The Sun
Sunnyvale's Newspaper

Photograph by George Sakkestad

Mark Stein relaxes in front of the control panels at I'm Stein Recording Studio, one of the few studios that caters to amateur musicians in the South Bay.

Musicians set down their sound at local music studio

By Steve Enders

In a small rented warehouse space in a tucked-away corner of Sunnyvale, audiophile Mark Stein and a buddy sip coffee into the late afternoon, killing time between sessions.

Free time has been at a premium lately for Stein because business has been booming. He's the owner of I'm Stein Recording Studio, one of only a couple such studios in Sunnyvale, and one of only a few in the entire South Bay.

He said that during this time of year, business picks up because musicians get their tax returns and are quick to burn those extra bucks. This year, he said, business has been good all along.

Before moving to Sunnyvale five years ago, Stein, a musician himself, lived in San Francisco. He was popular among other musicians there because he always had some recording equipment around to play with, capturing his friends' sounds on the spot.

What started as a hobby with a standard tape recorder has evolved into a full-time job and the realization of a dream--to be surrounded by music all day, and sometimes all night.

"I've done some film work, some television and commercials, but I mostly do bands--that's what I really like to do," he said. "What I try to focus on here is to have the band record live. It's kind of the Motown approach."

His style is to capture the band's live feeling, which can be better than going back over previously recorded material and patching holes in the music with what are called "overdubs," he said.

Stein drops the names of just about every local band and musician. Some are from Sunnyvale, and he said the music scene here has come a long way over the past few years.

"The Sunnyvale scene is happening," Stein said. "We've got Murphy Avenue, and within that one block there's, like, six places that have live music. That's pretty good for one block."

Stein, who's had quite a bit of musical experience himself, said that for most musicians, recording is the next step from picking up a guitar and jamming with friends.

Stein said, "[Recording] is like telling a story or a joke--it's just something you're inclined to do. It's something you have to do. It's just communication--telling your story."

Stein's friend and studio drummer Doug Gonzales quoted former Van Halen lead singer David Lee Roth, saying music is far more addictive than any drug could ever be. Recording, Gonzales and Stein agree, is a natural extension of the musician--to have a record of the expression behind the music.

Stein and Gonzales are two of three members of a rock band called Three for the Road. The band recently played its first live gig at the Biker Blessing in San Jose on Easter Sunday.

While dad had his first concert recently, Gonzales' 13-year-old daughter had her first recording experience. She's a veteran in the studio because of him, Gonzales said, but never had actually recorded anything.

She's an aspiring singer and logged some time at I'm Stein a couple of weeks ago. Gonzales said she had fun during the session, but it was extremely tiring for her.

"I told her she's going to have 'studio ears,' " Gonzales said, referring to the acute audio awareness that occurs when a musician has been focusing on her sound in a small, closed environment for an extended period of time.

Gonzales added, "It's like, you can walk outside and hear all the leaves rustling, cars going by--everything."

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This article appeared in the Sunnyvale Sun, April 22, 1998.
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