staff profile

Ferg Peterkin

Staff Profile: Ferg Peterkin

Welcome along to the a-little-about-Ferg section of the magazine. Recently graduated from assistant to engineer, he's now a regular cohort of Ben Hillier in the new Miloco studio, The Pool, where sessions have included the likes of Scully, Stephen Fretwell, The Maccabees and Mr Hudson & The Library. He likes to snowboard and mash potatoes and has a partial obsession with Brian Wilson, so step this way for more Peterkin tidbits...



A) The facts:

MILC: What do you do here at Miloco?

Ferg: Engineer/Assistant/ Cleaner/Dishwasher/Head Mouse Catcher

MILC: How long have you been at Miloco?

FP: I have been here about a year and a half , Originally I Started at Mayfair Studios and after four years I left and spent a year in Vancouver, Canada and I've been at Miloco since I got back.

MILC: Please name a few of the projects/artists you've been involved with at Miloco.

FP: Recently I have been doing a lot of engineering in The Pool with Ben Hillier for The Maccabees, Scully, Voxtrot, Mr Hudson, Charlotte Hatherley and Stephen Fretwell.

MILC: ...and of which are you most proud?

FP: I'm proud of everything I've done but being able to record The Maccabees with everyone in the same room with the drums thumping, amps blazing and all playing live together like they do on stage - and still getting a good sound as if we had separate rooms and a control room.

MILC: Which producer/engineer would you most like to work with?

I've worked with most ones that I wanted to work with, but working with Joe Meek, Phil Spector, Brian Wilson, Lee "Scratch" Perry or any other mentalist in their golden era would be good.

MILC: What do you think Miloco can offer over other studios?

FP: Because a lot of the studios are in different locations Miloco is very organised which makes them very flexible to your needs. Even if you decide you need something last minute, it wouldn't be a problem to sort it out, the systems are in place. They also have a great range of rooms that can cater for all with good maintained equipment and up to date Pro Tools/Logic rigs.

Also...

MILC: Staff knob of the month. Of all the switches, buttons, effects and tools at your disposal during recent Miloco sessions, which single one has given you most satisfaction?

FP: Anything that lets me feed stuff back to itself

MILC: If your current clients were a sandwich, what would they be?

FP: Sloppy Joe [Stephen Fretwell]

Favourite music section:

MILC: What was your favourite album when you were:

a) 5-12 yrs old?
To The Extreme, Vanilla Ice b) 13-16?
Ill Communication, Beastie Boys
c) 17-25?
Too much changed over this period and not really one thing was one constant repeat

MILC: If you could have been involved in the recording of any one album, which one would it have been?

FP: There are loads of albums that I would like to have worked on, but one session I would like to have been around for would be Good Vibrations, however long it took.

MILC: What is your favourite album cover and why?

FP: Critical Beat Down - Ultramagnetic MCs, because they look bad and the back cover is good as well. Also they're wearing top gear.

MILC: Which other producer/engineer's work has influenced you most over the last 12 months?

FP: I've worked a lot with Ben Hillier recently and I have learnt a lot from him about recording and mixing, I also worked with Phill Brown earlier in the year and he also taught me a lot about balance. Silly questions:

MILC: What's the last film you saw at the cinema (was it any good)?

FP: I think Lord Of the Rings or something. I don't get down to the silver screen much.

MILC: What's your favourite kitchen utensil and why?

FP: The masher wins hands down, because it's good at mashing. It does one thing well, like what good studio equipment should do.

MILC: What's the last book you read/what are reading now?

FP: Brian Wilson Autobiography-Wouldn't It Be Nice/nothing at the moment.

MILC: Who are you least likely to be sending a Christmas card to this year?

FP: Estate agents and bank managers for taking the piss.

MILC: What was your most recent holiday destination and what did you do there?

FP: Not that recent but Andorra and France snowboarding

MILC: What are you doing next weekend?

FP: Working In The SSL Room with The Rural and Leon Jean Marie.

All-comers title fight:

MILC: Who would win a fight between... Keith (from Prodigy) and Keith Chegwin? Any why?

FP: I think Cheggers would come off worse with injuries, (cuts, broken bones and black eyes) because Flint probably packs a few tools, but I reckon Cheggers has a special move or two and would KO Flint out for the count. [Chegwin advances to next round. Ed)

Final music section:

MILC: Which is the best gig you've ever been to?

FP: Rage Against The Machine At Glastonbury 1994

MILC: What's the worst behaviour you've ever witnessed in a studio?

FP: Tom Jones sweating with his top off whilst doing a vocal.

MILC: What's the longest studio time you've ever spent on an, ultimately pointless, task?

FP: Recording and Editing in two notes of a piano line onto a live gig recording that was played slightly wrong by someone so important that they had to send a whole entourage of engineers and managers to OK it. It ended up taking most of the day for something that was supposed to be live! ...

The end bit:

Thank you very much for submitting yourself to the Miloco Magazine inquisition; your time, effort and patience is much appreciated.

MILC: Before signing off, is there anything you else you would like to let us know?

FP: I have one sugar in my tea and I put the milk in first.

Ferg peterkin was talking to MILC in September 2006

Ferg's CV can be viewed here: Ferg Peterkin

© MILC@Miloco 2006