Interview at Steve Albini's Basement Studio, Winter ‘89/‘90.

[@petradichavich]

I helped Steve build that for recording while we were in Rapeman together. The neighbors still said we were too loud. RIP buddy. This is how I will always remember you.

[@Johnathan1995]

Rey, big fan of your drumming on ‘two nuns’ and all of your work. Hope you’re okay. Sorry for your loss. Do you have any other anecdotes, stories, or even photos you would share from this time period?

[@petradichavich]

@@Johnathan1995 So many, but not here.

[@alexthekill6715]

@@petradichavich i was born 2002 so all of this I’m finding out now after hearing of his passing. I listened to all of rapeman on KZbin yesterday. Really amazing work steve and all of you guys did on that. Its very sad to hear of his passing, i know so little about him but i’ve just been obsessed the last couple days. But your guy’s works transcended time and i hope you know that which you definitely do. We need more people like him in the culture

[@RockandrollNegro]

@@Johnathan1995 Antidotes? Like for malaria, or poisoning?

[@xXxzAAa0aAAzxXx]

​@@RockandrollNegromainly for overdoses

[@properboy]

"There is always some loser that wants me to record his band", love it.

[@rippedtorn2310]

Steve Stoll ?

[@TheShadyPenguin]

i love it too. so many people crying in the comments over a little abrasive humor. it's like they expect steve to act like santa claus. he was in a band called rapeman i mean come on

[@popsongtom]

You know he’s thinking about playing poker !

[@normansepulveda]

HAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHA best quote man

[@briankennedy1192]

Lololololollo priceless 😂😂

[@cortical1]

"The best thing about effects is that by using them you can get a client to shut up." Steve Albini, broker of truth

[@soundescapemn]

RIP to the realest to ever fucking do it.

[@GG70]

You know what’s crazy? This comment is how I found out about his death. I’m sure I would have found out very soon after, but this comment made me gasp and brought tears to my eyes.

[@lassebang]

Even back then Steve knew his way around shit. Every time he opens his mouth and talks about something audio-related, it is absolute gold. Great video!

[@GG70]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@redpillblues879]

That’s a good way to put it, he seems so sure about what he’s saying, it almost seems distant or unengaged

[@beigela]

"and what kind of material is this??" "cloth"

[@autocosm]

"Filled with crap. By 'crap,' I mean fuzzy stuff."

[@AnodyneHipsterInfluencer]

Lol, ahhh beat me to it! 😆😆

[@AgentXPQ]

I laughed at that too. In other interviews, when people ask how he came to work with certain bands, his standard answer is "The phone rang".

[@phnigra111]

Rest in peace Mr Steve Albini Respect 🖤🔥

[@XnazxulX]

“Put a bunch of deadening shit” lol. You must have had fun interviewing him. I remember meeting him at an Unsane show in 92 he talked my ear off in a good way. Nice guy.

[@adrienfourniercom]

the sound of the 90s is a basement.

[@dylonbangss2804]

Early 80s but shure

[@kodykindhart5644]

Early 80s had very few basement recordings Who had the real gear ?

[@metaphoria3]

That’s why we tracked at Peel studios in seattle

[@metaphoria3]

@@kodykindhart5644Jack Endino had a lil bit yeah late 80’s early 90’s

[@TheChadPad]

19:45 He's been sayin that for 30 years. I respect a man show sticks to his guns like. He'd seen enough engineers try to micro manage the band and decided to be part of the solution to that problem than to perpetuate it. Bravo Steve. Thanks for uploadin this man. Good questions

[@Headwyres]

Rest in Peace, Steve. Your methods in recording those prolific albums will be remembered forever....

[@jaysantiago9673]

Thank you for posting this. An old band I drummed for named Grabankles was supposed to record there during the Summer of '90 but Steve had the flu and had to cancel, was too booked to reschedule. Either that or he thought our music sucked or that the guitarist that setup the session was a stuck-up rich douchebag. Damn,,, that close to recording with Steve.

[@Hermiel]

This is pure gold.

[@henryssurfshowcase]

What's cool is starting about 12:35 when they go into the dead room, the talking sound audio really cleans up! 12:35

[@lcl7wrkr]

His setup doesn't look like much today but back in the day it was HUGE if somebody was doing this in your local punk scene. So many bands wouldn't ever have recorded songs that are considered classics now without people like Steve with a basement studio.

[@pseudonomous]

Fascinating to see how Albini was working before he was at Electrical Audio. Inspiring for other people trying to build the best studios they can on-the-cheap.

