10-Time Grammy Winner Darrell Thorp shows you how to record and mix gritty rock with the insanely talented Steve Hill!
Join Grammy-winning engineer Darrell Thorp (Radiohead, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Foo Fighters, Beck) as he takes on a unique challenge: recording and mixing a literal one-man band – Steve Hill. Hill plays guitar, bass, and drums simultaneously, crafting a raw and powerful blues-rock sound. While some overdubs are involved, the foundation of this session is a live recording, and Darrell reveals his techniques for capturing and enhancing this remarkable performance.
Why Take This Course?
If you’re into rock production, this is essential viewing for you. Steve Hill’s gritty, blues-infused rock is timeless, and Darrell’s approach to recording and mixing gives it the depth, tonality, and energy of a full band. Whether you’re a producer working on your own music or an engineer looking to refine your skills, this course delivers valuable insights into achieving a massive, room-filling sound – no matter the genre.
What You’ll Learn
This is a short course but with a huge amount packed in. In this course you will learn how to use the studio to your full advantage, how to deal with exceptional levels of microphone bleed and how to craft a fantastic bluesy rock hit. Start the course today and let Darrell Thorp guide you through the whole shebang of what it takes to create a stunning world class rock track that any pro would be proud of!
We found a groove, and we were cooking…
In this session, Darrell works on Hanging on a String, a driving blues-rock track by Steve Hill. Steve plays drums and guitar simultaneously, using a special headstock technique and two pedal based drums, feeding his bass strings through a harmoniser and bass amp, and feeding the rest of his guitar through the classic pairing of a Fender Princeton and Vox AC 30 amp. All at the same time. This is a great course not only for producers, mixers, and engineers but also anyone who is interested in recording great guitar tones.
Darrell casts some magic on it
For this session, Darrell took on more of a producer role, guiding the performance while making key recording decisions and keeping the team motivated in his own inimitable way. One of the first big choices was to record to tape, adding natural EQ shifts and classic analog warmth to the sound. The results speak for themselves.
Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced producer, you’ll gain valuable insight into recording a compact setup in the studio and mixing rock music with commonly available plugins – no extra outboard gear required.
Add a little extra something to it in the mix
Great mixing isn’t about piling on effects—it’s about making intentional, impactful choices. Darrell breaks down the mix, tackling the unique challenges of a one-man band setup. This is a fantastic course for anyone looking to record in a smaller studio -although this recording was made at the legendary Studio 606, the compact nature of Steve’s setup translates perfectly for any small space.
Key takeaways include:
- Using compression strategically with different mic setups
- Employing the Bob Clearmountain snare gating technique for attack and depth
- Avoiding muddiness by carefully shaping frequency balance
This course showcases Darrell’s meticulous approach, demonstrating how a rough mix can evolve into a polished rock track.
If you don’t scoop out enough, things get cloudy…
A muddy mix can sap a track’s energy. Darrell excels at creating space and clarity, ensuring every element shines while maintaining the raw power of the performance. His techniques for EQ, stereo imaging, and reverb placement are invaluable for anyone looking to craft professional-sounding rock mixes.
Darrell takes the results into Pro Tools and shows you how he achieved a massive vision from a literal one man band solution. You will see all his tricks of the trade, including:
- EQ techniques for blending multiple amplifiers
- The benefits of recording to tape for added warmth and saturation
- Using common plugins to build depth and richness in a mix
Gargantuan freaking gnarly guitar tones
It’s sometimes hard to remember that this is just one musician and due to his amazing talent and the production and mixing skills of Darrell. By using expert microphone placement and isolation techniques in conjunction with an ear for a hot take and some fantastic DAW plugins, Darrell creates authentically crunchy and inspirational guitar tones. You can hear the atmospheric smeariness of the guitar. He shows how a real spring reverb tank can help add an authentic vibe to the tones and how to get perfect stereo imaging.
Analog warmth in a digital world
A standout guitar tone is the foundation of any great rock track. In this masterclass, Darrell demonstrates how to unlock the full potential of your recorded electric guitar performances.
He unveils his tried-and-true methods for crafting solos that slice through the mix with precision—ensuring every note hits with the impact your song demands. You’ll also discover how to employ filtering techniques to eliminate muddiness, resulting in a cleaner, more focused sound.
No matter what style of rock you’re mixing, this course offers invaluable insights from the legendary Darrell Thorp.
Taking the mix then squeezing it together…
Darrell demonstrates the limitless creative potential of any digital audio workstation. Whether you’re using Pro Tools like he does or prefer Logic, Reaper, Studio One, Cubase, Garageband, or another platform, the techniques he shares are designed to remain valuable for years to come.
He also explains his method for incorporating bass and vocal overdubs to build an electrifying vocal mix. By applying distortion with some of his favourite plugins, Darrell breathes new energy and edge into the track—enhancing its impact without compromising the artist’s original vision.
Multitracks Included
Of course we are also including the Multitracks from Steve Hill that Darrell mixes with this class. You can follow along, and apply everything you’ve learnt right away. That’s right, you get to mix an outstanding and pretty unique talent in your own home studio…
You even have permission to use your own mixes on your portfolio, to entice new bands to work with you!
Mentors
Darrell Thorp
Darrell Thorp is a 10x Grammy award winning (Foo Fighters, Radiohead, Switchfoot, Molotov, Beck) and a 3 time TEC Award winning Producer, Mixer, Engineer with over 22 years experience and many multi platinum and records to his discography. Darrell moved to Los Angles in 1997 after a 4 year service in the U.S. Navy and started interning at smaller studios and eventually worked his way up to an Assistant Engineer at some of L.A.’s prestigious studios such as Track Record, Conway, and finally Ocean Way Recording. Darrell had the pleasure of recording and mixing the new Foo Fighters album "Concrete And Gold" Engineering the new Twenty One Pilots LP "Trench" and Recording/Mixing on Beck's "Colors". Darrell has also worked on two Television shows as the lead recording and mixing engineer. The critically acclaimed From The Basement for seasons 1, 2 and 3 featuring Radiohead, Beck, The Dead Weather, The White Stripes, Foster the Poeple, The Red Hot Chili Peppers and more. Darrell was also involved with Off Main Street featuring Midlake and Thundercat.
Learn MoreEndorsed by Legends and Pros Alike
Issac Slade
Jack Douglas
Joe Perry
John Krivit
100% Satisfaction Guarantee
Don’t wait to get your hands on this amazing course. You can pick it up start learning right now. If for any reason you don’t feel that your productions and mixes have improved, simply shoot us an email within 30 days and we’ll give you a full refund, no questions asked.