An inevitable part of the music-making journey for any artist, studio recordings are as daunting as they are thrilling. The same can be said for aspiring producers seeking to make a career in a competitive and ever-changing environment. However, it doesn\u2019t have to be this way according to Clark. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Clark\u2019s producing career started at university studying music, where she recorded and produced a full EP. She then continued to produce tracks through her band Lucid, and worked as a live sound engineer at gigs before becoming a trainee producer at Make Noise in the Summer of 2022, under the mentorship of Senior Producer Tom Henthorn. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Now with almost two years of experience, she has established a name for herself in the Yorkshire music scene, working with the likes of Paul Party, Lucy Roberts,<\/strong><\/em> and producing Teah Lewis<\/em><\/strong>\u2019 Underweather<\/em> EP amongst many others.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n As for her role in the studio, Clark stated that it varies depending on the artist\u2019s needs, she has her own preferences: \u201cSome people have got a full EP of songs they want to do, they don’t really want any creative input from the producer, they just want someone to engineer and hit record.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSome people, like Lucy (Roberts), we brought a song to life together, they want that kind of more producer role as opposed to an engineer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe ones that I prefer are the ones where I get to be a bit more creative.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt works really well when you click with someone, it’s so good when you\u2019re on the same wavelength about how you want to do stuff and it\u2019s really exciting.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Whilst not a necessity, her background as a musician has been a helpful tool as a producer, allowing her to step up creatively and offer more than traditional mixing and mastering. Clark has filled in on the piano for artists, as well as helping them to rework song structure and chord progressions if something isn\u2019t feeling right on the recording.<\/p>\n\n\n\n She explained that her knowledge has helped her to be an adaptable producer: \u201cI think being flexible and willing to work in any genre is a really good thing, being able to lend yourself to whatever genre or song it is and creatively give your all to that song and that style as much as you can. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cEven if there’s someone who knows that genre better than you, you might still bring something different that they wouldn’t have thought of.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Looking back at her first steps, Clark recalled the benefits of live sound experience: \u201cAs the live sound engineer for a gig you\u2019re the person who\u2019s running all the sound checks, putting all the mics up, making sure the band can hear everything in the monitor, making sure it sounds good out front for your audience – lots of the stuff that you’re doing there with the sound desk using EQs and compressors is very applicable in the studio. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt\u2019s slightly different and in a way it\u2019s a less pressured situation – when you\u2019re doing a gig if you don\u2019t have the sound check done by the time the doors open then \u2018too bad!\u2019 or if you can’t get the PA to work, speakers to work, then no one’s going to hear the gig. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt’s quite a high pressure situation but you learn to deal with a lot of those technical problems really quickly and not lose your mind.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Taking this first step and getting experience is the largest challenge for many aspiring producers in Clark\u2019s eyes, with limited opportunities for professional advancement in an industry that she says, at times, can feel more about who you know than what you know.<\/p>\n\n\n\n She elaborated that this shouldn\u2019t discourage those looking to make a start though, with many ways of self-teaching available, such as learning from courses on YouTube and choosing a digital audio workstation such as Ableton, or even free systems such as GarageBand to become well-versed in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Whilst stepping into the studio levels up the complexity of a producer\u2019s responsibilities with new equipment and professional standard workstations, Clark says that a lot of techniques that can be learnt at home will create a transferable skill set that will set up any producer for success.<\/p>\n\n\n\n She says that showing passion and effort is the best way to make connections in the industry, which can become an invaluable and supportive environment for development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Clark explained: \u201cIt’s all about getting to know good people, being friendly and helpful, being willing to volunteer which is difficult but is the best way to do it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIf you show you\u2019re willing and helpful and can coil cables well then I don’t think producers will mind you asking to shadow them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPeople love their craft and want to share it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Follow us on Instagram<\/a>, Twitter<\/a>, Facebook<\/a> and Tiktok<\/a> for more content!<\/em><\/p>\n<\/span>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Have you ever wondered what it’s like to produce music? Ever sat in front of a mixing desk and not had a clue what all the buttons do? Us too. That’s why we spoke to Molly Clark from Make Noise Studios, to help break down the first steps of producing as a career, and landing […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":43,"featured_media":1488,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"off","_et_pb_old_content":"\n Make Noise Studios\u2019 producer Molly Clark (pictured, photo by Joel Arthur (Instagram @jarthur_pictures)) talks the trials and triumphs of landing your first professional job.