Apply · Engineering Director · The Recording Club

This application is the start of a real conversation. Your answers will be used to determine how good of a fit you are for the role. The most important questions are open-ended — the kind that show how you think, what you've actually built, and how you would operate inside a high-standard studio. Plan on 30–45 minutes.

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Section 1 of 13

About you

Basics. Location matters because the role is on-site in Santa Monica.

Full name *

Email *

Mobile phone *

LinkedIn URL

Where do you live? (City, neighborhood) *

Realistic commute to 1660 9th Street, Santa Monica, 5+ days/week? *

Tell us your honest answer. Drive time, transit, parking situation, plans to relocate, etc.

Section 2 of 13

Engineering background

Years and recent roles. We're looking for substantial paid session work, not academic credentials.

Years of paid professional studio engineering *

Your two most recent professional engineering roles *

Where, what you did, dates. Be specific. (No CV upload needed — tell us in your own words.)

Section 3 of 13

Recording engineering — Pro Tools, Logic, Ableton

The role expects session-lead fluency across all three. Pick what's true and describe the work.

Which DAWs do you work in at session-lead level? *

Check all that apply. For each one you select, a short description box appears below.

Pro Tools Logic Pro Ableton Live Other

Pro Tools — describe a session you led recently in Pro Tools

Logic — describe a session you led recently in Logic

Ableton — describe a session you led recently in Ableton

Other — which DAW, and a session you led in it

Signal flow troubleshooting *

Describe a complex signal-flow, patching, or diagnostic problem you ran down and solved. Include the symptom, what you ruled out, and the actual root cause.

Section 4 of 13

Live sound and front-of-house mixing

The Live Room hosts ticketed shows, livestreams, and member events. You need to be strong at FOH under pressure.

Live sound and FOH experience *

What consoles have you mixed on? (Allen & Heath SQ-7, Midas M32, others.) Room sizes you've worked? Frequency — weekly, monthly, occasionally?

A fast troubleshoot under pressure *

Describe a moment during a live show or session when something broke and you had seconds to fix it. What broke, what you did, what the audience or talent experienced.

Section 5 of 13 — The big one

A system you built that made a studio measurably better

This is the most important question in the application. From the role: "If a problem happens twice, the fix becomes a system, not a heroic intervention."

Tell us the story *

The problem. What you built (templates, automations, SOPs, hardware setups, smart-plug routines, anything). How long it took. The measurable result for the studio or its clients. Be concrete.

Section 6 of 13

Documentation discipline

From the role: "Every audio system, signal chain, room turn-on procedure, reset procedure, and recurring troubleshooting fix is documented."

A recurring issue you turned into a written procedure *

What was the problem, how did you document it, where did the doc live, and how did you make sure other engineers actually used it?

Section 7 of 13

A session that went sideways

From the role: zero troubleshooting in the room while talent is present. Take the issue to a separate space, fix it calmly, never frame solutions as paid add-ons.

Tell us about it *

What broke. How you handled the room. What the member or client experienced. Whether they came back.

Section 8 of 13

Unreasonable hospitality

From the role: anticipate what a session needs before they ask. Greet members warmly. Leave the room when it's time for them to work. Reappear when needed.

What does "unreasonable hospitality" look like during a recording session? *

Concrete examples, not abstractions.

Section 9 of 13

AI fluency — today, not someday

From the role: AI is "a daily practice, not a buzzword." We expect this role to actively use AI for documentation, troubleshooting, session prep, post-production, training, and system integration.

Give 2–3 specific examples of how you use AI in your engineering work TODAY *

Tools (Claude, ChatGPT, Suno, RipX, Izotope-with-AI, custom scripts, etc.). Specific prompts or workflows. The result. Be concrete — "I use AI for stuff" doesn't count.

Section 10 of 13

Music production — full tracks from a half-formed idea

From the role: some clients walk in with a melody, a lyric, or a vibe and want to walk out with a finished song. You sit with them, brainstorm, then build the record.

