The 33609/N and 1073LB brings Neve Sound to Number One Band
The British indie-pop band the Lottery Winners reached number one in the official UK charts with their new album Anxiety Replacement Therapy. Band members Thom, Kate, Joe and Rob, alongside their producer Tristan Ivemy, talked all things audio with Neve.
Record Producer and Mixer Tristan has worked with the Lottery Winners since their debut album ‘The Lottery Winners’ released in 2020, and it was recorded and mixed at Rockfield and Giant Wafer Studios.
Lead singer Thom said: “For our first album we got a bit giddy, didn’t we?
“We had our pot of money, we just watched Super Sonic and we went, ‘let’s go to Rockfield, Abbey Road and Parr Street’, let’s spend all our money and have none for marketing and sell no records.”
This led the band to a rethink and Tristan took an alternative approach for the current album and recorded it ‘DIY style’ with their own equipment at various locations. Having the option to record outside of a busy studio also allows artists and producers to create at times most convenient for them.
Tristan said: “We made sure that the locations were good, and we brought in our portable stuff, including the 1073LB, and we did most of the tracking and arranging of the songs in that kind of way.
“With Thom, his voice would be on an SM7 dynamic microphone and having a Neve 1073 was essential to make sure we got the most quality out of that.”
The 1073LB is the perfect choice for musicians looking to record and produce on location due to the convenient 500 series format. The compact design uses matched components and original hand-wound transformers to make the world-famous 1073 sound.
“Portability is one of the most important things for us and we used the 1073LB on everything. We used it on all the vocals, we used it on the guitars and on the bass DI.” – Thom Rylance
“Other than me, that was probably the most important thing that was there” Thom cheekily added.
As well as recording on various locations with the Lottery Winners, Record Producer and Mixer Tristan also works from his own separate mixing and production suite where he has worked with Frank Turner, Shaun Ryder, Boy George, KT Tunstall, The Holloways and many more leading onto multi-gold record sales awards and top 10 albums.
One of the compressors used within his suite is the Neve 33609/N, which gives producers dynamic control over transients and is considered the industry standard compressor.
Tristan added: “I like the fact that on that compressor I can switch in and out of stuff quite easily, like the fast and slow attack; that’s vital.
“I mainly drive into that compressor for taste. I’ve got my set up nicely done and I love the fact that the recall is really, really easy.”
Recent successes have allowed the Lottery Winners to move into a local mill complex which houses over 60 independent businesses offering sports, fitness, digital, interactive and arts and creative spaces. The band plans to record the next album in their own studio and wants to expand their current gear list.
Thom said: “We’ve got some Neve stuff on the wish list. We want the 1073OPX; 8 channels of 1073 would be nice.
The 1073OPX is a flexible unit which can operate in ADAT, analogue, Dante, or USB modes, meaning users can adapt the unit to function within their current studio workflow.
Thom also wants to add the Neve 1073LBEQ to fill the lunchbox. They would accompany the 1073LB in the 500 series rack, adding the legendary inductor-based 3-band EQ from the classic 1073 to the already convenient and portable recording set-up.
Tristan summarised the Neve Sound: “To me, the sound is warm, thick, it’s musical, it’s silky top end which I really like. It makes my job as a mixer a lot easier.”
Watch the full interview:
For more information about the Neve 1073LB or 33609/N, please get in touch with the Neve team at info@ams-neve.com.