[@Tomversal]

Not really on the cheap in this case, all his gear was in the thousands XD But yeah overall it is very inspiring, I don't have much money so I have to use DAWs and cheap amps/microphones/guitars but this stuff by Albini gives me so much more drive to do my own recordings

[@ParallelNewsNetwork]

@@Tomversal shellac is the musical version of an inspiration to me making music with cheap shitty gear. I swear he mixes the instruments to heighten it’s shittyness. A true inspiration for diy engineers and musicians!

[@nicktestajr]

“Records sound good when the band sounds good.” 🙌

[@Jordannofun]

Fedorable

[@deathmetalandhiphop]

Jordan he was very good looking

[@Jordannofun]

Agreed

[@eeyorehaferbock7870]

Remember when a scruffy-looking nerd could wear a fedora and make edgy jokes about stuff and you still didn’t have to assume he was a horrible person through and through? Pepperidge Farm remembers.

[@tinytanks]

Steve Albini running a clinic. Great interview.

[@GG70]

Thank you!

[@snarfusmaximus]

As somebody who is currently building a shitty 8-track studio in his bungalow, I'm loving this video.

[@GG70]

Thanks for the comment! Good luck with your build!

[@FirstMultitude]

I also much appreciate the permission to post this, as it is an invaluable document of the pre-Electrical Audio days many of us have heard about but did not witness first hand.

[@deathmetalandhiphop]

Ryan McMaster this dude has a solid name in the history books

[@GG70]

Thanks Ryan. That's why I posted it since many never saw what the studio looked like. I appreciate the comment.

[@Kenobiii]

Could it be that by pre-electrical you actually mean pre-digital? As far as I can tell, Albini is using electrical-powered equipment in this video.

[@liamshanley_21]

his present studio is named Electrical Audio

[@0oidiedinatimemachineo024]

fun fact - all the equipment seen in this video is running off of steam

[@vegardyrnes1793]

He hasn´t changed one bit since his younger years. What a cool guy, what a nerd, what a musician (!!!) and.... He is so missed!💖

[@AF-Twice]

This documentary was good. The interviewer asked detailed questions and Steve gave detailed answers.

[@byronlaird5116]

My old band recorded there in "94. Basement was much nicer. Attic control room was done, & upgraded to 24-track. There was a secret door to get up there, opened by a button, hidden behind a picture, in the 1st floor hallway - no joke !! The TAR guys BBQ'd for us the last day we were there. Good times.

[@trapezoidspangle934]

I guess its not a secret anymore. Nice one.

[@TheHappys]

What city is that? Is it SF and if so what part?

[@onezeromusic]

@@TheHappys Chicago. The house studio no longer exists, but was moved to Electrical Audio, as Studio B.

[@gary2892]

This is truly an important document. Nash Kato's stack next to David Wm. Sims' bass and amp? Amazing...

[@gfilms2986]

This is quite brilliant. A sonic education that is eye opening...and if you're into sound recording, pretty mind-blowing. I've learnt more in 30 minutes watching this than in 20 years recording my own guitar music, mixing from trial and error.

[@ecoterrorism_liker7251]

pretty sad

[@LoveStrokeRadio]

Great behind the scenes with a LEGEND

[@rawxrarerecording5266]

@GG7000 much respect to you Sir for this video...I have been watching this since 2019, like twice a week, until today! steve is a real iconoclast to his last days. You're awesome too GG7000!

[@GG70]

I appreciate your kind words! Thank you! I was very nervous the day I interviewed him since he was a BIG part of my life in my later teen years, and still loomed large long after that.

[@rawxrarerecording5266]

@@GG70 Do you still play with your band Squelch? Do you have any music we could listen to? If I'm not wrong, Steve Albini recorded your band too right?

[@GG70]

@@rawxrarerecording5266 Squelch disbanded around 1990. Our entire demo that we did with Steve is available on my page. Let me know what you think!

[@helmanfrow]

The sight of a young, lanky Steve waxing his brand of recording philosophy makes me feel warm and giddy. Although that may just be the carbs I've been eating all day.

[@p8emusic]

EPIC TIME CAPSULE VID!!! his practices are still so relevant in 2019!! just multiply all his prices by 10!

[@AnodyneHipsterInfluencer]

Lol, facts.

[@nealmarshall2264]

This is a great video. Albini shows he had all the technical and psychological chops needed to make great recordings. All the lights need to be blinking for some clients. LOL Thanks for the video.

