Legendary Producer/Mixer Toby Wright To Stream Live Shows From Flint’s Machine Shop
I think I only made it up to the Machine Shop once on the Harley, but it's always a good time!
How cool is this!? Now, if you can’t make it to The Machine Shop in Flint, or the show sold out before you could get a ticket, you’ll be able to stream the shows live as they happen. Not only that, but legendary producer and mixer Toby Wright will be mixing the audio leaving the shop to computers all across the world. The first streaming shows will be on December 15th and 16th with the band Nonpoint. You can check out more about this on the website here. You’ll also be able to watch on Roku TV, Fire TV, Apple TV, Apple IOS, and Android and you can also download the app.
Toby spent a little time talking about the how, why, and whens in the interview you can watch below. He mentioned a few times that this is another way for bands to earn some extra money as well.
He said they came up with the idea while talking about compilation albums. He said this would only happen for sold-out shows. The fans can “Watch it live as it’s going down” He said there’s already the possibility of some on-demand shows coming up, but that’s not happening right now.
We also talked about some projects he’s worked on in the past, including the Metallica album And Justice For All. That album is infamous for the lack of bass. He talks about why that happened. That conversation led to talk of his favorite producers, including Bob Rock.
He worked on a pretty famous unplugged album, which we talked about. That one is the Alice In Chains MTV unplugged session. He talked about the process of recording those shows and the rules that MTV had, including no overdubs. He said they could play the songs as many times as they wanted to, but they couldn’t go back and “fix” anything.
Toby also talked about working with the band KISS. He said he’s bummed he didn’t get to the final show, but would’ve loved to have gone. As far as the “new” KISS is concerned, he said “It could be kinda cool, I don’t know” As far as that kind of show, he said one hologram show gave him chills. Watch below to find out which one.
Thanks to Toby for the time, and best of luck to the staff at The Machine Shop folks!
You can watch the interview below, and also check out the history of the famous hallway pictures as well.
The Story Behind The Famous Hallway Photos At The Machine Shop - Pictures
Anyone who has any inkling of the Machine Shop knows about the hallway and the “hallway photos” that photographer Jeff “Minty” Mintline takes. It’s become quite a thing for the bands, fans, and even crews that come by the “Shop” in Flint, Michigan.
I’ll never forget the first time I was in the famous hallway at the Machine Shop. I walked in the side door and realized I was standing in it! I had no idea. “Minty” said the bands say the same thing. He says they think it’s going to be bigger, or in a different location of the venue, as did I.
I was curious as to how this whole thing started. “Minty” told me the first picture is the Exies in 2007. He said that singer Scott Stevens wanted a picture with the band. Guitarist Chris Skane said, “Let’s do it back here in the hallway.” That was the first, for a while. There wasn’t another picture taken in that location until the spring of 2010. The next bands were Smile Empty Soul and Skindred….and that’s how the hallway photos were born! You can see that first picture below.
How many band pictures have been taken? “Minty” says it’s around 1,300. As far as fans from around the world taking pictures back there? “It happens constantly” he said. I’ve personally witnessed that myself.
I was also there when one guy in a band wouldn’t do it. I’ll keep that to myself, as well as which country artist passed because they didn’t like the flash. Fair enough, I suppose.
Bret Micheals’ tour manager said that he wouldn’t do it. Owner Kevin Zink rolled with the punches and asked if the rest of the band wouldn’t mind, since many of them have played there in the past. They obliged, and while the picture was being taken, Bret walked in and asked what was going on. After he was informed of the picture, he didn’t hesitate to get in. Having been around him a few times, that didn’t surprise me at all.
According to Minty, every band is more than fired up to take a picture in the famous hallway. “It’s almost turned into a rite of passage type of thing” It really has, as the pictures prove!
Thank you to “Minty” for filling me in on the backstory, and suppling all of these killer shots! Have a look!
Meltdown started on the mighty WRIF on the evening of Halloween, 1995. Technically, his first on-air shift was the morning of November 1st. Moving to the Motor City from Buffalo, N.Y., he has built a career and family. Over his almost three-decade stint at RIFF, he's had the privilege to work with some of the biggest personalities in Detroit radio history. He boasts of being just the second-afternoon drive jock in the station's illustrious 53-year history.
Along with his love for rock music and attending concerts, he's also an avid Harley-Davidson enthusiast and hockey player. He plays year-round and manages to squeeze in a few charity games throughout the year. Meltdown writes about the Detroit Red Wings, rock music, and Detroit concert venues.
