‘Producing is a collaborative process. A continual dialogue that guides everyone comfortably to the desired result. To achieve this, a fluid balance is struck between spontaneity, intuition and decisive action’
An award-winning guitarist and graduate of Leeds College of Music. Chris has spent the last 20 years making forward-thinking new music that blurs boundaries between improvisation, production, composition and the associated genres of these often separated fields.
He co-founded the Leeds Improvised Music Association (LIMA) which drew national attention to Leeds in the early 2000s and was a member of influential UK groups, trioVD and Acoustic Ladyland.
Chris’ work explores the intersection of improvisation and electronic sound and he brings this approach to his production and mixing practice.
Chris has recorded, mixed, remixed and mastered music for for Keeley Forsyth, Matthew Bourne, Seb Rochford, Oliver Coates, Troyka, World Service Project, trioVD, Shiver, Lara Jones, J Frisco, Zoe Gilby, The Geordie Approach, Roller Trio and more.
His sound is inspired by the work of forward-thinking producers such as Tchad Blake, John McEntire and BJ Burton
‘Music that comes at you, out of the speakers, an exploration of fantasy rather than a depiction of reality!’
‘As an improvising musician, I understand the environment an artist needs to create, from the vibe in the room to the sound in the headphones. This principle is at the heart of everything I do as a producer’
Label clients include Edition, Naim, Leaf, RareNoise, Discus, Babel, Not Applicable, NewJaIM.
At the heart of Chris’ setup is a 20-channel Universal Audio Apollo portable recording rig that allows clients to track through authentic emulations of vintage equipment from Neve, API and SSL as well as astounding amplifier emulations from Marshall, Ampeg and Friedman with zero latency. The system also boasts elite class AD/DA conversion and pristine headphone amplification for easy, comfortable and satisfying tracking, either live or in an overdub situation.
Hardware / Software:
2 x Universal Audio x8p Interfaces (Thunderbolt 3)
1 x Universal Audio x4 Interface (Thunderbolt 3)
(20 channels of UAD unison preamps with 16 cores of processing power)
+ OCTO Satellite and Full suite of UAD plugins from classic preamps to legendary reverbs for live tracking / mixing (Neve, API, Fairchild, Urei, Lexicon, EMT + much more)
Ableton Live 11 / Logic Pro X / Pro Tools / LUNA
Microphones:
Royer, AKG, DPA, Sennheiser, Nude, Sontronics + more
BEST SUITED FOR:
Instrumental / Improvised / Jazz / Experimental / Electro-acoustic / Alternative / Guitars / Horns / Drums / Electronics
BIOGRAPHY
‘fiercely inventive, powerfully independent’ – The Guardian
Chris Sharkey is a musician from the North-East of England.
Based in Leeds since 1999, he is an active national and international artist, performing with Charles Hayward (This Heat) , Jack Wylie (Portico), Roller Trio, Anton Eger’s Æ, Joshua Blackmore’s SiZE, Acoustic Ladyland, trioVD, Shiver, The Geordie Approach, and as a solo artist.
EXAMPLES OF WORK
https://rollertrioband.bandcamp.com/album/new-devices
https://keeleyforsyth.bandcamp.com/album/photograph-ep (mixed Photograph / Unravelling)
https://chrissharkey.bandcamp.com/album/4
https://discusmusic.bandcamp.com/album/shields-84cd-2019