Gig Gab - The Working Musician's Podcast

Episode 543 lands on National Fortune Cookie Day, and guest co-host Freddy Vinehill-Cliffe of NUGEN Audio opens by demystifying how your masters actually translate across streaming. You learn that MasterCheck lets you audition one master against every platform before release day blindsides you, because you should still submit a single master everywhere, not a separate file per service. From there you dig into possible reasons why Spotify felt so flat for so long, the crucial difference between data compression and dynamic compression as a way to tame your audio, and how compression ratios shape the result.

Then Freddy flips to the gigging life: guitar and vocals in Thank, bass in the gleefully unappealing Solderer, touring Europe and the UK on DIY tours he’s been booking since 2014. You’ll chew on his theory that drummers can fake their way through a set more easily than anyone else, the cover-band mentality (Tommy Igoe’s gospel: he’ll teach you to play other people’s music, not your originals), and playing for the nerds who clock every groove (like the white-knuckle eleven-beat break in Steely Dan’s Josie).

The throughline is reading the room, even when it’s the wrong room: sometimes the crowd’s on mushrooms, sometimes you just throw them a party regardless, and either way you Always Be Performing.

00:00:00 Gig Gab 543 – Monday, July 20th, 2026

July 20th: National Fortune Cookie Day

Guest co-host: Freddy Vinehill-Cliffe of NUGEN Audio

00:01:56 NUGEN’s MasterCheck plugin

Still submit one master to all platforms, but MasterCheck helps you ensure that your one master sounds good everywhere

00:05:04 Why did Spotify sound so flat for so long?

Spotify is normalized to -14 LUFS

00:07:24 Data compression vs. Dynamic compression

Dynamic compression is a way of taming the audio

Auphonic

Waves NS1

00:15:14 Compression Ratios

00:18:44 SPONSOR: Claude.ai – Ready to tackle bigger problems? Sign up for Claude today, which includes access to Claude Cowork, too, when you visit https://Claude.ai/giggab

00:20:17 Freddy, the gigging musicians

Guitarist and vocalist in a band called, Thank

Plays Bass in Solderer, deliberately unappealing

Touring regularly throughout Europe & UK

00:24:17 DIY Booking of Tours

Freddy has been booking DIY tours since 2014

00:27:45 Dave’s gigging schedule

00:31:15 Freddy’s theory about drummers

Drummers can fake it more easily!

00:36:30 Wedding bands … that aren’t wedding bands

00:37:31 Cover band mentality

Tommy Igoe: I’m not going to teach you how to play in your original band, I’m going to teach you how to play other people’s thing

Playing for nerds

The 11-beat break in Josie

00:47:35 Unexpected grooves and parts

00:50:52 Realizing the audience is the wrong audience

Mushrooms help the audience!

00:59:44 Special offer from NUGEN – 30% off of a bunch of plugins for the next few weeks!

Stereoizer

Stereoplacer

Monofilter

Paragon ST

01:06:43 Gig Gab 543 Outtro <https://giggabpodcast.com/>

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@nugenaudio

Follow Freddy Vinehill-Cliffe:

@loudnesswardraftdodger

@fsvc____

@thankleeds

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The post The Wrong Audience Is Still an Audience: Freddy Vinehill-Cliffe on the Gigging Life – Gig Gab 543 appeared first on Gig Gab.

This week Wil and Langdon Reid of Wilson Fairchild pull up a chair beside Dave to show you what a life in music actually looks like from the inside. These guys grew up on a tour bus in the ’70s and ’80s watching their dads, Don and Harold Reid, play eight years with Johnny Cash before becoming The Statler Brothers, a side-stage masterclass we all wish we had. You’ll hear the advice that shaped them: nobody can put you in the music business and nobody can take you out, so you’d better love the life and want it bad. You’ll get the manager horror stories (let’s just call him Peter), the reminder that every musician is an entrepreneur, and the hard, useful stuff most players dodge: build a P&L, diversify, manage cash flow first, and when it rains, fill up your buckets. Treat every gig like it matters, because you never know who’s in the room: never punish the people who showed up, and don’t play to the empty seats.

Then you’ll dig into the craft that made the family famous: blood harmonies. Learn every part, let the piano teach you how the notes relate, and practice early in the morning just to find your pitch. You’ll discover why four voices were an act nobody wanted to follow, why going from two parts to four is an exponential lift, and where the modulation earns its keep. Through all of it runs one thread: be believable. Whether it’s a vanity song that tells your audience exactly who you are or a closer like It’s Amazing What a Hug Can Do, you sell it because you mean it. That’s the whole game: Always Be Performing, every seat, every song, every night.

