Music Production Zen

Unsolicited life advice for music makers.

“The more constraints one imposes, the more one frees one's self of the chains that shackle the spirit.”— Igor Stravinsky, Poetics of Music In music production, we have more choices than any producer in history has ever had. We have unlimited tracks, thousands of plugins, and every sound we've...

by Futch — Oct 05, 2026 guiding principles

First Principles

“For we do not think that we know a thing until we are acquainted with its primary conditions or first principles, and have carried our analysis as far as its simplest elements.”— Aristotle, Physics In music production, most of our ideas are copied from somebody else's ideas. We buy a sample ...

by Futch — Sep 28, 2026 first principles

Four Quadrants of Awesome

“Our ikigai is different for all of us, but one thing we have in common is that we are all searching for meaning.”— Héctor García and Francesc Miralles, Ikigai In music production, four things are supposed to line up: what we love, what we are good at, what people need, and what pays. Where a...

Sep 21, 2026 ikigai purpose

Living Next Door to the Dream

“Do not wait; the time will never be just right. Start where you stand, and work with whatever tools you may have at your command.”— Napoleon Hill In music production, the dream studio is always the one down the street, and ours is the one we keep apologizing for. So the project waits until ...

by Futch — Sep 14, 2026 finishing mixing music production

Review the Tape

"Experience is not what happens to a man; it is what a man does with what happens to him."— Aldous Huxley Capture the results. Then go back and watch what you actually did. Fighter squadrons don't go home after a flight. They sit down and walk through what happened until everybody in the room ...

by Futch — Sep 07, 2026 debrief

Words, Thoughts, Feelings

“Thoughts are the language of the brain. Feelings are the language of the body.”— Dr. Joe Dispenza Words have power. Thoughts have more power. Feelings have the most power. The Starting Point We can hear the state each take was recorded in. Same singer, same mic, same words, and take fourteen ...

by Futch — Aug 31, 2026 feeling power

Power vs. Force

“Force always creates counter-force; its effect is to polarize rather than unify.”— David R. Hawkins David Hawkins says that force always creates counter-force. In music production, that's the four hours we spend making a vocal louder before we notice the whole mix eventually came up with it. ...

by Futch — Aug 25, 2026 dynamics

Be Clear

“If you confuse, you'll lose.”— Donald Miller Donald Miller says that if you confuse, you lose. In music production, if a track gets boring eleven seconds in, people will simply move on to the next one. If we can't figure out what we are supposed to be listening to, we are outta here...fast! T...

by Futch — Aug 10, 2026 clarity

Simple Not Easy

"Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication."— Leonardo da Vinci Here's an idea that I come back to often: Simple and easy are not the same thing. They're typically mistaken for each other. They shouldn't be. Because the simplest solution is sometimes the hardest one to uncover. The Starting...

by Futch — Aug 09, 2026 simplicity

You Are The Ship

“There is no ship coming to save you. You are the ship.”— less common knowledge That thought changed how I look at almost everything. It's easy to spend years waiting for rescue. The perfect job. The perfect studio. The perfect opportunity. The winning numbers on a lottery ticket. Then one d...

by Futch — Jun 28, 2026 inspiration

It’s How You Say It

“The most powerful person in the world is the storyteller.”— Steve Jobs There’s a phrase that explains a surprising amount about music: It’s not what you say, it’s how you say it. The words matter. The notes matter. But neither is the reason you get goosebumps. The Starting Point Imagine so...

by Futch — Jun 22, 2026 lyrics performance songwriting

Invest In Things Beneath You

“The bitterness of poor quality remains long after the sweetness of low price is forgotten.”— Benjamin Franklin There’s a simple rule for spending money wisely: Invest in what’s beneath you. Your mattress.Your shoes.Your tires. If you’re standing on it, sleeping on it, or driving on it —don’t...

by Futch — May 11, 2026 foundation investing

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