Jonny Rhum’s harmonious legacy
The Earl’s beloved engineer made Atlanta sound good
Since 2010, the Earl’s in-house engineer Jonny Rhum has sculpted sound and transformed the room and the musicians on its stage night after night. His warmth toward artists and his expertise behind the soundboard have been a constant gift to Atlanta’s music community for six years. Now, Rhum is stepping down from the soundboard and taking his personal magic to Asheville. In the words of Hello Ocho singer and guitarist Chris Yonker, “Asheville doesn’t even know how lucky they are to get one of Atlanta’s best humans.”
Rhum isn’t leaving without playing a farewell show with his experimental rock group, High Bias, though. On July 31, he’ll say goodbye to the scene he’s played such a major role in shaping over the last six years.
Before he became the neighborhood’s most celebrated engineer, Rhum was another lost soul in East Atlanta, looking for guidance. Ben Price of Studilaroche became his Atlanta mentor. “I first visited Atlanta with Ben, who quickly informed me of the three most important places to know: Aurora Coffee, Nuevo Laredo, and the Earl,” Rhum says. “I fell in love.”
His first few months in Atlanta were a struggle. Salvation came in the form of Dave and Lisa Strohauer, owners of Earthshaking music. They took him under their wings, hired him, and gave him a chance to get settled in his new home.
With stability came success. Rhum connected with other musicians and started running sound at shows around town, finally finding his dream gig. “I wanted to do sound full time at a venue with amazing bands and work with people I enjoyed. I wrote this down in my little magick book and did an exciting ritual,” he says.
Three days after casting his spell, Price called to say a position was opening up at the Earl.
The Earl’s previous engineer, Curt Wells, set the bar high. Rhum was impressed by Wells’ “amazing ear,” and his kindness with the bands. “Curt informed the community about what a great engineer should be,” Rhum says.
His personal commitment to honor Wells’ reputation and ideals didn’t go unnoticed. CL honored Rhum with a Best of Atlanta award for “Best new kid behind the soundboard,” praising him with the punny quip, “within just a few months, he’s already earned a sound reputation.”
Rhum, who also teaches yoga, cultivated his reputation through deep and active listening, something that informs both his musical and yogic practices. “Jonny’s patience, positivity, deep knowledge, and genuine care allow for a temporary, or in my case, long-term feeling of trust, enabling any musician to thrive under his sonic supervision,” says John Gregg, drummer for Hello Ocho, Faun, and A Pan Flute.
Rhum sees the crossover between practicing yoga and running sound. For him, the job has been a yogic-type practice, letting him breathe and focus on sound for 40 minutes.
“I realized that I had to stop referring to him as ‘Atlanta’s best sound guy’ because ‘burgeoning spiritual guru of East Atlanta’ was more accurate,” says Peter Webb, whose project Liminal Space opens for High Bias at Rhum’s farewell show.
When artists unload their gear at the Earl, Rhum starts off by asking people what they need. For Webb and other musicians, this has led to deep, lengthy talks and the chance to de-stress and focus with an engineer who’s ready to make the performance an incredible experience. “That simple thing, asking people, really makes a huge difference,” he says.
As Rhum prepares to move to Asheville, he feels bettered by the connections he’s made in Atlanta. To all the bands he’s mixed, Rhum says: “Without you I could never have become who I am. Jonny Rhum the sound engineer would never have existed. You make the most beautiful things happen in thin air.”