Singer Frank Turner's sound engineer grew up in care

Matt Taylor picked up a Music Producer’s Guild Award earlier this month after working on the star's latest album FTHC.

Mr Taylor, who grew up in care, won the accolade after spending time at a recording studio in Eynsham.

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He picked up the award for Rising Star 2022, which is the breakthrough engineer category.

He added: "This has been for my work on Frank Turner’s FTHC album which recently went to number 1, the acclaimed Pocket Full of Acorns album by Ninebarrow, and also work with Kitty Macfarlane."

Also up for an award this year were Inflo (producer of Adele - 30), Rich Turney (Producer of Blossoms), & Dave Eringa (Manic Street Preachers).

Mr Taylor said: "The new Rising Star category replaces the previous breakthrough engineer category to include early-career recording, mix and mastering engineers, in an effort to highlight more of the new talent rising up through the industry."

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Winning such recognition has been a long time coming.

He added: "I grew up in the care system, and this year marks the tenth anniversary since my discharge - basically, I turned 19. Since then I have worked tirelessly to try and create a career doing the thing I loved most.

"After a couple of years of assisting, I realised I should probably go to university to learn this stuff properly.

"Luckily, I managed to get a place at Liverpool’s prodigious Institute for Performing Arts studying Sound Technology.

"After graduating in 2019, I ended up getting a place at a studio which recently opened called ARC Studios in Eynsham.

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"Although the pandemic hit shortly after, we found away to plough through, and after the first lockdown we hit the ground the running. Since then, we have just had great project after great project."

Mr Taylor added: "I use to sit at the computer in the children’s home watching videos of artists in the studio on YouTube, dreaming of having a chance, and yet I remember thinking that didn’t happen to people like me.

"So to have actually produced work that is being celebrated by top folk of the recording industry is crackers!

"Hopefully I will now to get to continue to create many more great albums."

Frank Turner is from Hampshire and started his career as the singer for the band Million Dead.

He then embarked on a solo career after the band's split in 2005. 

Turner's ninth and most recent studio album, FTHC was released in February and reached number 1 in the UK albums chart in the week after its release.

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This story was written by Andy Ffrench, he joined the team more than 20 years ago and now covers community news across Oxfordshire.

Get in touch with him by emailing: Andy.ffrench@newsquest.co.uk

Follow him on Twitter @OxMailAndyF