Egg Timer Hour Episode 07 | Dave Hillis

Dave Hillis joins us for a deep dive into his career working on some of the most important music to come out of the 90s—along with stories that go way beyond just the Seattle scene.

We talk about his time working on Pearl Jam’s *Ten* and Temple of the Dog, what it was like recording at London Bridge Studio before the explosion, and how those sessions came together with zero expectations of what they’d become.

Dave also shares stories about:

* Crossing paths with bands like Metallica and Slayer
* His connection to Peter Steele and the Type O Negative world
* The reality of working in studios during the analog tape era (no safety net, no undo button)
* Being around the Seattle scene while Nirvana and others were still on the rise

There’s a lot here that doesn’t get talked about—what it actually felt like in the room, learning on the fly, and trying not to screw up while unknowingly working on records that would go on to define a generation.

We also get into whether *Ten* holds up today, if it’s a “perfect album,” and how perspective changes when you look back decades later.

This isn’t nostalgia—it’s firsthand experience.

🎧 Full episode available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and more.

https://www.youtube.com/@MineLikeMeMusic

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/mine-like-mes-egg-timer-hour/id1693624885

https://open.spotify.com/show/4iReMpNllvCsuRIIoF26eF?si=3f1821b4c9ed41e4

https://music.apple.com/us/artist/mine-like-me/1171308516

https://open.spotify.com/artist/4ArkYtmrjfrXYQuiJyBR6S?si=R4oQgAYLRNaIw7aFCuLhUA

https://linktr.ee/_bondo

https://www.instagram.com/j_brandon_v/

https://www.tiktok.com/@j_brandon_v?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc

