Today we talk to William Bolton - one of our DMC Futures 2020 Mentees. As part of DMC’s yearly mentoring programme, William undertook a ‘Music Production’ Mentorship with Dave Millar of Circa 16 Sound Recording. In this mentorship, William covered studio spec and design, basic studio operation and industry standards, as well as creative production techniques.

Find out more about William below and his experience as DMC Mentee!

Hi William! It was great to have you as part of DMC Futures. Tell us a little about yourself…

Hi, my name is Will and I'm 19. I work for the NHS but in my free time I'm a total nerd. I love to read comic books and I play Dungeons and Dragons with my friends online.

You have a playing background; can you tell us a bit about how your interest in music came about?

Growing up in the North West Highlands there was a strong emphasis on learning traditional Scottish music from a young age, in my case this was the penny whistle. However, when I started high school in Dumfries I moved away from music for a long time. It wasn't until my final year of school that I really began to take an interest and by then it was sadly too late.

What are you into musically, in terms of genre and artists?

My music taste changes as much as my mood does. I pride myself in listening to as many different genres as I can. That said, I enjoy a lot of Modern British rock such as Muse, Nothing But Thieves and The Killers.

Do you think sound production and recording is a logical progression for people in your situation, and do you think it’s often overlooked?

I think sound production is something often completely ignored by our education system. When you think of music classes there's this anxiety of "oh God I've got to perform an instrument in front of a bunch of people" but when it comes to music as a career, this is only a very small element. I wish young people were made more aware about the different paths you can take in the music field.

And what do you make of more informal learning, or skills sharing situations like this? Do you think they have a place within our communities?

Informal learning opportunities are absolutely brilliant. To be able to work with an expert in their space on their time is incredibly valuable. They definitely should have a place within our communities.

So, tell us a bit about what you worked on whilst at the studio, and what you have taken from your mentorship?

Dave and I were working on mixing a track from one of my favourite bands, Muse. We took the original recordings and produced them in a way different to the published song. We also brought in a local drummer, Fergus, who helped teach me how to set up a drum kit for recording and then he played drums for the track we were mixing. Overall, I took away from the mentorship a lot of experience and, most importantly, it helped me decide that I want to pursue sound recording and production as a career.

Finally, leave us with your top tracks of the year..

Thanks to Will for sharing your experience with us!

DMC Futures: A Q&A with William Bolton