California Dreamin' at Malibu's
Woodshed Recording

.WOW! Live and Record in California where you can have spectacular ocean and mountain views from every room while you create your next album. Swimming pool and jacuzzi on your wish list? How about an outdoor sauna and rec room with pro ping pong table and a serving robot? Yes! And add an entertainment system with 5.1 M&K monitors and more.... Toto you're not in Kanzas anymore!

Gibbs' Vision "The Woodshed was built to be first and foremost a creative environment," says the owner, film and TV composer, music producer, session player, and former Oingo Boingo keyboardist Richard Gibbs. His credits include Dr. Dolittle, Battlestar Galacitca, Queen
of the Damned, The Simpsons, Robert Palmer, Aretha Franklin, Tom Waits, Korn, and an inventive new Socal band, Purple Mountains Majesties. Gibbs is quick to credit architect Akai Yang, studio design consultant Jack Vieira of Pirate Acoustics and builder Kevin Beck of Structural Realities for realizing his vision of the Woodshed Recording.


Producer, Musician, Composer Richard Gibbs

Who has recorded here? Kanye West, Lorde, Pink, U2, Ryan Tedder, Barbra Streisand, Foster the People, Rick Rubin, Paul Epworth, Richard Page, Metallica, Eisley, Shenkar and Sting, to name a few, have all enjoyed the very private serenity of the studio. The Woodshed has also hosted numerous film and game projects such as 10 Things I Hate About You, Barbershop 2, Tracey Ullman's State of the Union, and Guitar Hero/ MC5.

Record! Different But Functional
The one and a half acre compound offers the studio and a separate large four bedroom house for just about any recording crew. The Woodshed dares to be different and functional in unique ways. In the main room, there is a hidden track system in the ceiling on which soundproof wall panels glide into place, dividing the studio space into any number of possible configurations. Depending on the acoustics and ergonomic workspace desired the studio can be transformed within an hour to a small control room with a live room capable of holding thirty string players or to a more conventional large comfortable control room with one or two medium (yet very live sounding) drum/vocal/whatever rooms. Or the panels can simply be folded away altogether to reveal one very large project room.

All the electronics that are not absolutely necessary to be within arm's reach have been ensconced in the computer room, below the ocean view deck. "This has two distinct advantages - the control room has no ambient noise whatsoever and the aesthetic environment becomes one of an ocean view living room," adds Gibbs. Below the deck are two additional soundproof isolation booths, wired into the recording rig through the walls, that can house guitar/bass speakers and/or the studio's Leslie. The small office can also be pressed into service as another isolation booth if needed - and even the tile bath is wired for the very bright sound provided by ceramic reflection.


All the electronics that are not absolutely necessary to be within arm's reach have been ensconced in the computer room, below the ocean view deck. "This has two distinct advantages - the control room has no ambient noise whatsoever and the aesthetic environment becomes one of an ocean view living room," adds Gibbs. Below the deck are two additional soundproof isolation booths, wired into the recording rig through the walls, that can house guitar/bass speakers and/or the studio's Leslie. The small office can also be pressed into service as another isolation booth if needed - and even the tile bath is wired for a very bright sound provided by ceramic reflection.

Relax! Above the office is a small wonderfully therapeutic sleeping loft where one can be lulled to sleep by the sound of the koi pond and stream just outside the windows.
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Space, Gear, Action! Analog console and/or an analog tape machine you ask? The studio is set up to accommodate the wiring for those pieces.
Rental of such gear is merely a phone call away.
There are 8" diameter conduits running everywhere under the floor that provide ample and easy wiring access to the computer room. The Recording Workstation menu: Protools HDX running Protools 10/11 software with Burl B80 Mothership (24 channels of A/D, D/A convertors), Vienna Ensemble Pro Server Software with sample libraries such as VSL, LA Scoring Strings, ProjectSAM, Komplete 7, East West PLAY (Hollywood Strings and Brass, Silk, Ra, Voices of Passion, Fab Four, Storm Drum2, Ministry of Rock,
et al.)



Soft synths include Omnisphere, Trilian, Stylus RMX, and are constantly being updated. All of the above is hosted on 2x 12-Core Mac Pro's with 2x 24" Viewsonic Video Monitors. The Woodshed offer a great selection of plugins...Waves Mercury plugin bundle v8, many other plugins too numerous to list.
There is wonderful selection of hand-picked analog mic pres and outboard gear - Neve 1073, API 3124, Thermionic Culture Earlybird 2, Universal Audio 8110, UA LA3A compressors, API equalizers.


Richard Gibbs (2nd from left), with Oingo Bongo's Danny Elfman, Johnny Vatos, Steve Bartek and Kerry Hatch

There's an assortment of synthesizers to complement the extensive selection of acoustic and electric instruments of all sorts scattered around the studio. Visit this link for gear and mic selection. With a 5.1 monitor setup and the room's portable 65" LCD screen the Woodshed is also designed for use as a film and television scoring facility of the highest order - dozens of hit films and shows have benefitted from scores written, recorded and mixed in their entirety within the studio's peaceful confines. Voiceover work and final film mixes have also been handily accommodated here, sometimes utilizing remote technology allowing the director to guide the process from the bowels of Hollywood - or from any Protools equipped facility in the world.

Environmentally Correct! In the spring of 2013 ninety-nine solar panels were installed on the roof of the main house, enough to power the entire property. This means that all projects recorded at the Woodshed now have a zero carbon footprint.


Richard Gibbs

Play and play! In addition to recording, you can enjoy fantastic surfing, tidepools, whale watching, and kayaking on private beaches within walking distance of Woodshed Recording. Across from the studio lies a swimming pool with a Jacuzzi and sauna.

Stay! For the ultimate recording experience the entire property can be rented on a monthly basis. The totally separate fully furnished two story four bedroom, four bath house has spectacular ocean and mountain views from every room. All housekeeping, studio upkeep, pool and yard maintenance is provided and we're told that If requested, a personal chef, surfing instructor, and/or a master yoga teacher will also be at your beck and call! Now that's California Dreaming at Woodshed Recording!

Booking Contact: Joachim Berose
Site: WoodshedRecording.com

fn: 917-436-5438

Photos: Keegan Gibbs