Malice - In the Beginning 12" Vinyl LP Album

Michael Wagener is the German-born producer/engineer who taught heavy guitars to sound huge without turning into soup. Back in the late 1970s and early 1980s he helped shape Accept's steel-plate punch, then in the 1980s Los Angeles grind he became a go-to set of ears for Dokken—tight, glossy, and still mean. By the late 1980s he was guiding arena-sized hard rock for Skid Row and White Lion, and in the 1990s he kept that balance of bite and clarity alive for bands like Extreme. I can spot his signature fast: drums snapping, guitars spread wide, and reverb kept on a short leash. From his WireWorld room in Tennessee, he mixes like a craftsman: edges sharp, low end disciplined, vocals sitting just forward enough to start trouble.

Duane Baron is a renowned sound engineer known for shaping the sound of iconic rock and metal albums. Working as both engineer and mixer, he played a key role in crafting records by artists such as Mötley Crüe, Ozzy Osbourne, Heart, and Alice Cooper. His ability to balance clarity, power, and radio-ready polish made him a go-to figure during the peak years of big-budget rock production.

George Marino is one of those behind-the-glass legends who made heavy music feel larger than the room it was playing in. Before the mastering console became his throne, he was a Bronx guitarist doing the NYC band grind in the 1960s with groups like The Chancellors and The New Sounds Ltd. Then he went pro for real: starting at Capitol Studios in New York (1967), and eventually becoming a long-running force at Sterling Sound (from 1973 onward). For a collector like me—living in that sweet spot where 1980s heavy metal, hard rock, and a dash of prog-minded ambition collide—Marino’s credits read like a stack of essential sleeves: Holy Diver (Dio), Tooth and Nail (Dokken), Stay Hard (Raven), Master of Puppets (Metallica), Somewhere in Time (Iron Maiden), Among the Living (Anthrax), Appetite for Destruction (Guns N’ Roses), Slippery When Wet (Bon Jovi), and Blow Up Your Video (AC/DC). That’s the kind of resume that doesn’t just “master” records—it weaponizes them, but with taste. George Marino Wiki