00:00:00 Gig Gab 542 – Monday, July 13th, 2026

July 13th: National Barbershop Music Appreciation Day

Guest co-hosts: Wil Reid and Langdon Reid of Wilson Fairchild

00:02:19 Post-gig snacks

Nachos

Chocolate Milk

Twinkies

Exempt from the food pyramid

00:05:17 Growing up on a tour bus in the 1970s and 1980s

A Masterclass in performance art

Their Dads, Don and Harold Ried played with Johnny Cash for 8 years before going out on their own as The Statler Brothers

Watching from side stage

00:07:25 At 16 and 14, Wil and Langdon started band practice and gigging

00:08:07 Advice from Their Dads

“Nobody can put you in the music business, and nobody can take you out”

You gotta love the life. You gotta want it really bad.

00:09:24 Learning what to do…and what not to do

00:09:37 Manager stories!

The manager who hangs on to you, waiting for something to happen, instead of doing work to make it happen for you.

A tuition moment: “Let’s just call him Peter”

00:13:20 Our dads were businessmen

Managing and building a retirement as a musician

Business Brain – Every musician is an entrepreneur

Coming from nothing, sharing a bedroom, make enough to live check-to-check

When it rains, fill up your buckets!

00:18:37 The dreamers are the ones generating the income

00:20:24 Build a P&L for your music business

00:23:10 Diversify yourself, produce yourself, protect yourself

CD Baby

Concert Pay

Manage cash flow first

00:24:36 Every gig has an opportunity for you

You never know exactly who is in the audience

“Never punish the people who showed up” – Parthenon Huxley

“Don’t play to the empty seats” – Charlie Daniels

00:28:35 Singing “blood harmonies” together

Tip 1: learn to sing every part

Tip 2: playing piano will teach you how the notes work and relate together

Statler Brothers were “Country lyrics with southern gospel harmonies”

Tip 3: practice singing early in the morning just to learn your notes

00:34:30 Learning to blend with other people

“Bach says no!”

00:36:00 Always think about the piano for harmonies

Their dads, The Statler Brothers, were the first group in country music. Four voices were an act to follow!

00:39:30 Their sons, Jack and Davis Reid…the next generation

Four part harmonies with their boys!

00:40:22 And now…harmony blend

Going from two parts to four parts is an exponential lift!

Dallas Corbin on Gig Gab – Rock is how high can you go? Country is how low can you go?

Where is Skid Row of 2026?

00:50:00 The value of the modulation

00:54:17 American Songbook: Country Classics and Gospel Favorites on Gaither Music

00:58:10 Always be believable

01:01:00 The value of vanity songs in your set

Show your audience who you are

01:04:00 It’s Amazing What a Hug Can Do

01:06:00 Gig Gab 542 Outtro

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@wilsonfairchild on IG

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The post Growing Up Statler: Wilson Fairchild on Harmony, Hustle, and the Working Musician’s Life – Gig Gab 542 appeared first on Gig Gab.

This week front-of-house engineer Ryan Goldbacher calls in from the road with Tom Keifer, and you’ll quickly learn that landing the next gig comes down to two things: competence, and not being miserable to be around. Word of mouth is the real currency of touring life, so Always Be Performing applies long after you step off stage: when the tour bus is smaller than your bedroom and there are twelve people on it, how you treat the room matters. You’ll pick up honest strategies for protecting your sanity on the road, from taking a walk to renting a car and disappearing into the mountains, plus why testing your limits only works if you actually know where they are.

Then you and Ryan get deep into the craft. You’ll hear why the way FOH mixes your band one night can shape how it sounds for gigs to come, why you’ve got about thirty seconds to describe your band to a house engineer at load-in, and the EQ lessons Ryan learned the hard way dialing in loud rock guitars and high-passing the bass. Stop calling a kick a bass drum, leave some air in it, and don’t be afraid to turn the knobs until it sounds good. From the pressure-cooker of mixing monitors on Mr. Big’s final US tour to a frank take on AI mixing and building the next generation of engineers, this one’s loaded for anyone serious about live sound.

00:00:00 Gig Gab 541 – Monday, July 6th, 2026

July 6th: National Fried Chicken Day

Guest co-hosts: Ryan Goldbacher

00:01:17 Ryan on tour with Tom Keifer

00:02:29 Word of mouth is the key

Competence is key…that’s number one.

Close number two: you’re not miserable to be around!

00:05:09 The tour bus is smaller than your bedroom, and there’s 12 people in it

00:07:19 Creating your own personal space

Take a walk

Rent a car and drive into the mountains

00:08:45 Week off between gigs

Fly me to Spokane, then I’ll drive to Alaska

Skagway, Alaska

00:11:11 FOH for Tom Keifer for Summer, 2026

You can’t spread yourself too thin

If it won’t fit on your plate, get it off

Having a dedicated monitor engineer makes a huge difference

00:13:50 Test your limits, but don’t be afraid to know where they are.