[@RKTologist]

the interviewer seems like he knows hes good af but is skeptical about his setup its like in the movies when a character or group of characters meet a hero and hes not at all what they expected lol

[@GG70]

RKTologist on the contrary, I was and am still in awe of his skills. I just wanted a step by step tour and discussion of what it took to do what he did (and still does). I have deep respect for Steve.

[@ohoto3896]

dude thanks so much, this is a historical document

[@daverice2426]

Wow, great video! My band recorded there around this time; the main piece of equipment I remember was the Osterizer with a switch labeled "Rocks/Fingers"

[@GG70]

You should post some of those songs or link them here.

[@daverice2426]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/bKuzoH93iLKmg7M kzbin.info/www/bejne/gHfOk5pun7loiJY

[@chaz32]

nice!

[@scottmartinezguitarandbass]

Man, that's good shit. I love the sound of that, and would prefer this over the sound of much of the "rock" music today. I think it sounds great. I have built my own basement studios over the years and it's great fun.

[@brucephillips1736]

Sandy Duncan's Eye was freakin' great! I've got this album on cassette in my collection waiting to be digitized. Might to scrap that idea and just by the CD!

[@BrianSalazar-kn5ng]

Pretty brilliant! I had no idea he passed. I’m binging out on Albini content.

[@raindaresmusic]

that desk is just a mixer and monitors with no screens. whoa. this video is so good, thank you.

[@GG70]

Thanks for thank you! So many bands recorded in that basement and Steve did us all right and for CHEAP!

[@whatabouttheearth]

Why would there be a screen in 1990

[@whatabouttheearth]

Why would there be a screen in 1990

[@paytonlee2074]

"screens" in front of the speakers. Grill cloth. Not computers.

[@gillihansmobilewelding]

And we think gear is expensive now.😳 $5k for a small mixer that you can get on market place for $150 now. $6k for Klark Teknix? My Presonus Studiolive mixer has a choice of 7 eqs and 7 comps that i can use on every channel. Multiple reverbs, delays, and chorus for fx returns, and controls my DAW that has anything i need. That costs me $3k.😂 Wonderful times we live in.

[@PriapeBoudu]

Was this the studio that was flooded by that guy from Slint? The one who was the inspiration for 'Mouth Breather'?

[@GG70]

That is correct!

[@VVVHHHSSS]

What's the story here? The Jesus Lizard song, right? I want details, was the Slint dude annoying or dumb?

[@Jack_nnn_]

Jake Henders Steve left his home for a couple weeks, in the care of a friend (Britt). When he returned, he expected some sort of order. But such was not the case.

[@CannibalWHORE22]

Jack You said that how I would imagine Steve himself would. Lol

[@briankennedy1192]

@@CannibalWHORE22 lololol indeed.

[@smileylpsgirl]

this is amazing. detailed questions with very thorough answers. super intriguing. great work!

[@GG70]

Much appreciated!

[@AnodyneHipsterInfluencer]

So cool, thanks for posting. I really enjoy Albini's intellect and the sounds on his records. That said, as a musician, I'm way to insecure to ever work with someone like him 😄😄😄🤙🖤

[@Daniel-pi6zk]

I see David Wm Sims bass rig. Rapeman or Jesus Lizard. I recall hearing that GK head and those 1x15 cabs live. What a killer sound.

[@FantomKat]

That rig has stuck with me for 30 years as well, just killer sound.

[@0scill8r]

he said people need shitty 8 track studios laughingly, but what the world really needed was steve albini.

[@L.A.W.Studios]

Priceless, thanks so much for this..

[@TheAveridgeGuitarist]

Amazing piece of history. Love the DIY spirit and punk "shitty 8 track studio" aesthetic.

[@mcentertain]

Just watched this last week and learned so much. Farwell friend! Grazie mille

[@ToneSherpa]

That Urge Overkill record sounds fantastic. It's a wonder what you can do with so little.

[@rickg8015]

Steve did not mince words when he had a falling out with those guys.. Not sure if they ever made up.

[@matteframe]

@@rickg8015 Who cares. That band were a bunch of rock poseurs anyway,

[@FantomKat]

@@matteframe yet strangely better and more important than anything you've ever done or will do.

[@tmappe]

The best simple explanation of what an expander is doing!

[@paulricketts10]

The whole thing with the door not shutting is hilarious. As soon as Albini failed to shut it the first time I was wondering how he would explain it. Drunk, in the middle of night and in the dark made sense.

[@douglasbatley1907]

I'm a carpenter by day. The door is what's known as hinge bound. The solution is undo the hinges and place 1-2mm packers between the door frame and hinge. Refix job done.

