Audiotool

Interview

Howdy I'm Andy, 23, and have been on AT since 2012. I'm from Eastern Pennsylvania.

About Andy aka andy: Howdy I'm Andy, 23, and have been on AT since 2012. I'm from Eastern Pennsylvania, USA (Go Eagles) and went to school at University of Pittsburgh. The last few years I've traveled all around the country working and until this year I finally stayed in one spot and I was able to put more time into music. My favorite style of music has changed drastically over the years but for now I'm in love with pop music. Guys like Frank Ocean, Jai Paul, Phoebe Bridgers and even Justin Bieber taught me a lot about writing music/lyrics. Also, the best pizza is obviously bruschetta.
Describe the style of music you produce: I started with House on my prior accounts, but then I learned about the beauties of Ambient music (Thank you Brian Eno!). For years I spent time making ambient and lofi, until I heard Jai Paul's music. If you haven't heard his album I seriously recommend checking it out! From there I got into more pop music, and eventually starting doing vocals. Since my baptism by fire with vocal production, I feel way more comfortable with adding them into any genre.
What is your musical background and when did you start making music?: Growing up, my family had a huge 1920s Steinway piano in our family room, which was given to us by my great uncle who actually worked for Steinway. The piano taught me some simple music theory such as learning all the major/minor scales. With Audiotool, I wanted to be like deadmau5 in middle school, and I found Audiotool when searching for free DAWs. After all these years I still stick with Audiotool because I love the community, and the ease of use.
What is your favorite Audiotool device and why?: There's way too many options for the best device! The quasar and pulsar delay are super powerful and currently the most used device in any of my tracks. I also couldn't leave out the Pulv, as it is still my favorite synth in the studio. Probe also deserves a shoutout, as it is seriously some awesome software, and the reverb effects are incredible.
What is your favorite trick in AT/What technique do you always use?: Reverb and Delay Aux sends are your friend. Being able to control the effects via the centroid's sends always sounds really great. A little subtle reverb on a channel can make a huge difference.
Have you ever had a writer's block? If so, how did you deal with it and what do you recommend to your colleagues?: I'm actually in one right now! The truth is that patience is always key, and never try to force it. If you don't want to walk away from music for a time, then find a different medium. Currently I'm spending my time practicing piano and guitar instead of Audiotool.
What has helped you the most on Audiotool to improve and widen your musical horizon?: I owe so much to the people of this community. Shoutout naswalt, who helped me understand sound synthesis with the Pulv, and was one of the first people who showed me the possibility of vocals in Audiotool. Shoutout Fluent and sim as they expanded my horizons with different genres, especially in Bootyclub:).
What do you like most about Audiotool? Is there anything you would like to suggest?: I love the dev team and everyone involved with the building, maintaining, and growth of this site. You make this all possible, and bring so much light into people's lives with this small music app. The Audiotool team may get hate sometimes but I hope you guys realize we all love you!
Your message to the community:: I hope everyone keeps continuing to work on your craft and keeps improving. I try my best to stay up to date with everything people publish, but post your tracks on my wall, I'll give them all a listen. Feel free to reach out to me at anytime to ask questions or just talk!

“I love the dev team and everyone involved with the building, maintaining, and growth of this site. You make this all possible, and bring so much light into people's lives with this small music app.”
— andy