00:16:52 Always be communicating

00:18:46 This tour Ryan brings a FOH console

House monitor engineer

Band is all on wedges

A&H Avantis

Tom Keifer goes over the entire set with the house lighting designer

00:21:12 Tom Keifer helps Ryan with producing the show for the night

The benefits of working with an artist who tells you how to make yourself more valuable to them

00:23:32 The FOH and Band relationship

The way FOH mixes the band for one gig could affect the band for the future. Respect this!

Communicate what your band sounds like to the engineer…early on as you’re loading in

00:29:42 Developing trust with your engineer first

00:31:03 Thirty seconds to describe your band

00:32:33 Making the next generation of engineers better

00:33:59 Engineers who are musicians / Musicians who are engineers

ProTools…great software, dumb name!

00:38:18 Learning from mistakes

00:40:16 Stacking EQs on Rock Guitars by mistake…and then intentionally!

Working with loud guitars on Stiff Little Fingers

Steve Smith introduced Ryan to Stiff Little Fingers

00:41:21 SPONSOR: OneSkin. Born from over a decade of longevity research, OneSkin’s OS-01 Peptide is proven to target the visible signs of aging, helping you unlock your healthiest skin now and as you age. Get 15% off OneSkin with the code GigGab athttps://oneskin.co/GigGab  #oneskinpod #ad

00:43:30 Accidentally learning to drop guitar EQ between 2k-4k

Adding a high-pass filter on the bass guitar in a rock band

00:48:21 Don’t call a kick drum a “bass” drum, otherwise you’ll mix it the wrong way.

You want some air in that kick!

00:49:07 Don’t be afraid to turn the knobs until it sounds good

00:51:27 The pressure of mixing monitors makes you a great engineer

Mixing monitors for Mr. Big’s final US tour

00:55:09 RTAs are great, but be able to do it by ear

00:58:29 Speaking of Toys…Let’s Talk AI Mixing

Mentorship and apprentice programs

01:08:43 Show Logistics

01:10:03 Gig Gab 541 Outtro

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@ryanthegoldbacher on IG

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The post Ryan Goldbacher on Touring with Tom Keifer, Mixing FOH (and Monitors), and AI – Gig Gab 541 appeared first on Gig Gab.

This week singer-songwriter Patrice Peris joins Dave to flip the script on building a music career. That question musicians always get – what’s your backup plan? – is a terrible one, because Plan A was never required to land where you first mapped it. Through COVID, a cancer diagnosis, and a bone-marrow transplant she now calls a rebirth, Patrice kept asking what each detour was teaching her and never stopped writing, landing sync placements on Netflix, HBO Max, and The Voice along the way.

Want to break into sync licensing yourself? Get resourceful and bullheaded: take a class, build multiple streams of revenue, and gamify the grind: how many gigs can you find, how many music supervisors can you email? Every musician is an entrepreneur, and the numbers game rewards whoever keeps opening doors.

Then Patrice gets practical, because gigging musicians are athletes. You get her playbook for protecting your voice across three-set nights: a real warmup, scale work, stretching, smart placement that pulls the sound out of your throat and into the mask, and the vocal rest you keep skipping. From there comes the band conversation nobody wants to have: in-ear monitors and the whole mix exist to serve the lead vocalist, so drop the ego and decide together what you actually want your band to sound like. Build a backup bench while you’re at it, because life happens and roles need filling. Patrice stepped back from the stage but never stopped creating, and that’s the whole point: keep writing, keep adapting, and Always Be Performing.

00:00:00 Gig Gab 540 – Monday, June 29th, 2026

June 29th: National Waffle Iron Day

Guest co-hosts: Patrice Peris

00:02:36 Live has given me things in waves that weren’t what I wanted

Welcoming the unexpected

00:05:20 “What’s your Plan B?” Is a terrible question

And Plan A doesn’t have to go where you planned

00:07:55 COVID and Cancer…all a journey

00:09:10 Perspective… always be asking: what is this teaching me?

00:10:43 Always writing

00:11:40 How do you get started writing for sync?

A nod to bullheaded persistence

00:15:10 Starting a Sync Business

Always have multiple streams of revenue

Take a class (or two)

00:19:44 Being resourceful is the key to bullheaded persistence

Gamify it all!

How many gigs can I find?

How many people can I email?

00:22:57 Learn to be strategic and mindful

Anytime you’re climbing the ladder, failure is inevitable

Invest energy into the creative realm and also into the business realm

00:25:54 “No Plan” isn’t a plan

Listen to your inner 16 year old…sometimes!

00:29:47 Coaching people to let go of the hat

The 80% Rule

00:35:20 Growing your music business

00:35:38 Vocal blowout

Learn to Sing Like the Pro’s with Patrice Peris Voice Studios

Gigging musicians are athletes

Good warmup

Scale work

Physically stretching

Take some vocal rest

00:41:00 Listening for Placement

Where is the voice going?

