Read about our visit to Echo Mountain Studios Asheville NC
Asheville TN – TriFest Music Tour
Words – Rob Dickens
Images – Jim Jacob
Back Drop
In 2003, Steve Wilmans moved to the mountains of West North Carolina to build his dream studio.
He found the perfect place in an old church on the edge of downtown Asheville. The Church which was fitted out into a state of the art recording studio while keeping a sense of previous purpose and decor. The antique wooden doors were split down the middle and soundproofed. The original wall panels were reclaimed and used around the newly built control room, designed by George Auspurger.
In 2006, Steve purchased the neighboring building, which originally housed the Asheville Salvation Army, and built the API Studio. The tracking space is split between two levels, with the control and isolation rooms on the lower level and a large tracking room on the middle floor.
(Interestingly, the studio name has no acoustic relevance, it was named after Steve’s dog ‘Echo’)
Facilities
The facilities that Echo Mountain offer provide a diversity of analogue and digital, a variety of microphones and vintage gear that meet every need that an artist/band could throw at the studio. One client eshewed the digital process to the point that the studio was left with forty hours of tape that had to be transported carefully (no X-rays!).
The full list of gear for The Church and can be found via this link. The sound desk in the API was transplanted from California and has been used by Joni Mitchell and Cheech and Chong, to name two.
The studio also offers recording services for audio books and voice overs.
Who has recorded there?
Well, the list is impressive and it seems that the studio is on an upward spiral of demand at the moment given the plethora of new releases that feature in their catalogue. Here’s a selection:
- Amy Ray – Holler (2018)
- Turnpike Troubadours – A Long Way From Your Heart (2017)
- Steve Martin and The Steep Canyon Rangers – The Long Awaited Album (2017)
- Widespread Panic – Street Dogs (2015)
- Greensky Bluegrass – Shouted, Written Down and Quoted (2015)
- The Avett Brothers – The Magpie and the Dandelion (2013)
- The War On Drugs – Lost In The Dream (2014)
- Iron & Wine & Ben Bridwell – Sing In My Mouth (2015)
- Angel Olsen – Burn Your Fire For No Witness (2014)
- American Aquarium – Wolves (2015)
- Steep Canyon Rangers – Radio (2015)
- Zac Brown Band – Greatest Hits So Far (2014)
- Dawes – Stories Don’t End (2013)
- Blackberry Smoke – The Whippoorwill (2012)
- Band Of Horses – Infinite Arms (2010)
- Mandolin Orange – Such Jubilee (2015)
Who Has Produced There?
The list of producers that have taken the reins at Echo Mountain is pretty impressive:
- T Bone Burnett (Elton John, Gregg Allman, Roy Orbison, Steve Earle)
- Gary Paczosa (Alison Krauss, Dolly Parton, Sarah Jarosz, Parker Millsap)
- Jaquire King (Kings Of Leon, Tom Waits, Buddy Guy, Norah Jones)
- Ethan Johns (Ryan Adams, Tom Jones, Kings Of Leon, Laura Marling)
- Ryan Hewitt (The Avett Brothers, Brandi Carlile, Red Hot Chilli Peppers)
- John Keane (REM, Widespread Panic, Indigo Girls)
Thanks
An Echo Session was setting up when Listening Through The Lens was there. So the studio was busy and buzzing. Thanks to Autumn and Jessica for showing us through this special space.
Read about our visit to Echo Mountain Studios Asheville NC
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