With a string of accolades under his belt, mixer, engineer and producer Caesar Edmunds explains how dogged perseverance has won him a position of respect at the famed Assault and Battery studios, and reveals a keen interest in the sonic potential of Dolby Atmos.

Within the auspicious surroundings of the renowned Assault and Battery Studios, engineer, mixer and producer Caesar Edmunds captures, wrestles and tames the music of the industry’s brightest luminaries, from the mighty St Vincent (whose masterful 2017` record, Masseduction earned a Grammy), to developing the sound of the latest crop of indie talent such as The Lathums, Palace and Circa Waves.

The industry has widely recognised Singapore-born Edmunds’s talents, and he was proud to scoop the MPG Award for Breakthrough Engineer of the Year at 2020’s MPGs. We’re keen to know, first and foremost, how his interest in music production first manifested. “It was kind of a weird thing where, like, when I was younger I didn’t really know what music production was, but I loved listening to sounds and sonics.” Edmunds explains. “A lot of the records I was listening to were sonically interesting. I wanted to study music though, so I was recording demos of tracks for my Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts application.”

It was during his time at LIPA, that Caesar first set sights on a mixing console, and became enthralled. “It was at this point where I just realised that everyone was a better guitar player than me. But I think that I had the patience to try out sitting on the other side of the glass – and that could be my thing.”

While developing his recording console know-how, a further break came when a friend returned from a stint of work experience with the acclaimed Alan Moulder, at his North London Assault and Battery studio. “I said ‘please, please, please can you give me his email’. My friend said ‘ok – just don’t be weird!’”

TRIAL BY HOLY FIRE

Caesar Edmunds’ remarkable story continues; “Alan replied to my request straight away and said ‘yep, come in’. At that point I was just tasked with very menial jobs, and even cleaned the studio toilets. Anything really, just to be in the studio. The first thing that I walked into was the recording of Holy Fire by Foals.”

Astonished to find himself face-to-face with his heroes, Edmunds forced himself to maintain a professional composure. “Alan came in one day and told me to come over, he pressed play on a new song and it was //Inhaler//. I knew then that I was somewhere I wanted to be, hearing that first take of what would become a massive song. It was a real ‘wow!’ moment. The great thing about Moulder and Flood and how they work together is that Flood will be recording upstairs while Alan is mixing. They’ve got this whole machine-like system worked out.”

Caesar managed to secure his position, by stepping in at a critical moment; “The real reason I was able to stay at Assault and Battery so long is that they were looking for an assistant to help stem and use the SSL desk, because they were re-mixing the Led Zeppelin reunion live album, and they needed help. I had those skills because LIPA taught me. They had the SSL Duality whereas A&B had a G-Series, but it wasn’t that much of a leap. I knew my way around.” Nine years on, and Edmunds remains a key fixture of A&B, “From tea boy to engineer. Co-mixing with Alan is one of those breathtaking dreams, every fan-boy’s dream.”

EDMUNDS’ STAR STORIES

Throughout his time at Assault and Battery, Caesar Edmunds has been tasked with working on increasingly high-profile artists, St Vincent’s Grammy-winning 2017 gem Masseduction was a particularly memorable experience for Caesar. “I am very, very proud of that one.” Edmunds tells us, “I did some of the engineering with Catherine Marks. I’d known Annie (St Vincent) for a few years, we’d hung out for a bit. When it came around to help her finish the album, it was a very cool process. It’s a really hard one to explain sonically, there’s lots of weird instrumentation and it wasn’t a standard production sort of thing. There were really cool bits, Jack Antonoff who produced that record is such an incredible producer, he’s the man of the moment. I love working with different producers.”

The Blue Hour by Suede marked Caesar Edmunds’ first foray into recording proper, as he explains; “That was an interesting one too. Moulder was producing Circa Waves’ second album and I was helping out, but I turned to him and said that I wanted to record the next album. The first thing that came in was Suede – I was like ‘woah, really?’ I didn’t do too bad I think. The songs were really dark and cool, there’s so much texture on that record. Alan is known for his guitar sounds, not just that, but he is well-known for being a master of getting a good sound. Being able to learn from him was quite incredible. I didn’t really need to do much to be honest, and Richard Oakes is such a good guitar player. Even if you out like one mic, like an SM57 on his amp, he just makes it sound so good. He just plays lines and whole songs like a machine.”

While getting the chance to meet heroes, such as Red Hot Chilli Peppers’ drummer Chad Smith, during the making of Ozzy Osbourne’s Ordinary Man is always a thrill, Caesar most enjoys working with people on a similar wavelength to himself, “I loved when I was doing Circa Waves. Half of them went to university in Liverpool too, so we had a lot of shared experiences we could talk about. The drummer Colin is such a dude. The Murder Capital and Beach House are great to work and hang out with too. They are people I feel very comfortable with and we’re all on the same wavelength. The people are as important as the sound.”

