Meet Luca Skyline” Bandinelli | Mixing & Mastering Engineer”

We had the good fortune of connecting with Luca “Skyline” Bandinelli and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Luca “Skyline”, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
First, we have to point out that starting a new business will get us through a not-safe income, rather than working in a company, where you get a paycheck every month/week. Second, it’s a “starting from scratch” process. Nobody knows the business you’re building and this will lead you to the market where multiple persons do the same things that I do, with a client portfolio established throughout the years. This is why all doubts came through. What do I offer to be different from my competitors? Do i have enough budget to cover all the opening costs? These have been my main thoughts before opening my own studio (which I share with a partner).
But once you start to earn credibility and positive feedback from artists, everything comes by itself!

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
In 2014 I was working as a sales assistant in a retail store close to my hometown in Italy. When i was back from a trip to Ibiza (Spain), I decided to start travelling to see the world, having an experience abroad, or better say, overseas. That’s why at the end of that year, I refused a long-term contract to go to New Zealand. That choice was my life-changer. I was heading to study something music-related, as I have been a DJ and producer for over 10 years, but wanted to make it a full-time job. I wasn’t really sure about what to do or study, but everything came together one year later when I was in Melbourne (Australia) and decided to make open days in different Universities to find the one that best fits me. The choice was Abbey Road Institute (unluckily shutting down during COVID-19 to move to Sydney). The passion professors have for this music environment, made me love this world even more.
After graduation I went back to Europe, to try to get some artists to work with as a freelance Mixing engineer. In 2018 with my partner Paolo, we decided to open up our facility, Studio 85, to be joined later on by Leo Cavada.
The first challenge was to build credibility and an artist portfolio. We’re still in a growth process (who’s not?), but after 5 years our business is becoming more stable (financially talking) and we’re gathering more satisfaction by working with artists from all across the world (Netherlands, Germany, Denmark, Argentina, and Australia).
Every day there’s a new challenge, new songs to work on, and different artists, but I think this is what makes this job appealing, having the possibility to interact with visions and ideas coming from the artists. The goal is to hear a song you have worked on, played by a DJ at a party, or have it listed on Spotify playlists and say “I got my hands on it!!”

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I’m living in Rimini (Mid-North of Italy) and being close to the beach, makes the Summer period the best part of the year to visit the city! On a typical day, I’d start by having breakfast in a bar close to the coast (we got plenty of them to choose from), to continue by lying down on the beach to relax a bit. Lunch can be done directly at the restaurant on the beach property, to close the “daylight” with an aperitif (happy hour) and some music, while enjoying the sunset.
For dinner, let’s get to the countryside! Santarcangelo di Romagna is the best choice. There are plenty of nice restaurants (making fresh homemade pasta) with the possibility of having a nice walk in the small old town center after dinner. If you are here with some friends, Riccione is the best choice to enjoy clubbing, or as we say, movida, till late morning! Cocoricò and Villa delle Rose are 2 of the best clubs in Europe! You won’t be disappointed.
As a city located in the middle of Italy, we are not far from Florence, Bologna, or even Venice! Only depends on which type of holiday you wanna take. Most tourists love to enjoy the beach & clubbing for a few days, to finish by traveling around different regions and try out some local food!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
The first persons i have to be thankful for are my parents, who supported me throughout these years about working on my passion. The second one is my Studio partner Paolo Campidelli. Without his support and trust, I wouldn’t been here. Third, all the artists am working with, as they keep coming back to use my services on their projects!

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/studio85_rimini/