10 Questions with ... Rick Allen

BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:

After working in radio since my teens, years as the Production Director for HOT 97 in New York, and my custom imaging branding hundreds of stations internationally, I continue to produce the Absolute Imaging production service as well as creating audio for film, video, TV, and gaming with clients such as Disney, American Express, The United Nations, MasterCard, HP, LogiTech and Coca-Cola.

1) When did you first realize that you wanted to specialize in production?

When I was just starting out as a DJ in the days before voice tracking, I realized that when you messed up live on the air, everybody hears your mistakes ... but when I was in the production studio, I could work and rework a promo until it sounded exactly the way I wanted it to sound. That was a bigger pay off for me. I was excited every time it aired.

2) Where is your work currently heard?

I'm so humbled that a lot of really talented radio production people are using my Absolute Imaging service worldwide to brand their stations.

3) What advice would you give to programmers seeking to get the most out of their production/imaging talent?

I have been very fortunate to have worked for PDs who really appreciated and understood the importance of imaging. One trait they all had was making sure I understood the overall objective of a promotion before I dove in to produce it. That way, I knew that when I started work on a project that I could put 110% into it without regret. And nine times out of 10, I didn't waste any creative effort because of last minute copy changes or misinformation about the direction of the concept. It really freed me to put my all into every piece I produced.

4) What's the most unique project that you've been involved with?

I've done a few crazy things while recording raw audio for creating new sound design elements. I've set fire to a guitar in the middle of the desert with a flame-thrower, I've climbed a mile into an underground cave in total darkness to record unique reverb sounds. I've shattered over 300 liquor bottles at one time to collect breaking glass impacts (I have to admit emptying the over 300 liquor bottles was even more fun than breaking them). I've climbed under huge heavy construction equipment that was operating in 110-degree heat to record their roaring engines and gears. But one of my favorite projects was recording an acetylene tank that had been cut in half and stuffed with gun powder and diesel fuel. A bowling ball was then dropped into it and a fuse was lit. Recording that huge explosion as the bowling ball was launched 300 feet in the air was a blast... literally.

5) What's the most challenging project that you've been involved with?

Probably collaborating with Sample Logic to create the sounds for their virtual software instrument called Assault. It not only involved literally hundreds of hours of recording out in the field, then creating unique sound design elements, but also layering them to create thousands of possible variations. It involved learning a specific computer programming language too, so the whole project made me use both my right and left brain to the max. It was worth it, though. It's fun to hear those sounds in movie trailers and TV shows. And, thanks to Bryan Apple's work at Rockstar Games, the sounds are even part of Grand Theft Auto IV.

6) Tech Set-Up ... what kind of mics/processing/software/plug-ins, etc. are you using?

I am a total gear nut! But let me also say that in this day and age, it really doesn't matter what gear you have at your fingertips. You can still create great creative audio with whatever level of gear you have available. Don't let that distract you. Don't get caught up in gear envy or chasing the plug-in dragon. Think of new ways to use the gear you already have. I've been using ProTools since it first came out. I know the majority of radio producers use Adobe Audition. It is much more important that you get to know the DAW you have than it is which DAW you use.

Learn your gear inside and out. If you're voicing as well as producing, it is worth investing a bit more in your microphone and pre-amp. Every voice is different and you'd be surprised how much improvement the right choice of mic and pre-amp can make. Also remember the only thing that you have that nobody else can duplicate is inside your head. It's your brain. It makes you unique, so take care of it and use it. Keep sharpening your writing skills. Keep up with new technology. Keep trying new ways of using a plug-in. I personally HATE presets. You'll start to sound like everybody else if that's all you use. Experiment with different settings. Make your sound unique.

7) Who are your mentors?

So many great people shaped my early love of imaging when I was still wet behind the ears. Eric Edwards was the Production Director at WNAP/Indianapolis when I was growing up. His promos were so complex they would make my head spin, yet the message was always memorable and crystal clear. He taught me that there is a fine line between highly-produced and over-produced. Eric and I later worked together for Emmis ... he was at Power 106 in LA while I was at HOT 97 in New York.

Another huge influence in my early production was Ken Justiss, a producer in Dallas at TM in the '70s who produced their amazing jingle demos back then. While I was in college, I would sit in the production studio and try desperately to reverse-engineer his work. I would listen at half-speed to understand his sense of timing. I would play the demo backwards ... and to my delight found several hidden messages. It wasn't until I was a producer at TM several years later that I finally met him in person.

I also have to mention Mark Driscoll. When I was in New York, I was always listening to his booming voice with all the fun lines in the sweepers he was creating for Philly's Q102. Even at this point in my career, there is a long list of people in our industry I still learn things from; Bryan Apple's and Justin Dove's imaging, Robert Dudzic's and Joe D'Agostin's sound design, Bruce Goldberg's music editing skills and so many more people. Ann Dewig lives close by. Her voice work is so spot on it sometimes overshadows her incredible production talents. We try and grab lunch once a month or so, and I always walk away with new creative production ideas. I don't ever want to stop listening and learning from other producers.

8) What is the most challenging part of the job?

I get very easily distracted. ADD is my middle name. That makes it a challenge to have so many different kinds of projects going on at once and having to focus on one at a time. I really have to force myself to declare a mix is finished. I always think I can make the mix better. I recently found over an hour of raw recordings of fighter jets taking off and landing that I recorded almost two years ago at Luke Air Force Base. I had them in a session all edited and cleaned up. Each track with various different plug-ins that I'm sure took hours to set up just right ... and then I never bothered to bounce the tracks to final files. It bugs me when projects like that slip through the cracks.

9) What stations, besides the ones that you work with, sound spectacular from an imaging standpoint?

KIIS in L.A. always consistently stands out with incredible talent like Kelly Doherty, Forrest Martin and now Miles Hlivko. I've never heard anything but tight targeted imaging from that group. Scott Mahalick's stations also always brand with incredibly creative imaging. Roger Keeler's work in Denver on 93.3 is off the hook. Flashing back to my days at HOT 97, it always kept me on my toes competing against talents like Dan Kelly at WPLJ and Dave Foxx at Z100. Now Staxx is keeping up that tradition at Z100.

10) Where do you see yourself in five years? Ten years?

I've been asking myself that question for quite a long time and it's funny how the answer never changes. I want to always keep finding ways to create better, more effective and entertaining audio. I also want to continue to create new tools and work parts that other creative audio experts can use and produce their own great audio. Above all I want to continue to have fun in the studio.

Do you have a favorite hobby outside of audio production?

I need to take more time for hobbies. The right balance between personal and professional life is an important key to keeping your creative fresh. I love riding Harleys. I like woodworking. I've been trying to learn welding. I love off-roading and ATVing. Lately I've been doing volunteer work at a local homeless shelter. That really helps put anything I start to whine about at work right back into perspective.