Having the ear of a life-long professional musician at the helm of a recording studio can make all the difference between a lifeless, sterile recording and one that bristles with energy and intensity. “The most important thing in making a record, is to have someone you can trust who has an objective view on the songs and the vibe,” says Arch Audio owner-engineer-producer Lorrie Matheson of his recording philosophy.
In musician slang, Lorrie is a lifer, having been a prominent fixture on the Calgary music scene since the early 1990s. A current member of garage-psych band Night Committee, his four solo albums as well as his work with National Dust and Fire Engine Red have all been staples on campus and community radio stations nationwide. Matheson had a penchant for dissecting musical arrangements when fanatically listening to his favourite records and devouring any and all information illuminating the recording process that went into these musical gems. It was time to see if he could help others make great records. In 2008, he added up his years of experience writing and performing music, and launched Arch Audio to try his hand at the technical side of making records.
To date, a who’s who of Alberta’s music scene have chosen Arch Audio to do just that. They include Calgary’s beloved party-rockers Napalmpom, sludge-metallers Chron Goblin, country troubadour Tom Phillips, art-pop songstress Samantha Savage Smith and Canadian underground rock legend Art Bergmann.
