Supernova has had the pleasure of working with some incredible members of the music industry over the years, including some of the country’s premiere recording studios. One of our newest colleagues in the industry is Vogville Recording in Port Coquitlam, BC – a gorgeous facility owned by Producer/Engineer Jonathan Fluevog.



Having hosted the likes of K-OS, Scissor Sisters, Bedouin Soundclash, Ashlee Simpson, and The Envy, Vogville Recording is no stranger to major artists of the industry. Their state of the art gear is complimented by the professional guidance of Jonathan Fluevog and other staff members, giving Vogville a reputation for creating a welcoming environment with a clear focus on producing the best possible session results.

When Supernova began working with Vogville Recording, we quickly learned that Jonathan’s passion for the industry extends far beyond the technical wisdom involved in producing great music. “Over the years, Vogville has become a great community,” he explained. “It’s a community were every one is really supportive of each other. The sustainability of our industry will depend on every one working together and letting go of the ‘every man for himself’ approach of the past.”

This philosophy has greatly contributed to Vogville’s success, earning the Recording studio a reputation for helping artists – big and small – to transform their talent in to something amazing in studio. Since many of Supernova’s artists are getting their first taste of professional music services, Vogville Recording is the perfect environment for the budding talent coming off the Supernova stage.

In true form, Jonathan took some time out from his busy schedule at Vogville to chat with us about the studio’s history, and his perspective on the independent music industry today.

So how did you personally get involved with opening a studio in BC?

When I was around 8 my dad said, “You’re not really interested in the preaching at church; so you might as well hang out with the sound guys” … that’s what I did, and so began my entry into audio. As it happened one of the sounds guys at church managed a studio at the time and let me come in and assist on the weekends… Pretty funny, a 10-year old kid setting up mics and making coffee.

When I was a teen, I would finish school and head to the studio to assist on weekends. It was great - I would record bands myself and I was just a kid! I actually missed my grad to be in the studio.

In my early 20’s, my band Sophomore signed to A&M records and I moved to NY to start working on our album and further my engineer and producing. Then around the time Britney Spears came out, we were dropped and I moved back to Vancouver, Canada.

I was fortunate to have made some great connections while in NY and now needed a studio to work out of back home. Over the years I had collected a lot of gear, so I had pretty much everything I needed for a demo/production studio. I was still flying back and forth to the States, but now had somewhere to bring my clients with no time restraints. As I worked more and more in my own studio I added a Solid State Logic 4k console and things like a Neumann u 47 microphone that came from The Hit Factory in NY.

In 2006 my first son was born and after years of being in the studio 17 hrs a day I wanted to spend time with my family. That lead to Vogville renting out to other engineers and producers. We have an amazing community of artists, producers and engineers that call Vogville home now. I feel so thankful to have so much talent working out of my studio. It’s great to turn on the radio and hear so many songs you know were done in your studio.

That’s an amazing entry into the industry – very hands on. What are some of the most memorable artists you’ve had at Vogville Recording?

Over the years the studio has had a good host of famous artists, from K-OS to Matt Good to Ashlee Simpson. But the most awesome artist to come in was Tommy Chong, that guy has some amazing stories to tell.

Wow, a huge range of artists! Obviously Supernova is used to the emerging end of the spectrum… in a way, we feel that Independent Artists are the lifeblood of the music industry – what do you think, true/false?

True, it's much like the film industry’s saying, “when your not working on Lord of the Rings or Star Wars, your working on everything else.” In 2010, the “everything else” category makes up the bulk of the industry. Most producers that come through are working on 95% indie music.



Wow, I had no idea that the figure would be so high! So, given that you’re seeing an influx of ‘less experienced’ bands, is there such a thing as ‘Bad’ music?

A bad song fails to grab you; a good song grabs you and sticks with you it moves you. We are now in the days of iPods. You have such a short time to grab some with a song before they move onto the next artist. A saying I have is: If you want to make self indulgent music or career choices, don't expect a team to get behind you and don’t expect to derive a living from your music.

If you want to appeal to a larger audience, you can only be say… 15% different. ” But what about all the other bands that are different and famous” you say? Well think of when they came out… were they really that different? Bands that are different that get noticed tend to be apart of a movement of bands; Nirvana was part of a movement.

Given the expectations of new artists and the demands placed on the music industry in general, what is the biggest challenge you face right now?

The biggest challenge is finding artists that are willing to make waves not wait for someone to make the waves for them. As a studio owner, I want bands to move forward so they can make money and come back; as a producer you want a band to move forward so you get paid and your name continues to be recognized and you keep getting work. Most bands fail to recognize how circular the whole industry is.

Right now it also seems we have more contests that artists can win then ever before. It’s a great way for a band to move forward and it’s great as a community to have things that can move a band forward. But with that said, I am seeing more and more bands that are looking at these contests as an ‘all or nothing’ scenario. If they don’t win then they do nothing.

This is very true. So in light of that, what do you think of Supernova.com and the contesting opportunities for bands?

I think it’s a great place for artists to connect, no band is an island you need to work together. A lot of musicians fall into the trap of thinking that either they’re going to be ‘discovered’ or nothing is going to happen at all, so there’s no real need or urgency to actually do things to grow an audience and a career.

My questions for bands to ask themselves is this... What do you want out of music and what are you willing to put in to get what you want out? What if you put in 100% effort and the industry doesn’t get behind you, then what? Are you going to stop or are you going to move forward on your own steam?

That’s some solid advice, since I’m not sure all bands can really answer those questions. It’s clear that you’ve had a lot of experience in helping artists move forward towards their goals.

What about yourself and Vogville Recording’s goals - who would you most like to work with in the industry?

Currently it would be amazing to work with Robert Plant, he is such a diverse artist. It’s always an honour to work with people that have enough money to not work, but choose to work for the love of it. And because they love it, they focus on quality rather than just getting the idea down.

Finally, what is your personal motto when working with a new artist?

My main motto is, drop idealism and focus on reality. Be real; a band that has the “it” factor gets things without being told. What are the “it factors” ? Talent, charisma, business savvy, and ambition - without these few bands make any waves.

- - - - -


Jonathan Fluevog is the owner and lead Producer/Engineer at Vogville Recording. Besides having a state of the art studio space in one of the most active Canadian music scenes, Jonathan’s team brings both wisdom and professional direction to all of their studio services.

For more information, you can contact the studio via email or call (604) 722-8616 for bookings.