Full-service Professional Audio
Independent, Accessible, Creative
Driftless Audio is a Chicago-based full-service professional audio production studio, offering tracking, mixing, mastering, and more, owned and operated by Tariq Shihadah.
I've been writing, recording, and producing music for more than 15 years now. It started with a free download of Audacity and an on-board laptop mic, recording in stairwells and mixing friends' albums on earbuds and car stereos. Leaning into the lo-fi sound of the 2000's by necessity, my approach to music production was driven by curiosity and experimentation, exploring what it really takes to make impactful music. Driven by a scrappy creativity and a goal to have fun at every step of a project, my work has grown over the years into a full-service studio, equipped with all the gear you'll need to make your next project sound and feel incredible, operating out of my home here in Albany Park, Chicago.
Services
Audio Production
Driftless Audio offers full-stack audio production services, from ideation and pre-production through mastering and helping indie artists make their first release. Services include:
- Pre-production & Consultation. How do you begin your next project? The more you know before kicking things off, the better it will go and the more fun we'll have along the way.
- Production. Working with you to find and fully realize the ideas in your head. If you are looking for an advocate to help map your thoughts to a final product, you're looking for a producer.
- Tracking. Using my high-quality gear, acoustically treated studio, and good vibes, I'll capture your music with precision and character. It's important to do this right. It's also critical to feel comfortable, creative, and heard along the way. We'll make the tracking experience memorable and genuine.
- On-site Tracking. My fully portable travel rig means we can record all over the place. This is great for choirs, orchestras, or live acoustic performances, as well as capturing a particular instrument or setting in your recording.
- Mixing. Putting the pieces together is all about experience and creative understanding--and high-quality gear that will treat your music well and be sure that we get it sounding and feeling right. I also offer in-person or remote participation in mixing sessions.
- Mastering. The final step of the production process, mastering gives your tracks one last polish, producing a cohesive release and ensuring they sound the best they can to meet the precise standards of modern listening services and environments.
- Everything Else. Not sure how to push your music to Spotify? Figuring out what else goes into a successful release--like photos, artwork, blog coverage, etc.? Wondering how to get on playlists? Let's talk!
Listen to some examples of recent projects on Spotify:
Production Support & Learning
For aspiring and intermediate producers, I also love offering various support and learning services to help you grow and build your experience with any component of music or podcast production. Services include:
- Track Review. Working on producing, mixing, or mastering a track, and looking for a second opinion? Getting your work reviewed by a second set of ears is one of the best ways to refine your work, learn new tips and tricks, and have a stronger product in the end. Whether you're looking for a quick high-level listen or an in-depth breakdown of every move you're making with a project, I'm happy to plug in!
- Production Training. Want to get acquainted with the modern tools of music production? Want to finally understand how compression actually works? With one-on-one online training sessions, we can work through every step of production, covering a wide variety of methods and processes for creating cohesive, exciting, heartfelt, and professional products.
Songwriting & Instrumentation
My passion for music starts with songwriting and performance, it's what makes any project worthwhile. I love working with songwriters to refine their work and connect them with professional instrumentalists in Chicago and around the world to cover any sound we need. Services include:
- Songwriting Consultation. Let's finish that song you've been sitting on for months. Let's finalize those lyrics. Let's start from scratch and write your next favorite song together. Whatever you're looking to accomplish before hitting the studio, let's work together on it. Collaboration always leads us to the best work. Anyways, there's hardly anything more fun than collaborative songwriting.
- Session Instrumentals. Software instruments are cool, but working with live musicians is a joy. We can work together to find the right instrumentalists to bring in for your project. I've got a long list of friends and collaborators who bring all sorts of skills to all sorts of projects. I also play a variety of instruments, including guitar, bass, flute, and synthesizer.
Live Performance Video
Partnering with local video producers, we can produce high-quality, aesthetic live performance videos with pro-level audio. Get in touch for full-service production of your next Tiny Desk series submission, or to create a truly unique live performance experience, shot on-site at your favorite location. We'll assemble a team to carry you from start to finish to create a professional-grade video with release-ready audio.
Equipment
Microphones
- Pearlman TM-1 LDC
- MicParts T-12 LDC
- Beyerdynamic M-160 Ribbon
- Cascade Fathead II (Lundahl Transformer) Ribbon
- Shure SM81 SDC (X2)
- Audio-Technica AT-4041 SDC (X2)
- Electro-Voice RE-20 Dynamic
- Shure SM-57 Dynamic
- Shure SM-58 Dynamic
Preamplifiers
- BAE 1073 MPF
- Hairball Audio Lola (X2)
- CAPI VP-28 (X2)
- Cranborne Audio Camden 500 (X2)
- DIYRE CP-5
Processing
- Rupert Neve Designs Master Bus Transformer
- Manley ELOP+ Stereo Optical Compressor
- Audioscape G-Buss Stereo Buss Compressor
- Audioscape V-Comp+ Tube Compressor
- DIYRE OLA-5 Optical Compressor
- DBX 160X Vintage VCA Compressor
- Ashly SC-50 VCA Compressor (X2)
- Square State Solid State M1b Equalizer (X2)
- Driftless Audio Boreal Equalizer
- Furman RV-1 Spring Reverb
Conversion
- RME Fireface UFX III Interface
- MOTU 16A AD/DA Converter
Monitoring
- Focal Shape Twins
- M-Audio AV-40
- Sennheiser HD-60
- Sennheiser HD-280 Pro (X2)