Links to tracks you have built from the ground up — with your role on each *

Paste 2–5 publicly released tracks (Spotify, Apple Music, SoundCloud, YouTube, Bandcamp) where you took the song from a half-formed idea to a finished record. For each link, describe your role on that specific track — what you played, programmed, arranged, comped, mixed; whether you wrote with the artist; who else contributed. One link + role description per line. Demos count if they are publicly hosted.

Instruments you play at session-quality level *

Check what applies. The backline here is Yamaha C2 grand, Moog Sub37, Hofner bass, Fender Strat/Jazz, Roland/Yamaha keys, Custom Birch/Catalina drums, vintage and modern synths.

Briefly describe your level on each instrument you checked

E.g. "Piano: jazz-school trained, comp + lead. Bass: solid root-fifths + walking, can cut a record." Optional, but helpful.

Section 11 of 13

Your first 30 days in a new senior engineering role

From the role's how-to-apply: "Tell us, in your own words, what you would do in the first 30 days."

How do you walk into a new senior engineering role and get the lay of the land? *

We don't expect you to know our specific rooms, members, or systems yet. We want to see how you THINK about entering a new studio environment. What do you observe first? Who do you talk to and in what order? What do you document? How do you balance learning the existing systems with proposing changes? When do you start making decisions vs. ask questions? A real, transferable approach — not platitudes.

Section 12 of 13 — optional bonus track

Could you grow into running the club?

Skip or answer briefly if this is not your interest. The Engineering Director role stands on its own; the rest of this application is what decides fit for it. This section is purely a bonus track for candidates who eventually want to grow beyond engineering into running a club. For context: TRC's current management is the CEO plus five directors (Studio Director, Business Director, Membership Director, Innovation Director, Engineering Director), and the roadmap goes beyond Santa Monica — New York and London are on the strategic horizon.

If you are interested in the exec track, tell us (otherwise leave blank or say "not for me")

(a) Track record. The largest team or revenue line you have ever owned end-to-end. Team size, scope, what you actually built, and the measurable result.

(b) Strategic instinct. If TRC asked YOU to open a second location in a city you have never operated in, what would you do in the first 90 days?

(c) Appetite. Do you actually want this kind of executive responsibility eventually? Honest "no" answers are completely fine and will not be held against your Engineering Director application.

Section 13 of 13

Bonus skills — with publicly released proof

From the role: "Bonus: podcasting, Dolby Atmos, video, lighting, post-production." For each one you have, paste a link to publicly released work. Publicly released means we can click and watch/listen right now — not a private portfolio link.

Lighting design

Video / camera / multimedia capture

Podcasting

Audio post-production

Dolby Atmos

Other (specify in note)

Notes on the bonus links (optional)

What was your role on each piece? Anything you want us to know.

Work you're proud of — engineering / mixing / production *

1–3 publicly released links. Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, SoundCloud. The role explicitly asks: "Send links to work you are proud of."

Logistics

Structure, start date, anything else

Compensation is already set in the role description (full-time salaried OR hourly contractor). Just tell us your preference.

Which position do you want? *

Full-time salaried — where in $45K–$70K do you expect to fall? *

The range scales to scope. $45–55K is a mid-experience engineer where the CEO retains Director-level ownership. $55–65K is a senior engineer with partial Director ownership. $65–70K is the full Engineering Director seat, day-one ownership of every responsibility on the role page. Pick honestly based on what you would actually own from week one.

Hourly contractor — $20/hour, up to 40 hrs/week. How does that land? *

Below current LA market for senior engineers; the trade is session-lead access to one of the better-equipped studios in LA, plus first-look at a full-time role if it converts.

Earliest start date *

Anything else good to know?

Ready to send

Once you submit, your answers will be used to determine how good of a fit you are for the role. If we want to move forward, the next step is an in-person or Zoom interview — expect to hear within two weeks.

Thank you

Your application is in. Your answers will be used to determine how good of a fit you are for the role.

If we want to move forward, the next step is an in-person or Zoom interview — expect to hear within two weeks. If you haven't heard back in two weeks, assume it's a pass for this round — we'll keep your application on file.

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