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A Gentle Shelf with Andrew Scheps (Adele, U2, Hozier)

Metadata

title
A Gentle Shelf with Andrew Scheps (Adele, U2, Hozier)
description
Andrew Scheps has been a hero of mine since I started mixing. He’s worked on everyone from Beyoncé to Metallica to Michael Jackson to The Red Hot Chili Peppers to Jay-Z to The Smashing Pumpkins to Green Day to Alanis Morissette to The Rolling Stones to several other legends. He’s nothing short of a genius. At music. At mixing. At technology. At philosophy. So I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. If you want to hear an honest take about where music is at, how to break in, and what’s up with AI, Scheps is the guy to listen to.
status
complete
date
2026-01-06
kind
guest
guestSlugs
  • andrew-scheps
listenUrl
https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/lovemusicmore/episodes/A-Gentle-Shelf-with-Andrew-Scheps-Adele--U2--Hozier-e3d1jku
lmwUrl
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J_aIzlL9TIQ
appleUrl
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/a-gentle-shelf-with-andrew-scheps-adele-u2-hozier/id1567355195?i=1000743940837&uo=4
spotifyUrl
https://open.spotify.com/episode/4gQXBaLMU7amL43qAbxdKe
youtubeUrl
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cKtP4c-7lto
topicsDiscussed
  • AI
  • Compression
  • Mixing
  • Philosophy
  • Singing and vocals
  • Analog
  • Mastering
  • Plugins
  • Career path & mentorship after the home-studio era
  • Session prep and knowing when a mix is done
hostNote
This is one of the deepest craft conversations on the show: Scheps connects trumpet-ensemble articulation (where notes *release*) to mix transitions, argues you should mix for **feel** rather than a pre-baked sonic picture, and walks through how parallel compression kept Adele’s delivery personal on delicate lines. We also get rare detail on his England move, why assistant paths still matter (differently), immersive mixes as label deliverables vs. creative priority, and a clear-eyed AI segment: spectral separation tools that save impossible sessions, vs. the “pretty good” middle that may hollow out creative work.
selectedMoments
  • label
    Every song lives in a world
    startSec
    0
    note
    Opens with Scheps’s frame for mixes as places the listener inhabits, not just L/R balance.
  • label
    Mix for feel, not a pre-decided sound
    startSec
    484
    note
    Source material dictates sonics; transitions between sections carry the emotion.
  • label
    Prep checklist while listening to the rough
    startSec
    623
    note
    How he decides what must feel bigger vs. what already works in the rough mix.
  • label
    Gentle shelf vs. Aphex-style top end
    startSec
    2540
    note
    On dense mixes, synthesized air can read louder than a subtle EQ shelf.
  • label
    Adele, parallel compression only on vocals
    startSec
    3180
    note
    Five EQs, no mix-bus processing; intimacy preserved on quiet lines.
  • label
    Where AI helps (and where it doesn’t)
    startSec
    5020
    note
    Spectral separation on Low Roar vs. inference engines that can’t make leaps.
excerptQuotes
  • text
    You shouldn't have a vision of how you want it to sound because that doesn't make any sense — the source material you've got is going to dictate how it sounds. You've got to be going after how you want it to feel.
    startSec
    477
    reviewed
    true
  • text
    For me, the first stage of mixing is I'm prepping a session and while I'm doing it, I listen to the rough mix… the checklist is how I want stuff to feel.
    startSec
    631
    reviewed
    true
  • text
    On a dense mix, you're going to hear that top end a lot more than you're going to hear a gentle shelf.
    startSec
    2538
    reviewed
    true
  • text
    There is zero compression on her voice — there is only parallel compression… when she's singing delicately, if you start getting rid of the nuance, then you disconnect.
    startSec
    3250
    reviewed
    true
  • text
    Why do you love music? Because there is nothing else that can make me feel the way music does — raw emotions in a safe space.
    startSec
    3480
    reviewed
    true
faq
  • question
    What does Andrew Scheps say about mixing on Love Music More?
    answer
    He argues mixes should target emotional feel and section transitions rather than a fixed sonic template, uses prep-and-rough-mix listening as a checklist, and discusses parallel compression, immersive audio, plugins, mastering, and practical AI tools like spectral separation.
  • question
    Does Andrew Scheps discuss AI on this episode?
    answer
    Yes, he separates helpful AI-adjacent audio tools (spectral separation, smart processors) from AI music generation and 'pretty good' middle-tier creative work, and discusses inference limits vs. human leaps.
transcriptPublished
false
draft
false

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