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Nestled in St. Albans sits Bandicoot Studios. Over the last decade, owner and producer Dan M Hulse has recorded some of the biggest names in UK Drill, Grime and Pop. From Wiley to Dappy, Lily Allen and Professor Green, artists flock to Bandicoot to capture a raw, energetic sound. At the heart of it all sits his trusty Audient ASP4816 analogue mixing console.
When our tech wizard, Isaac headed down in April to give the 10-year-old desk a quick spruce-up, he came back with incredible stories about Dan’s workflow, his infectious energy and a truly unique approach to studio life. Dan – known to everyone as Bandi – navigates his daily sessions while living with narcolepsy; a condition that has profoundly shaped the way he records and mixes.
We caught up with Bandi to talk about his journey, his “crazy” preamps and why the tactile nature of the ASP4816 keeps his sessions alive.
Audient: You mentioned that your workflow is heavily built around being on your feet. How does the physical layout of the ASP4816 support this hands-on approach?
Bandi: It was never by choice. I had just achieved my dream of owning a recording studio and Sod’s Law I would develop narcolepsy in my first year of running the place. I had to adapt very quickly. Nothing breaks an artist’s heart more than giving their best performance in a studio just to look through the window to see the engineer sound asleep.
But this curse quickly became a blessing and my survival became my style. The Audient was my best friend in these moments. It pulls my focus away from the screen and to the speakers. I need to work fast and put ideas down as fast as possible before any micro-sleep deletes my ideas or stops me executing a client’s creative suggestions. The ASP4816 lets me get a lot of the heavy lifting done quickly with its responsive EQs. I believe levelling should be done with two hands and not a mouse. Everything becomes more of a reaction to what you hear rather than what you see. The artists see me make the movements on the desk and hear the results in front of them.
Audient: You have been with this desk for a decade now. What still surprises you about the ASP4816?
Bandi: Most of all, these preamps are CRAZY. They do most of the work for me. I’ve tried Neve, SSL, all of them. These preamps are in their own class. Now I’ve started streaming the sessions live, you can hear instantly from the raw live takes how “radio” they already sound.
Audient: You have a reputation for keeping high energy in the room. How do you use the console’s routing to keep that creative momentum going?
Bandi: I gain a sense of respect when using the Audient which has no digital to it. We are relying on exactly what we’re hearing out the speakers rather than what the meters are showing on the screen and it’s a philosophy I follow. There are no limits when it comes to routing. I can set the studio up like a playground for artists to be able to jump from the Wurli to adding guitar to streaming the whole thing live. I’ve run a Grime Xtra radio set and recorded a band’s scratch guitar takes all at once!
Audient: We heard whispers of some high-profile work, including a session with Amy Winehouse. Can you share some standout moments from your career?
Bandi: The Amy session was when I was 18 years old. I started off by getting a runner job at Sensible Music and was working under Jon Moon. He pointed round a massive warehouse space and said, “You’ve got two hours ‘cause Amy Winehouse is going to be here,” and walked out the room. My heart dropped, and I started running round like I’d lost my keys. I plugged the last XLR in and Amy’s head popped round the door. “You alwighht?” she said. We recorded a bunch of songs and covers, as well as setting up a studio in her basement.
But the magic came to Bandicoot Studios too. A few months before Covid, I got a call at three in the morning. Milli Major assured me I didn’t want to miss it. Tion Wayne and M24 turned up to write and record “London”, which was a massive hit and cultural moment for drill music. The Audient’s sound is what makes that mix sound so aggressive, a vital part of drill music’s recipe. Dappy, Lily Allen and Professor Green have all been here over the years. They have access to big label studios, yet they come here to fall back in love with music again and get their fix of the ASP4816 sound.
Audient: What does the future hold for Bandicoot Studios?
Bandi: We are entering an exciting and scary time for music with AI. I’ve started streaming my sessions on Kick and TikTok, showing the magic of the studio. The ASP4816 brings back the instrument of the sound engineer. It’s the command desk that allows the stream to run seamlessly by taking on all the routing workload. The whole process and experience make AI’s “prompts and a click” music process lose all its magic.
A massive thank you to Bandi for taking the time to chat with us. We also want to say a huge thank you to photographer Alex Frances for the fantastic images used alongside this piece.
You can watch Bandi’s live studio sessions over on his Kick channel at https://kick.com/bandi-mixes/videos and keep up with his latest projects on Instagram at @bandicootstudios.
