Brad loves nothing more than having an opportunity, in between shows, to sit down with engineers to share his love for the art of the mixing process and creating the perfect final live mix. As Front of House engineer for acts such as Linkin Park, Cyndi Lauper, Garbage, Bob Seger, Mötley Crüe, Jane's Addiction and Enrique Iglesias, Brad is a veteran in the field of sound engineering. Every so often, Brad is able to carve out time for one of his legendary ‘fixintogetmixin’ classes that are open to all levels of engineers and free of charge.
Tell us about ‘fixintogetmixin’ what’s the concept and how did it all start?
My business name was inspired by an exchange I had one morning with the Tour Manager while working with Garbage. He asked me why I was there so early and I replied, “I’m fixintogetmixin!” Fast forward a few years later and I was forming my corporation and I needed a name. fixintogetmixin just seemed like an obvious choice.
I had been teaching some classes which were product oriented. I then came up with the concept of having a class where the approach focused on my methods and techniques which has worked for me throughout my career. I didn’t want it to be about the gear. Mixing to me is about listening to the music and creating a mix with dynamics and emotion.
Your credit list is phenomenal, touring with all these bands and artists, do you have any moments that stand out being on the road?
I have a moment with every artist that I’ve had the privilege of working with. I feel very fortunate that I’ve been able to mix some incredibly talented artists.
- The original lineup of Jane’s Addiction in Australia - mixing three days.
- Bob Seger during the 06/07 tour. It was during Night Moves one night I had a flashback of being 16 years old walking around a county fair in my hometown.
- The Cult at Royal Albert Hall.
- The entire 14 months I spent working with Garbage was definitely a high point for me.
- Linkin Park in a sold out soccer stadium in Sao Paulo, Brazil for 80,000 people.
My biggest show ever was with Enrique Iglesias in Kiev for 85,000 people. Every show I mix for Enrique is a special event. The fans, his performance, the lighting and video, etc. all make for a very emotional experience.
Besides doing live engineering, do you spend much time in the studio recording?
Not as much as I would like to. I have a small studio in my house which I spend a good bit of time in when I’m not on the road. I’ve done a few projects and I hope to do more as my time allows. I enjoy taking my live tracks and creating a session in Pro Tools that is set up just like my live mix. This allows me to experiment and try out new techniques.
We’ve seen you use many of the Brainworx Audio plugins during your seminars and whenever you’re mixing live, what’s a favourite of yours that you absolutely can’t go without?
I have a couple of favorites. Shadow Hills Mastering Compressor and Brainworx Digital V3. Live and in the studio they live on my master buss. These are an absolute must have for me.
If you could have mixed anyone live on stage, who would it be?
Pink Floyd with Roger Waters. I check the PA with 5 tracks from The Wall. Another Brick in the Wall (Part 1), The Happiest Days of Our Lives, Another Brick in the Wall (Part 2), Hey You and Waiting for the Worms. I would listen to the entire disc every show if I had the time. Mixing Pink Floyd with Roger Waters would be the ultimate high point of my mixing career.
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