We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Blaine Ruth a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Blaine thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you talk to us about how you learned to do what you do?

I would say that my path to becoming a music producer began when I was playing in a band as a high schooler. When it came time to figure how to make a record for that group, I think I quickly found out that I was more into crafting songs and shaping the sonics of a recording than my pervious focus, which was just wanting to be a really good guitar player. At first, I was mainly learning from my peers and watching any video I could find of a producer I liked on youtube. Beyond that point, I just became super obsessed with how a great record is crafted; listening to a ton of music super intently to try and understand the mechanics of popular music and what makes it just that. Another thing to point out would be just accepting you have to make bad shit, and then overtime you make less and less bad shit, and eventually learn what works for you.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

In the least pretentious way, I believe the role of music producer/songwriter sits somewhere in between a translator, therapist, and a historian. First, you have to translate the sound in the artists head – or help them find it if they want that from you as well. As far as therapizing goes, you would probably want to be someone they feel comfortable talking about their life happenings with, so you can understand the source material. Finally, I feel like you just have to be really into music. You have to have had listened to way too much of it; to understand different sub-genres and eras, their nuances and aesthetic touch points, the reason the things they did work. The goal with this is just to have as many tools in your bag as possible to create the thing that is truly creative. Then on top of it, putting in the hours to gain the technical skill to put those ideas on the track.

I think the thing I’m most proud of is the fact that I have an unwavering focus in life is to constantly get better at all of these things (and god knows I need it for the “therapist” thing, I see myself as a fairly quiet guy). What I think I do (on my better days) is work to make records that I feel are eccentric, kind of weird, at times a bit anarchic, but play into a pop framework and be things made for many people to identify with in someway.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

When I think of music’s role in culture as a whole, I think of it as something that defines eras, groups of people and locations – while simultaneously transcending the barriers that would isolate those things like language or age. This is clearly because it’s a big part of almost anyone’s existence, and that’s what takes me to what I think the coolest thing about music is: the fact that it is a chronological tool in everyones life. Whether it is listening to a song that moved you when you were with a certain person or hearing your parents talk about the things they were up to at that time when a song comes on the radio – hearing a song you love will take back to that moment in time where you needed it most, and will be a major player in how you remember your best and worst moments doing life. In fact (not to make things too sad) but numerous studies have been conducted illustrating that a dementia patient’s last standing memories are those pertaining to songs – if that does not illustrate how impactful music is on a person’s life, I’m not sure what is.

My goal is to be a part of as much music that I can that will hopefully become the soundtrack to a lot of people’s lives – one can hope it will be a thing that comforts them, inspires them, and becomes a fixture of the way they recollect.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

For every song to be a different adventure creatively, to try new approaches every time I have the opportunity, and for there to always be something new to learn.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @blaineruth

Image Credits

Cole Plichta @clicktaofficial – cheeta pants and Jamacia shirt photos