Transcript

so we got to talk to Dave Hillis last week
and he's a engineer
producer at the Vault Recording Studios in Pittsburgh
Pennsylvania uh
he offers mentoring and help for anyone who wants it so
and I contacted him through Instagram
I think I might have posted a guitar video or something
he might have liked it
and I looked at his profile and was like
oh my god
this dude worked on tin and temple of the dog
and one day I just messaged
hey man
I do this little podcast you wanna attend
and it was just like
an instant yeah
let me know when I really didn't expect that
so yeah
this dude is super cool yeah
he's he's got lots of projects going on with uh
Identity Crisis
uh Kevin Martin
a Candlebox the dude is super approachable
as you'll see and it's just yeah
he's it's just a really cool hang
it's awesome to talk with someone like that
what do you mean by mentoring
like he'll like if I said hey
I lived in Pittsburgh and I said hey
I want to learn how to record
or I think
maybe if you have a mix or recording or something
or just a general question
I like to know
is he still as much pressure as the Rick guy put on him
I wonder I wonder if
he puts that much pressure on himself
because the way he was talking about he's
he's just hard to work for and stuff like that
I was wondering I was
I gotta do where he's coming from
I've worked for people like that before
I was kind of like I
I get it where were you at where it was like that
let's just say the boss was a perfectionist
and would say do this
and then would monitor you every five minutes
to make sure you did
did in fact do what you were told to do
and was it and prove that you did huh
I said was it in a band with me
anyway no comment
let me watch you do this
no not at all
wait which
which way do you look if you're lying
not at all hahaha
yeah I was surprised but not surprised to hear that
it was like of course it had to be fun
but of course you know
there's pressure too
but he made it clear it was not fun
yeah I know
he said
so did people get shit canned over stuff like that or
basically what you asked him
he's like oh yeah
oh yeah
he didn't know it was gonna be as big as it was
to him it was just another day
you know and like
I record these people's tape
whatever now he was a really cool cat
I loved all his stories I did
I meant what I said during the episode though
like
when he was talking about the punching in and stuff
mmm hmm I knew that existed
but just the way he described it
it really messed with my mind
I was like that would be absolutely nerve wracking
yeah I couldn't imagine doing it at that level
that he was that kind of pressure
mmm hmm what kind of life does this dude
all his stories are like so I was at a bar
and Stone Gossin comes up
I'm like what
it's not even that it was
it was I was working
I had to get a job and I was working
he's real Dad's Forrest Gump
I've worn lots of shoes
Mama said they take me anywhere
oh my god
fascinating life here's episode 7 of the Egg Timer Hour
talk about stuff important stuff my life means
now live join today as a man who wears many hats
he's a guitarist producer
engineer a Jack of all trades
master of none but oftentimes better than a master
better than a master of one
please welcome Dave Hillis
thanks for joining us today
yeah thanks for having me yeah
I'm thrilled and elated and honored
that you would take time out of your busy schedule
to sit down here with us and just
kind of just more or less shoot the breeze and nude out
nude out nerd out on some music
nude out
we can nude out later
we'll put that on the onlyfans channel
yeah we're very pleased to I I
me and Brandon was talking yesterday
I was like we've done this a while
and I'm just not the type of guy
to get nervous about talking to people
but I read all your accomplishments and stuff
I'm like I'm kind of starstruck by this guy
oh shit
much too kind
I mean it's I
I won't lie either I've had nervous energy all day
it's just like whenever I watched the
I watched that podcast last night
that you'd done previously
it was a gosh
I wanna get the name of it right
I have it right here it was a Custom Cut Studios
it was a two and a half oh okay okay
yeah yeah yeah
that was a that was more like two engineer guys
um yeah
I was picking about things
I didn't come across as bitching
I thought it was wildly entertaining because it's
we'll we'll get to that later
cause
I don't want to beat you over the head with Pearl Jam
Alice in chains stuff but to be
you know in the thick of that is pretty amazing
I would I would think
cause I I see you share a lot of stuff
you know about it
yeah yeah yeah
I mean it's it's
it's so funny to me being so close to it in those days
I had a completely different um
view of it then as opposed to now
like now I kind of
you know I have a much different perspective of it
being older and
realizing
how much of an impact it really made to people uh
and looking at it as I looked at records
I guess when I was younger or whatever
but now everybody's older
you know it just
it affected and became iconic
some iconic records I was lucky enough to work on
it's just at the time
it didn't you know
seem like that I had different kind of goals and uh
you know ambitions
and everybody that I worked with
you know nobody was really famous yet or anything
it wasn't like one of those sessions
where I worked in a you know
a famous person came in so I was kind of knew what
you know there was already a
something established and
and with this you know you
you know we were all uh
uh
friends and and local
kind of friendly competitive guys and bands and um
and plus I had had some kind of history before any that
you know with my own kind of
you know indie record success and stuff
and uh
yeah just never
you know never would have thought that it would be so
uh part of a decade and
and made such an impact that it did worldwide
I just at the time
and it took me you know
a number of years to really even realize that what it
that they were I mean
I knew they were successful
but it just seemed so foreign
you know I'd say there's a lot of people that
probably have that same sentiment
that were involved in it yeah
I mean
there's no way you would know that that was gonna go
I mean everybody
you know hopes and dreams you're gonna be successful
or a rock star whatever might have been
but I don't think
you know you can never plan for like being
you know voices of a generation
mega successful yeah
well uh
you know let's not get too far ahead of that like uh
you know David and I
we're in our 40s now it's
it's not happening for us
as it were and that's okay
we're fine with that but uh
I've battled that thoughts all
you know my whole life
well uh
let's back up you were born in Brooklyn
New York is that correct
that is correct so when did you first get like the
the the music bug
that you knew that this was gonna be the a
a lifelong uh
profession and
I assume passion
um you know I
without sounding corny or whatever
but kind of all the way back from from
you know my earliest memories
uh
I was five or six
and there was neighbors up the street in Brooklyn
that had a piano in this pretty
this ball or what they call a parlor
you know it's very Brooklyn and um
I was over there and my family would be visiting them
and I'd go over and just start
first thing
go to that piano and start just playing on it
so they were I remember my bro
my older brother and
you know people notice
they're going like
this kid wants to do something with music right
so I started doing some piano lessons there then
and then I'm also funny enough
this sounds crazy but
my next door neighbor in Brooklyn was a guy named Pete
well known professionally as Pete Steel
from a band called Type O Negative
oh yeah
and and
and before that a metal band called carnivore
he was my next door neighbor
a couple years older than me
like literally next door
like brownstone so they were attached
you know the house was attached
and so he was playing music before me
and I'd be over there and he was playing Maxwell
Silver Hammer by the Beatles all the time
and wow
what
what you would imagine that that guy would be back then
and um
