Record curation by Jonathan Rado

“Rado” to just about everyone — has grown from an improbable West Valley rock star into one of the most in-demand producers in indie rock. One half of Foxygen, whose tape saturated productions lovingly play with the tasteful palette of 1970s rock n roll, Rado’s recordings for Father John Misty, The Lemon Twigs, Whitney, and Weyes Blood all devour the canon and return something distinctly modern.

A gifted multi-instrumentalist, Rado plays the studio best of all. You can hear the 16-track in his Woodland Hills garage on Whitney’s Light Upon The Lake and the studio shimmer of Hollywood’s Electro-Vox on Houndmouth’s Golden Age and Foxygen’s Hang. But don’t mistake the analogue approach for vintage fetishism — Rado’s as likely to reference a kick drum on The Life of Pablo as he is the piano tone on a Warren Zevon deep cut.

Mentored by the late Richard Swift, Rado’s approach turns slight imperfections into an indelible sonic imprint. His tape machines and avant garde experimentation — including a reel-to-reel delay system dubbed ‘Radotronics’ in a nod to the ‘Frippertronics’ rig developed by King Crimson’s Robert Fripp — give each of his recordings an unmistakable vibe. If you hear the sound of a 24- track firing up at the beginning of a recording, a collage of discarded takes churning into motion before the song begins, you know it’s a Rado.