the studio

Earhole Recording is a professional yet affordable recording studio in Oakland, California. I designed Earhole to be a comfortable, non-intimidating environment where you can record your music the way you want, without the compromises and clock-watching that can happen in costly, higher-profile studios. The studio has a 400 square-foot live room, 150 square-foot control room, and isolation booth. The setup is a versatile modern analog/digital hybrid. Gear includes a 24-channel Soundtracs analog console, Pro Tools and Logic, Vintech preamps, Apollo interface, some great microphones, and a modest array of cool and classic outboard gear. We have a variety of instruments and amplifiers available for use, including a Kurzweil piano keyboard, Fender and Ampeg amplifiers, and scads of guitar pedals, percussion, and various other musical doodads. My emphasis is on helping local bands and emerging musicians make records they adore, at a price most everybody can afford. I strive to make my studio a fun, unpretentious environment where you can focus on capturing the music you love and making recordings you want to share with the world, without breaking the bank.

 

the engineer

I’m Damon, owner and engineer of Oakland’s Earhole Recording. I’m a longtime Bay Area musicmaker, songwriter, and recording enthusiast who’s been in a slow but steady transition from the stage to the studio. After a decade or so of amassing gear and recording friends’ bands, I finally found myself a great space and opened the studio to the public in early 2018. My passion is helping working musicians make records they love. I’ve worked extensively with bands and musicians in many genres, including rock, indie, singer/songwriter, blues, jazz, and gospel. I’m Pro Tools certified and a graduate of CCSF’s Sound Recording Arts Certificate program. I’m also the resident sound technician at Oakland’s Plymouth UCC, “the Church of Jazz & Justice,” where for the past four years I’ve had the pleasure of supporting, recording, and mixing some of the most talented musicians I could hope to meet.