Everything!

New Year’s Newbie Nuggets

Levels Link Love

Behind every successful band are people that drive the bus, carry the gear, set up the stage, run the board, sell the merch, and make sure there’s a drink on stage for the guitar player. For bands that are clamoring their way onto and up the ladder, those jobs are often handled by a single person-someone who does EVERYTHING to keep a band not only running, but moving. For Deep Banana Blackout, a jamband firmly on their way up the less-populated middle rungs, that guy is simply known as E!

Date: December 16, 1999
Location: Jack Legs-Historic 2nd Avenue, Nashville, Tennessee
Band: Deep Banana Blackout Name: E!
Real Name: information not available
Title: Tour Manager
Responsibilities: Everything!

My travels in the corporate world took me for the first time to Music City, USA-Nashville, Tennessee. Intrigued by the history-from Hatch Show Print and the Ernest Tubbs Record Shop to the Opry and Gruhn Guitars-I hoped for a tasty treat for my aching ears. Aching, that is, for a nice pre-Holiday bonus.

The White Horse Saloon was packed with politicos, the early band in the corner bar was playing Billy Joel for the bartender, and the mandolin men were busy bumming smokes and taking tips from the entryways. A tour of the local microbrews and a trip to the Gibson Guitar Café had led to a couple hours of entertaining acoustic jams and short sets, but even that special Southern songwriting and beer engine froth couldn’t quench my thirst. I definitely needed something funkier and fruitier that Banana Joe’s vanilla DJ and so-called Lemondrops could provide. A quick check on Jambase.com showed one name glowing like an unconscious bowl of fruit through the cold Tennessee drizzle-Deep Banana Blackout at Jack Legs.

Another net trip, this time to www.deepbananablackout.com. I’d heard good things, but didn’t have the goods. From Connecticut, home of the blue laws, DBB is a funk machine waiting to give you a turn to ride. I posted a message to their board, feebly hoping for a reply, and was rewarded the next day with an email from none other than DBB’s lead singer Jen “Pipes” Durkin inviting me down to the show and a note from a fan psyched to see them for the first time in Nashville. This was, at the least, a wonderful opportunity to see a new band with a great rep perform, and sensing to squeeze in some column fodder, my co-worker Chas, (another jam fan) and I headed downtown again.

We finished our dinner and arrived at the suggested time to speak with the band (9:30), only to be told that the private party going on wasn’t going to be done for awhile-come back in 45 minutes. Drag. Time for another walk down Broadway past the little honky tonks beginning to draw drinkers and a couple more warmups at the brewery before heading back down the steps to Jack Legs. This time the party band was blowin’ disco, double four-time in the back and the secretaries and suits were shaking their stir sticks. But $5 got us in the door. Working my way past the lingering luck-mongers, I passed the soundboard, took a right and introduced myself to the first longhair laminate standing there. Amidst the Kool & the Gang I caught:

“I’m E!, the tour manager.”

Finding the person that I REALLY wanted to talk to (not that meeting Jen and the rest of the band wasn’t a righteous treat) on the first shot was part luck and part fate. Sometimes it just works out, and that’s the way the night was going to go. Passing the ever-present 5-0 in the house (evidently a carryover from George Dub-ya’s White Horse gig), we walked to the back bar. Rob Volo (trombone, vocals, guitar), Johnny Durkin (percussion), Rob Somerville (saxophones, vocals) and guitarist Fuzz were all hanging around, bemoaning the lost hour of motel time as the disco droned on. Thankful for a little time to talk, after introductions around, I got down to business with E! and the boys. I wanted to peel off that shiny yellow cover and get down to the mushy inner workings of the DBB machine to find out what goes on behind the show. The following is an edited/enhanced excerpt of our rolling conversation before the show…

Pro-me
E!-E!
RV-Rob Volo
RS-Rob Somerville
JD-Johnny Durkin

Pro-Alright, so what does E! stand for and what does E! do?

RS-Everything, Excellence, ecstasy…

E!-Echinacea…(laughter). I have worked with sound, lights, stage setup, driving the van, hauling gear, dealing with the bar, selling merchandise, helping set up their website, and meeting people. I’m officially the tour manager, but I wear a lot of hats. I don’t especially like to do deals, I just like to make sure everyone’s having fun and that the band isn’t disturbed on stage.

