DJ and music producer Salvione keeps on surprising his audience with hard-hitting bangers and unparalleled live performances that showcase his passion for music and his undoubtable skills.
His impressive productions, which incorporate his own processes, which he also shares through his Elevate Your Sound Academy, certainly tick all the boxes to be named certified hits.
While he keeps busy working on fresh new tracks, Salvione invites EG for a tour around his studio.
EG: Hi Salvione! How are you doing?
Salvione: I’m doing really well thank you.
EG: Can you walk us through your studio? How does your setup look like?
Salvione: I’d like to think my studio is a great mix of digital, analog, and acoustic. As you come in, there is a turntable and a ton of records for sampling. Then, I have a wall of synths that include a Prophet Rev2, Moog Sub Phatty, Korg Minilogue, and a Nord Stage 2. As you move around the room, I have a rack mount with a Korg Electribe ER-1 drum machine and Moog Siren synth on top with a bunch of processing in the rack like Neve 542 Tape Emulators and a buss compressor and EQs from Warm Audio, and more. As you move to my desk, there’s a MFB Tanzbar drum machine, a Roland TR-8, plus the Prophet 12 module, Korg Kaoss Pad for effects, and a Native Instruments Maschine. I run everything through a Universal Audio soundcard and out to my Focal Trio 6 Be monitors, which I absolutely love. The brain of it all is a MacBook Pro that goes out to a 43-inch display monitor. I also have bongos, congas, and other percussive elements like claves, shekere, and different shakers I’ve collected from my travels that I use to create samples.
EG: Which DAW do you use to produce music?
Salvione: I use Ableton Live 11, which I personally feel opens up my creativity more than other DAWs.
EG: Can you describe what the usual workflow looks like when starting a new production?
Salvione: I will typically start with the kick and bass because that is the backbone of Dance music. If you can get those 2 elements playing well together then you have a great foundation to get people moving, but it does depend on if I have inspiration for the track already, like a vocal sample or melodic idea.
No matter how I start, I always use the method I teach in the Elevate Your Sound Academy and that is “Create/Capture, Analyze, and Transform”, or CAT for short. Working this way allows me to work through tracks quickly, and keeps my creativity high because creativity loves speed. Pairing this with the Pomodoro technique of 25-minute working sessions paired with 5-minute breaks allows me to stay laser-focused during my studio sessions.
“I always use the method I teach in the Elevate Your Sound Academy and that is “Create/Capture, Analyze, and Transform”, or CAT for short. Working this way allows me to work through tracks quickly, and keeps my creativity high because creativity loves speed.”
EG: Do you have a favorite spot in the studio where you always feel inspired?
Salvione: It is always most inspiring to be in front of the rack of synthesizers. I can have a drum loop I’ve made playing and just start creating basslines, synth leads, pads, etc while jamming melodies. That is why I love analog gear so much. It is tactile and free. Turning knobs, pushing buttons, and getting lost in the creative process instead of just staring at a computer screen.
EG: Is there a piece of gear in the studio that’s your absolute favorite?
Salvione: That is such a tough question. That is like asking someone who is their favorite child. Every piece of kit has its use, but if I had to pick one, I would go with the Moog Sub Phatty, because it was my first piece of analog gear. You never forget your first.
EG: What’s the oldest piece of gear you own?
Salvione: The oldest piece of gear I own is the Korg Electribe ER-1 drum machine. It was originally made in 1999.
EG: And, what’s the studio’s most recent acquisition?
Salvione: Oddly enough, although the Electribe is the oldest piece of gear I own, it was actually a pandemic purchase, which makes it the most recent acquisition. At the time, I was watching some Fader Pro videos, and I think this particular one was with Kinnerman. He was using the Electribe and I thought this could be fun, so I found someone selling it on eBay. It was actually pretty cheap and it’s been a great addition to the arsenal.
“They apparently don’t allow studio gear on wedding registries, so if anyone wants to get me a wedding gift that’s my list right there. You can keep the blender.”
EG: Is there something you’d like to add to the studio in the near future?
Salvione: I’ve promised my fiancé I wouldn’t purchase any studio gear until after the wedding, but the day after the wedding I’m hoping to add the Elektron Analog Rytm. They apparently don’t allow studio gear on wedding registries, so if anyone wants to get me a wedding gift that’s my list right there. You can keep the blender.
EG: Do you have any fun stories or anecdotes regarding producing in your studio?
Salvione: So, I had this track I was working on and it had a live crowd in it and I wanted the crowd to say something specific. I was trying to affect this vocal sample to get it to sit right with the crowd sample but it just wasn’t working and I thought: “how can I do this?”.
So, I thought about how the sample of the live crowd was recorded through the singer’s mic and I ran a cable out of the studio and put the microphone at the top of the stairs. I then had my mom, grandmother, and brother come over and scream what I needed the crowd to say from the bottom of the stairs in different ways and at different distances. It actually worked out really well. The project has not been completed yet, but the day you see ‘Funky Luvin’ get released, just know that the crowd is “real.” Knowing my mom, she will probably say it is her big break and want some artist credit on it. I might amuse her and just do it for fun.
You can find out more about Salvione’s Elevate Your Sound Academy here.
Follow Salvione: Instagram | Facebook | Soundcloud | Spotify