and then I moved and then when we moved to Seattle
um a suburb of Seattle actually
but uh
you know I was upset for leaving
you know kids leaving school
and his friends and stuff and
I don't know Seattle wasn't even on the map then
you know it was like
I thought there was gonna be Indians
cowboys and Indians and stuff
um
gonna be a logger yeah
you know it
it was back then I remember telling people as a kid
and they were like you know
that's by Alaska you know um
and so but part of that was I
I I I
you know made my parents promise me
that I could take guitar lessons
when we got settled and started taking guitar lessons
and I
and the guitar lessons I took was a guy name Rick Knox
who ended up being a guitar teacher for like
all the guys from Seattle
like really
all the guys from Queens Rick
and just he was the guy
and then it's just and then all
you know then high school came
and I started bands
drawing my logos and everything on the PCs and playing
I was totally a guitar nerd
and so how old were you when
I just always have done and then what got
and it was funny is then I got
soon as I could get a job at 15 and a half
I could work one day a week
and there was this mom pop record store right by our
you know
right in that general area there of where we lived
and one day a week I got a job there stocking shelves
and then I ended up working there till a
for a number of years and so I was learning stuff from
from that and
and I was using that money to go to book studio time
even right from the beginning
and the reason why is cause I was impatient to like
learn
so I start started bands
and everybody wanted to play Judas Priest
or AC DC and stuff
and I Learned the beginning of the riffs
and then I didn't want to learn it more
I just wanted to write my own songs
and so everybody thought you know
kind of say this is no good
he sucks he can't play a song
and so I just started running studio time
and got guys to play with me
what I wanted to do and so um
yeah I just
I just kind of been doing it always that
so
how old were you when you first started to play guitar
at 10 is when I first started taking lessons and
and then I got pretty nerdy on it
you know I
I um
also kind of started getting into classical guitar
and Spanish and stuff like that and
oh wow was going that way
and then I just wasn't that disciplined
and then when playing in bands
I just started being like
um you know
I just wanted to go on tour or something
you know I started
I just you know
I was dreaming like
you know those early
early rock classic rock records like sticks and Boston
and I was seeing me rush
and I was seeing myself on stage at that point
so you're just absorbing
and not learning the covers so much
yeah I was
I was getting ahead of myself
but it but it kind of worked out for me
because it got me going I was
I was ahead of everybody at my age
cause I just was um
naively bold and ambitious and yeah
a lot of people I think
lack that I think that's a great strength to have
to just you know
put perform your own material
and try to record that
and get people excited about that
yeah I got
you know it wasn't
it was it was a hard move
cause I I remember I got fired from like
my own band like
this guy the first guys I put together in high school
which affected me and I was like okay
you know and then
and then that LED to me uh
like I said going into the studios and uh um
I had a tape I mean
it was crap you know
and I working at the record store
I just started looking at record labels
and I um
saw Metal Blade Records which was a metal label
that had a compilation album out
called Metal Masquerade 5
and I just started sending them to labels
I sent it to them
and I got a letter back and I was accepted
I mean I open the letter
I still have it actually
you know you're accepted
and had the logo on it I was like
I made it you know and
and uh
and and that same
year we
there was a Northwest Metal Fest compilation record
you know it was a big thing then and uh
we got on that so we were on two
same song is on two compilations
one the Metal Massacre
just for people don't know
that was like
the one we well
the earlier ones like Metallica Slayer
the one we were on you know had uh
some bands that went on to be pretty big
like Voivod and Celtic Frost and
metal church you know
like that whole early day metal right
thrash kind of thing
and then that took us down to San Francisco
to play the Bear Bay Area
so I and I
that I was 17
you know graduating from high school
oh wow
now that you're yeah
Mace right
yeah yeah
that's great I mean
we were we weren't very good
and our recordings were horrible but uh
but we made up for it with just energy and nerve and um
well
it seems like the fidelity of a lot of recordings then
were not the it wasn't the best
no no
and we had no concept of it like
you know yeah
you you
you printed a record that's where
mission accomplished yeah
and if somebody said they were gonna put it out here
great right
I mean
the fact that these people were putting records out
with kids demos
for the most part
that seemed to be like
the thing too
like even like
Soundgarden and Nirvana like
they would get on like
compilation records was a lot of
oh yeah people
yeah yeah
all those things it just doesn't happen anymore
no no yeah
it's a whole no compilation CDs hahaha
so how long does Mace go on for
you're 17 and then um
we put out a second record in 87
and we had a
a American deal at that point
and then we had a deal in Europe
a French label
and I mean
we got internationally known
it was I mean we
this sounds crazy we had the
in my mother's garage I had
we had boxes of fan mail from everywhere
from all South America
all the Eastern European countries
Japan um
we were on the charts in England and in Japan
and like the uh
uh all these college radio stations around and
and independent radio stations around the world
would have these metal shows
and we chart on all of those
and it was that it was that um
time when there was fanzines
yeah and we were in every fanzine
and that that was the trick for if to make it then
in that genre um
and we just you know
you went like we would have a weekly by weekly
everybody chipping some money to send
uh stacks of vanilla envelopes with our tapes
or CD or not CD so
weren't even around yet um records whatever
we had pictures and you just mass mail the things
and you get impressed and
and then that's how you did it
and that's how we toured we didn't have a booking agent
we would um
you know we would
some of our tours would just be us like
making friends with a lot of San Francisco bands um
Death Angel or somebody
through seeing them in the same magazines
and we write to them and say hey
we're so and so from Seattle
if you come here and play
we'll set you up and if we can come down there
and then there'd be like these 15 year old kids
we think we're going to meet some guy
it's a 15 year old kid
and he's promoting a show somewhere
in some weird part of California whatever
and we're banned and we're just winging it
but it was like this fun road trip
that we're just a band
but we were just kids out
well yeah
just like seems like that's easy for everybody
I mean the Beatles were kids too
essentially when they're playing
you know yeah
and then there was a and there was a
that's when the beginning of crossover was starting
so we play a lot of punk show uh
open up for DRI or Circle Jerks
or a lot of these famous um
punk bands from that time
and they'd hate us and then we'd play in metal shows
and we we were a little too punk
we had a punk influence
and then we weren't metal enough
so we we had that
but that actually made us kind of known
cause that's where that's where we were like yeah
so um
yeah that's
that's what it was so
I mean it's
it's kind of always just
that's kind of what I've always done
and there's been total lows and total
and big highs oh yeah
lots of lows in between everything
it's a roller coaster so I quit
you know all the time
but there was a period where I'm done
I'm out you know
it's the band and how I have
there's nothing left now what could be next
and then there's yeah something
well they're just
bands are just so dysfunctional by nature