[@lewisticknor]

Thank you for sharing!

[@fxsurgeon]

Thank you for sharing this video!

[@The_whimsickal_artist]

Rest easy mate.. you were brilliant 🙏🏻😞 in utero is one of my favourite records he worked on. He was absolutely awesome.

[@abradfordajb]

Steve was an expert 30 yrs ago ..... that's why he's so popular NOW.

[@AndySalinger33]

So glad you had the presence of mind to film this. Really cool you uploaded it. Very important document. subbed, etc. cheers.

[@The_Absurdistt]

A legend in the making....

[@Overlorddz]

Im so sad about how boring and shallow the world just became. Steve was so many things, a smartass, an asshole, a geek, a genius and a great guy in a band. Happy to have met him, but always expected another occasion, was thinking i had to look up tickets right before i heard the news. Did not see that coming. Late 50s early 60s is a mean age.

[@gustavosandessp]

superb! hard to find videolike this this days

[@phnigra111]

RIP Steve you quirky bastard- We’re all gonna miss you.

[@RockmannMusic]

Thanks for the upload

[@brendonprice1586]

if this is the type of videos you have in your archive, please post more! Never know when those tapes will get too messed up to watch again.

[@GG70]

Sorry Brendon, this is really the only video I have that would be of any interest to my new subscribers. I did not lug around a VHS recorder back in those days to shows around town haha!

[@allenschmitz9644]

@@GG70 no one did..the holy grail cam back then was a fisher price PL2000..that recorded vid on cass. tape.

[@zeguna]

Awesome video, great to see this studio and match it to the music recorded there. Been listening to Jesus Urge Superstar lately. Steve’s so sharp and dry, I would be pretty nervous interviewing him, but man he is always interesting to listen to.

[@GG70]

Thanks for the nice comment, Alex. Yes, I was incredibly nervous when I was interviewing him back then and I was really young, too. He really did help me with this final project by allowing the tour and interview.

[@lactea937]

muy valioso material, muchas gracias. saludos desde Buenos Aires!

[@therustyvalentine]

Those would appear to be The Mouthbreather's drums in the opening shot.

[@wado1942]

I would love to get my hands on the original tape and do a restoration. This is great!

[@christopherdunn317]

The great thing is he went from this, to where he is now !

[@mbjasondify]

And 3 years after this video, he is at Pachyderm studios recording Nirvana IN Utero album. Amazing.

[@tapehedz]

Thanks for this upload.

[@benjaminb.6424]

Makes sense that Cobain wanted to record with this guy, I approve 😝

[@brad_genx_sk8er]

This must have been done during Tweez sesseions. That's Britt Walford's drum set.

[@GG70]

Tweez was recorded at StudioMedia in Evanston, 2 years prior to this interview. I am fairly certain those drums belong to Mike Greenlees from TAR.

[@brad_genx_sk8er]

That's weird. Britt used to hang his ride upside down just like the kit in the video. Same huge red Tama drums. Do an image search for Brit Walford drums to see what I mean. If Tweez wasn't recorded in Albini's basement, then I'm probably wrong.

[@GG70]

I actually spoke to Britt about this video and he says that YES, those are his drums. He said that he thinks King Kong were either practicing or recording at that time.

[@Baman8787]

GG7000 do u personally know Britt?

[@russellharper3027]

@@GG70 Wouldn't this have been about the time they were recording Spiderland?

[@vantahawk2834]

Some people have a no-bullshit attitude, Steve has a vacuum field state of no bullshit.

[@orlytelisman5662]

Legend... this is so sad!

[@nathanjamesbaker]

Here from the Britt Walford interview. He said this video shows Slint's equipment.

[@GG70]

Yes, I think King Kong was recording at that time.

[@redpillblues879]

A whole house utilizing every room as a different protectant to the bands sound. This is insane to me. I couldn’t imagine any time stepping into a producers room, and them guiding me to a different part as being vital to each players sound

[@redpillblues879]

I hope most of you understand this, if not we’re in deep trouble

[@redpillblues879]

Can anyone point me to a direction. Where a producer curates each band to this

[@redpillblues879]

I really need to know

[@arthursiegel2672]

ahh, just Steve living in the moment, not a cell phone or computer in sight

[@kunstgebit]

thank you.

[@leviathon90]

At around 32:30, they start talking about the 'six wall technique'. Anyone know what they're talking about?

