Rick Rubin: Reduce to the essential
"The less elements, the more space there is to hear the personality of the elements that are there.”
Music producer Rick Rubin:
“I like to get to the essential,” Rubin said. “There’s a sonic benefit: the less elements you have, the more you can hear the ones that are there, and they sound better. And the less elements, the more space there is to hear the personality of the elements that are there.” For example, Rubin says, if you record ten people simultaneously playing the same guitar part, it sounds like guitar. But, if you record one person playing that guitar part, it sounds like a person playing the guitar. “And often in the studio,” Rubin says, “when you try to build upon things, when you add layers to try to make it sound bigger—often, the more things you add, the smaller it gets.”
(source: SIX at 6)
Related: On the first album Rubin produced, the credit he took was “reduced by Rick Rubin” instead of “produced by Rick Rubin.”
“Bolo” coming soon!
I’ve got a new standup special coming to YouTube on Thursday. Join me for a live Q&A during the premiere of “Bolo” (7pm EST on January 9, 2025). You can sign up at YouTube to get notified when it goes live.
Wanna watch it now (or just wanna support)? You can stream the full special now for $4 at Punchup Live.
This is really insightful. I loved Rick Rubin’s last book as well. As a scholar, aiming to be more creative, this is gold.