdale/Page album?
Jimmy is an awesome down to earth guy, and what a legend! I think the comment you are referencing to was me being so awestruck at working and co-producing with Jimmy Page - who is one of my all time production heroes - that I couldn’t believe that at times I would suggest he redo a part or two. The best story is one day we spent a few hours laying multiple acoustic guitar parts down. It was toward the end of the day so once we finished Jimmy suggested we call it a night and listen in the morning. He played all the parts without listening to the previous part he laid down so when they were all turned on at the same time they were a little messy sounding. So I spent a couple hours flying the parts around [changing the timing to line them up and make it sound cleaner] Jimmy came in the next day to listen and shocked me by saying, “what happened to the guitars?” I explained that I had tidied them up a bit. He calmly looked at me and said. “Well put them back!” It was a great lesson for me. Sometimes “vibe” is way better than tidy.
You mixed Load and ReLoad by Metallica, how did you approach the mixes on those records?
For Load and Reload the band wanted to spend time on the mixes so they had Randy Staub and myself share the mixing duties, speeding up the mixing process. Randy was in one studio and I was in another one across the street. To give the record continuity we would constantly share and compare what each other was doing. He’d copy a drum sound I was going for or I would tailor the guitar sound to what he was doing. Every couple of days the band would come in and approve mixes.
Not many fans are very fond of those two albums, what is your view in hindsight?
Metallica have always done the record they wanted to do. As a mixer my job is to help them realize their vision. For the hard-core Metallica fans, I think they will always prefer the earlier music as that’s what they were first drawn to and are used to. A lot weren’t happy even with the ‘Black’ album, which ended up being their biggest seller. For a fan, change isn’t always good but I think it’s healthy for a band to continue to explore themselves and try different approaches. Even if it isn’t what the fans want or expect.
When it comes to recording an instrumental record like some of Joe Satriani’s records, it is a harder session to approach since the guitar is the main focus telling the story instead of the vocals?
For me it’s basically the same. The backing tracks need to support the melodic part of the song whether it’s a vocal melody or another instrument doing it. I would imagine for the instrumental artist it’s probably a lot harder because he needs to keep the listeners attention without the help of lyrics.
What are the main elements you focus on when it comes to a mixing a record?
It’s all about the song and how it would be best presented. When I first start mixing a song I try to suss out where the song wants to go and how I would best achieve that. And hopefully that’s where the producer and band want the mix to go. The main elements for me are good solid punch from the bass and drums, a clear vocal and the music wrapped nicely around the whole package.
And how do you go about approaching a recording session?
The recording is where it all starts. You need to capture all the sonics and emotion of the music. I like a band to be well rehearsed so that they are more relaxed in the studio. That way they can put more energy into the “magic” of the take rather than having to concentrate on what the arrangement is. It should feel natural and not forced. Also, getting good sounds will help a band get pumped up and feel the song.
What comprises the main elements of your recording and mixing console?
I exclusively mix on SSL consoles. I love how they sound and it’s what I’ve become used to. I work mostly out of The Warehouse Studio in Vancouver on a SSL 9000J
For recording I love working on Neve or API boards. For the new Chickenfoot record, we recorded it on Sammy Hagar’s API 1608 console and it sounded great!
"For a fan, change isn’t always good but I think it’s healthy for a band to continue to explore themselves and try different approaches. Even if it isn’t what the fans want or expect."
I prefer analog for sure, but nowadays you pretty much need to utilize both. In reality there are less and less sessions using analog strictly because of the cost. Most if not all the sessions I do lately are delivered to me digitally.
Any advice you can offer those who have home recording set ups in regards to making better recordings?
Spend your money wisely. Buy as good mic’s and mic pre-amps as you can afford. It is the first thing in your signal path and therefore the most important. If you have a cheap mic no matter what you do to the sound it will always have the cheap sound to it. Upgrade each step in your signal path to the best you can afford; mic to preamp to console to recording medium [Tape machine or hard drive]. This will give you the best results. And only then, buy the extra outboard gear you want. Reverbs, delays, effect boxes etc.
Do you favor any particular miking techniques in capturing guitar tones?
I like using a combination of Shure 57s and Sennheiser 421s. To find the “sweet spot” I usually have my assistant move the mic around for me while the guitar player is playing. Sometime we’ll do this for each guitar sound we’re looking for.
In what ways do you think recording has evolved for you over the years?
In this business you never stop learning. When I first started, 24 track tape machines were replacing 16 track tape machines. Editing was done by hand with a razor blade, and you’d better get it right the first time because making a second cut was not always practical. Mixing was done manually and usually there were five or six guys reaching over each other pushing buttons or faders on cue. Mixing was a fun but chaotic dance.
I’ve since had to learn all about how to “talk” to various types of computers, including Pro Tools, and how to edit digitally. The mixing consoles are all automated now so I’ve had to learn yet another syntax language to be able to run the board. And now there are “plug ins” to aid you with tuning of vocals or instruments and a jillion other tricks and effects. If I didn’t keep evolving and learning all the new things I’d very quickly be left behind. It’s exciting for sure, and I love it, but sometimes I do crave for the simple earthier way we’ve left behind.
You did the new Chickenfoot record, what other projects are you currently working on or we can expect to hear from you?
I just finished mixing a great band called Enter Shikari. They’re an awesome band out of the UK. They’re great guys and real hard workers. I think they pretty much live on the road. I mixed an EP for a killer band called Virginmarys and hopefully will be doing some more mixing for them in the near future. And there is a ton of other stuff coming up but can’t mention right now.
For more on Mike Fraser, visit his website.
Interview by Joe Matera
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