Pro-You obviously have a lot of responsibilities. Do you have help?

E!-We’ve added Richie, who is now my ‘crew.’ He drives the other van, sells merchandise, unloads, sets up, breaks down and loads in. During the show, he’s someone to do what you need. If the band needs a drink, or if I need something, I ask him.

Pro-How did you get your start running sound and when did your association with DBB begin?

E!-I don’t have any formal training in being a sound engineer but I began working in a recording studio ten years ago. I met DBB four years ago in 1996. I started working with their sound (monitor mixes) in May of 1998.

Pro-How long have you been the primary sound engineer for DBB?

E!-Since about April of this year, I think.

RV-One show we just decided that we couldn’t trust anybody else.

E!-It definitely takes away from my tour job because I don’t feel that I can leave the board all the time. Plus, I’ve been trying to save my ears.

Pro-Trust is something that is often overlooked, but crucial as far as a band and it’s sound engineer is concerned. Is the fact that you trust E! a major reason for your success on stage.

RV-That and the threat of him being fired 24 hours a day…(requisite laughter)

RS-We’ve played festivals where we had 8 instruments and 4 vocals on stage and there was NOTHING out front except keys and kick drums.

E!-My job is to make sure that everything is out front. There were a bunch of people at the show, everything was ‘on the one’ that night, but since there was nothing out there, nobody was reacting. There wasn’t any cheering when it hit-you gotta have it out in the house.

Pro-Trust obviously isn’t the only reason you have the job…

E!-When they were recording I was there, I’ve been through the process. I know their sound inside and out.

RS-E! may not be Super Joe Sound Guy, but he knows the music better than anyone. We’ve had shows where the experts couldn’t get it dialed in. The first Gathering of the Vibes was a nightmare.

E!-I’ve got the knowledge to say “This is what’s wrong.” But I don’t always know how to fix it. I have the confidence to deal with it. (But I’ve occasionally been fucked by that theory). Sometimes it’s a lot of trial and error, but I’ve learned a lot over the past year. A female sound engineer at the Fillmore taught me three years worth of sound in 3 hours. That was wonderful. As I’ve learned more, I’ve incorporated it. I didn’t use compressors for a long time, simply because I didn’t understand how they worked and didn’t “need” them.

Pro-Part of that knowledge has to have come from listening to the band for so long. Do you tape the shows? What do you get from them?

E!-We’ve been taping every show for the past three years from the soundboard. Depending on the room they may or may not come out. But, if there’s tapers around, I’ll pick out the mics I like best and ask someone for a patch. Mainly from the tapes I get to find out what the band doesn’t like or would rather hear-there’s no bass, etc…

Pro-As this DBB’s sound man, you often have clubs or shows with Regular Joe House Sound Guy. If your experience is anything like mine, sometimes you run into problems when you tell them you’re running sound. How do you handle it?

E!-People in clubs deal with me. I found that if you act like a kid, you’ll get treated like a kid. I’ll just explain that I’m the sound engineer of the night. I try to disarm people with politeness-offer help rather than order people around. It works. I always try to get advice from them as well, particularly if they know the room. I’m always learning new things.

Pro-Good point, I’ve found that confidence and civility will get you everywhere. With so many people in the band, do you have problems with stage/overall volume?

E!-The important thing with 8 people on stage is to try to get the main levels to unity without clipping and then back down from there. If I have time I may try to ‘ring out’ the EQ. If the bass is too loud…

(From behind)-No such thing!

E!-then I’ll use some compression and lower the gain. I don’t like being in a room when you are yelling to the person next to you. We had a recent show where the opening band was TOO LOUD. I told the guy “Don’t make us that loud!”

Pro- What kind of compression/effects do you use on the vocals and instruments?

E!-It varies, but I’ll generally bus the male vocals as a group and Jen’s vocals separately and compress the groups as a whole 2:1 or 3:1. The bass may go as high as 10:1. I also bus/compress the percussion and maybe a little on the trombone. I generally don’t use a lot of effects, and in fact have gotten some weird looks from sound engineers that I’ve told to turn the effects off. Maybe some delay and/or reverb, depends on the room.

