“I remember 1977. I started going to concerts and I saw the Led Zeppelin. I got a guitar on Christmas day. I dreamed that Jimmy Page would come from Santa Monica and teach me to play…”
“AM Radio”— Everclear
Like Art Alexakis, I saw Zeppelin in ’77 and can still close my eyes and put myself in that room again. This is a band that is so big and revered by so many that I have actually had a hard time getting myself into the space to get this piece put together. Imagine what it must have been like to actually mix the show.
Big Mick knows what that is like. The iconic FOH engineer, best known for his 20+ years mixing Metallica, was one of two engineers behind the desk at the reunion show at the O2 Arena in London. Mick handled the band — Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones and second-generation drummer Jason Bonham — while Robert Plant’s long-time FOH guy Roy Williams minded the lead vocalist’s channel and some of the 40 effects returns. Monitors — and there were a ton of Turbosound wedges and sidefills — were wrangled by Dee Miller, Mick and Roy drove a Midas XL8 feeding an army of Meyer Milo line array cabs. And the show was — by every account I have been able to find —nothing short of spectacular. The Hammer of the Gods swings again.
FOH: So, where do you want to start?
Big Mick: Let’s start from me getting the gig.
There you go. How did you get the gig?
Well, it all started with a phone call from Roberts engineer, Roy Williams, someone who I have worked with and known for more than 20 years. He asked for my assistance in getting him the use of a Midas console live and direct from the manufacturer in Kidderminster. Being as I have been involved with Midas for some time, I said, “no problem.” When I enquired as to what it was for, he replied with the off-the-cuff statement, “Oh, it’s for this Zeppelin thing.” As the conversation progressed, Roy explained to me that because of the amount of vocal FX returns, it had been decided there should be two consoles, one for the vocals, which would be his responsibility and the second for the band under the com-mand of an unknown at that point, which is where I offered my services. The band was happy to give this the go ahead as Jimmy had previously seen Metallica at the Wembley Stadium show and thought it sounded great. And obviously, Roy gave Robert a thumbs up on the fact that we are friends and I’m a local Black Country guy.
Right. Well, you’re the obvious choice.
The obvious choice? Well, maybe. There are few engineers who would turn down such an opportunity — the engineering world was literally at their feet. I was grateful to have been given the opportunity of course; however, I also found the experience as much of a challenge as I’m sure they did. I was in a dilemma. How do you make a band like that sound? Is this Led Zeppelin 30 years ago, or is this Zeppelin 30 years later? It was hard to know just what was the right thing to do.
I know some, shall we say, “vintage” acts have had a problem adjusting to current PA systems because they are more focused and there is a lot less sound coming back at them from the house.
Plenty coming back at the O2; that room’s very active. It’s a big arena show, you know. Even though it’s a line array, you’re still going to get noise reflected around the building and back at the stage. Plus, on-stage monitoring has also evolved along with PA technology. I never heard any com-plaints from the band that they wanted more… put it that way…
Well, I saw the monitor rig specs this morning. They could have almost done the entire show with that monitor rig.
It was pretty big. And, it was pretty loud.
So, how was it, co-op engineering?
Well, because we get on all right, it wasn’t too bad. I mean, obviously we talked about the level of the vocal over the band and, of course, we have to be careful we didn’t get into the trap of Roy turns the vocal up, so I turn the band up…blah, blah, blah. You could just end up chasing your own arse. There was much discussion and we worked together.
Okay. Now, I remember it wasn’t that long ago that a certain engineer told me they wouldn’t pry his analog Midas out of his cold dead fingers.
And looking back at that time, I would still say the same. In that period, digital was very unstable and a new field. Now the “beta” testing of the live digital mixing concept is over, things have changed, and my perspective has changed, realizing the opportunities digital can offer.
Sounds like you’re pretty comfortable with the XL8 now.
I’m getting there. There was a lot of psychology that went into the layout and operation of the desk and ultimately it’s very comfortable to use. It’s still got some “teething problems,” but it’s a fantastic sounding piece of gear.
Did it cut down on what you have to bring out as far as outboard gear?
We didn’t really know what we needed. If we would have actually gone analog, we would have started with one XL4 and would have ended up needing two — let’s just say the input list evolved a few times. It was about 36 inputs and 40 effects returns in the end. We still had to carry some outboard gear, but the majority of the FX were handled by the XL8, so yes, I suppose it did slim down on the extras.
And what kind of stuff were you running outboard?
H3000, TC-Helicon, TC-Helicon VoiceWorks, a four Engine M6000, a Leslie emulator to run vocal on “No Quarter,” which later we abandoned in favor of the XL8’s phaser plug-in, which was better… hmmm… what else did we have? Oh, yes, Klark Teknik shiny new multi-track — the 9696. Virtual Sound check? Hmmm…
Oh, so you guys were recording the shows as well?
Well, we were in rehearsal at a place called Black Island Studio in Acton, a sound stage place, but we couldn’t get any set in there as it wasn’t quite big enough. So, the band set up in one room and I was in another with the XL8 and a pair of Genelec 1037s. It was hard to get work done while they were there. So, it was much easier to record it…then we could play it back to work on parts and effects when it was much quieter.