it always seems like yeah
I didn't even know any different
because I've been doing it so long that
that was just you know
just so is that what happened
y'all just kind of get sick of each other
and just kind of
I don't know well
in my situation I was always more serious
and more ambitious than everybody else
and and I was
you know I cheat for something
what's the next thing or this isn't gonna be big enough
I I wanted to have a major label
record deal and do the thing
and what's funny if I would have stayed
you know my own mistakes
if I would have stayed kind of
with some of that stuff I probably
but you like you
never thought Slayer
or Metallica would be household names
yeah like
there's no way and so I
if I probably would have just been one of those guys
just stayed metal for life
I'm probably would have had a long career in that um
but you know
my musical taste would mature
and I'd want to do different things and um
you know and I wanted to be more successful
and able to get to that next
you know
level of making real records and things like that
so I started out growing people that I was playing with
stuff in that regard yeah
I think as you as you get older
your version of success changes
it doesn't always mean money
or major label or stuff like that
it's well yeah
and then the realization
once you have the major label and things like that
there's that's a whole other story
in my major label problems
not when it's gone and then it's like
what now you know
that's a whole other go to therapy for that stuff
you know I think sometimes people don't
you know you hear a lot of these
I don't know hair metal guys or something
who totally lost it after it was all over
and things like that or whatever
even actors or whatever and uh
I didn't have it to that degree
I didn't make it that big
but it is weird when you have a label and like
we were lucky when I finally got a deal
we had a lot of ace cards
you know we had big management
big this big everything
and you feel they're telling you
and all the signs are pointing you're you're
you're gonna be huge you're gonna do this
this is that you know
and then one day it's all over
and the phone stops ringing
and they're not answering your calls
and like it gets weird
and you're like what
and then you know
you're at a certain age where you think
well now what am I gonna do
now it's all over I'm too old
you know for me
I was like oh
I had that shot now it's over
and you know
we're like 25
yeah there's all
like I said there's all that roller coaster
and we're like 25 years old
when you're telling yourself it's over
I was 20 I was 29 when I finally got the deal
and it was kind of like this 30 year old deadline
the other guys in the bands were all in the early 20s
I was like the old guy at 29
but I was you know
I was definitely more experienced
I'd already made Pearl Jam records
and I already had that first part already happened
so I was a little more experienced
but um
but still it it
it tripped me out when it was now
were you pretty when you were 17
were you pretty heavy touring at that young of age um
I mean I wouldn't call it heavy touring
to us it was you know
but it was really um
you know
teenagers in a van um
but but we played some amazing shows
um we mostly did uh
West Coast and down to the south
we were booked all the time
we were booked all over whether we made it or not
yeah or our
or our van would keep going or whatever kept us
and then we were supposed
we were doing so well over in Europe
so we were supposed to go there
and that's a whole other story
our lead singer got he was
you know he was nut
he was crazy and um
and you know
he got in trouble with the law with
with one of our shows mind you
and um
and so then he
he couldn't get his passport cause he had court dates
and then that that
that's really what LED to our breakup
then we you know
us not being able to go overseas was just heartbreaking
oh yeah
we were gonna try to replace him
and that didn't work and it was just
this wasn't meant to be but yeah
I mean we tried our best but
you know we um
we did a leg of the very first Slayer
Shannon Mercy tour we did play with all kinds of fans
punk rock bands big giant
couple big festivals and like Long Beach
California which is you
name it all the metal
like even some bands like suicidal tendencies and
oh wow
all that stuff um
you know we played San Francisco a lot
and we'd have the guys Metallica in the audience
and that's pretty cool that if you
if you're really into all those
I could drop a bunch of names
but that doesn't mean much
but far away at that time
drop it right on my foot
for us at that time it was a big deal
but nobody knew who they were really
I mean you gotta remember
not none of this stuff was
this is way underground still
you know so you're up there playing
and did you look out there and see like
uh Kirk or James kind of give you like
yeah well
actually it was cliff um cliff
oh wow
oh wow
that's amazing yeah
yeah that's something
cause I know what it's like
if I see one of my musician buddies
and I'm up there and I do something
they get you know
they kind of give you that face or whatever
from the crowd yeah
you know who did that that's funny
you said that um
most memorable that
what you just said was Kerry King from Slayer
we oh
the first show we played opened for them um
and I believe nobody really knew who Slayer was at all
I mean hardcore people
but um
I knew who he was stuff like I said
being a record guy I had first
and everything I
I knew the stuff so uh yeah
I was sound checking and he
you know nobody's there yet really
in the in the hall
and you know
he walked right up the stage and he's like this
he's like Carry King and he's like playing
and he gave me a heads up like this or something
and walked away I was like whoa
Carry King that's awesome
but like I said he wasn't even famous then at all but
but still you knew who he was
and that's I knew who he was
so it mattered to me yeah yeah
so he you know
he became Carrie King later
that's amazing um
so tracks all
we played with those guys and stuff like that wow
who was your who was your favorite to play with
or did you um
yeah I don't know
I mean cause it uh
I mean it was really fun
always playing um
in San Francisco in the Bay Area at that time
that city was on fire you know
like they talk about that's where everybody was going
yeah well yeah
I mean there was the LA thing
but then the Bay Area is where that whole
you know Metallica came from and all that
that wave was happening so
we were coming from Seattle down to that
and trying to fit in um
and it was exciting to us at that time
cause you know what we were doing
wasn't really a thing in Seattle
um shadow hadn't
at that particular moment
shadow really didn't know what it was yet
you know it was in between things
that kind of like when there was
was tad around by then and all
no no no
this is early this is like now
it was like early Seattle punk rock stuff was happening
um maybe Queen's Rage was come
yeah Queen's Rage was doing its thing
but it was that middle time period
you know you had the 70s with heart and stuff like that
the 80s in Seattle was there's
it was like a the downtown um
Seattle SE was like more punk rock
and then there was in the east side
suburbs were like kind of metal
and
it it hadn't developed into anything
yeah you know yeah
there was like an arty punk scene going on in
it was still gestating in downtown
yeah
which meant a lot because that
that actually was a big influence into the
Sub Pop and record labels
that's that's kind of where
you know some of that started finding itself
had you been involved at Sub Pop at all or no
I was kind of anti sub pop at the time um
because I was coming from something else
by the time that was starting to happen
I was like I said
I was trying to move
I had already seen and done this punk rock thing
and this indie thing and I was trying to now think
how am I what is my next thing that I want
I wanted to mature
and get into something that was gonna
you know like
get that major label type success
so I was kind of staying away from it
um and it was kind of a clicky scene
mm hmm you know
