Dean Metherell is a mix engineer at Sonic Union (www.sonicunion.com) who has engineered hundreds of ad campaigns, audiobooks, podcasts and TV series. Born in Canada but raised in southern California, Metherell studied audio engineering both in Glasgow and Toronto. He spent a decade working at some of the top audio post facilities in Canada before heading back to the US to join Sonic Union. In addition to his audio career, Metherell is a collage artist whose work has been featured in galleries, print media, album artwork and more.
Dean, how did you get into the industry and what made you know that audio was your passion?
“I've always been a music nerd. Growing up playing guitar I realized early on that I didn't have the chops to make it as a musician, but I knew I wanted to do something music-adjacent...I just didn't know what that meant yet. When I was 19 I had a chance encounter with an old friend who told me he was about to get his degree from a sound engineering college. I didn't even know those existed, but I soon dropped out of university and went to a similar college (sorry mom and dad). I went into it thinking I wanted to be a live sound engineer, but I found my audio post classes more alluring since it was a way to combine my love for both audio and video. Pirate Sound in Toronto is where I landed an internship after I graduated and that's where I cut my teeth through a variety of roles over a seven-year tenure. After mixing at a couple more audio post studios in both Toronto and New York, I'm happy to now be mixing at Sonic Union in NYC.”
Who in your life has had the biggest influence on you, particularly as it pertains to your career?
“When it comes to mixing I would say I learned the most from Damian Kearns. I co-mixed my first TV series with Damian, and his technical prowess and attention to detail is second to none.
“I have to tip my hat to Drew Frohman and Jeff Lurie. They are both audio directors at TA2 Sound + Music in Toronto and are brilliant at knowing how to interact with different people and how to elevate a spot from good to great.
“Looking at it from a more macro lens, my father is my biggest influence on how I approach work in general. His work ethic and structure is something I aspire to have.”
What are some key lessons you’ve learned along the way?
“Get to know the people you're working with, not just their work. When I'm meeting with people from an agency for the first time, I like to ask things like, ‘Where did you grow up? What are you listening to lately? What do you like to cook?’ You can learn a lot about someone by where they grew up and what they're listening to. This helps me learn how to anticipate what a client or agency creative is going to want to hear. Mix the spot two to three different ways and collaborate with the people in the room to cherry pick the best parts of each version to put into your recco.”
Tell us about some work you are proud of and why.
“I did the sound design and mix for a series of Stella Artois spots earlier this year that I'm very proud of. The spots were :15 long, but would only have two shots, so it became a question of: How do I make these spots sound interesting enough to keep your attention? A lot of fun Foley went into those.
“Collaboration is a big part of what I do, so I'd also like to highlight the work done on this series of spots for Capital Group. The sound design was done by Rob Ballingall and the score was composed by Julian Fader, with myself handling the VO record and final mix. The spots were conceptually and visually very beautiful, and I feel like our team at Sonic made the audio compliment the visuals perfectly.”
If you could go back in time, what advice would you give yourself?
“Pester the senior engineers you're working with more. Personally, I learned so much more by sitting in on sessions and watching a senior engineer work than I did at school or on YouTube tutorials. Don't be afraid to ask to sit in on a session, or copy their session and look at it later so you can ask them why they did X, Y or Z. I still do the latter to this day since I'm often picking up sessions from my coworkers.”
How do you stay up to date on the tech side?
“My peers at Sonic Union are all incredible mixers, which makes for great collaborative opportunities. I'm always learning something new when I open a session that was started by someone other than myself and I get to see how that person approaches their mix. We also have a group Slack channel where we discuss what new sound libraries or plug-ins are worth adding to our collective arsenal. There's 12 full-time staff mixers at Sonic Union and we all want to be up to speed on what is happening in regards to anything audio or music related....I don't think there's much that gets past us!”
Where do you find creative inspiration?
“Visual art and going out to shows. I've always loved going to art galleries ever since I was a kid, and I am a collage artist myself in my spare time. Most Saturdays are spent gallery hopping in the city. On top of that, I go see a lot of bands and DJs. Something about standing in a room with other music nerds, listening to music really loud (with sufficient ear protection of course) is comforting to me.”