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Andy Wallace Biography

andy-wallace
  • Born:
  • Years Active: 1990s-2000s
  • Genre: Rock & Alternative

A sonically influential presence on the current music scene, Andy Wallace has helped to make some of the most brutal, aggressive music released and also some of the most beautiful. Native New Yorker Wallace began his career by gravitating to Los Angeles in 1974, where he opened his own studio and became chief engineer. The project only lasted a few years with little success before he returned to the Big Apple in time for the hip-hop boom of the early 80s. Recognizing the street aggression in the music, Wallace set about combining rock instrumentation with hip-hop stylings. After re-mixing tracks for Springsteen and Prince, among others, Wallace landed his big break by producing Run D.M.C.'s "Walk this Way" teaming with Aerosmith. The single teamed him with Def Jam founder Rick Rubin and the pair continued to work together throughout the 80s, producing such lethaly heavy groups as Slayer and Sepultura. Perhaps the record he's most noted for, however, is Jeff Buckley's 1994 release Grace, which became a critically accalimed album and on whose unique aural qualities were continually being copied by other groups and producers. The producer was set to man the helm of Buckley's second album when the singer died tragically in the Mississippi River. Since then Wallace has busied himself by working with Faith No more and Alice Cooper among others. ~ Steve Kurutz, Rovi

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