Total Sonic Media

09/18/2020

Sulu and Excelsior "How Can I Lose My Mind" OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO

Awesome video from Sulu & Excelsior, the brainchild of vocalist/multi-instrumentalist/producer Steve Mallorca - who nicely hits tinges of Nat King Cole, Tribe Called Quest and Eddie Palmieri all in the same track. Audio mastered at Total Sonic Media by Steven Berson- and video nicely featuring the Stereodisk vinyl record mastering and pressing facility run by Leandro Gonzalez - check it!

https://youtu.be/8RAnSNqjigI

"How Can I Lose My Mind" is the sixth music video Sulu and Excelsior's "The AntiMatter Suite" visual album, and was mostly shot at the Kenilworth, NJ-based r...

07/18/2020

Acres of Diamonds, by Anthony Garcia

Proud and honored to have mastered the audio for this excellent album by the incredibly talented guitarist/keyboardist/vocalist/songwriter Anthony Garcia - which features Megan Berson all over it on layers of violins - check it!! ->

9 track album

06/21/2020

While we are not yet actually accepting attended sessions, we are indeed very open for your online orders!
Just upload your mixes to us via our convenient Hightail Uplink at https://spaces.hightail.com/uplink/totalsonicmedia (or any other method you are comfortable with) - and then we send you reference files for your approval as a convenient download, with a free revision as part of our package order.
Please get your order in the next 9 days in order to get a 10% discount off of our usual already low rates, in our special June 2020 sale!

06/07/2020

GUAYABO - Videoclip

Honored and privileged to have gotten to master yet another most excellent track, for the always amazing La Perla, a super talented women's percussion and voice ensemble from Bogota, Colombia. Check it! ->
El mundo atraviesa un momento de muchos cambios, transiciones, descubrimientos y reivindicaciones. En medio de la muerte, las injusticias, el miedo y el terr...

El mundo atraviesa un momento de muchos cambios, transiciones, descubrimientos y reivindicaciones. En medio de la muerte, las injusticias, el miedo y el terr...

05/17/2020

Grateful to be able to continue working here at Total Sonic Media in a safe and super comfortable solo setting. We are open for new mastering orders - and in consideration that many musicians and independent labels are facing financial strain at this point, just mention this post for an additional 10% off of our already low rates, if you place and pay for your order in the rest of May or June. Hope everyone is staying healthy and sane out there!
https://www.totalsonic.net

(pic during a rare attended session, from 2 years ago, by the most awesome Andy Macintyre)

04/27/2020

Coronavirus: State-by-State Resource Guide for Music Professionals Who Need Help

Good info for any music creators needing help during these trying times.

To help music professionals and their loved ones navigate the crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic, Billboard has compiled a list of resources at national and state levels.

03/20/2020

Today, Support Artists Impacted By the Covid-19 Pandemic

Today is an awesome day to not only get some great tunes and merch from some independent artists and small labels, but to also make sure that the proceeds go completely to the music creators: Bandcamp, which in my view is the current "best in class" website for purchasing downloads and direct from the artist vinyl, CD's and other goodies, is giving 100% of the revenues to the artists for any sales made today. Please take a look at the tons of great music available there - and please help out your favorite music makers with a purchase. And if you have an album or other tracks up on Bandcamp - please link to it in the comments below. :)

https://daily.bandcamp.com/features/bandcamp-covid-19-fundraiser

Support artists directly today on Bandcamp.

03/16/2020

I have so many clients and friends, most that are freelancers involved in the creative arts, and a lot in the service industries, that are just looking at a world of hurt, with pretty much all their gigs cancelled, and scrambling to find any other source of income (at a time when a multitude of others are doing the same). Was in conversation with the award winning DJ Brace, with whom I've been honored to get to master numerous albums and scratch sides for, and this was a good perspective to see (reposted with his permission). Wishing everyone the very best in navigating our current predicament - sincerely hope that you and yours stays healthy, happy, sane, and creative. - Steve Berson, Total Sonic Media

03/11/2020

I've been seriously blessed the past 16 years to be involved in a profession which allows me to sit in an air conditioned room, for the great part of the time alone, while listening to music and moving some knobs and pixels around, and the past 14 years of that while self employed as well. For the most part these days my client contact is via email, and I just receive and send back files via the internet to and from around numerous spots all around the globe. But my income still greatly depends on the music creators who entrust me with polishing their works having people gather for their live performances (which in the era of streaming has become increasingly the major source of professional musician's income), or else them having income streams from other jobs that allow them to pursue the passion of having their musical creations sound that the absolute best they can possibly be, even if they will not necessarily fully recoup the costs of the recordings. So I am grateful that my job might have some temporary relative immunity from any potential quarantines, or mass movements for voluntary "social distancing" (aka - people playing it safe and staying home) - I do also hope that musicians, producers, venues, engineers, servers, promoters and support staff can all survive in the long term over any of the adversities that we might be facing for the rest of the year. Bless Up Everybody! - hope you and yours stay safe, healthy, sane - and creative :) ~ Steven Berson, Total Sonic Media

03/10/2020

Honored and privileged to have gotten to master the latest album from brilliant Baltimore based guitarist/arranger Michael Raitzyk - truly some amazing playing on some classic and inspired tunes on this - highly recommended!

