Meet Phil Levine | Sound Engineer and Mixer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Phil Levine and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Phil, can you share a quote or affirmation with us?
To start off with my most joint-smokey abstractions, my life was altered by this passage from Chuck Klosterman’s ‘Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs:’

“A widely held opinion in the aesthetic community insists an artist is more credible if he doesn’t consider
his audience during the creative process; the philosophy suggests that a true artist HAS to make his art
for personal reasons, regardless of whether or not people like it (or even want it). That’s plainly stupid,
and Bon Jovi knew it. Art is not intrinsic to the universe; art is a human construction. If you killed off all
the world’s people, you would kill off all the art. THE ONLY IMPORTANT THING ABOUT ART IS HOW IT
AFFECTS PEOPLE. It only needs to affect one person to be interesting, but it has to affect many people
to be important.”

Reading this at 17, this passage butted against my entire conception of what it meant to make ‘good art.’ How do you reconcile artistic integrity with consideration of the audience? Does their opinion matter? Is art not a deeply personal pursuit?

Many years passed before I realized both things can be true. Art can be intensely personal as well as intensely shared. You can consider the audience without selling out, just as you can make music ‘for yourself’ that is artistically vacant. And vice versa. As with most things, there is no objective truth.

At 34 years old, I still think about this all the time while working as a sound engineer and mixer. Meaning can come from within and without, and that’s ok. It’s quite literally what makes us human.

Much of the best art in my opinion artfully checks both boxes. It bears the authenticity and intentionality of its creator while simultaneously harmonizing/understanding the social and cultural context that it was born in to.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?

I work amongst a very large community of talented professionals who do what I do. I think folks who work with me know that I attach my personal self worth to their project and cut no corners to make sure things sound as good as possible. I take pride in folks knowing I care.

As a result, I’ve had the honor of dipping my hand into all sorts of audio worlds. From recording voices for Apex Legends, to working on film scores like Guardians of the Galaxy 3, to mixing spatial audio for Madison Cunningham, or soundtracks like Maestro. Educating yourself is not a mountain you climb, but rather a hole you fall into. Through that lense, every project is a chance to learn, dive into the weeds, and figure out the best way to understand and execute on what needs to be done.

Very few things worthwhile are easy. Holding the door. Petting dogs, usually easy. On the sound engineering side, it’s a ton of work. But it’s fun work. You make mistakes, learn, grow stronger, the toolset available to you widens. Even the menial tasks are valuable because you learn what really goes into making something great. I’m so lucky that I still get to learn every day.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
For me, it’s all about food. There was good food growing up in Philly, but the scope and quality of the foods available here in LA is so expansive that it is the foundation for most things I do with visiting friends/family.

Alhambra and the San Gabriel holds supremely tasty spots from a variety east asian countries

Mexican taco trucks/stands – everyone has their go to

Ethiopian in Little Ethiopia? yes

Despite being a NY pizza fundamentalist, spots like Pizzanna, Quartersheets, Masa, and Purgatory are all extremely tasty

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
So many people. My folks, who always felt musical education was worth supporting. My teachers growing up and through college in who expanded my horizons and challenged me. Gus Borner, my mentor at Igloo Music who has taught so much inside and outside the studio. All professional colleagues and friends who have shown me grace and trust in the course of our work. And finally, my friends throughout life who have allowed and challenged me to see different perspectives. Big shoutout to Addy Baddy who recommended me for this interview, and who happens to be one of the nicest individuals making some of my favorite music of all time.

Instagram: pjmcfry

Linkedin: Phil Levine

Image Credits
Guido Adler, Francisco Ojeda, Kaya Blaze