Nigel Godrich |
Nigel Godrich
Landmark work Beck, Sea Change; Radiohead, Kid A
Ass-kicking recent release Radiohead, In Rainbows
Wrestling name The Scientist!
Since their 1997 watershed album OK Computer, Nigel Godrich has been to Radiohead what George Martin was to the Beatles — the unofficial sixth member of the most important rock band of the past decade, much in the same way Martin was the “fifth Beatle.” In fact, it was Martin who suggested Godrich to Paul McCartney when Macca was looking for someone to produce his 2005 solo album, Chaos and Creation in the Backyard, for which Godrich was nominated for a Producer of the Year Grammy. And like Sir George, who helped the Fab Four navigate the waters of revolutionary studio experimentation, Godrich helped steer Radiohead from a relatively standard Brit-rock sound to darker electronic pastures. One of his strengths is his ability to marry futuristic-sounding electronic elements with more traditional sounds, including lush string orchestrations. Godrich has also been responsible for awakening the earnest singer-songwriter in Beck, eliciting a gorgeous swan song from Pavement, and helming Air’s Talkie Walkie, one of the most beautiful electro-organic albums in recent memory.
— Will Spitz
Max Martin |
Max Martin
Landmark work Backstreet Boys, Millenium; Britney Spears, . . . Baby One More Time
Ass-kicking recent release James Blunt, “Carry You Home”
Wrestling name The Equalizer!
In the early ’90s, fledgling producer Martin Sandberg changed his name to Max Martin because, he was told, the snappy alliteration sounded more pop. The man who convinced Martin to do so, Denniz PoP (who himself was born the un-pop-sounding Dag Krister Volle) became his mentor. PoP was the paterfamilias of a now heavily influential line of Swedish Svengali producers/songwriters who toil to revive tween pop in its various forms. And it was Martin in particular who managed to distinguish himself with a natural ear for the kind of contemporary dance-pop hooks, festooned with aural candy, that can climb a Top 40 playlist. Together, he and PoP collaborated on tracks for Ace of Base’s second effort, The Bridge, and soon the duo had an offer to produce and write songs for a new lad-band called the Backstreet Boys. After Martin penned “As Long as You Love Me,” his fate was effectively sealed. His personal oeuvre, however, reached its first official climax with “. . . Baby One More Time,” a joyously masochistic swan song originally written for TLC. Instead, it was recorded by a certain adolescent upstart with super-tight abs and a voice begging to be auto-tuned. Martin continued to write for Britney Spears on subsequent releases, but as her celebrity grew, so did his list of credits. Martin prepared compositions for *NSYNC, P!nk, the Veronicas, Ashley Parker Angel, and Kelly Clarkson. Clarkson’s “Since U Been Gone,” co-produced by Martin (with Dr. Luke), is the Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde of pop songs — pumped full of steroids, two-faced, and ready to kick the shit out of you.
— Sharon Steel