[@From_A_Diverging_Timeline]

They are talking about using multiple delays to emulate the sound reflections of a room. I guess since they are using multiple delays it gives the impression of a different shaped room each delay is set to a different repeat. You'll see guitarist use 2 delays and have one set to eighth notes and one to quarter notes to give a rhythmic effect.

[@Soulpuddinghtx]

Steve wearing a fedora is such a vibe

[@emilyrl840]

I would have loved to be there but simultaneously I would have been extremely paranoid that I would die somehow and never see daylight again... I say that as a fan of Steve for over twenty years. I admire and fear this incredible genius.

[@mbjasondify]

I feel the same way. I was an aspiring engineer in the 90's and never met anyone near the skill level of Steve. He truly is a master of the craft, and is living the life I so wanted to be in. Analog for life

[@pranky4]

The bodies were hidden over there in the drywall

[@chrispeterson73]

I've heard that bodies make excellent bass traps? lol

[@anonymouse527]

Dead cats. You know, fluffy stuff..

[@briankennedy1192]

Lolololol dig it!

[@joed3483]

“The world needs cheap $hitty eight track basement studios” - albini

[@vaughnmild4467]

1st thing I noticed was Wallford's kit

[@GimmeJimmy23]

As shady as Mr. Albini seems in this video (maybe he's just socially awkward like myself), the quality of the information presented makes this an essential watch for any fledgling or even mid-level audio engineer. So glad I stumbled upon this. and I will have to +1 s. stoll, the "there is always some loser" comment cracked me up. The sternness with which he said it almost rubbed me the wrong way, as an audio engineer, because I was told when studying audio engineering, that you can't be too choosy if you want to be successful, for myriad reasons . . . But I guess he's at "that level" . . .

[@GG70]

I think when he was talking about "some loser", he was taking a dig at myself and my band. It was fine. I was used to his "humor" at that point. He was nice enough to let me do this video so many years ago, I got an A, and he also gave me his blessing to post this video. What I should do now, is actually put the music here that he recorded for us back in 1989.

[@briankennedy1192]

@@GG70 thanks for posting I was wondering to myself what marks you got for this. Nice direction btw. 👌

[@GG70]

@@briankennedy1192 I got an A! Only one other person in my class knew who Steve was and was kind of blown away by the whole thing.

[@briankennedy1192]

@@GG70 That's excellent brother. Great video. I was enthralled watching. Bit of humour there too which some ppl missed.

[@norxcontacts]

The real wizard behind the curtain.

[@HornedBee]

32:36 what is “six wall technique”?

[@fostexfan160]

42.50...."All you're doing is putting frosting on a turd" I laughed so much at his comment there. But he is so right!

[@douglasbatley1907]

You can't polish a turd but you may sprinkle glitter on it.

[@livelavaliveTw0]

i’m steve albini and these are my doors

[@peterb7435]

19:02. The infamous traynor ts 50 b

[@UdiKoomran]

Lke being a fly on the wall - incredible

[@lopezhamilton1146]

I’m guessing his comment at 11:07 is in reference to the Stones’ Gimme Shelter. Or any other 70s rock band...but prob the Stones.

[@1176hambone]

Hilariously beautiful!

[@alexbozas887]

Steve, as always, on the money.

[@ZEDROLAND]

getting extrmemly technical in this shitheap of a basement

[@j_freed]

Oh it's never the room, it's always the engineer.

[@dh-_1011]

He’s has a reason for the things he’s done in his “shitheap of a basement”. It sounded pretty good too!

[@YTPartyTonight]

GG7000: "What's the word?" Steve Albini: "Uvula."

[@arielissaharoff685]

Genio y figura, tiene una máquina Otari ahí?

[@alexandercanada1222]

fuck man this hurts.

[@adamgrimm1523]

Would love to see a list of music that was recorded here

[@AnodyneHipsterInfluencer]

☝️ This.

[@lincoln7184]

Never anything to do in this town....

[@alcoholya]

@@lincoln7184 there's kerosene around...

[@lincoln7184]

@@alcoholya Makes you wonder if it's already been poured 💧

[@damienf.7543]

"we bought a bunch of doors" - Steve Albini

[@jinstyles8323]

Is that the same basement britt walford destroyed when he broke the toilet house sitting for steve? lol

[@slaterslater5944]

That's the one! You can even see the pipe from which it rained piss..

[@startervisions]

A man, the man

[@crucifixgym]

32:39 damn I was hoping he would name the stock program name

[@haroldpalmer3245]

Are there any recordings from this basement studio? I would love to hear them....Great detail Steve, and thanks for posting this video.

[@bacekrecording]

What a cool guy!

[@fednance2837]

gold