Ultimately though, it’s working alongside Moulder and Flood that remains Edmund’s biggest joy, “I’ve been so fortunate to hang out with Moulder and Flood, and I’ve been lucky enough to work with my idols, that is fucking insane sometimes, and you have to pinch yourself. If I could though, I’d love to do a Nine Inch Nails record with Moulder, to be in the room with Trent Reznor and Atticus would be a dream. I’d love to work with Dave Grohl too, one of those big figures. Anything’s possible!”

CHANGING TIMES FOR CAESAR EDMUNDS

While last year’s Covid pandemic was a turbulent time for all, Caesar managed to push through the period of uncertainty, thanks in no small part to his winning the MPG Award for Breakthrough Engineer of the Year at the start of the year. “Because of that, I was able to carry on working – the first lockdown was a bit weird because everyone thought it was the end of the world! But then slowly projects started coming in, as people rushed to get things mixed as schedules changed and stuff. I was very fortunate that I got some work that just managed to tide me through. It was a weird thing, because I’d just won the MPG Breakthrough Engineer of the Year, then fucking COVID happened! But, it meant I was able to keep getting more work in 2020. I’m not from the UK so my family’s home is 12-13 hours away, so I just had to carry on really. Thank god for the MPG!”

Without a home studio, Caesar regularly trekked into the office during lockdown to keep on top of things, “A&B1 was open during lockdown so I came in and used that. It was in Alan’s side room basically. I’ve just moved out of that room and now have my own space. It was definitely a time to expand myself. I haven’t got a desk in there yet, I’m kind of in-the-box at the moment. I’m using a Chandler Mini-Mixer, SSL Fusion Outboard Processor and loads of software plug-ins. There were plenty of projects in lockdown, but really not enough to buy a full-scale mixing desk. They’re expensive, you know!”

On the subject of technology, we ask if there’s anything that has changed the game for Caesar Edmunds’ workflow; “When I went back to Singapore I was lucky to get hold of the Avid Carbon interface and that was cool for travelling around with. It had DSP and everything in there. It’s a great piece of gear. Now if I have to work remotely I’ll bring that, but I’m also a nerd for good speakers. I can’t explain to you how good Genelec’s ‘The Ones’ (aka the 8000 series) are. They’re kind of a game-changer for me. I’ve never been mad about room correction really, but then the thing with that is that you have to be more mobile nowadays. I did three weeks of quarantine in Singapore and brought them along. I set up in the hotel and after I tuned them up it felt like I hadn’t left my studio. I knew exactly where I was. A friend lent me a warehouse space, with a very different kind of acoustic, but I used those speakers again and they tuned perfectly to the space. Just fab.”

CAESAR EDMUNDS’ ADVICE

While Caesar Edmunds’ knowledge and technical wizardry has stood him in good stead at Assault and Battery (soon to be re-named Battery Studios), we ask what advice he’d give to those looking to develop the right kind of work ethic to end up in the studio world full time, “You have to develop a thick skin firstly. Then be prepared to put the hours in and not have a life for the next few years.” Caesar explains. “I’ve just realised that I’ve got into the habit of going home at a reasonable time now, it used to be the case that I’d get back at like 2am, and start work at 10:30am. Be prepared to be poor and have no sleep, it’s an investment in your career. There are people out there who are very, very talented and don’t need to put in the same hours that I’ve put in – because I’m not as talented! I think you have to put in your 10,000 hours though.”

A major fixation for Caesar Edmunds right now is the abilities of Dolby Atmos, “I realised that it’s started to become increasingly commonplace so I took it upon myself to get into that and understand how to mix it. When I’m mixing I still try to flip between Dolby Atmos and regular stereo, it’s very exciting. It’s just one of those where it’s not just a technical thing – it’s quite hard to explain, as it makes so much sense to me, having that extra space to position sounds. It’s so cool. I still love working just in stereo though. I’m very excited to see where it goes, that’s kind of my thing at the moment.”

Edmunds is keen to incorporate his new field of research into his studio work, “The new record that I’ve worked on with The Lathums is really cool, I managed to mix it in stereo and Atmos as well. It was really fun when I did all the stereo work and then told them I had the Atmos system, and they were up for me taking on an Atmos mix. It really showed how much space was on offer.”

In the future Caesar hopes to expand his horizons even further; “I love producing as well, it’s a different kind of stress. I kind of want to be one of those old-school people, Especially the Trident Studios Stars, Moulder, Flood, Spike, Cenzo, They are all great producers, great mixers, great recording engineers – a master of all. I’d like to be known for being someone like that. Just give me a try! Life’s about challenge.”