Live sound isn’t easy. I grant that. I totally admire people who are really good at it. The good ones are amazing. But live sound is also not easy in the same way that bad parents raise bratty children… it ain’t faultless. (Bratty children who have the ability to scream 1k at about 120 SPL of couse). Working both in studio and for medium stages I’ll take the studio any day, any lifetime, any alternate universe. I’m no live sound expert touring the world with a mega band in mega stadiums, so you won’t find may live sound tips here, just some rants with which I’m sure anyone who has done live sound enough to be annoyed can relate.
Why Live Sound is Annoying:
No matter how many times during sound check (if you’re lucky enough to have one b/c the band showed up on time and care more about the show than they do getting to the hotel for a pre-show whatever-they-want-to-do)… no matter how many times and ways you ask “Now, is this your show level? Are you playing full energy, balls out, same amp levels? …. Because if you turn that stuff up on stage, then you won’t hear the monitors as well and it’ll screw with the mix a bit… you sure?” … and no matter how many times they say “yeah man, totally” – they’ll walk out on stage and within the first 2 minutes turn up the level on their amps beyond your tolerance.
Then after cranking their amps… they’ll complain that they can’t hear their vocals in the monitors as well as they could before… hmmmm… strange… even bands touring for years, decades even seem to not make the connection why increasing the output of an amp on stage just might make the vocal level in the monitor a harder to hear…
Note to self: logic is only partial during shows. Don’t rely on it. It’s rock n’ roll, man. just go with it.
For small to medium sized indoor venues that 85% of the time will have crappy acoustics and too much intermingling between blow back reflections from the room onto stage and vice versa… no one will be happy… so all can do is go acoustic, go loud, or go home. Whoever thought of putting clubs in basements made of concrete, or building theaters from cinderblocks with no treatment needs to be gracefully shown the door.
If I hear “did you change my monitor mix after we did sound check” (if I was lucky enough to get a sound check)… if I hear that one more time I’ll scream. Because… YES (dripping with sarcasm) OF COURSE I took the time to set up 6 damn monitor mixes during sound check just for the sole purpose of changing them again during the show – because I enjoy people asking me stupid questions! yes… that’s EXACTLY what I did.
Note to self: I think why a lot of long-time live sound guys seem to have long hair b/c they need something to chew on when they get annoyed by the band. Keeps them from ringing necks.
(This is why studio recording is best for me personally: you don’t have to deal with musicians, really… and when you do, most of the time they’re behind multiple walls (hopefully well ventilated, b/c, well… you know musicians…) so that generally the fear of big brother in their headphones keeps them in line so you can do your job. Musician’s egos are in check in studios because they’re under the microscope, and they’re insanely large during live shows because, well, they should be for a good performance, I suppose. But in the studio…if they lose control, you stop. If they get insecure, you give them a pep talk and try again, then send them home if they can’t get over it. During mixing… no need for those pesky musicians until the end or for last minute overdubs. For those reasons, studio for me – and generally b/c the groupies are kept to a minimum or stay in the lounge.)
Note to bands: it’s perfectly OK to ask for something in your monitor to be turned up by the way… please do so if you want it… just don’t do it 5 times. The first two or three times means the sound guy has probably pushed it as much as is possible, so stop kicking a dead horse, and play your instrument. Above all, don’t wait until after the show so that you have an excuse to yell at someone.
Note to band: 99% of in-house sound guys are willing to help you lug your heavy-ass gear around the stage, but ask them nicely. They’re not roadies, and they’re not your assistants. It’s amazing how a polite request like, “Hey, man, can you help me move my amp” instead of “dude, I need that over there.” can be helpful to how your heavy ass amp will sound in the mix during the show.
Note to people who wear hearing aides: don’t go to live shows that involve such things like “electricity” or “amplification”. Honestly! It’s gonna get loud, so either take them out, turn them down, or don’t bother the sound guy complaining that it’s too loud.
Note to bands and live sound guys: be honest and be nice. Ego’s on either side just aren’t any fun. Pissing contests are even worse. Treat every show like a unique moment where who you are and what you’ve done in the past has no impact on anything whatsoever. I get (and completely understand) that live sound is more stressful than studio, but then tell some jokes and give some slack, don’t let your stress infect everyone else on the crew. Just give it a try. It’s hard… just pretend it’s in-set witty banter.
If either the FOH engineer or monitor guy says the phrase “I’m doing the best that I can” then they really do mean that, so getting on their case any more won’t make things better – it will make it worse. Waiters spit in soup, mixers spit on mixes.
