Chris Lord-Alge is an American
mix engineer. He is the brother of both
Tom Lord-Alge and Jeff Lord-Alge, both of whom are also audio engineers. Chris and Tom are known for their abundant use of
dynamic range compression
Dynamic range compression (DRC) or simply compression is an audio signal processing operation that reduces the volume of loud sounds or amplifies quiet sounds, thus reducing or ''compressing'' an audio signal's dynamic range. Compression is c ...
for molding mixes that play well on small
loudspeaker
A loudspeaker (commonly referred to as a speaker or, more fully, a speaker system) is a combination of one or more speaker drivers, an enclosure, and electrical connections (possibly including a crossover network). The speaker driver is an ...
and
FM broadcasting
FM broadcasting is a method of radio broadcasting that uses frequency modulation (FM) of the radio broadcast carrier wave. Invented in 1933 by American engineer Edwin Armstrong, wide-band FM is used worldwide to transmit high fidelity, high-f ...
. Lord-Alge frequently collaborates with
Howard Benson, who has produced the plurality of his mix discography.
Career
Lord-Alge worked at
Unique Recording Studios in New York City in the 1980s. While there, he earned recognition for mixing James Brown's ''
Gravity
In physics, gravity (), also known as gravitation or a gravitational interaction, is a fundamental interaction, a mutual attraction between all massive particles. On Earth, gravity takes a slightly different meaning: the observed force b ...
'' album (which included the hit song "
Living in America"), the ''
Rocky IV
''Rocky IV'' is a 1985 American sports drama film starring, written and directed by Sylvester Stallone. The film is the sequel to '' Rocky III'' (1982) and the fourth installment in the ''Rocky'' franchise. It also stars Talia Shire, Burt You ...
'' soundtrack,
Prince
A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...
's
''Batman'' soundtrack,
Joe Cocker
John Robert "Joe" Cocker (20 May 1944 – 22 December 2014) was an English singer known for his gritty, bluesy voice and dynamic stage performances featuring expressive body movements. Most of his best-known singles, such as
"Feelin' Alright ...
's ''
Unchain My Heart'' album,
Chaka Khan
Yvette Marie Stevens (born March 23, 1953), better known by her stage name Chaka Khan ( ), is an American singer. Known as the " Queen of Funk", her career has spanned more than five decades beginning in the early 1970s as the lead vocalist of ...
's ''
Destiny
Destiny, sometimes also called fate (), is a predetermined course of events. It may be conceived as a predetermined future, whether in general or of an individual.
Fate
Although often used interchangeably, the words ''fate'' and ''destiny'' ...
'' album,
Carly Simon
Carly Elisabeth Simon (born June 25, 1943) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and author. She rose to fame in the 1970s with a string of hit records; her 13 Billboard Hot 100, top 40 U.S. hits include "Anticipation (song), Anticipatio ...
's ''
Coming Around Again'' album,
Tina Turner
Tina Turner (born Anna Mae Bullock; November 26, 1939 – May 24, 2023) was a singer, songwriter, actress, and author. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Rock 'n' Roll", her vocal prowess, raspy voice, and electrifyin ...
's ''
Foreign Affair'' album and 12" remixes of
Madonna
Madonna Louise Ciccone ( ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. Referred to as the "Queen of Pop", she has been recognized for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, ...
's "
La Isla Bonita", the
Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...
' "
Too Much Blood", and
Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American Rock music, rock singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Nicknamed "the Boss", Springsteen has released 21 studio albums spanning six decades; most of his albums feature th ...
's "
Dancing in the Dark", "
Cover Me", and "
Born in the U.S.A.". In 1989-1990, brothers Chris and Jeff Lord-Alge collaborated on the
Oingo Boingo
Oingo Boingo () was an American new wave music, new wave band formed by songwriter Danny Elfman in 1979. The band emerged from a Surrealism, surrealist musical theatre troupe, The Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo, that Elfman had led and wri ...
album ''
Dark at the End of the Tunnel'', with Jeff Lord-Alge and Bill Jackson recording and Chris Lord-Alge mixing.
Lord-Alge continued to mix for Turner throughout the 90's. During this time he also provided mixing services for
Neil Diamond
Neil Leslie Diamond (born January 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. He has sold more than 130 million records worldwide, making him one of the List of best-selling music artists, best-selling musicians of all time.
He has written and ...
's ''
Tennessee Moon''.
In 1997, he mixed
Green Day
Green Day is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Rodeo, California, in 1987 by lead vocalist and guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong and bassist and backing vocalist Mike Dirnt, with drummer Tré Cool joining in 1990. In 1994, their majo ...
's ''
Nimrod
Nimrod is a Hebrew Bible, biblical figure mentioned in the Book of Genesis and Books of Chronicles, the Books of Chronicles. The son of Cush (Bible), Cush and therefore the great-grandson of Noah, Nimrod was described as a king in the land of Sh ...
'', marking the beginning of a continued relationship with the band, mixing the Grammy-winning albums ''
American Idiot'' (2004) and ''
21st Century Breakdown'' (2009).
The 2000's saw Lord-Alge lending his touch prolifically for other
pop punk
Pop-punk (also punk-pop, alternatively spelled without the hyphen) is a rock music fusion genre that combines elements of punk rock with power pop or pop music, pop. It is defined by its fast-paced, energetic tempos, and emphasis on classic pop s ...
bands, mixing for
Billy Talent,
Simple Plan
Simple Plan is a Canadian rock band formed in Montreal, Quebec, in 1999. The band's current lineup consists of Pierre Bouvier (lead vocals, studio bass guitar), Chuck Comeau (drums), Jeff Stinco (lead guitar), and Sébastien Lefebvre (rhyt ...
, and
My Chemical Romance
My Chemical Romance is an American Rock music, rock band from New Jersey. The band's current lineup consists of lead vocalist Gerard Way, lead guitarist Ray Toro, rhythm guitarist Frank Iero, and bassist Mikey Way. They are considered one of ...
.
In the 2010's, Lord-Alge mixed on Celine Dion's ''
Loved Me Back to Life'', her first album after a seven-year hiatus, as well as
Muse
In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, the Muses (, ) were the Artistic inspiration, inspirational goddesses of literature, science, and the arts. They were considered the source of the knowledge embodied in the poetry, lyric p ...
's ''
The 2nd Law'', a foray into more electronic textures.
Partnership with Waves Audio
In early 2010,
Waves Audio
Waves Audio Ltd. is an Israeli developer and supplier of professional digital audio signal processing technologies and audio effects, used in recording, mixing, mastering, post production, broadcast, and live sound. The company's corporate headq ...
released the "CLA Artist Signature Collection", a collection of six application-specific
audio plug-in
An audio plug-in, in computer software, is a Plug-in (computing), plug-in that can add or enhance audio-related functions in a computer program, typically a digital audio workstation. Such functions may include digital signal processing or soun ...
s for vocals, drums, bass, guitar and the last two of them called "unplugged" (designed for acoustic elements) and "effects" (a collection of six different effects). Waves had previously released a bundle of CLA-branded compressors, featuring the CLA-76 (
UREI 1176LN), CLA-2A (
Teletronix LA-2A) and CLA-3A (UREI LA-3A). These are among Lord-Alge's favorite dynamics units.
List of Grammy Awards
References
External links
Chris Lord-Alge - Official Website (chrislordalge.com)Artist Direct entry"An Evening With Chris Lord-Alge", EQ Magazine, Sep 2006Chris Lord-Alge's Waves Plugin Collection
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lord-Alge, Chris
Living people
Grammy Award winners
American audio engineers
1963 births