Inside “Mad Fox,” London’s newest creative hub
On a rainy Monday morning in South Hampstead, the Produce Like A Pro crew dropped in on one of the UK’s most talked-about young producers. Within minutes of stepping into Mad Fox, the studio’s vibe is obvious — mid-century modern furniture, rich textures, and a relaxed but electric creative energy. This is Tayte Nickols’ world — and it’s as striking as the music that earned him the MPG Breakthrough Producer of the Year Award.
A Studio Built for Creativity
Mad Fox isn’t just a control room; it’s a fully realised writing, recording, and listening space. The centrepiece is a rare Neve 54 Series 12-channel console, one of the last broadcast desks designed by Rupert Neve himself. Every channel has direct outs, inserts, and stereo auxes, painstakingly refitted by Tayte’s tech over six months. “I just want everything to work instantly,” Tayte says. “You don’t want to be patching when inspiration hits.”
A Yamaha 9000 drum kit and Ludwig 400 Supersonic snare sit ready in the corner, wired into the Neve and paired with Curtis Design AL2 overheads. “They’re somewhere between a U67 and a C12,” he explains. “They get really hot — I like that in a mic.” Everything’s hard-patched for speed, from the Yamaha U1 piano with MIDI out to the Apogee Symphony interface — a gift from Bob Clearmountain and Betty Bennett after his MPG win.
The monitoring setup features vintage ATC SCM50s powered by Cyrus amplifiers, and the racks hold a mix of colourful and transparent gear — Drahmer DL221 compressors, Curtis Design Opri 2 preamps, and even a Revox tape machine used as a “glorified guitar pedal.”
From Cheltenham to Mad Fox
Nickols’ journey started far from London studios. Born in Cheltenham, he picked up a bass at fifteen “because it only had four strings.” A lucky win on a local radio contest netted him £3,000 — enough for a Focusrite interface and a MacBook. “That was it. Suddenly, I was a producer,” he laughs.
After dropping out of music university (“Nobody’s ever asked to see my degree”), he joined a band, experienced his first professional studio session, and realised he’d rather be on the other side of the glass. Mentored early on by the production duo Sugar House, he began engineering for them, learning Pro Tools in his flat by recording one band a day for free.
That DIY work ethic led to his first commercial space — Mad Fox Manchester, launched during lockdown. “It was me and a large-format desk in a flat,” he recalls. “Two years of convincing people to book sessions they couldn’t attend.” But when the world reopened, the results spoke for themselves. Artists were travelling from London and even overseas to work with him.
London, Abbey Road, and the Breakthrough Moment
Realising his clients were spending more on travel than on his production fees, Tayte moved to London and started renting rooms at Abbey Road, Strongroom, and other legendary studios. “I’d call Abbey Road, get the rate, and then call bands: ‘Want to record at Abbey Road?’ Everyone said yes.”
Working alongside top assistants and runners, he absorbed new miking approaches, refined his workflow, and developed a creative philosophy built on curiosity and respect for the room. “The assistants always know the space best. I tell them, ‘Bring what you think works — I’ll learn from you.’”
His breakthrough came with a run of critically praised records and a reputation for pushing artists toward authenticity. Winning MPG Breakthrough Producer of the Year in 2023 validated that trajectory — and Tayte milked it wisely. “You have to use something like that to level up,” he says. “It got me in rooms with labels and gave me credibility overnight.”
Mad Fox and Beyond
Now based between Mad Fox in South Hampstead and Willow Lake Studios in the Lake District, Tayte continues to expand his creative ecosystem. Willow Lake is, to his knowledge, the world’s first fully off-grid recording studio, powered entirely by solar energy and rainwater filtration. A custom Decca Neve console is being restored for the facility — one of only two ever made.
Recent projects include a haunting live reimagining of Pale Waves’ “Zombie”, recorded partly in a church for its natural reverb. “I love location recording,” Tayte says. “The room is as important as the mic. Some of my favourite performances come from places that make artists feel something — churches, old houses, anywhere with history.”
He’s currently producing a concept album with Laura Spear, recording vocals at the site of her Los Angeles home destroyed by wildfires. “It’s about loss of innocence. You can’t recreate that emotion in a booth,” he explains.
Philosophy: “Why Should I Care?”
At the core of Nickols’ process is a ruthless honesty. “The first thing I ask an artist is, ‘Why should I care about your song?’ If they can’t answer that, we don’t work together,” he says bluntly. “I’m not here to make cover songs. I’m here to help you say something that matters.”
A New Generation of British Producers
What makes Tayte Nickols stand out isn’t just his technical ability or his stylish spaces. It’s his blend of irreverence, taste, and emotional intelligence — a modern producer with an old-school sense of purpose.
From winning a local radio quiz to winning the MPG, from patching cables in a flat to running two world-class studios, Nickols’ rise reflects the new face of British production — creative, resourceful, and unafraid to ask hard questions.
“The vibe of the studio is as important as the sound,” Tayte says, looking around Mad Fox. “You want artists to feel inspired, like they’re stepping into another world — even if it’s just for a day.”
