SoundMan Musings
It's been a hard year and I really needed recharging. Being an audio entrepreneur has it up and downs and I have just survived a trusted partner running off with a 30 year accumulation of gear (and my dreams of retirement). A little bit of advice to the next generation of SoundMen. If what drives you is pushing buttons and making noise, then keep it simple. Buy only what you can afford and can handle by yourself. The bigger your company gets the less likely it will be that you get to use anything you worked so hard buy. I have owned $100,000 dollar consoles that I never got to actually use. Believe it or not SoundMan does have other interests and from time to time he does allow himself time off.
One the hardest things in taking time away from my obsessive techie compulsion to turing knobs, push buttons and amplifying sound and a busy schedule of commitments is to find either a block of time long enough to eventually forget about his hectic daily existence or find a place that so completely overwhelms my mind that I can truly decompress and relax. So short of a paid sabbatical or extended leave of absence I tend to look for a destination that can distract me for long enough to relax a little. My first choice is always the desert southwest in general and the wonders of southern Utah in particular. I crave the power of the scorching dry heat of the red rock. Put me in the middle of the majesty of the hoodoo's, needles and arches that make up this region and instantly all visions of flashing lights and moving faders disappear, But unfortunately Utah is not exactly next door and this SoundMans pay grade makes jet-setting a rare indulgence so I have to be content with less ambitious get-a-way destinations. My local hideaway is the NC mountains and thats where I found myself this last weekend looking for a little solitude.
I started off my
weekend with a little work, after all I am a
SoundMan first and foremost and I had to pay for
the gas somehow. My show was in Asheville and at
least it was in the right direction. My thinking
was sound. Drive separately and hitch up the
LittleGuy (my portable home away from home) so I
can slip away to the hills when my duties were
complete, so off I went.
We had agreed to help the band load-in, sure, why
not. What's a few extra pieces of band gear going
to hurt, besides we were getting a few extra buck
for the trouble. Oops! God I hate surprises on show
day.
I'm a proud, Boy Scout trained SoundMan and I take
very seriously that sacred Boy Scout creed - Be
Prepaired. I've honed my facility scouting reports
with years of experience with all manner of
difficult and dangerous load-in's and I asked all
of the right, well rehearsed, litany of questions.
Does the load-in involve any of the following:
small doors, carpet, inclines, more than 50' to the
stage, unlevel truck, freight or personnel
elevators, no ramps or dock plates. You would think
that with a barrage of questions of that nature
that they would get the idea you took this whole
safe load-in thing seriously and would then inform
you of any additional issues specific to their
venue. Darn - stupid me - I forgot all about this
being a don't ask don't tell kind of society now,
so I see I'm going to have to add the following to
my list: frightened grounds keepers, marble statues
and precious limestone stairs & terraces,
bathrooms a half mile away, fighting for the
loading steps with other vendors, and the real deal
breaker - over 200' of deep pea gravel. And would
it seem like I'm just bitching now if I mention the
fact that we arrived on time only to find that the
south-of -the-border crew putting up the stage were
just getting around to starting when we arrived.
That was when I got my first pleasant surprise.
Everybody that got off of the bus was as old as I
was. These guys knew what it is like to work for a
living and there wasn't a sour whinny face on the
buss - they came to perform and it was a pleasure
to work with them. I'm not exactly known for my
fondness of country music so my next pleasant
surprise was wonderful. This band was great. There
is something to be said for, shall we say, such a
mature group (this was no geezer tour, i.e. a bunch
of old guys that have lost their chops still
pretending that they are fifty)- years of practice
perfecting your art. And I got to mix to boot. All
in all another successful day.
When I finally emerged from my peaceful slumber I headed over to the Cellar on Cherry Street for some shrimp and grits. It was Sunday brunch time and they had a guy playing solo acoustic guitar for tips. Nice touch. Good food, pleasant surroundings, a little light music. It's the kind a place that fills it's walls with paintings for sale by local artists. They had a $450 painting in the mens bathroom. Does anybody actually buy the art displayed in the bathroom? I always try to buy the musicians CD. It helps them out with expenses and I think it says I appreciate the talent better just a tip and besides, sometimes the CD is actually as good as they are live and not butchered by overproduction. But this time I saw only a tip jar so I gave him the same respect I get when I perform well - I like to call it the SoundMan tip - I left without complaining to him that it was too loud.
O.K. - back to work - I've got knobs to turn.
Thanks for indulging me - SoundMan