Now it has been a long time since they played together…how did the rehearsals go?
While Robert was in America with Roy, I spent a week with the other three. Then Jimmy broke his finger and we had two weeks off… We did an-other two weeks in Black Island with Robert and then we moved to Shepperton, which is a much bigger rehearsal place where we could have a bit of PA and we could put in the entire lighting system and the 100 feet by 30 feet video screen. We finally moved out of there a week later into the O2 — a day before the show. [Ed. Note: Screens for the show were provided by Creative Technologies.]
Was it a MILO?
Yeah, Meyer MILO, all the way through. Smaller boxes, of course, for the infill.
How many subs?
Nine aside on the floor and I believe 10 flown either side. That was plenty. I mean, we would turn them down constantly. The O2 arena is a little weird. It’s kind of good on the sides, but it’s a bit strange on the floor. It was like a bass bow wave that comes up and down the arena. I think it’s the sides of the arena, they’re so steep. When I go in there again, I will be more prepared for that — it kind of took me by surprise, I must admit.
Are there talk of any other shows or is this going to be four weeks of rehearsal for one thing?
I am not aware of any plans to do more shows, could be fun though.
I saw there was a Turbosound rig and monitors.
Yeah. That’s from Brit Row.
Right, and it had to be screaming loud.
Oh, I’m sure.
Did the monitors interfere with the house sound at all?
No, not really. I mean, you’re talking about a really big environment. I had a huge system in there. The main hang was 18 deep and there was a shit pile of it everywhere. And, you know, you’re talking about some side fills and wedges, it’s not really going to come on through with a system of that size. They do, however, bleed into the mics, so you have to work with that.
Did you use any of specialized stuff that you’ve developed for Metallica? Things like the under-miking of the cymbals?
No, it needed a different plot than that. It needed a more open approach. You know, with the Metallica thing we control all the ambiance; we keep it all tied in. But with Led Zeppelin, I was looking for more of an ambient attitude…
Okay. Sounding more organic?
Yeah. It couldn’t be Metallica because Led Zeppelin always had a more open drum sound. So, with the Earthworks mics setup, I went with two SR25s over the top in an X-Y configuration and then a couple of SR25 overheads as well. And then I used an SR30 on the hi hat, Shure SM57 on the top of the snare. SR25 on the bottom of the snare. Toms were Audio Technica 350s. Kickdrum was a Shure Beta 52 with another SR25 on there as well, and both with KickPads. Another SR30 on the timpani drum and finally an AKG 414 on the gong. That was pretty much it from the drums, and then no noise gates…
No gates? Hmmm.
Other than the kick drum. I had to lightly gate the kick drum because I was nervous about leaving it open as the SR25 was positioned outside the drum. But other than that, no gates on anything else. I wanted to get as open a drum sound as possible.
That’s a real different vibe from the Metallica things.
Oh yeah, well it had to be. I think they were a little nervous that I was going to approach it Metallica style. And I guess I kind of did try in rehearsal at first, with triggers to open gates and all that sort of stuff. But… it wasn’t right… it wasn’t Led Zeppelin. It’s just a different animal. It needed to be more splashy, more open.
Okay. What about miking the guitar… Did he have like an army of amps up there?
I used just the 30-Watt Orange with an Audio Technica AE 2500… sounded fantastic. Jimmy did have other guitar setups that he switched in and out as needed, which were also mic’ed with AE 2500s.
30-Watt Orange?
30-Watt Orange. I tell you what, in rehearsal when he fired that up, I was like, ‘wow, how many watts is that guitar amp?’ — and I went down and looked at it — it was 30 watts! I was like, that defies the laws of physics, but I mean really defies the laws of physics. It was the loudest 30 watts I have ever heard!
Back to the two engineers thing. Mick, they don’t call you Big Mick for nothing.
No, true, hahaha…
How do you put you two guys behind the console?
Well, Roy’s not that big, and the console’s quite wide — we managed to get two chairs in there. Roy’s at the end bay and I just got the rest of it. It’s the only way really — other than going with a sidecar. I don’t think we could have done it on any other digital console than the XL8.
You had how many inputs?
We started with the normal setup. You go, OK, it’s a 36-input band. And then you figure probably 10 or maybe 12 effects return, but by the time we do all the specialist bits and pieces… Well, 36 plus 40 effects, so approximately 76.
76 inputs for a three-piece band and a singer?
Yes. Well, it’s Led Zeppelin isn’t it?
Right. But it makes lot of sense. I mean, the eyes of the world were on this thing.
You have no idea. It was like walking in the clouds. Even standing outside of the hotel the night before smoking…There was a guy standing there and he goes, ‘Yeah, I just got here from California,’ and I’m like, ‘Oh, really?’ and I asked, ‘What are you doing here?’ He said, ‘I’ve come to the Led Zeppelin thing. You guys here for Led Zeppelin?’ But, I’m not going to say we were working it… I just said, ‘We all are.’ And then he went on saying, ‘Yeah, I paid for this VIP trip’ — I think he said it was 10 grand. People were paying so much money for one show.