Pro-Vocals can be difficult. How do you make sure you get the vocals out on top of the mix?

E!-Jen has a lot of power in her range, so it’s usually not a problem. But when she does some of the breathy songs where she can’t push, I may pull the band levels down slightly or boost with the compressor. Mainly, if the vocals aren’t prominent, I’ll bring the other stuff down first.

Pro-How do you deal with guest performers…

E!-We have a trumpet player or other guests often-DJ Logic has done several gigs with us. There’s a lot of guessing on monitor mixes. With DJ Logic, I have to try to balance him with the rhythm section, etc. It can be a challenge.

Pro-What’s your strategy for mixing a new room? Small vs. Large venues, etc?

E!-I just try to adjust. Some are theaters, clubs or the occasional tube with cement walls. I generally mix for the room at the time, with the levels lower when it’s emptier. I’ll first try to figure out the room myself, or ask for specific advice. Getting the vocals where you want them is the important thing. About the second or third tune, when nothing is out of control, I’ll walk around to check out the sound and then mix for the people that are there to see the show. There are plenty of people that don’t do that.

Pro-Do you plan on being the main sound engineer for the long term?

E!-My plan is to eventually hire a qualified sound engineer-someone that knows the equipment. But, it’s got to be someone that knows the music and is part of ‘the crew.’

JD-They have to be able to deal with a lot of shit…

E!-I wish I could be 6 people, but for now we don’t have the money or room for that kind of arrangement. I’ll be doing their sound until I find someone that fits those criteria and I can go back to doing the things I’m best at.

My thanks to E! and the rest of Deep Banana Blackout for the ‘pseudo’ interview. Rarely do you get a glimpse at what really goes on behind the show, and DBB was kind, to say the least, and nothing if not entertaining. The show started later than expected, due to the aforementioned party, but it was everything I expected. The vibe was funky and groovy all night and definitely had me bumping. Their pinpoint changes and tempo morphs (which remind me of James Brown’s band) only enhance their ability to explore as a group-and with that many people on stage, this is not something to be looked upon lightly. Plus you can’t undervalue the person out in front of the band. Besides being a talented singer and a truly nice person to speak with, Jen has that sexy little shimmy that sells it all. DBB is definitely in it for the long haul, and well worth the price of admission. Maybe we’ll even get to follow up with them later on and get some answers to other burning questions like “What exactly is ‘Brutal’?”

Pro

Comments? pro@jambands.com

P.S. I’d also like to thank all the people I spoke to in the crowd that have been reading Jambands.com and were stoked that DBB was playing in Nashville. Thanks for supporting the scene! Special props to Jambands contributor Jai Sanders (who was there taping and actually wrote the first Setting Levels column) and Pete Viljamaa who traveled from Evansville, IN for the show.

Tape of the Month:

Disco Biscuits-5/11/99 Blue Terrapin, or 4/9/99 Trocadero Theater (your choice). Courtesy of Ely Wentzel from Harrisburg PA. CD, source unknown. Setlists are available at http://www.discobiscuits.com.

The Rules:

1> You have to have LESS THAN 20 HOURS of jamband tapes total. Due to the volume of requests, this is strictly for newbies or people who have zero (0) Disco Biscuits tapes.

However…I’m willing to entertain submissions for next month’s offer as trades-3 CD’s from relatively unknown bands or a band that has never been featured in “Setting Levels” What’s your favorite spin right now? Where’s the MMW? Where’s the KVHW? Where’s the Big Wu? Help a brother out…

2> You have to send me 3 blank digital audio CD’s and postage with an addressed return envelope (B&P-blanks and postage).

3> You should be a kind trader and spread this tape around. Take pleasure in the fact that the bands allow you to freely trade their hard work. BUY JAM CD’S!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Support the artists and help them make some cash along the way.

Email your request to pro@jambands.com

Site of the Month:

Mix Magazine Online ( http://www.mixonline.com/). This site holds a lot of information on sound mixing and specifically studio recording, from gear to technique to literature. The current feature on miking for recording drums was particularly interesting…enjoy.