---
title: "Designing A Dolby Atmos Room, Running An LA Studio, and Trading Up Gear with Mike Post (Local Natives, Orion Sun, Alice Cooper)"

description: "Mike Post (of MooseCat Recording) joins the pod to talk the nuts and bolts of operating a studio, creating vibey environments, developing a killer workflow, and his journey to Los Angeles to take his career to the next level. Get your foot in the MooseCat Recording Studio door 👟🚪"

status: complete

date: 2024-09-03

kind: guest

guestSlugs:
  - mike-post

listenUrl: "https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/lovemusicmore/episodes/Designing-A-Dolby-Atmos-Room--Running-An-LA-Studio--and-Trading-Up-Gear-with-Mike-Post-Local-Natives--Orion-Sun--Alice-Cooper-e2ntvpg"
appleUrl: "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/designing-a-dolby-atmos-room-running-an-la/id1567355195?i=1000668131742&uo=4"
spotifyUrl: "https://open.spotify.com/episode/6XnYovftVVwqGfCNXlhmJl"
youtubeUrl: "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pYeEDueDMq0"

topicsDiscussed:
  - "Los Angeles"
  - "Spatial audio"
  - "Genre"
  - "Mixing"
  - "Operating a recording studio"
  - "Creating a vibey environment"
  - "Gear trading and upgrades"
  - "Artistic inspiration"
  - "Mentorship in music"
  - "Developing a workflow in the studio"
  - "Catering to artists' needs"

hostNote: |
  **Mike Post** runs **MooseCat Recording** in mid-city LA: sessions with **Local Natives**, **Orion Sun**, **Alice Cooper**, and a new **Dolby Atmos** room he built to keep pushing mixes forward. The through-line is access: every house should have a guitar or piano, he stacked **five or six internships** before LA stuck, and he learned by watching engineers he admired make mistakes on his own time.
  
  We talk MooseCat as **the lab**, quiet, no fans, craft-first: how vibe does half the work before you touch a fader, trading gear without chasing the wrong genre, and why the best mixes often sound amazing **right in the room** before they leave the building.

selectedMoments:
  - label: "Mike Post introduces MooseCat Recording"
    startSec: 100
    note: "The lab, a quiet space devoid of fans, where you try to craft what you're going for."
  - label: "The role of vibe in recording"
    startSec: 181
    note: "Creating a comfortable atmosphere for artists at MooseCat."
  - label: "Early musical influences and decisions"
    startSec: 257
    note: "A calling to work on music, and the early experiences that shaped it."
  - label: "The importance of studio access"
    startSec: 332
    note: "Having music around growing up, and why access matters."
  - label: "Preparing for a recording session"
    startSec: 658
    note: "Anticipating what's going to happen next and being ready for that moment."
  - label: "Strategies for creating a good recording environment"
    startSec: 892
    note: "The best mixes are the ones that sound amazing right in the room."
  - label: "Innovative ways to inspire creativity"
    startSec: 1229
    note: "How gear can inspire different creative processes."
  - label: "Dolby Atmos room setup"
    startSec: 3088
    note: "Mike's new Atmos mixing room and what it makes possible."
  - label: "The evolution of mixing creativity"
    startSec: 3253
    note: "Creating innovative mixes and pushing boundaries in music."
  - label: "Reflecting on the love for music"
    startSec: 3411
    note: "Why Mike continues to pursue music."

excerptQuotes:
  - text: "It's the lab. It is the quiet space devoid of fans... where you try and craft what you're going for."
    startSec: 101
    reviewed: true
  - text: "I've been running MooseCat Recording here in mid-city LA since about 2016 now."
    startSec: 160
    reviewed: true
  - text: "I always felt like I had a calling to work on music and to try to make music."
    startSec: 255
    reviewed: true
  - text: "I was just trying to write songs in a very odd way, tough to explain why. But I just... had that calling."
    startSec: 310
    reviewed: true
  - text: "Having music around was really important for me growing up."
    startSec: 408
    reviewed: true
  - text: "I probably did maybe five, six different internships... I just was dying to learn as much as I could... worked for free for probably a cumulative criminal amount of time."
    startSec: 795
    reviewed: true
  - text: "You just try to anticipate what's going to happen next and be ready for that moment."
    startSec: 2524
    reviewed: true
  - text: "The best mixes are the ones that sounded amazing right in the room."
    startSec: 1139
    reviewed: true

faq:
  - question: "Who is Mike Post?"
    answer: "Mike Post is an engineer and producer based in Los Angeles, known for his work at MooseCat Recording and collaborations with artists like Local Natives and Alice Cooper."
  - question: "What is Dolby Atmos mixing?"
    answer: "Dolby Atmos mixing is an advanced audio technique that allows sound to be mixed in a 3D space, providing a more immersive listening experience."
  - question: "How can I get into recording music like Mike Post?"
    answer: "Start by finding mentors, gaining hands-on experience through internships, and learning the technical aspects of recording and production."

transcriptPublished: false

draft: false
---