The people in the audience, f#*&ing hell. I mean, it read like a who’s who — you know, from David Gilmour to Dave Grohl — all these mega stars. Unbelievable. Even Paul McCartney was in the audience sitting in the seats. It was quite bizarre.
The pressure on everybody had to be enormous.
Oh, it’s surreal. It’s really surreal. It was so hard not to think about what was coming. I checked out of the hotel at about 5 pm show day, after at-tempting to watch some TV so as to relax a little, but it was quite pointless, as all I could think about was the show.
Well, it’s immense and plus you get one shot at it.
That was the problem, and as much as you can rehearse and rehearse and rehearse…
It’s not the same as a gig…
It’s nothing like the gig… the gig pressure is so much more intense… the vibe is so different. The intro starts and there’s the band… well, here we go. And you feel like a rabbit in the headlights. It took me three songs to tune the PA for the sold-out room. I was just dazed and confused…great name for a song (laughs)…
For God’s sake, you are standing there mixing Led Zeppelin.
Oh, yeah, we did try to ignore that fact for the whole period. But it’s difficult when you’re walking around backstage and everywhere you go there is a celebrity.
So, not only are you mixing the biggest band ever, but you’re mixing them for a bunch of people who could hire you.
Yes, absolutely. All the managers that were there. Everybody was there. All I needed to complete the set would have been James, Kirk, Lars and Robert. Kirk was going to come, but with the date change he couldn’t make it in the end. If they would have been there, then it would have just been the full f*&#ing hat trick.
Well, I haven’t heard anything but good reports back from it. Everybody said the band was really just great and that the sound was phenomenal.
Excellent. To me, of course, as the guy that did it, I just think I could have made it 10 times better.
Of course. We all finish the gig and go ‘if I had only done that… It’s been like that ever since. You know what I mean… oh, how I could have done that… I could have made that so much better.
So, what else? Is there anything I am missing? Is there anything you want to talk to me about that I’m failing to ask you about?
No, I think you’ve pretty much got the full story there. But, you know what was a crying shame about the gig? People were more interested in cap-turing the moment on their camera phones as opposed to enjoying it. At the end of songs, it wasn’t like the crowd went crazy or anything. They were pretty tame.
How do you have a tame crowd at a Zeppelin show?
Because they don’t want to shake the phones. Looking at the audience from behind the console, it was a sea of screens. Just a total sea of telephone screens. Really bizarre, seriously, Bill. And because the people didn’t want to shake the phones to f#@k up the video they’re recording, it was pretty tame. They all roared vocally. But the crowd were just tripods… it was strange.
Okay, keep me posted as to what you’re doing. You said you had a small tour you’re out with for a little bit. Who is that?
They’re a band called the Wildhearts  that was just before Christmas and was more to calm down from the Led Zeppelin thing.
And how did you come down from something like that?
Well, exactly, it was a bit hard. It was like all I could ever think was Led Zeppelin songs. I go to bed thinking Led Zeppelin songs, wake up think-ing Led Zeppelin songs, and it almost drives you to distraction.
Yeah, it’s got to be an all-consuming thing.
It was, and it had to be because of what it was. We had to go into the O2 at 110%
Well, they got the full roar treatment, didn’t they?
They did really, and it was full roar, crushing, f*@%ing great rock music.
CREW
It was a show so big that it needed two sound companies. Major Tom provided the Meyer Milo FOH rig while Britannia Row pitched in with the Midas XL8 and the extensive Turbosound monitor system.
FOH Engineers: Big Mick Hughes and Roy Williams
MON Engineer: Dee Miller
Major Tom Crew: Lars Brogaard, Luke Jenks, David Vinnicombe, Jack Dunnett, John Chadwick and Alistair Viles
GEAR
19 boxes of Meyer Milo on the main hangs per side
24 boxes of flown HP700 sub bass 2 hangs)
6 Mica as center hang
8 boxes of Milo on the side hangs per side
8 boxes of Milo on the rear hangs per side
8 boxes of Mica as ground out fills
9 UPA1P as lip fill
FOH system controlled by three Galileo processors and monitored VIA RMS.
Console: Midas XL8
Effects: TC M6000, SDE 3000 with tap, DN 6000
MONITOR SYSTEM
Console: Midas H3000
Insert racks:
16 X Channels of Graphic Eq’s (BSS FCS960)
6 X Channels of Noise gate Drawmer DS 201
6 X Channels of compressor/limiter Avalon/Summit
Effects racks
1 X Yamaha SPX 990
1 X Lexicon PCM 70
1 X TC D2 DDL
1 X TC 2290
Drum MON
1 X Midas 24 CH Venice
2 X SPX 990
1 X Eventide H3000
Bi amped Wedges
12 X Turbosound TFM 350 2 x 15”
Side fills
4 X Turbosound TFS 780 narrow highs
8 X Turbosound TFS 780 lows
Drum fills
2 X Turbosound TQ425SP 2 x 15”
