L.A. Mainstay For Over Three Decades: Since launching his career in the late ‘80s, veteran mixer, engineer, and producer Jay Baumgardner has worked with rock greats Papa Roach, Hoobastank, Bush, Ugly Kid Joe, and countless others—but one of his most indelible memories was making coffee for Ray Charles in his kitchen when the legendary artist was recording at Baumgardner’s popular home studio in the days before NRG Studios moved to its current location in North Hollywood. Revered as one of L.A.’s premiere recording studios since 1991, the facility has grown over the past three decades from one state-of-the-art studio to three, with Baumgardner eventually buying the building. Yet the warm, homey aesthetic that evolved from the original environment has been a core part of Baumgardner’s vision from the beginning.
Legendary Clientele: Shortly after launching, NRG cemented its place in pop/rock history by hosting the sessions for Hootie & The Blowfish’s 20-million selling Cracked Rear View. Though playfully downplaying its success due to good parking, NRG has long been a hub for indie greats and superstar artists alike—including Linkin Park, Evanescence, Korn, Limp Bizkit, and Beyonce, including sessions for her multiple GRAMMY-winning Cowboy Carter. At one point in the early 2000s, Baumgardner heard 10 songs in a row on KROQ that were recorded at his studio. Two decades on, NRG is still a thriving hub under new studio manager, veteran tech and engineer Kyle Hoffmann.
Studio Specs: Studio A is a 5,000 square foot facility with a 30x40 ft. live tracking room with cement walls and birch wood paneling, three iso booths, a producer’s lounge (which doubles as a fourth iso booth), concert grand piano, and a custom built 64-input Never 8068. Studio B is also a 30x40 ft. tracking room with a Moroccan motif, hand distressed walnut flooring, and spacious 25 ft. ceilings. The live room has two iso booths, two amp closets, a producer’s lounge, Yamaha C-7 concert piano, and a 64-input Never 8078. Designed for mixing, Studio C is an architecturally styled Gothic Revival with a 20x27 ft. control room and private 8x10 ft. lounge/iso booth. It has a custom 24 channel Neve BCM-10 MK II with 1073 and 1084 mic pres and Oceanway Audio HR 3.5 main monitors. Clients love the kitchen attached to Studio A and the stocked bar in Studio B.
Muso.AI: In 2017, Baumgardner teamed up with entrepreneur and former Blue Shield CTO Aaron Kaufman and producer, engineer, and former NRG cohort Kyran de Keijzer to launch Muso.AI—a base catalog which collects and merges data from various sources using machine learning models which enrich the raw, unindexed data to indexed and catalogued data points. It’s a starting point for music industry pros to search for, edit, and manage their legacy metadata. The premium service (Muso.AI Pro) allows users to turn their credits into daily stats and historical trends, track streams, playlists, charts, and more. Currently, Muso.AI has nearly 300,000 registered users, which include publishers, labels, and studios.
Contact NRG Studios, 818-760-7841
For more, visit nrgrecording.com
