I’m writing this in first person because after all, Popp Rock shop is currently just me and I don’t want to be pretentious!
Short version:
My name is Joe Popp. I have many years of experience building and wiring recording studios, equipment racks, guitar amplifiers, effects pedals, and, cables. I am also an Apple certified computer tech and can assist setting up a digital recording work flow that empowers you as an artist. Creatively, I am a musician, composer, and, producer, with a large catalog of recordings.
Looooonnnnggg version:
My name is Joe Popp and I started playing guitar when I was 12 years old after moving from East Hanover, NJ to Jacksonville, Florida. In 1978, My father bought me a ’69 Vox Thunderjet with built-in distortion. From then on, I was hooked on the electric guitar and everything surrounding it.
My first professional job in music was working for Cody Music in Jax in 1984. It was there were I learned guitar repair and making my own cables. In 1985, I bought my first Tascam Porta One 4-track cassette recorder and a Yamaha SPX90 digital reverb and began recording my own music. I also acquired an Atari 520ST computer and ventured into MIDI music production. I played in several bands while in Jacksonville including One Minute Father, My Favorite Pajamas, and Ant Farm.
In 1990 I relocated to Tampa, Florida to join the post-punk band dogs on ice. We received a record deal in 1992 from John’s Yates independent label Allied Recordings and recorded 2 full length albums and a 4 song 7″ single. We toured extensively across the east and west coasts and even opened for Green Day. During this time, I built my first studio called Bugland utilizing patchbays from the notorious Skycraft parts and surplus store. I recorded several bands in Bugland, but more importantly I learned the craft of studio wiring.
In 1995 I left dogs on ice to start my eponymous band, Joe Popp. We hit the ground running with our first gig opening for the sold-out Toadies show at St. Pete’s Janus Landing. We would later open for Mike Watt, Cheap Trick, Blink 182, and, Joan Jett & the Blackhearts. We toured constantly and recorded to albums. During this time, I also began composing music for theater with my first production being a full score for Why the Y in Ybor written by NYC play wright Mac Wellman. I had a fun day gig playing steel drums at Busch Gardens which provided me income to buy gear and develop my studio.
In 1997, I composed the score for a punk rock version of Macbeth in which my band performed as the witches. During this production, I purchased an Apple Macintosh and Digidesign (now Avid) Pro Tools recording software. I also began building racks for musicians and live sound engineers, and start obtaining work as a sound designer for theater. I had a collection of speakers and amps and I created immersive soundscapes for regional theaters before surround sound was even a thing.
In the latter half of ’97, I began working as a sound engineer for the Straz Center for the Performing Arts. In under a year, I received my I.A.T.S.E. Local 321 Stagehand’s Union Card and retain membership to this day. While working at Straz, I continued to refine my skills by installing and wiring equipment for the Center, all while continuing my sound design and composition endeavors. This was the era where I began building analog and MIDI switching racks for myself and other musicians.
In May of 2000, I decided to make the move to New York City. I initially scored a job with Columbia University School of Business as an A.V. Tech where I troubleshot Crestron control software and remotely filmed and edited classes. Unfulfilled by the business side of tech, I left to accept the position of Technical Director at Galapagos Art Space in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. While employed there, I rewired and reconfigured the sound systems in the two performance spaces.
After a year at Galapagos, I yearned to get back into studio work. I accepted a position as the Studio Manager, technician, and, engineer for City Sound Productions a 6-room audio and video production facility in Downtown Manhattan. While employed at City Sound, I designed and wired a dubbing and DVD creation suite to increase revenue. Not to neglect my creative endeavors, I composed and produced MAXWELL an original rock musical in conjunction with Jobsite Theater which was performed in both Tampa in NYC. During this period, I also met a great creative collaborator Tylor Durand. He had a small home studio called King of Beef where we spent many nights jamming and writing songs at his space.
