Sky Van Hoff: Guitarist-Turned-Producer on Reaching The Pinnacle of the German Rock Scene

Cologne-based producer, engineer, guitarist and composer Sky Van Hoff has ticked many dreams off his bucket list already. In particular, the fact he is currently on tour with and continuing to collaborate with Rammstein, the first ever metal band he listened to. Van Hoff chats to Headliner about how he went from touring in grubby vans as a guitarist to choosing the studio life, how he learned the whole studio process himself, and how he would struggle to do it all without Waves plugins.

Greetings, Sky! How’s things? Are you back in Germany today or still on tour?

I’m doing well — we’re in Odense, Denmark. It’s on a little island outside the mainland. I am still on tour with Rammstein, I’m the monitoring engineer for Richard (Kruspe), the guitarist. Otherwise, I’m based in Cologne, on the west side of Germany.

Let’s do the full introduction: how did you get into music as a young lad, and in particular the heavy side of rock music that’s been a big part of your career?

Growing up, my Mum was always listening to David Bowie and Led Zeppelin. Even a bit of Nirvana would be heard in the house occasionally. And then one guy brought a guitar into school and I was just stoked about it. So I went home and said I wanted a guitar. I can’t remember exactly how I got into metal, but a friend somehow showed me Rammstein, and also I was given a mixtape with Van Halen, Metallica, stuff like that!

Then one thing leads to another, and suddenly you’re a touring guitarist in a signed band?

Yeah, I went from covering Guns N’ Roses with friends, to starting an original band, and then somehow I joined Machinemade God, who were signed to Century Media (a metal label home to the likes of Arch Enemy and Lacuna Coil). I was only 17, and the guys in the band were all around 25 years old. So I was this really young guy who was always touring. But when we went into the studio to record an album, it was my first time doing that and I found it amazing.

This must be when you began your transition from touring musician to someone who dwells in the studio?

Yes, straight away I just loved the process of recording with Pro Tools. When it came to our second album, I did pre-production for it on my own. This led to me producing another record when I was 20, and then I got loads more requests to produce around the scene in Germany. Even though I really didn’t know how to engineer. I would have to get people to help me set up a studio so I could record and edit back then.

Did you do any kind of training or learning or was it straight in at the deep end?

I learned everything just by doing it. I think YouTube did exist back then, but if it did, you couldn’t find a tutorial for absolutely any part of music production like you can now. To figure out how to mic a drum kit, I had to Google pictures! I just about knew how to record guitars, getting things in phase etc. I knew how I wanted things to sound, so I was always driving towards that.

One of your main collaborators are legendary German rockers Rammstein, how did that happen for you?

I have to credit the Kemper Profiler Amp. It’s a digital amp that emulates the sound of a traditional amp so well! Just yesterday, I had a conversation with a hardware builder, and even he believed it had to be an analogue amp. I was so happy with the guitar sound I was achieving, and Richard from Rammstein ended up trying it out with me — he’s always wanting to try every new thing when it comes to guitar. I was very early with trying the Kemper amp, one of the first. We did some tests with it for their live shows together, and he ended up using it.

We’re on tour right now, and it has to be the biggest production out there. The band never tell us when the flames or explosions on the stage are coming, so the tech crew are all getting jumpscares constantly throughout the set and running to the other side of the stage! It is crazy, they were the first heavy band I ever listened to, and now I’ve been working with them for years.

In the safer realm of the studio, I know you’re a very big Waves user on all your projects. Can you remember when you first started using their plugins?

I started using Waves as soon as I could afford to! Before that, I was just using the basic plugins in Pro Tools. They’re such a pleasure to use still, all these years later. I’m even doing presets for them now, which feels like being inducted into a hall of fame!

When you open up Pro Tools, which Waves plugins do you tend to reach for first?

I love the Scheps Omni Channel. And I do think the CLA-76 is the best compressor in the world. I always use H-Delay, Smack Attack. I do some crazy shit with Vitamin. Also the PuigTec, the Vocal Rider. I use almost everything they do, to be honest! The Tony Maserati Collection is a big one for me. They are so edgy sounding, which I like.

When I’ve worked on solo singles from Till Lindemann (Rammstein’s frontman), I always use the CLA-76 on the vocals, Vitamin on the drums and the Trans-X -Transient Shaper on the snare. Also the API-2500 on the toms and snare. The Scheps Omni Channel gets used on the overheads and room. I’ve made really nice presets for that one! I’ve busted out 52 presets on that one, which has really helped my workflow. I recommend it so much.

Are there any less famous Waves plugins you love using that you don’t see other producers using that often?

I don’t know if the Trans-X -Transient Shaper is all that famous. It does wonders for me, especially live. It goes so well with the snare and also the drummer’s performance, but adds that transience. The drummer will seem super relaxed playing with it, because the snare sounds so incredible with it that you almost can’t believe it’s real.

Thanks so much for speaking to us, Sky! How’s the rest of the year looking for you?

I’m on this tour until early August. Then I’m going to take some time off, because if I don’t, I’m going to have to shave my head and live in a monastery. Or go and disappear into the jungle! It’s been a crazy few years now with Rammstein, and I really need a break. But the next show isn’t for a couple of nights; I’ve rented a car today and I’m going to enjoy exploring this Danish island and relax as much as possible.