Born on 22 October 1959, Kevin Killen is a music producer, engineer, and mixer. He began as an assistant engineer at a small studio in Dublin (Ireland). After six months of doing jingles and low-budget sessions for local artists, he worked his way up to engineer, and then moved on to the more prestigious Windmill Lane Studios—despite the fact that he had to return to assisting. Together with producer Steve Lillywhite he worked on U2’s 1982 album ‘War’, and then engineered their 1984 album ‘The Unforgettable Fire’. He then decided to relocate to New York, working with bands like Mr. Mister and co-producing Elvis Costello as a result.
Even before he got established in New York, Killen was lured back to Britain to record the album ‘So’ with Peter Gabriel. For Kate Bush, he mixed the album The Sensual World in 1989.
Perhaps one of his most formidable productions is the original soundtrack to the movie ‘The Commitments’, which he co-produced and mixed. He recorded David Bowie‘s single ‘Sue (Or in a Season of Crime)’ from the compilation album ‘Nothing Has Changed’. He went on to produce Bowie’s final album, ‘Blackstar’.
References
- Behind The Glass: An Interview With Producer/Engineer Kevin Killen. ProSoundWeb, retrieved 14 September 2017.
- Kevin Killen. Wikipedia, retrieved 14 September 2017.