The horror of 9/11 occurred while I was working at City Sound. Our business was seriously affected and I decided I needed a more stable position. One of my interns told me about a job that was available at her school, The City College of New York. On a whim, I interviewed with the Sonic Arts Center the music technology track at CCNY. I graciously accepted the position in Fall of 2002.
My initial task at the Sonic Arts Center was to gut renovate the 7 recording studios with new mixing consoles, production desks, patchbays, wiring, acoustic treatments, computers, software, and, outboard gear. The project took 5 years to complete and continues to updated with new equipment to this day. I have started my 17th year at Sonic Arts where I still am employed. I have also taught Sound Design II, Studio Tech Workshop, and Rock Ensemble as an adjunct professor.
In 2004, I began writing music for playwright Rinne Groff, I worked on a project with her and another composer Michael Friedman for several years titled In the Bubble which would eventually be produced by Northwestern University and Directed by Michael Grief (Rent, Dear Evan Hansen).
2006 was a year of upping my computer skills. Embracing the Apple Macintosh as my platform, I took a series of classes and received Apple Helpdesk and Server Certifications. With this knowledge, I set up a new network, a file server, and a self-hosted website. The website was ported over to WordPress in 2012 and I still serve as the administrator by performing updates and modifications.
In 2007, I was really missing playing live so I grabbed Tylor Durand and dogs on ice bass player Brain McCabe and started The Hornrims. We played many famous New York venues, and recorded and self-produced two albums and a soundtrack for the rock musical Pericles which I conceived. The show had two productions in Florida and one in NYC. This year also marked my entrance into guitar amplifier and effects building. I began with kits and eventually starting designing my own layouts utilizing turret board construction. I found a niche building amps and effects for other with my ridiculously meticulous wiring that borders on the edge of OC.D.
In 2012, The Hornrims disbanded, but Tylor and I went on to perform with guitarist and CCNY Music Department Chair, Shaugn O’Donnell in the band Plasma in the Ukraine. The band performed in NYC and recorded over 200 improvised songs at Smash Studios in Hell’s Kitchen.
2013 provided an amazing opportunity with composer Joe Bertolozzi’s Tower Music project. Bertolozzi commissioned Sonic Arts Director Paul Kozel and myself to record his percussive strikes on the surfaces of the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France. For two weeks, the team crawled over every inch of the iconic structure capturing every sound possible. The result was the 2016 release of Joseph Bertolozzi: Tower Music on the Innova Label.
2014 rolled around and I longed for a new project. I came up with the concept of touring the 48 continental United States as singer songwriter on a motorcycle dubbed Popp Over America. While developing this concept Shaugn O’Donnell and I began performing under the name Lost Axis. This acoustic duo would provide the soundtrack for the pilot episode of Popp Over America. Lost Axis did touring dates including Ireland, England, Netherlands, Belgium, and many venues across the U.S. Shaugn did want to join me on the Popp Over America tour, but because of lack of production company interest I thought it would be best to go alone and disbanded Lost Axis.
By the summer of 2017, the pilot episode had won several film festival awards, but I still could not find a production company to join me on the tour. I did collect 8 sponsors which made the financial burden of the tour a bit less. Undaunted, I set out alone with an SLR camera, 2 GoPros, a helmet camera, and a digital recorder and recorded footage of my 95-day tour of the 48 contiguous states. I am currently taking a break from editing the content, but I have 9 episodes available.
After the epic Popp Over America tour, I took a break from just about everything for about a year-and-a-half. Recently I decided to start a company that I have wanted to start for many years called Popp Rock Shop. The thrust of this company is to utilize all of my skills and provide musicians, studio owners, performance venues, and theater companies a long list of quality services both technical and creative.
The first offering by Popp Rock Shop is a guitar fuzz pedal called The Fuzzfather. This classic pedal exemplifies my commitment to meticulous wiring and attention to detail. I’ll be broadening my services and products each day with the eventual goal of making the Popp Rock Shop my full-time gig.