00:42:31 In Ear Monitors can make a big difference

Bands need to understand the sound has to serve the lead vocalist

00:44:42 What do we want our band to sound like to people listening?

Bands need to come together as a group

Communicate and decide upon the goal for what the BAND is going to sound like

00:49:38 Get two of everything

00:50:56 Gig Gab 540 Outtro

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Patrice Peris Voice Studios

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The post Patrice Peris on Sync, Survival, and Why You Don’t Need a Backup Plan – Gig Gab 540 appeared first on Gig Gab.

This week you start things off digging into the craft that separates good gigs from great ones. You’ll get the playbook for prepping and surviving sub gigs, learn (again!) why a splitter snake earns its place in your rig, and sort through the real options when you need a mic mute switch that actually works. Then you wrestle with a question every working band faces today: are fan-posted videos helping your brand or hurting it? It’s the kind of practical, in-the-trenches breakdown that reminds you to Always Be Performing, whether the camera’s rolling or not.

Then guest co-host Jesus Hernandez joins, and you trace his path from a Portastudio kid to the engineer bands trust with their sound, along with the philosophy he’s built along the way: you’re serving people’s ears, and the console is your instrument. You’ll hear why you should ask a band what they want to sound like before you touch a fader, why learning to mix yourself turns your engineer into a producer, and how routing a digital mixer keeps everything simple when the power flickers. He shares the gear that’s earned his trust, hard-won war stories from the road, his time subbing as a bass player in Nashville, and life on tour with a Phil Collins and Genesis tribute. By the end you’ll be listening to your own gigs with sharper ears and a hungrier inner critic.

00:00:00 Gig Gab 539 – Monday, June 22nd, 2026

June 22nd: National Chocolate Éclair Day

Guest co-host: Jesus Hernandez

00:01:32 Prepping for and playing Sub Gigs

Ultimate-Guitar’s Pro Charts…now with lyrics!

00:04:25 The benefits of splitter snake

Listener Questions

00:09:55 Mark-What’s the best MD Mic Switch?

D’Addario Mic Mute Infrared Mic Sensor

Optogate

Radial HotShot DM-1 or HotShot MD

LILYP4D Mic Mute

00:20:25 Mark-Are fan-posted videos good or bad?

00:24:36 SPONSOR: OneSkin. Get 15% off OneSkin with the code GIGGAB at https://www.oneskin.co/GIGGAB  #oneskinpod

00:26:54 Guest Co-host: Jesus Hernandez

00:28:20 Lady and the Tramp Start taught him to record multi-track

Then the Portastudio

Tascam Multitrack Recorder

Jesus became the go-to guy for recording bands and fixing sounds

00:34:27 A2 at a local theater

Then the A1 went on vacation, and Jesus became the A1

00:35:38 Then a jazz club

Sound reinforcement at the most basic level

Ultimately what you’re trying to serve is people’s ears.

Use your eyes to serve that purpose.

00:37:38 Recording was rough at first, but you learn!

Making recordings with a live performance in mind

Let it Be…Naked

00:41:24 Ask the band: what do you guys want to sound like on the recording?

“Take a picture of the band, then paint on top of it!”

00:32:36 For live sound: how do you find out what the band sounds like?

Before arriving: listen to the band’s records (or the band they’re covering)

00:47:26 When doing sound, consider yourself a band member

“Playing the console” – The mixer is an instrument

I’m controlling the arrangement

00:48:50 Singing the praises of bands that can set levels on stage

00:49:20 A band whose levels are ALL over the place

So bad the band was sent home after the first set.

You have to be your hardest critic

00:53:25 Learn to mix yourself, then your engineer can go from problem-solver to producer!

00:55:26 “If the power goes out at the mixer, you’ll still sound good”

Fixing it at the source

The night the power-flickered and factory reset the mixer!

PreSonus StudioLive

01:00:19 Keeping it as simple as possible

Soft-patching, routing, matrixes, oh my!

Learn how to route a digital mixer

01:06:39 The downsides of strictly analog

But you learn how to ring out frequencies

Fix low-end feedback by popping in/out the polarity button

Rick Carmona (From “No Peace At All”), the engineer who mentored Jesus

Every business is in the customer service

Davis Thurston on Gig Gab

The engineer has multiple customers: the band, the audience, and the staff at the venue

01:13:38 Bands vs. Reunion Gigs

01:18:25 Bringing an analog mixer…and no snake!

01:24:50 Soca Music

01:26:00 Time for some war stories

01:31:46 Subbing in Nashville as a bass player

01:08:21 On the road with Face Value, Phil Collins & Genesis Tribute Band

01:37:24 Jesus Hernandez Home Studio

01:38:23 Gig Gab 539 Outtro

Follow Jesus Hernandez

IG: @jesusandthecomplaintdepartment

Jesus is my Sound Guy

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