27/06/2011
From a converted single-car garage at her home in the Midlands, UK, Olivia crafts what she calls "weird, dream, lush, acousti-tronica-pop" that has massaged the ears of music lovers and television viewers the world over.
She's had TV placements on hit US shows such as The Hills, 90210 and Melrose Place, but she also writes commissioned pieces for commercials. "I'm the voice of spreadable cheese in Germany and dog food in France," Olivia admits from the comfort of the sofa in her studio, surrounded by a collection of her favourite instruments and a relatively modest technical setup.
Comprising a Mac Pro running Propellerhead Reason/Record alongside her pride and joy, the Focusrite Saffire Pro 24, it's a simple but very effective rig. Olivia expands, "I like things that I can pretty much plug and play. I need to know that, without too much fuss, what's going to come is going to sound really good."
For Olivia, sound is everything, especially because her musical style relies on very pure, clean recordings. Her interface, featuring two award-winning Focusrite preamps, provides this effortlessly. Olivia explains, "the best thing about the Saffire interface is the instantly recognisable shift in quality from other interfaces that I've used before. In fact, a lot of the recent stuff that I've done since I've got it has already made it straight on to TV without any sort of post-production or mastering."
About the artist
Synch-magnet Olivia Broadfield racked up over 50 TV placements with her first album with songs featured on shows such as The Hills, Melrose Place and Ghost Whisperer and made fans in both Perez Hilton and Jessica Simpson. Her debut album Eyes Wide Open reached No. 3 on the iTunes electronica charts and sold thousands worldwide following its release in 2009 with Vagrant Records. On June 20th 2011 her sophomore album “This Beautiful War” was released. With a new collection of 10 gorgeously personal songs all written and recorded in her studio in the middle of the English countryside, Olivia’s second album takes her back to her roots.
Olivia has just signed a new publishing deal with Sony ATV and the first single to be taken from the album, Daydreams, has already been heard on 90210.
