WELCOME!
The Noise Floor is a vibey and comfy recording studio located on the "The Isle of the Arts," beautiful Gabriola Island. We are best known by independent bands and labels around the Pacific Northwest having recorded a significant number of critically acclaimed artists from Vancouver and the surrounding areas.
Our clients include Orville Peck, Wolf Parade, Rae Spoon, The Courtneys, Northcote, You Say Party, Dead Soft, GR.Gritt and many many more!
Our studio consists of 2 performance rooms (live room, dead room), control room, band lounge / kitchenette and optional sleeping cabin.
The live room is 20’ x 18’ with a ceiling height reaching 13’ at its peak. It is spacious enough to accommodate a 3-4 piece band and comfy for the solo performer. The floor is concrete (with radiant heat) and the walls / ceiling are finished in local cedar. The room is quite lively but not overly bright and is perfect when natural ambience is needed on acoustic instruments such as drums, strings or vocals.
“Freakout Island” is the smaller of the two performance spaces and has a “dead” or “dry” sound. It is built above a separate slab of concrete and its' physical connection to the live room is almost non-existent, resulting in minimal vibrational energy transfered to the other rooms. You can literally freakout in here without anyone knowing. Good room for tight drums and amp isolation. Sight lines to the live room are good and there is natural light from the back of the room.
RECORDING
$400 / day (plus gst)
Price is per 10 hour day - includes tracking, editing, mixing, writing and rehearsal. Sessions run from 11am - 9pm.
Contact us to discuss the amount of time likely needed for your project.
All sessions include Jordan as your engineer.
Sessions 7 days or more include ferry travel to the studio. The Noise Floor will issue you a ferry travel card which will cover the cost of ferry travel for 1 vehicle and up to 4 passengers from Vancouver to Nanaimo and/or Nanaimo to Gabriola Island. Keep in mind leaving Gabriola is always free!
We do not generally accept bookings over 15 consecutive days in a calendar month. Some exceptions apply. Please inquire for projects longer than 15 days. We are not generally available for hourly projects but if you'd like to inquire we may be able to accomodate you.
$200 / song (plus gst)
We offer a separate rate for mixing songs that have not been recorded by Jordan.
Our standard daily rate otherwise applies.
Our American and International clients pay in USD with no tax.
If you're looking for a fresh perspective on a studio or home recording we have the knowledge, experience and tools to make your mixes stand out.
MIXING
MASTERING
$10 per minute of audio (plus gst)
Vinyl pre-masters, digital, cd and cassette mastering
Please note we have a 10 minute ($100) minimum for mastering services
PAYMENT NOTES
A 50% deposit is required at the time of booking.
Deposits are non-refundable.
Dates will not be confirmed until a deposit is made.The balance is due on the last day of the session.
Payment Options: Cash / Interac-E Transfer
We accept PayPal payments from US and International clients only.
TESTIMONIALS
SPENCER KRUG
WOLF PARADE
In January of 2017 Wolf Parade had the pleasure of spending a week at The Noise Floor, where we recorded overdubs and vocals for our most recent LP, "Cry Cry Cry," and we were very happy with the results. It is easily our best-sounding release so far.
We've been in many recording studios and have found that one common problem within that world is sterile, white-walled environments, wherein the focus is more on gear and pristine sound quality than it is on artistry and creatively inspiring spaces. The Noise Floor does not suffer from this problem (though the sound quality is just as good!) The space is easily large enough for a band to work in, yet has a cozy, welcoming feeling that makes ...
RAE SPOON
Coming to the Noise Floor to record my record was an amazing experience. I find communicating with Terry and Jordan very easy and it was a cozy space to be whether there were two of us or five of us. It’s worth the extra ferry rides to get away from the city and concentrate on recording. Being a non-binary person I felt that they made an extra effort to make a safe space for myself and my band. The resulting record bodiesofwater is my favorite one I’ve ever made. It’s a world class recording facility. Jordan is a great engineer and producer and the space would work for any band that wants to come and focus on their record.
YOU SAY PARTY
This studio is amazing! We found it a great benefit to escape Vancouver and immerse ourselves in the recording process. Away from any external pressures, we were able to focus on creating good work. Jordan is a fantastic engineer and producer, offering great input and ensuring we captured our best work. Would recommend this studio and this experience to any band looking for more out of the recording experience.
ORVILLE PECK
Recording at The Noise Floor is a dang good time. Professional and incredible work from both Jordan and Terry, plus the beautiful experience of staying on the island. I couldn't recommend it more.
DEAD SOFT
We have worked with the Noise Floor on every record we have ever created. Jordan and Terry have been a constant source of support for our band since day one and we wouldn't be where we are without them. Stepping away from "real life" to record at their beautiful studio on Gabriola Island is the ideal experience for anyone interested in fully immersing yourself in the beauty of nature and the peace of mind required to comfortably focus on making a huge and sick record. We constantly receive compliments on the uniquely live and yet huge and polished-sounding quality of our recordings. Jordan's patience and humor make working with him feel like working with an old friend and his technique is unbeatable. He is open, kind, and hardworking and it shows in the albums he helps to create. Terry has counselled us through too many emotional breakdowns to count. We love them both from the bottoms of our rotten hearts. If you aren't recording at the Noise Floor you are fucking up!
HUSH PUP
I have so many positive feelings about my experiences recording at The Noise Floor on Gabriola. I feel strongly that having a positive and supportive vibe during the recording process is super key to coming out with something great. Terry and Jordan are deeply kind and wise people who care so much about artists and their music. They have created a comfortable and inspiring space and I feel so lucky to have found them!
Working with Jordan as an engineer and producer has definitely helped me grow as a musician and producer myself. He has always made me feel totally musically safe to try out ideas and find the best solutions for the songs. I think having someone guide you in the right direction for your art is so rare. I have felt pushed in past musical scenarios in directions I don’t want to go and I really value Jordan’s approach. The whole process is always super fun and being on the island away from distractions is inspiring and productive.
Hush pup loves Terry and Jordan and The Noise Floor! They are an integral part of our musical lives and have helped us so much to carve out our musical history as a band.
-Ida Maidstone
DUMB
We had a wonderful time recording and mixing with Jordan and Terry at the Noise Floor on Gabriola Island. Jordan was technically very impressive, always listening and receptive to any of our comments but also realistic about our options. Jordan was able to translate our ideas perfectly in his mixing and recording of our album “Seeing Green”. Both Jordan and Terry were consistently accommodating and the facilities were amazing, it was like a vacation in the woods. We highly recommend the Noise Floor to any band that is looking for a professional and relaxing place to record their music.
-dumb (the vancouver band)