Hello good people. Here is a new recording for your listening enjoyment. It lives on
https://michaelraitzyk.bandcamp.com/album/everything-must-change
Cheers!

02/21/2020

I've been honored and privileged to get to master all four of the albums from the most excellent gypsy-jazz quartet The Bailsmen - and this latest one features what to me is their best performances and recording to date - check it! ->

Today we’re very proud to be digitally releasing our third album, From Up Top. Head over to Spotify or our Bandcamp and give it a listen.

https://open.spotify.com/album/37CFqrK0kYmt9FdSNxkXZE?si=ZoCFb84JTAqCiXtedV4dqw

https://thebailsmen.bandcamp.com/album/from-up-top-2

This is the end result of a year's hard work and we can't be happier with the help and inspiration we've received along the way.

🎸 Charlie Castelluzzo
🎷 Gabriel Evan
Bass 🎻 Abe Pollack
🎸 Brandon Vetrano
Accordion and 🎤 Albert Behar
Drums Chris Gelb
Piano Jesse Gelber
Recorded by Josh Hahn at The Relic Room
Mixed by Alex Hall
Mastered by Steven Berson
Cover Photo by Aidan Grant
Designed by Angela Pons
#gypsyjazz #newmusicfriday #newmusic #jazz #vintage

02/12/2020

What you should know about the retirement of CD Baby’s retail store.

One more step towards the end of the era of the Compact Disc: CD Baby announced that beginning March 31, it will no longer have it's own online store, and will sell CD's only through Amazon and a few other retail affiliates, turning itself into a distributor only. This leaves BandCamp as the remaining, in my opinion, best in class option for direct merching and online download sales. https://support.cdbaby.com/hc/en-us/articles/360039018232

CD Baby's mission is to help artists monetize and promote their music in the best ways possible. In order to provide the tools and services you need to succeed in an evolving music ecosystem, we’ve...

02/08/2020

TSM - DMM Studios

With the total loss from the fire at the Apollo Masters facility, one source for vinyl mastering that will not be directly affected by lacquer master disc supply disruptions that should manifest in a few months (apart from likely getting slammed with new orders) is Direct Metal Mastering, as DMM studios have completely different sources for the copper discs needed for this.
SO - I just did an update to my list of studios which can still make DMM's for your music - which to the best of my knowledge is now only 8 places (as Abbey Road recently converted their DMM lathe to cut lacquer at half speed, Ton Schall Raum closed, and two facilities newly added DMM in Germany) located in 3 European nations (1 in Czech Republic, 6 in Germany and 1 in The Netherlands).

https://totalsonic.net/dmm.htm

02/03/2020

LoCura

New single by the truly amazing LoCura, featuring excellent production by Juan Manuel Caipo - mastered at Total Sonic Media by Steven Berson - check it! ->

New Single out today!
Special guest QVLN - Quetzal Guerrero on violin.
Produced by LoCura y Juan Manuel Caipo.
Artwork by Luna Fuentes-Vaccaro

For José Ángel Campos Cantor - Ayotzinapa 43
For the disappeared normalista students of Ayoztinapa Mexico and the families that continue to fight and march for justice.
"They wanted to bury us but they didn't know we were seeds."

Quisieron enterrarnos pero no sabían que somos semillas."

01/22/2020

Gypsy Woman (She Is Homeless)

Around 27 years ago, working in Baltimore at Multimedia Productions, in my first job in a studio as an assistant, I was assigned to an evening session for the Basement Boys, who were just coming off a major success of producing a national hit by Crystal Waters - for the track "Gypsy Woman". I was soon dismissed out of the room though, as the Basement Boys had brought their own much more capable engineer along, and they just wanted access to Mutlimedia's Digidesign Sound Designer II workstation - one of maybe a few existing in Baltimore at the time that could do the incredible for the time act of editing and processing a stereo track of audio without leaving the digital realm. Luckily I didn't let that bit of discouragement phase me and ended up successfully running a few sessions for the likes of AIM Records and DJ Equalizer ok by myself later on there - but it was kind of nice to go full circle on this and be able to master an excellent new cover of the track that made the Basement Boys famous for a minute - from Netherlands' amazing Mell & Vintage Future. Check it! ->

https://open.spotify.com/album/6gZZHPyAnstuuEQxWf6skB?highlight=spotify:track:1ernKllF4rTqng0D2TZkHZ

Gypsy Woman (She Is Homeless), an album by Mell & Vintage Future on Spotify

12/23/2019

Total Sonic Media's cover photo

12/23/2019

Total Sonic Media's cover photo

12/23/2019

Always nice to close the year out with an attended session, in this case with Austin based engineer/producer/bassist Gregg White, who I have done unattended work for his previous band Western Youth. It was great to put a face to a name and get some engineers hang time for a couple of singles for his latest project "My Golden Calf." Now comes to the sprint to the finish in the next day and a half until Winter Break - just have an album and two singles to go.