I was savvy so I always kept
you know I went to the shows and knew the people
and all the players and stuff
but I kind of had different
I was getting I was really getting into like
anything from England you know
I liked a lot of the alternative rock stuff from
from England so
that was influencing me in songwriting
and stuff like that what bands were those at that time
oh you know anything from
bah house and um
Susan the banshee echo
the bunnyman in the church
you know that's awesome
uh that kind of
cure you know
all those kinds of things
I was kind of getting into that
that was kind of my way out of metal and punk rock
so you're just kind of over it
taste changing time to yeah yeah
I was just kind of and then
you know
Europe started sort of romanticizing that idea and
you know did you ever make it to Europe on any tour
I did not at that time but I did
ha ha kind of in a big way
I went uh huh
uh I married an English girl and uh
was over there for a while and um
yeah and then now
now I'm there a lot
but yeah
but um that's
that's later in the timeline
okay so uh
I imagine we're getting close to
to you working at London Bridge Studio in Seattle
yeah is that kind of
I'm just gonna do this on the interim
until I find my new band or put that together or
pretty much I was um
going through different yeah I
I had a rehearsal room
I always had my own rehearsal room um
and you know I'd be out at the clubs
uh you know she's I
I saw Nirvana one of their first shows
and at the Vogue and play
you know I'd be out like
meeting people and musicians and stuff like that
and um I had a rehearsal room and I'd bring people out
we just kind of start something I
I was yeah
just started some different bands
nothing really stuck um
and uh
um so yeah
while I was doing that so yeah
actually I knew about London Bridge
cause it was a really cool studio that was built
and I went there for some event
and I was talking to an engineer or something
that I'd seen it um
and was impressed you know
wow this
cause there was nothing really like that in Seattle for
of that size and I've been
like I said I've been going to a lot of studios um
and I took it for granted and
and I um
even when I came out like
Seattle's always had a lot of recording studios right
um I thought every place was like that
you know so it was
I was so lucky that I ended up in this town
from New York to there
that ended up being such a musical town um
but um
so yeah
during that period um
I had a lineup of people and a particular band
and I just booked some time there'cause
I've been everywhere else and
oh I
you know everybody was hearing like Alice in chains
different things were coming out of there
that were sounding like real records
it's like whoa
um so I booked some time there
did that and then um
didn't really meet Rick Parashar
the producer and owner along with his brother Raj
um
but he saw me in there
and I was working with one of his
another guy that was engineer out of there
cause Rick really wasn't full time there or anything um
it was more Roger's kind of studio
it it
that's another story or get into
but um
he saw me there and then a few weeks later
I ran into him in one of the
the rock clubs the music clubs in Seattle
he said oh hey
I saw you at the studio how
how did you how did it go
did you you know did you get your things done
did you like it blah
blah blah
I said yeah
it was great da da da
and then um
he uh
noticed that I knew pretty much everybody
was talking to all the people and girls
and all the rock guys and he was like
hey man
um
do you wanna come out to the studio
back to the studio tonight and hang out
maybe have a few beers like
bring some of your people over
and I'm like hahaha
I'm like and that just seem like a golden opportunity
like right
for what I don't know
hang out at a cool I was like yeah
I'll get to know this guy
that'd be cool um
so we did that and then he met
and I you know
I was like walking around and looking at Mikes
and all this kind of stuff
and he's you know
chatting up people and I um
and in passing he said yeah
I'm um
you know
kind of looking for somebody to work here with me
and work for me and
you know Bing
uh huh I know a guy
ha ha ha and so I said hey
you know I'd be super involved
you know set up
went for it got number
called him relentlessly
uh had set up
and he told me to come in for a meeting
and I came in with tapes and this and that
and this whole speech and
ready to sell him
and he didn't want to hear anything done
anything like that he goes
can you be here you know
you do this do that
and I need dependability and someone
yeah you know
I don't want to hear about your ambition
and your rock star shit I don't want
that's very Rick he isn't
wasn't impressed don't wanna know about that
and um I'm like yeah
whatever you want man
I'll you know
whatever you want
cause you know I was doing odd jobs and this and that
and I thought this would be a job
it really didn't pay at all
but I knew what the value was
even though I didn't know
but I knew I should do this
and so that's kind of how it started
and then he just
I got there and he threw me in the deep end really um
cause I I started to know my way around recording
obviously and I was recording at home
and I've been in many studios from pretty early on
but you know
now all of a sudden it's a needs console and
big Stu you know
Stu's two inch tape machine
and you know little do I know
we're making like as soon as I got there
we're making records for record labels
yeah real major labels
my first project I was like
holy cow it was temple of the dog
wasn't it your first project
it actually yeah
I came in but you see so here's where you understand
so I say I was making records for major labels
right off the bat but that was um
you know not signed or anything
that was those guys and
and they'd already had a relationship with Rick uh
Cornell actually
Chris uh
tried out for Rick and Roger's band as a drummer
earlier on when he first started
so you know
there was and they knew Susan
his wife uh
or manager he wasn't wife at the time
Susan Silver and so there's history there
and so what that was about
you know and
and Mother Lovebone had done the record
that had already been done there um
Alice changed stuff and so
you know Rick had
Rick had done their earliest demos um
kind of why they got signed
cause it sounded like they were ready to get signed
but my point being is that uh
that was done off the cuff
cause Chris you know
you guys have probably read the stories
you know that they were moved by Andy dying
but they you know
Susan basically called and said
could they get some time and
you know they didn't have any money for that record
and Roger just fronted them the time
and even gave them the tape
and it was used used tape um
from the from the vault that we just rate they right
Rick just erased some whoever demos were on there
I couldn't believe that I heard that last night
that the temple of the dog record
was recorded on used tape
yeah just
you know in our tape vault
they just you know
we're just grab some reels that
you know we're doing this shit for free for him anyway
we'll just well
it was no um
pretense for I mean
there was no there was no goal
they were just doing this
it was just they didn't know what happened
it wasn't for a label or record or anything
that's awesome it was like
let's go in I got these songs and um
it it kind of turned into that
and so um yeah
when I came in they had tracked already
but uh
he was mixing it and so um
he's like throwing me and showing me what's going on
and so I was immediately learning
you know the
the board and the system and running
you know the tape machine and doing reels
and just he just
you know crash course Bam
um which was a great record to do that on because of um
how straightforward it was
and such a London Bridge sounding record
um
and then you know
the next thing after that was uh
a new band out of Portland
I got signed to Interscope
which was a brand new label then
and you know
it was just like all of a sudden
I'm just doing major label stuff
and then he'd give me time to do uh
other local people demos to
to uh
you know start building my
