LBC CenterStage Being Open To A Different Angle A Conversation With Anthony Arvizu by Sander Roscoe Wolff Anthony Arvizu has worked professionally in the music industry for many years, first as a musician with National People's Gang, as an engineer working for Capitol, and now as a producer. Anthony: I feel more confident these days calling myself a "producer" than before. That said, I am happy to act as the engineer, artist, or producer on any given session. LBC: When you're wearing the 'hat' of a producer, what is it that you do? Anthony: The way I see it the producer is like the director of a film. Overseeing the project from beginning to end, to include pre-production (rehearsals and such) finding the right players if needed, scheduling, and keeping the flow of the session moving. It means getting the project done within a budget and knowing when to say, "that's a wrap!" LBC: Have you been looking for artists to develop, or are you mainly working as a hired gun? Anthony: I am always interested in working with artists who I believe can benefit from my knowledge and experience. LBC: Tell me about your new digs, The Compound. Anthony: The Compound rules! I am a partner along with Steve Cross ($have, Lung Pigs) and Heath Bennett (Delta Nove). It has the elements of many of the places which I have worked at over the years. The space is what is attractive to begin with, it is LARGE, and sound waves need space to develop so the sound is very "true" to what is being played. Both the control room and the performance area give the players room to move around and be comfortable, and we can record a very large number of people "live". The gear we have assembled comes from many years at different studios, choosing those odd pieces that have personality as well as functionality. With regard to the gear, we have been very fortunate to have many local musicians donate pieces that they have collected (and perhaps were not putting to use) to us and things have really fallen into place nicely. LBC: You've essentially been an engineer for hire for many years, and worked in some really top-notch rooms. What does it mean to have your own studio? Anthony: Back when I began recording professionally (about 12 years ago) I always had the idea that I did not want to be the studio owner because that's the guy who had to pay the bills, keep up with the changing technology, and deal with all that gear breaking down! LBC: Why the change of heart? Anthony: It was about a year and a half ago when I realized that I need to get into recording to a computer if I was to stay in the game (I had recorded to tape until then). I bought a Pro Tools rig and carried it around from place to place. The opportunity to become a partner at The Compound came out of necessity and I was a bit reluctant. Now that I have dug in I wish I had started years ago! Having a place to call home is wonderful. Both for myself, and the artists I make records with. I can be more flexible with the time/money equation and I have a hand in how the business is run. We try to make the recording experience at The Compound conducive to the project at hand, so I guess in a way being the studio manager is a bit like being the producer on every session that comes through. LBC: Tell me a bit about your work as a musician. Anthony: I am drummer first. I can play guitar and piano well enough to write a song or suggest changes. I began as a kid, drumming since I could hold the sticks. I played in rock bands through high school without a lot of formal training. My first real lessons were with Stephen Hodges, who I know most of your readers are familiar with. He and my sister married when I was in my late teens so he's been a brother ever since. What a monster player! In my early twenties I joined a group of guys and called ourselves National People's Gang. That was about 1984 and, by 88, we were making records for Dr Dream Records in Orange CA. and touring the country telling people about this area outside of LA called "Orange County." We played at some of the first South by Southwest festival's New Music seminars, the whole "indie "thing. It was when that group broke up and came home from the road that I started recording for fun and profit. LBC: As a musician, producer, and engineer you've tended to work with a rather eclectic group of artists over the years. Care to speculate why this is? Anthony: I guess I am more of a Beatles man than an Elvis man. LBC: Tell me about the creative aspects of engineering. Anthony: It may be that engineering is less creative and more functional than the producers role, if defined as such. I do like to look at the players in the recording session as part of a triangle: producer, engineer, and artist. I learned a lot during my years at Capitol Studios about being a good engineer from some great engineers who get the sounds and allow the artist and producer to do their thing. Of course, there must be shades of gray and the roles overlap. The engineer has his hands on the knobs and, with the right gear, those knobs are powerful! Working with a producer who gives me the creative freedom, I just start twisting and listen for the oohs and ahhs or "that's it!" LBC: Have you developed a particular strategy for getting to "that's it", or does that path depend in large part on the artists?] Anthony: Having recorded so many records by now I definitely have some "go to" moves, things I know work within a certain parameter. Still it is about experimentation when given the time and, as I said, being the studio owner now I have a better handle on that time than ever before. It depends upon the artist in that we have talked about what the goal is for this session, and how experimental are they comfortable with being. By experimental I do not necessarily mean "art music" but, rather, just being open to a different angle on the theme. Other instruments, voices, layers which the average listener my not hear as so strange at all. LBC: Is that really what makes the work a pleasure for you? Anthony: The pleasure for me is most definitely the experience of recording, making a "record" of a time in an artists life. Being a part of that, and having something that is enjoyable to listen to five, ten years down the road. It is a touchy business taking somebody's song that they been laboring over all alone or with their group and have it work over a little pair of speakers, to have the emotion, the life of a live performance. When it works it feels real good. LBC: Has there been a project you've worked on that really stands out, one that you still like to listen to? Anthony: I still listen to most of the projects I've done and enjoy them. Some, more than others, of course. The stories that come out of them are probably the most fun. If you want names I am quite proud of both of the Bourbon Jones records. That was a great time. I wish I knew more when working on those first People's Gang records, but the stuff we did in the nineties stands out. Rocket From the Crypt is a favorite from The Toledo Studio, I got to work with David J (Bauhaus, Love and Rockets) producing a couple of tracks for The Centimeters, The Violet Burning records, Robert Deeble, to name a few, and you gotta hear The Valley Arena recently recorded at The Compound! Something just worked on that session. Seven songs in three days. It sounds as good as anything I've done. LBC: After all your time working professionally in music, do you have any perspective on the Long Beach scene? Anthony: Any? LBC: Any you care to share... Anthony: I've seen a lot come and go and it seems like the same old story: The man trying to keep us down. The Toledo (later named Mambo) was shut down by the city just as I started to get a groove on. Made some great records there though (Sublime 40oz, Rocket, Big Drill Car, Supercollider). Fortunately, The Compound is in Signal Hill (across the street is LB). View Anthony Arvizu's LBC page and events Learn more about Sander Roscoe Wolff Do you know an artist that we should feature in LBC CenterStage? We'd like to hear from you. Send us your LBC CenterStage suggestion View Previous CenterStage Features