Symbiotic, Immersive Creativity—Recording Sarah McLachlan’s Better Broken

Mixing It in Stereo and Atmos

Better Broken is the latest release by singer-songwriter Sarah McLachlan. It marks her tenth studio album and her first collection of new original songs in over a decade. The album was recorded at the famed Sound City Studios in Los Angeles and was produced by Tony Berg (Michael Penn, Squeeze, Andrew Bird, Phoebe Bridgers, Taylor Swift, Boy Genius and more). It was recorded, mixed and coproduced by Will Maclellan (Guster, Phoebe Bridgers, Blake Mills, The Killers, Boy Genius and more).

The album was mixed for Dolby Atmos by Matt Wallace and Will Kennedy at Studio Delux Immersive, located across the parking lot in the Sound City complex. Matt and Will (Kennedy) are on the cutting edge of immersive mixing with over 500 Atmos mixes to date and growing. Both Matt and Will (Kennedy) should be familiar to RECORDING readers from past interviews and articles. Will (Kennedy) is a regular contributor to the magazine and generously offers his expertise and guidance in our Atmos content.

I sat down with Matt and the two Wills to learn about the recording and mixing of the record, as well as the benefits of a symbiotic, creative relationship between the stereo and immersive production paradigms.