so while you're in the studio and familiarity and stuff
do you like the music that you're working on
did you hear temple of the dog
was like yeah
or was it just kind of like
this is just work
you know I try to explain this a lot uh
I mean I like all music and stuff like that
I'm pretty easy that way but it
it was just that at that time I was still
you know
just wasn't your cup of tea
I was in my world you know
no I I
all I thought about was
what I wanted to get out of this
it's terrible and selfish
but that's what you are when you're young like that and
but you know
I was taking note I'm listening
it's good it sounds good
but it's a little you know I
and then I would also
I was tripping out all the time and under
feeling under pressure
because Rick's intimidating and hard to work for
and this was a lot to take in
and all of a sudden this is like like
it was such a um
I it
I went from thinking I was pro to like whoa
now this is professional and stuff sounds good
and those tapes I have to label right
and do tones and tails out
and make sure that everything's calibrated right
cause it's getting sent to somewhere in LA to another
you know it could get mixed by who knows who and
it just the whole concept changed
and the reality of wow
this is
it's much more serious and this is for real
and it's not just you know
I'm duping a cassette you know what I mean
or whatever it it changed
you know I stepped into it and was like
so my head was not screwing up and um
you know you gotta remember too
there was you know
it wasn't Pro Tools or anything like that
there's no undo button you know
we're working on tape I screw something up
or I punch in something wrong over some
you know and Rick was meticulous and
and it was very almost scientific
and you know
what frequencies in the patch bay
patch bay was never labeled right and
and if you didn't know it and
and just the timing and he
you know he was classically trained and
uh pianist
he he just had that way about him so
and you know
you really punching in like
people now
they just push a button to punch in on Pro Tools
who cares where you like this
you had to count you had to time
you had to know you had to get in syllable and out and
like it was a thing
you know I'm always at the remote
like intense
like it was intense all the time
like I'd come home and
I'm like you know
I'd take me forever to come down
off a day at the studio at three in the morning
you know that stuff blows my mind
that it was a total different way of working
and intensity and and all that
and when people ride the Fader
when you ride the Fader up and down on a vocal
oh yeah
that stuff like that that's nothing compared
I mean to me
the hard parts were the tape machine
for instance fast forward to like
you know you're working with
I mean at the time
it didn't seem as important
now that I know how historic some of the songs are
but you know
and you got Rick there and you're running the machine
and he tells you where the punch is
and you gotta count and time or whatever it might be
a guitar
different tricky punches and stuff
and if you went over something and it was really
he nailed something or you just went over the last word
and you cut it off short or something
you know everybody's looking at you like dude
that was take and now it's gone
and it's you yeah
and you're always on
you always think you're gonna get fired any second
that's what it was like god
that would be terrible
it was so different than how recording people just did
you see people get shit canned
is that why you thought that would that
oh yeah
oh yeah
it it
it was such a different you know
you know if you hear about like the old
like when you hear uh
60s stuff and like they wore lab coats and
you know and every
it was
it was just much more serious game
and just the tools and how things were done
the workflow was so different um
because you you know
it's just it's not like you have it today where
alright on a computer where
I mean unless your hard drive fails
which I've had plenty of those when they first came out
but I mean you know
now it's just you don't worry about that stuff
you're not gonna lose a take
you have a gazillion of yeah
it automatically takes your takes right
you know so it was just
it was that's why it was a real job
I mean it was
you know
and I would like to say I wanna say
but it was fun but you don't make it sound very fun
it well
you know
it wasn't fun yeah
I mean that's the thing uh
and I'm sure if I worked in New York or LA
it would have been even
you know harder and
uh and competitive and stuff like that
but uh
no it wasn't fun
ha ha uh
and and I was
and at the same time I was also
you know
to be quite honest'cause I knew all these guys in the
I knew we were peers in the scene
and they're making their record
they're you know what the
like with Pearl Jam for instance
was different too
because of the Love Boat thing happening
and so and that was a whole different scenario
but me personally I was
you know
I was kind of envious the whole time I'm working but uh
also caught up in making sure I'm
you know really killer at what I'm doing
because Rick held you know
I was learning and saw how Rick held
this is important and I knew I was learning a skill um
but also kind of feeling
you know I'm just gonna use this to get to my
to your next no
my other dream or whatever
so it's just a different mindset
you know it's just
it's hard to for other people to get it
and it's different era different
you know everything
so
there was something I wanted
that I thought was hilarious whenever
because I going back to that podcast I watched
that you were on before
there was a story you told about
couple stories about Stone Gossard
which I've not told you this yet
Pearl Jam is my end all be all favorite band
okay so like
all this stuff is just it's
it's the it's the Pinnacle for me
you know but um
the the story about stone uh
as you said you were peers and
and you you were
wanted to be the one making the record
and he said this thing about like Gee
aren't you aren't you glad you got this job man
oh yeah
yeah yeah yeah
yeah like we yeah
one of the first
we weren't even doing the record yet
we were doing demos uh
for the record but it at
at London Bridge
and when the first time he saw me there um
you know he
I was opening the door for them or something
he's like oh whoa
what are you doing here and I go yeah
I'm like you know
working with Rick and that and that
he's oh
my god how cool is that
you know he was like
do you think god was the coolest thing in the world
you know okay
so he wasn't being sarcastic
he was no
no no he no
it wasn't like that it wasn't like um no
not at all he thought it was fantastic and uh
I mean yeah
he knew that I you know
he's been to some of my shows
and we partied a ton of times
and ran around Seattle a bunch and um
I was like
super tight with him but
I mean we totally knew each other from right
the scene you know
um but uh no
it wasn't sarcastic at all
it was like they were all very even
and Jeff as well you know
they were no
it was like a cool thing so that's cool
but I still felt weird about it right
cause you you wanted to be
you didn't want to be like here
yeah making your record
I want to make my well
and also yes I
you know
that was just my immaturity and all that at the time
but you know
and I tell you about the may stuff
we kind of had some success
excuse me some you know
some success it seemed like
and then um
to some degree
uh and so I
I kind of felt like I was slipping back
like they're on a label and making a record
I quit that and I started making stuff
and then nothing has happened yet
and now I'm working here you know
that's little
they they weren't
they didn't have a problem
I was the one tripping right
well that's awesome
the the other story
well um
I was lucky enough to meet stone back in 2008
after a Pearl Jam show
and got to talk to him for a brief minute and
you know tell the guys like you're
you're the reason I picked up a guitar
you and Mike Mcreedy pretty much
more or less and Marty Mcfly
but uh
one thing that struck me about him was um
you know my wife made the introduction
I didn't want to bother him
