Plymouth Studio Owner Helps Launch New Bands by by Lana Mini
Rewind two years: Recording Engineer Jeff Robinson, of Plymouth, is asked to judge a high school battle of the bands. While the other judges sit at a table taking notes near the back of the room, Robinson immerses himself in the middle of the teenage audience; observing their reaction to each band and occasionally getting lost in the music himself with a nod of the head or hearty applause. The winner, a twosome hip-hop Kid Rock-type band, earned a recording session with Robinson at his studio, Third Monk Records in Plymouth. Flash forward to present day: Robinson is on the faculty at Schoolcraft College in the Recording Technology program and, he's still busy at Third Monk. Currently he's mixing the Plymouth Symphony Orchestra's first live CD- under the presitigious leadership of conductor Nan Washburn. Robinson, who has a long history in the music industry, offers musicians his recording and mixing talents. But what makes Third Monk special is what happens after the CD is is mastered. He doesn't just collect a paycheck and turn away. "When a band approaches me I first have to decide if their music is a demo or if it's going to be a legitimate release...meaning whether the band is working hard to take their music to the next level or not," Robinson said. "If it's a baby (young) band, I have to see if the project will go the distance, and look at their chemistry to see if the musicians are serious." When Robinson determines the band has potential, and once the recording is finished, he helps arrange to get the CD ready for sale with an actual barcode- from start to finish the average project can cost up to $10,000. He then guides the artists about the business side of music. His studio isn't just for vanity projects - "that's what myspace is for," he said. "They're getting more than a CD, they're getting facilitated growth...we makea campaign to make some noise about the CD." Robinson knows his recording studio has heavy competition. Musicians today can mix music on their home computers - but most of them will not take it further. "In 1965 there were 215 albums," Robinson said quoting statistics from Top Ten Review. "In 2007 there were 37,000." Most CDs just get passed around to friends then fade away. Robinson is making noise for the indie rock band. Woodward; the band take its modern sound (with an '80s vibe) to clubs throughout metro Detroit. He has faith in the Mark White Band. "Mark White is a Christian band, so it's a niche market," Robinson said, "The sound is alternative - imagine the Barenaked Ladies with Christian lyrics." He's also recorded and mixed (sometimes producing) band like Penumbrae, Verb and Black Grass Orchestra. In the late '80s, he worked in the radio industry at Q106 FM in Lansing, for example. He later relocated to Los Angeles to work in the recording industry. But, as the industry changed, Robinson came back to Michigan...
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