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n An inevitable part of the music-making journey for any artist, studio recordings are as daunting as they are thrilling. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The same can be said for aspiring producers seeking to make a career in a competitive and ever-changing environment. However, it doesn\u2019t have to be this way according to Make Noise Studios\u2019 resident producer Molly Clark. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Clark\u2019s producing career started at university studying music, where she recorded and produced a full EP. She then continued to produce tracks through her band Lucid, and worked as a live sound engineer at gigs before becoming a trainee producer at Make Noise in the Summer of 2022, under the mentorship of Senior Producer Tom Henthorn. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Now with almost two years of experience, she has established a name for herself in the Yorkshire music scene, working with the likes of Paul Party, Lucy Roberts, and producing Teah Lewis\u2019 \u2018Underweather\u2019 EP amongst many others. <\/p>\n\n\n\n As for her role in the studio, Clark stated that it varies depending on the artist\u2019s needs, she has her own preferences: \u201cSome people have got a full EP of songs they want to do, they don't really want any creative input from the producer, they just want someone to engineer and hit record.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSome people, like Lucy (Roberts), we brought a song to life together, they want that kind of more producer role as opposed to an engineer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe ones that I prefer are the ones where I get to be a bit more creative.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt works really well when you click with someone, it's so good when you\u2019re on the same wavelength about how you want to do stuff and it\u2019s really exciting.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Whilst not a necessity, her background as a musician has been a helpful tool as a producer, allowing her to step up creatively and offer more than traditional mixing and mastering. Clark has filled in on the piano for artists, as well as helping them to rework song structure and chord progressions if something isn\u2019t feeling right on the recording.<\/p>\n\n\n\n She explained that her knowledge has helped her to be an adaptable producer: \u201cI think being flexible and willing to work in any genre is a really good thing, being able to lend yourself to whatever genre or song it is and creatively give your all to that song and that style as much as you can. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cEven if there's someone who knows that genre better than you, you might still bring something different that they wouldn't have thought of.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Looking back at her first steps, Clark recalled the benefits of live sound experience: \u201cAs the live sound engineer for a gig you\u2019re the person who\u2019s running all the sound checks, putting all the mics up, making sure the band can hear everything in the monitor, making sure it sounds good out front for your audience - lots of the stuff that you're doing there with the sound desk using EQs and compressors is very applicable in the studio. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt\u2019s slightly different and in a way it\u2019s a less pressured situation - when you\u2019re doing a gig if you don\u2019t have the sound check done by the time the doors open then \u2018too bad!\u2019 or if you can't get the PA to work, speakers to work, then no one's going to hear the gig. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt's quite a high pressure situation but you learn to deal with a lot of those technical problems really quickly and not lose your mind.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Taking this first step and getting experience is the largest challenge for many aspiring producers in Clark\u2019s eyes, with limited opportunities for professional advancement in an industry that she says, at times, can feel more about who you know than what you know.<\/p>\n\n\n\n She elaborated that this shouldn\u2019t discourage those looking to make a start though, with many ways of self-teaching available, such as learning from courses on YouTube and choosing a digital audio workstation such as Ableton, or even free systems such as GarageBand to become well-versed in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Whilst stepping into the studio levels up the complexity of a producer\u2019s responsibilities with new equipment and professional standard workstations, Clark says that a lot of techniques that can be learnt at home will create a transferable skill set that will set up any producer for success.<\/p>\n\n\n\n She says that showing passion and effort is the best way to make connections in the industry, which can become an invaluable and supportive environment for development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Clark explained: \u201cIt's all about getting to know good people, being friendly and helpful, being willing to volunteer which is difficult but is the best way to do it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIf you show you\u2019re willing and helpful and can coil cables well then I don't think producers will mind you asking to shadow them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPeople love their craft and want to share it.\u201d<\/p>\n","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[82,84,110],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1351","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-off-stage","category-off-stage-front-page-sub","category-off-stage-menu-sub-2"],"yoast_head":"\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/feedbackmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2024\/05\/Molly-Clark-4-1024x768.jpg\")
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/feedbackmag.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2024\/05\/Molly-Clark-1-1024x768.jpg\")