I'll spare you the details of my childhood except for a few things. I was was born and raised in New Mexico. I started playing drums in the 6th grade. In junior high I met Max Butler and Brennan Hester who I would end up playing with in a band called the Sextants. Max and Brennan had a great punk band called MFC (Manson Family Christmas) that went through a lineup change and I became the drummer. The name and sound was changed and the Sextants were born.

In 1988 I moved to San Francisco with The Sextants. Brennan's sister Lori would join us on bass so we could have Brennan play guitar and In 1990 we signed a record deal with Imago records. Imago was created by Terri Ellis of Chrysalis records fame. Larry Hirsch (Los Lobos, John Hiatt, Bonnie Raitt) would produce our debut album "Lucky You" at Ocean Way and Sunset Sound Factory in Los Angeles. We toured all over the US and Canada but were eventually dropped from the label.

The Sextants broke up and I joined Seven Day Diary in 1993. Seven Day Diary signed with Warner Bros./Reprise soon after. Producer Joe Chiccarelli (Frank Zappa, Tori Amos, American Music Club, White Stripes) did an EP with us called "Fig. 6" at Coast Recorders in SF. We then went on to make a full-length record ("Skin and Blister") with producer Gil Norton (Echo & The Bunnymen, Counting Crows, Foo Fighters) in London at Britannia Row and Swan Yard. The band would tour all over Europe with moderate success but unfortunately would suffer a similar fate as The Sextants and we eventually broke up as well.

During my time in Seven Day Diary around '94 I worked part time at a small studio in San Francisco on a 1-inch 16 track and ADATs while also working in pro audio retail. In that same year I did my first gig as a producer for a band called Spackle. In 1998 I went full time, bought a Pro Tools system and never looked back.

I think the experience of working with Larry, Joe and Gil was priceless. I learned so much from those guys about making records on a large scale. From pre-production to tracking to mixing, their methods helped shape my style of working and my work ethic. They taught me how to work with people and how to get good results while having a great time. Of course playing in bands didn't hurt either! I continue to learn and be inspired by my friends and peers especially the bands I work with.

For the last 5 years I've had a small studio in Emeryville, California called Broken Radio. I've recently moved that studio to San Francisco. Check it out here. -> Broken Radio.

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