Justin Douglas: "Well This Sucks: Recording in the Time of Covid"

Audio engineer and producr Justin Douglas, owner of King Electric Recording Co in Austin, TX, wrote an insightful piece for TapeOp. He named it "Well This Sucks: Recording in the Time of Covid", but he is actually quite optimistic about what he can do in these weird times:

Earning a living as an audio engineer is tremendously difficult in the best of times. Somehow you’ve made it work, to some degree at least, so you already possess all the knowledge and resources you need to meet whatever awaits us in the future. All the other stuff, the concrete stuff---like how do I pay studio rent, how can musicians with service industry day jobs afford studio time when those jobs have disappeared---those are very immediate and very real, but they’re also universal. Sure, some people can weather the storm financially better than others, but the reality of the situation has hit us all exactly the same, and no one’s got answers to the questions we're all asking. You and I have a skill and provide a service that brings meaning and beauty into the world and into people's lives. It’s a service people need. So instead of waiting and stressing while fielding home-recording questions from clients, I think we should all be making plans toward safely generating work. I believe doing so responsibly and conscientiously will make professional recording a source of stability and a buttress against uncertainty in our music communities.