12/23/2019

Silent Stereo Records Christmas Spectacular, by Various Artists

For your listening pleasure - some awesome Holiday music recorded lovingly onto analog tape by the retro-pop label Silent Stereo and mastered by yours truly at Total Sonic Media - wishing everybody a Merry Christmas, Happy Chanukah, Blissful Yalda, Ecstatic Saturnalia, Joyful Kwanzaa and a Blessed New Year to ALL!!

https://silentstereorecords.bandcamp.com/album/silent-stereo-records-christmas-spectacular

14 track album

12/22/2019

Tilting at Windmills, by Charles Emmett Freeman

Some beautiful and challenging music for your Solstice from the amazingly talented multi-instrumentalist Charles Emmett Freeman - honored to have gotten to master this at Total Sonic Media - check it! https://charles-emmett-freeman.bandcamp.com/album/tilting-at-windmills

7 track album

12/13/2019

The latest end of year upgrade for Total Sonic Media's gear list is a Compulab Airtop M - a completely silent fanless computer running Windows 10 on a fast i7 chip - to replace my studio's older self-built main capture DAW that is still running Windows 7 (which is finally going to stop getting security updates in April 2020). Combined with our even smaller fanless playback DAW computer from EITX we put into place a few years ago, we will now be able to have absolutely zero fan noise in here, without the need for a machine closet or isolation boxes either. Onward and upward!

11/22/2019

The AntiMatter Suite, by Sulu and Excelsior

I've been enormously blessed in my job to get to work with some incredibly talented artists, and nothing makes me feel better than also getting their return business with them entrusting me with the final polish for their creations. In this case, this is the second full album and third release I've had the honor of mastering for Steve Mallorca, the mastermind vocalist/multi-instrumentalist/producer behind the "Sulu and Excelsior" project. This is a truly unique hybrid that gives a retro-future soul, r&b latin hip-hop vision - with vibes of Jackie Wilson and Marvin Gaye hanging out with the likes of Dr. Octagon, Cachao and A Tribe Called Quest. Highly recommended! ->

https://suluandexcelsior.com/album/the-antimatter-suite

13 track album

11/11/2019

One Fader to rule them all ;)

09/06/2019

Vinyl Is Poised to Outsell CDs For the First Time Since 1986

It's less of a sign of how well vinyl is doing and more of a sign of how poorly CD's are selling - but vinyl is regaining its reign as king of the tangible audio playback formats once again ->

In the near future, the revenue generated by record sales is likely to surpass the revenue generated by CDs

08/06/2019

A mastering studio from the 1950's ->

07/31/2019

Happy 93rd B'day to a fellow immigrant to Texas, Mr. Rupert Neve. Always a pleasure to use one of his designs (the Amek "Medici The Equaliser") in my daily work. Thank you for making the world a better sounding place! :)

93 years young. Happy Birthday, Mr. Rupert Neve!

07/18/2019

Congratulations goes out to the amazing and talented The Dead South for achieving certified Gold Record status in Canada, for their single “In Hell I’ll Be In Good Company” - recorded and mixed by the super talented Orion Paradis - and mastered by Steven Berson at Total Sonic Media.

https://www.thedeadsouth.com/

07/17/2019

Janet LaBelle's "I Only See You" Is Spare, Haunting Ballad (premiere)

Always awesome to see some super talented friends that I've gotten to work with are getting some well deserved notice. Here is singer/multi-instrumentalist/songwriter Janet LaBelle's latest video for a poignant ukulele driven ballad featured by PopMatters - mastered by Steven Berson at Total Sonic Media - and very well worth a listen and watch - check it! ->

With the music inspired by Roy Orbison and visuals influenced by French cinema, "I Only See You" spotlights Janet LaBelle's abilities as a powerhouse vocalist.

07/08/2019

Barrio Manouche - El Joven (Official Video)

Missed this awesome video when it first came out in March - but here's a truly cool mix of gypsy jazz ala Django Reinhardt blended with neo-retro Cab Collaway big band swing, a dash of flamenco and a modern groove heavy vibe - Barrio Manouche - excellent production by Juan Manuel Caipo, and mastered at Total Sonic Media by Steven Berson - check it! ->

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uOw-KABSi9I

Barrio Manouche new single “El Joven” is now available worldwide. Stream and download “El Joven”: https://onerpm.lnk.to/ElJoven See Barrio Manouche live: htt...

07/01/2019

This visit was back in April but just got sent this pic so posting it now. Was great to get to hang out with some one I've known from exchanges on the SAWStudio forums for probably 20 years now but had previously never met in person. Carl Grout is an excellent producer, recording and broadcast engineer and voice-over artist - who has worked with the likes of Andy Williams, Chuck Berry, BB King, Billy Ray Cyrus, The Beach Boys, Pam Tillis, Ray Price, Rick Springfield, Lawrence Welk, Tony Orlando, and Three Dog Night among numerous others - so it was indeed an honor and a blast to get to get an afternoon hangout of some shop talk and listening to some great stories when he came by here. You can check out Carl's work at http://creativetrax.com