Cory Stillman
To cap off a breakout couple of years for folk singer-songwriter Noah Kahan, Netflix released the vulnerable concert film Noah Kahan: Out of Body in March of 2026, featuring Kahan’s high-energy performancea as well as a behind-the-scenes look at his emotional return to his hometown in Vermont. Re-Recording Mixer R. Hollis Smith was fortunate enough to bear witness to Kahan’s moving journey, not to mention help craft the documentary’s expansive soundscape.
Pulling from a lifetime of mixing and mastering music, Smith was more than prepared to tackle Kahan’s epic Fenway performance in Out of Body. He began his career with the iconic Electric Lady Studios in the early 2000s, and even briefly owned his own record label in Dallas, TX!
“My background allowed me to be the music mixer for all the concert performances, which is not a usual role that a post audio engineer gets to do,” Smith explains. “They have access to world-class mixing and mastering engineers, yet they trusted me.”
Smith was tasked with ensuring each moment in Out of Body sounded like it belonged in the same film, no easy task when Kahan’s passionate fans are screaming one second, and the quiet winds of the Vermont wilderness are blowing through the 29-year-old singer’s hair the next. Even within a single performance, there is an art to balancing the crowd noise with the song itself.
“The music is paramount, of course. Even within the music itself, there is a balance. Once you establish that, you set a baseline ambience. From there you can have anything come in and out within reason.”
Because Out of Body finds Kahan in a uniquely vulnerable state, speaking on issues of depression and body dysmorphia, the sound had to be as stripped-down as it is immersive. Ultimately, however, Kahan’s ability to channel those struggles into such powerful music gave Smith all the permission he needed to “ramp up the chaos and push the music and effects to give that frenetic energy.”
Check out my full conversation with R. Hollis Smith below! In addition to Out of Body, we discuss his work on Questlove’s new doc Earth, Wind & Fire (To Be Celestial vs That’s the Weight of the World) on HBO Max.
Hey Hollis! Having worked as both a Re-Recording Mixer and a Supervising Sound Editor, could you please articulate the difference between those two roles?
Hi! As the Supervising Sound Editor, I plan and coordinate as much as possible early in filming. Like communicating with the production crew to avoid or solve problems while shooting that might affect us during finishing. Or getting them to capture audio that can help us on the post audio end.
Most importantly, I oversee all the dialogue editing, sound design and music editing. I make sure the dialogue is as good as it can be, or I chase down better options to get it there. The same goes for the sound effects. I have to make sure the sound effects make sense, and create the world that the filmmakers want.
Then, in a nutshell, as the Re-recording Mixer, I bring all those elements together in a cohesive manner. Fixing issues, creating spaces, and making everything sound like it belongs in the same film or show.
How has your background in music prepared you to work on music docs like Noah Kahan: Out of Body and Earth, Wind & Fire (To Be Celestial vs. That’s the Weight of the World)?
Well, for Noah Kahan, my background allowed me to be the music mixer for all the concert performances, which is not a usual role that a post audio engineer gets to do. But since I have a life-long history of mixing and mastering music, they gave me the honor, which was really exciting, because they have access to world-class mixing and mastering engineers, yet they trusted me. Very exciting!
For Earth, Wind & Fire, there was a lot of music editing required. I had a lot of stems, or we had to track them down and re-mix a lot of the music being used as the score. We also got access to the multitrack recordings for some of Earth, Wind & Fire’s biggest songs. So we could mix them up our own way to tell the story of how they were made. As a side note, it was so cool being able to hear the discrete tracks on their own.
Because Questlove has the mind of a musician, there was often a lot of time we had to get those just right, or it wouldn’t sit right with him. He is very particular, but all of his ideas make sense, and they make the film better.
Out of Body is part documentary, part concert film. How did you juggle those two elements from a sound perspective?
For the documentary side of things, it covered the spectrum of sound design as far as environments and emotions. From the overpowering city atmosphere, to the quiet countryside in Vermont.
The sound for concerts was purely to capture the energy and joy that happened during those performances. And to let the music shine. But with the added excitement of his devoted fans.
What are the key considerations when mixing concert sound? Do you have any guiding principles as far as balancing the music with crowd noise and other environmental factors?
The music is paramount, of course. Even within the music itself, there is a balance. Once you establish that, you set a baseline ambience. From there you can have anything come in and out within reason. Like crowd swelling / cheering, fireworks, or whatever comes up during the show. But you can bring things in and out strategically to cover what’s happening during the song. Then when the song is done, the audience gets to go wild.
Do you have any favorite sequences or scenes in Out of Body?
The whole Fenway sequence is pretty epic. It’s such an important achievement for Noah, that there is a lot of excitement mixed with trepidation. The build up to it, the performance, and then the sudden shock of it being over is an entertaining and well structured moment.
Much of Out of Body focuses on Noah’s personal mental health journey. How did you reflect that journey through sound?
When he was speaking about his thoughts and feelings, the goal was to strip the experience down to its essentials to make it as intimate as possible. But when he was really gearing up for something, we ramped up the chaos and pushed the music and effects to give that frenetic energy.
How did mixing the sound on Out of Body compare to your previous work across countless other music docs?
Lil Nas X: Long Live Montero is the most similar in recent work because it’s also a documentary / concert film, which actually prepared me quite a bit for Out of Body.
Prior to that, many of the music docs follow a band or artist’s whole career, which typically means archival, and that often requires a lot of polishing up older recordings. I do find it fun to give new life to older recordings with some modern techniques and tools, like in Ladies and Gentlemen… 50 Years of SNL Music.
Is there anything else you would like to add about your work on Out of Body or any other upcoming projects?
Sometimes it can be a struggle when working with an artist, but Noah and his team made it easy. They were complimentary, honest, and supportive. I feel so privileged to have been involved in Out of Body.
The only thing I can say about upcoming projects is that there is more music-based stuff on the way. But there will also be some comedy, swindlers, and killers in there too.
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