I just kind of was like there he is
I just want to sit here and order a drink
and I didn't I didn't know I
I did that with many people
I don't know like
I don't want to do that she just
she just turned around and said
that's kind of what wives are for
because that's what they do haha
well I'm very thankful she did that because yeah
we you know
he talked to us for a minute and got it
got it started holy cool
he's funny as hell but um
it was a he was with some people
he was with Smitty the tour manager
I don't know yeah
no of them yeah
and then there was a moment where it was just he and I
and I was just trying to give him a space
he just played a show and everything so
and he says to me you've got a burning question
what's your burning question
so I went over to his table
and sat down and talked for a minute
and then he said the thing that struck me was
uh
he asked me what I thought about the records
he's like what
what do you you know
what do you think about the Pearl Jam records
and I was like well
you know I don't listen to
or I I listen
I love all of them like
I'm a huge fan like
I'm kind of biased but like
there's some noise tracks that
I might not listen to every time
but I understand it serves a bigger purpose but
and then it was a great night
got to say goodbye and everything
but looking back at that moment
I was like this dude wrote the alive riff
and he's just expressed some pretty big insecurity
about how he feels about you know what I mean
no yeah I
I don't um
I take it more like this uh
he um
and this is something about Stone Man
he
he lives it he thinks about it all the time
this is what he he cares like that it's
it's really interesting
he told me he asked you what you thought of the records
because he wants to know like
it really matters to him that blew my mind
I was like the yeah
the guy that wrote alive and why go and play
and all these songs that I love was like
you know what do you think about
are they is it okay
I was like what
you know it sounds like how he was with Rick
we'd go on after the studio
sometimes we'd take him home
he was he was uh
stay at this this place
anyway we
we drive him home and Rick's car
I'd be in the back and I remember him going
Rick just tell me you like us
cause Rick wouldn't give out compliments
he's very stoic about that stuff
and um
just just act like you like us
you know I mean
kind of joking but not
you know and um
but yes he's uh
it matters to him and that
that's the thing about that record too and
and I Learned so much
all in hindsight I've taken it
but what it showed me like
those guys were um
like some I've had people ask me early on or whatever
different times people be like
oh tell us some studios stories and craziness and stuff
I'm like there were
there's no stories there's no craziness
it was just work like yeah
they came in early morning
started playing you know
what should we do it was thought like
they were always kind of not freaking out or worrying
but you know
it was they were trying to make a record for real art
like it
it this
they were there to do something
it wasn't rock and Roll Party
Motley Crue stuff or something
you know it was like
so nothing like that
like it was so boring
if anything
so I don't have stories that are entertaining because
not juicy stories anyway but
I mean there's nothing entertaining to tell
like what we went there and started recording
started work you know
working and that's what it was
um was there
like a
any piece of gear that y'all use
that might surprise somebody that was on that
no see that
that's the thing Marshalls and tube screamer no
yeah it was really straight
just kind of like the temple of dog thing
I got a little bit more you know
more stuff than temple
because they'd gotten an advancement
got some money you know
I know Mike was very
Mike was most excited about everything um
and you know
uh I think stone
I remember he they bought
they were like after when I got my record deal
I bought way more stuff um they
they uh
they like bought I remember he got like a supero amp
a little'cause Jimmy Hendrix
he read used one somewhere recording
he got a uh a Gretsch
I don't know that's about it maybe
and then he just had his regular
his setup he had he used from
I remember from Oliver maybe Green River
but he used to do the Marshall and Fender twin combo
that was his thing and then um
Mike used the same
me and Mike used to rehearse at the same room
for a while and um
he had the same
so sometimes we use each other's Marshall or whatever
so he had the same Marshall from that
cause I recognized it was a red Marshall head
and um I think mine was there
so we'd use we'd blend them
and he got some you know
a strap he got a
I don't know not that it was really
no it was like really basic um
oh well
Jeff got all his 12 string guitar
yeah so that was a thing
outside of that like
you know we had a nice kit
we we had the luxury
like
this all seems in LA these things were done normally
so you gotta remember
still in Seattle even though it was a nice
big studio we're not used to having
you know it's not
there wasn't
major label records being made all the time up there
so you know
we had this luxury seemed over the top
it's done all the time everywhere else
but we had a you know
a drum tech tuner guy and a
they rented a a special snare
a noble Cooley wood snare
and he'd come in and have that tune which
you know it was amazing
and it was great uh
but you know
if you talk to other big producers in LA or whatever
well that's normal
but it seemed like this big
uh
fancy spending money yeah
what we were doing um
but yeah
it was so straightforward and
and London Bridge is known to be straightforward
you know they had the meat and potatoes of everything
the stuff you needed um
amazing board amazing tape machine
the room was designed great
just the standard mics you would expect
nothing less nothing more
same with the outboard it
nothing was over they didn't have a ton of anything
just the right classic stuff
and that's all Rick needed
he was not a gearhead he didn't care
it would have to be something
he really needed that but
and so which was great for me to learn that way
um how to get straight
good sounds with the Right stuff
so did
are you responsible for the guitar sounds on that
or is that several other people or well
so I'm known for guitars and guitar sounds obviously
and my stuff is much more
I throw the kitchen sink on everything
you know I love that stuff um
but what I became and and what was
you know Rick being smart
as smart as he is and strategic as he is
he knew that I cause he wasn't a rock guy
a band guy in that regard
and he knew I could had rapport with them and um
understood guitars and rock roll and uh
stuff like that so I kind of could bridge that uh
relationship with um stone and Mike
kind of letting them just do what they do
but I could relate to Rick more
like what we're thinking I go
that's cool or not cool right
you know uh
that sounds really good and he would take he
that's what he would look for for me
make sure that it's cool to a guy in
that knows that stuff in the scene
and to a thirteen year old kid in Ashland
Kentucky that was right and
and so and I knew basic thing
you know I knew my stuff about guitars
I'm like yeah
let's just you know
those guitars let's
let's put in that
let's take my amp too and blend them to
you know and he knew those tricks already so uh
um yeah
that's kind of how how we worked
and then that got more and more um
developed over time but in that record
you know uh
like I said once we got good sounds going
we just kind of went with them
and then then the record was mainly them tracking
and the whole thing was about getting the perfect take
so there would be just
we went through so many reels of tape
and the whole thing it was
the whole time we had to spend going through the reels
to find the right takes was a whole other story
that people would people today don't even have
wouldn't even spend that much time in the studio
making the record that love them
going through all that and the overdubs
and then letting Eddie become Eddie
and so you know
most of the times you know
