We were lucky to catch up with Scott Haskin recently and have shared our conversation below.
Scott, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?
It is tough to say what the MOST meaningful project has been because they all have great meaning to me but, I would say my Mental Sauna music series has been important because it has helped people with severe insomnia, it has helped prevent suicide and people have even put it on their birthing playlist. I’ve had some great guests on the HaskinCast Podcast. Also, my second podcast, Uriah Heep – The Magician’s Podcast, helped people dig into the 50+ year career of one of my favorite bands. There’s just so much!
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 background and context?
I do a number of things in the industry. First, I am a composer. I am getting ready to start work on my 32nd album this month, which I am very excited about. I have also done music for ads and film. As an audio engineer, I mix and master all my own music, direct and produce audiobooks, mix music for others as well as doing audio restoration. I’ve had some fun cleaning up EVP recordings over the years! As an author, I have published 9 books, which are all available on Amazon. My first book, Becoming an Indie Film Composer helps find a starting point for your composing path. I have 5 coffee table books and then my fiction trilogy, The Universal Court. As a drummer, I am the recording drummer for the Canadian band AraPacis. I joined for the most recent album Suburban Mist, and we are looking at starting work on our next album early next year. As a podcaster, my show Uriah Heep – The Magician’s Podcast covered the entire career to date of the band Uriah Heep, who generously endorsed the show (Thank you Mick Box!) and my ongoing show, the HaskinCat Podcast continues on every Wednesday. I am also the co-host, along with Corey Morrissette, of the show Back Tracks: Aerosmith Revisited. I try to keep busy.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
To know that anything I spent time doing was more than relevant to just myself. When I was doing research for The Universal Court book series, I had reached out to people I knew and was shocked to find out many of them listened to my music. People don’t take enough opportunity to let each other know how much they appreciate something. It is so important, especially for indie artists to know their creations aren’t getting lost in the void. When I do an interview or album review on my podcast, I love hearing that someone listened and their eyes were opened to a new artist or they were touched by something a guest said. What is better than having positive impact and turning someone on to something new?
Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative?
Interestingly, I was recently having lunch with a friend and she was telling me about her ice maker. There was a certain sound it made and I immediately turned it into a drum pattern. The thing is that when you are a creative (and there are different levels of creativity), you can’t shut it off. It is always there and there is this insane need to do something with it. As much as we would all love to make our living as a creative, it isn’t even about that. You just HAVE to create. Even standing in line at the grocery store, the shopping cart transforms to a drum set or keyboard where I am writing and I will hum those things into the voice recorder when I get to the car. It is as constant as breathing.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.scotthaskin.com/
- Instagram: @MentalSauna @The_HaskinCast_Podcast @UriahHeepPodcast
- Linkedin: https://www.scotthaskin.com/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@ScottHaskinMusic
- Others: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Scott-K.-Haskin/author/B0B2N38Y7T?ref=ap_rdr&store_ref=ap_rdr&isDramIntegrated=true&shoppingPortalEnabled=true