5/5 Electro-Voice 635a

Buchen: I haven’t yet met a vocalist who hasn’t’ fallen for this little guy. Designed as a TV interview mic its omni pattern made it perfect for being held beneath the chin for a clear view of the face doing the talking (or singing – see any Tom Jones et al TV performances from the 70s to see it in action). The mic can be smashed or whispered into and it offers a mysterious character that when compressed and saturated with the right gear acts like a dial that turns up the excitement and attitude of pretty much any vocal that’s fighting to be heard in a big track. The new old stock ones sound best but are getting harder to find.

Name: Electro-Voice 635A | Year Introduced: Conceived in 1970, mass production started in 1972 | Type: Dynamic | Pattern: Omni

Tony Buchen is a celebrated veteran of the Australian recording industry; only compared most veterans, his career is relatively short.

Like many modern producers, Buchen’s passion for recording music came out of a yearning to record his own band, essentially cutting out the middle man between the sound that was in his head and what was on the record. 

His salad days in the early 2000’s were spent honing the sound of his band, celebrated Aussie hip-hop trio The Baggsmen, employing the studio as a supplementary instrument in their musical craft. By 2005 he had already moved forward to record with renowned bands like Bluejuice, The Church and Blue King Brown. 

As masterful all-rounder as a producer, mix engineer and multi-instrumentalist, Buchen has since been highly sought after by a eclectic array of Australian and international artists, working within the realms of pop, indie rock and electronica with equal fervor and undeniable prowess.

His illustrious catalogue boasts artists ranging from Aussie legends like Megan Washington and the John Butler Trio, to buzzy indie artists like Spookyland and Montaigne, to international acts like The Fall and lesser known emerging acts like Sydney based Wells and Oh Reach.

With a penchant for vintage gear and a hands-on approach to producing music, Buchen is today one of the most distinguished producers in the country. He continues to working with genre-spanning artists, arranging strings and playing bass in bands.