you know Rick would go leave
go home go out to dinner
and leave me because him being there all the time
we're doing that would just blur everything
so by me being there doing stuff he
I have the notes what was
what was good takes what was this
what was that and he'd come in in the morning
listen down to that
then work with the guys through the day
we'd be doing our stuff here's the stuff for tonight
he'd split and
you know we'd let them become Pearl Jam really
and that's not I don't know how
records really aren't made like that anymore um so
that's me yeah
the guitars on temple of the dog and even 10
they just the best adjective I could think of is lush
they're just real lushy kind of fluidy
there's there's nothing else
you know a lot of that's his playing
but as far as getting those sounds
it was like
how do we get a good straight Marshall sound
how do we get a good twin psycho
they were you know
there was no um
not a lot of uh
fairy dust on anything there's like the
the Rodo vibe effects or univibe effect on it
yeah that sounds
it's just but honestly
honestly that was just a Rodo vibe pedal
yeah through just a unlocked Rodo vibe pedal
yeah just not even a univibe yet
ha ha ha no no
it's just one of those red based univibe pedals
I can't believe I remember that
I've got one it's
and yeah he's
ha ha no
yeah there was um
you know I'm recording Mike
you know he
like I said he'd be nervous and
you know and I know how it is too
like he was
you know all
all you're having is dreams of his
you know
what's my interview and guitar player gonna be like
magazine like
you know what so
you know he's
he's trying to make his statement
and this is his dream come true and um
so that was fun to watch you know
him in the room in the control room next to me
and punching him in he'd have
we set up a little folding table
and he he was always so wired up
were you there with him when he did the
the reach down solo
um not on
not on temple no
um all the pro jam stuff
most of the stuff was tracked on temple
that's um
I can't you know
I can't remember exactly I was so like
that's when it was all little flustered
yeah dude
I was it was like
full speed and I was like
I didn't know what I got into really
and like
even going home or wherever it was people
when I had when I did see people
um it's in the studio all the time
but it was like I don't even
I couldn't even really explain to people
what I was doing you know
um so I
I do roll jam I have a better
memory of but um
yeah I just remember
trying not to screw up
but yet wanting to be as part of it as I could
oh man I
I think you succeeded yeah
that that is just like
one of the best records ever
do you yeah
do you feel that way about it
I I do now
in hindsight I just was so close to it
and then right it took a while
um like I said
I had I had this story about when I'm doing black
doing vocals with Eddie and so everybody went home
I was just me and him and I had
you know I get his lyrics because
and we Xerox him in the office upstairs
bring him down and put him on the console
because when you're punching on tape
you know I have to have the lyrics in front of me
to make sure I know where he's coming in or whatever
and I remember we're going through it
we're going through stuff
and I remember I wasn't impressed yet with the record
I didn't know what was gonna happen with it
uh
wasn't even a thing and um
I I just remember thinking oh
he writes pretty good lyrics
hahaha and then
you know now
years later I see a video of him singing that song in
like South America with everybody
tens of thousands of people singing it back to him
I'm like
wow dude
like you were sitting there kind of giving a
that is crazy a slight
a slight like hey
not bad lyric you know
and um
so you know
I
over time now and things like that
I'm going wow
you know this is a big record
you never know what's gonna hit
and I've actually come recently
I've been listening to
I've been throwing temple of dog on and going damn
you know um
that's awesome do you feel the same way
about 10 do you put that on and be like man
this is a great record yeah
I mean it's not something I've ever just put on
I didn't have a copy now that I
now that we have streaming
I can pull things up um
the copy I have is my my platinum record
but I remember okay
put it this way like
I think like
10 years went by maybe five years
and it was like big
it was known and I had these guys come over to paint um
my mother's house to get painted
and I had these worker guys that from town I knew
and they were playing it on a boombox
you know while they were working
and I went oh whoa
you know and then
and I was hearing it playing
and I'm like
that's cool and they're like
it was it kinda
that's when it kinda first hit me kinda
I mean yeah
I saw him on MTV and things like that
but I was in the studio all the time anyway
doing my own thing
so that was the first thing where I went oh
I guess this is a thing
and then I just think I didn't want to accept it
or whatever then it got grunge
and then it was you know
2 or whatever by then but yes
as I've gotten older like
I totally appreciate it and found that um
and had to get it my own thing going wow
you know you should be proud of that and talk about it
and then the thing like podcast came on and I go oh
I guess people really do care about this stuff
and so yeah
it's been it's been a weird journey for me
if you I think even now I
I feel like the 90s are kind of having a
a rebirth there's like
oh absolutely
and it's hard thank goodness
cause it's keeping me busy
so yeah dude
I have lived in the 90s ever since
it's like I you know
you know you said it first
um I uh
I do too man
um I do and I don't
you know I've totally embraced everything in the future
and technology all that stuff
but you know
the further we get away from it
we were you know
it was good times and
and now I can really appreciate and be so uh
happy that I was so deeply part of it
but I definitely didn't realize it for
as we're winding down
we only got like a minute or so left
I wondered if you'd humor me
and you might not even agree with this sentiment
but I would call Pearl Jam 10 a perfect album
from start to finish there's no
there's no waste there's no fodder
you know that's
every track is great but if you had to cut one track
what track would it be I don't know
the album that will alright
I got it pulled up so I can tell you
I thought that might be an issue um
there's I don't
I don't off hand
I mean as I've been getting to know it
Reno it again um
and you know get this kind of like when
you know
directors or something make a movie cause they're like
they're cutting or an editor cutting movies
they're so close to it they don't see that um
but as I've come through it I
I agree with you I go wow
this is a well written all the way through record I
I can't think of something off top
what are you what's your take on it
uh we've got once
even flow alive why go Black Jeremy Oceans
Porch Garden
Deep and release and ugh
we're all good man
I remember liking all the deep
deeper tracks a lot when we were track
not knowing they were deep tracks
but at the time I remember a lot of those songs
like garden and oceans and stuff um
read uh
all those I thought those were all kind of good
and by the way real quick Tibet
I always thought we were doing working titles
cause everything was one name
uh huh we're gonna keep going
that was our hour but let's finish this up
go ahead I'm sorry
so I was surprised when those they
they actually came out in the record that way
oh yeah in that order
well in that they were all one name
still I thought they were working
oh yeah yeah
well that's why they did the
on the next album
there was a elderly woman behind the counter
oh they got
they got they got yeah
made up for it yeah more than
all right Dave
well thank you so much
yes taking the time out and talking with us
yeah amazing
uh man
maybe we could do it again sometime
yeah there's definitely enough for a part two
awesome man
thank you so much sure
I appreciate you guys having this fun talking
we'll see you next time all right thanks a lot
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