We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Pete Mills. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Pete below.

Pete, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?

The minute I heard KISS and Joan Jett I knew I found what I was looking for my whole life up until the age of 6. I would thump my leg on the bed at night to calm myself to sleep and unbeknownst to me I was in rhythm akin to that of a heavy hitting drummer, This was an oddity to my parents yet when I found music, particularly cinematic rock, I fell in love with a larger than life persona and found my oddities very relevantly expressive in the art of music.

Pete, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I am an LA-based composer, singer songwriter studio owner, producer and multi-instrumentalist and began my life’s purpose pursuing music at the age of six. Influenced early on by the theatrics of Kiss, I joined glam punk band Flash Bastard. After signing with Nikki Sixx’s record label I embarked on a North American tour with Motley Crue and The Scorpions. Shortly after Flash Bastard disbanded, I moved to Los Angeles to establish my recording studio Shadow Zone Sound nabbing my first co-production credit for Soulkid1’s smash hit song “(More Bounce in) California” which inspired the SNL sketch featuring this song entitled “Slow Motion Hallway” starring Josh Brolin. This single’s notoriety captured the attention of local labels giving me purchase as a successful producer working with a myriad of artists including Sheryl Crow, Billy Sheehan, The Dickies, Bobby Brown, Darren King, Teddy Riley, Walter Lure, The Doors, William Shatner, Melissa Manchester, Carmine Appice, Mike Pinera, Robben Ford, Shuggie Otis, Soft Cell, Moving Units, Trisha Paytas, Jackie Cruz, Mumiy Troll, Arthur Brown, Sean “Diddy” Combs, Jasmine Kara, Bonnie Pointer, Tiffany and many more.

I have played in many other bands, signed multiple record deals, and toured worldwide, as well as spent many hours in the recording studio, honing my craft. I worked extensively in the genres of rock, punk, pop, country, hip-hop, darkwave and K-pop. With my adaptive skillset, I crystallize the vision of the artists and labels I work with in studios like the Village Recorder, Warehouse, Armory, and Kingsize Soundlabs as well as my very own workspace Shadow Zone Sound.

I collaborated, produced, engineered, and mixed alongside Dave “Rave” Ogilvie (Nine Inch Nails), Teddy Riley (Backstreet), GGGarth Richardson (Rage Against the Machine), Michael Patterson (Black Rebel Motorcycle Club), Adam Hamilton (L.A. Guns) and Robert Margouleff (DEVO). Production for record labels and movie companies include Warner, Sony ATV, Cleopatra, BMG, Universal, Bad Boy, Geffen, Bulletproof, Mint, Guild of Canada, Movie Central and Canadian Film Council.

Notable accomplishments include William Shatner’s album “Seeking Major Tom” debuting number one on billboard heat seekers, playing bass on Russian rock band Mumiy Troll’s album “Piratskie Kopii,” remixing Soft Cell’s “Tainted Love,” remixing Sean “Diddy” Combs’ “Come to Me,” assisting engineering on the Chinese film “800”, recording 13 K-pop tribute albums in one year and recording Mutemath’s drummer Darren King.

In addition to these collaborations with artists and music professionals, I also compose and performs with my darkwave band, The Sweet Kill, which is a one-man darkwave band, whose gothic atmospheric anthems and introspective lyrics will leave one sobbing in your pillow. As the diviner of this millenarian angst I write, sing, perform and produce all The Sweet Kill’s material. Driven by 80’s cold wave synths, post-punk guitar and darkwave bass, this music sets the stage for toxic romance and melancholic sorrow echoing the laments of The Cure and Joy Division.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

I tend to fall in love with the unknown and I am driven to manifest the famous Schopenhauer quote “Talent hits a target no one else can hit, Genius hits a target no one else can see.”

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.

I never wait for inspiration. I do my music for the sake of the discipline therefore I focus on quantity, and I let the universe decide whether its quality. If I waited for the moment I was divinely inspired to write and record the perfect song I would never be as productive as I am today therefore, I fixate on daily production for the sake of my sanity.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.thesweetkill.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thesweetkill
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thesweetkill
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/petemillscomposer/
• Twitter: www.twitter.com/thesweetkill
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/thesweetkill
• Other: https://www.shadowzone.us