"My name is Ollie and I'm a Sound Artist based in the UK.

I started Rare Finds Sound Design (RFSD) as a creative outlet for the music I was making while studying at university. The RFSD page actually started off life as Menedh Du (which is my music artist name). It’s the original Cornish spelling of my second name "Menadue" meaning black hill. If you look closely, you can see how it inspired my logo.

I studied Popular Music at Falmouth University where I went with the intention of being a session drummer. It wasn't until I was tasked with creating my own music from scratch that I really found enjoyment in recording sound effects and samples. After University I did an internship at Radium Audio in Bristol where I was later employed as an Audio Visual creative for 5+ years. Working mainly in the studio I was tasked with building instruments, recording weird and wonderful sounds and designing in programs like Pro Tools and After Effects. 

I then saved up for a year to travel to Australia & New Zealand. This is where I really got into Field Recording and posting more frequently on the RFSD page. Since then I've been working as an Audio Visual freelancer / content creator and I'm loving it!"

That’s fascinating—what’s the most unique or unusual sound you’ve ever captured?

"That's an interesting question because I often go out with a checklist of things I want to record and end up stumbling on sounds I wasn't expecting. 

Recently I recorded my childhood Playstation 2 with a cheap Telephone Pickup Coil. The Pickup Coil allowed me to hear Electromagnetic frequencies made by the Playstation. You can't hear these sounds normally, as the Electromagnetic Frequencies are inaudible. But with one of these microphones, you can! 

I think that's what I love most about listening and recording. There are so many great creatives building microphones, instruments and listening tools that allow me to find new sounds. It can often be the most mundane object that creates the coolest sound, you just have to find it."

Do you have a favourite tool or software for sound design that you use?

"I use Cubase for most of my editing and sound design. I love taking the sounds that I’ve recorded and further manipulating them with effects. Some great sounds can be made by simply slowing down your recordings and pitch shifting them to create crazy textures. There’s a free software called paulstretch which is great for this.

I’ve also had a lot of fun using older technology and hardware like cassette tapes, dictaphones, reel to reel players and guitar pedals. It can be fun to get away from a computer at times to get hands on with sound tools."