Dave Rat - Roadies in the Midst

Have you ever clapped your hands in a tiled bathroom? You know that "Kshhheeee" sound? Or what the sound inside of a racquet ball court where even though you are only 5 feet away, it is still hard to understand what your partner is saying? Oh, and what about an indoor swimming pool? Can you picture in you mind the way all those places sound? That hard swirly bouncy sound where any noise made swims in circles around you, trapped and scattering into smaller and smaller pieces? There is a name for that effect in the audio world, it is called reverberant. Decay time is the amount of time it takes for the sound to get bored of bouncing around a room and rest in silence.

Welcome to the legendary Earl's Court, what is lacks in sonic perfection it makes up for in ambiance and historical significance in the rock world. Zeppelin, Floyd and many other memorable events of rock history happened here in this huge rectangular hard surfaced chasm womb of a room. Right now for me though, it is just a giant monstrosity of a locker room built to bathe a thousand goliaths.

That being said, I remind myself that good sound is just an opinion just as beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Some situations make tilting the opinions in the positive direction more difficult than others and many of my most magical sonic experiences occurred in the least likely of places. And I also remind myself that no matter what the situation is, I am ultimately responsible for the quality of the sound presented. So with a pocketful of positive thoughts, a pile of past experience and a posse of premium sound techs, we will soon see what we can do with this big beast of a room.

But in the mean time, !!! is utilizing the very effective bucket brigade technique of unloading their equipment, I must admit I was quite impressed!

We carry two really cool little sound systems dedicated to cover the VIP risers on either side of stage, here is one of them still in the road case:

An amendment to "FOH gift rule" that was last invoked on Day 19 has been made. The deal where "if Scott or I get a wearable gift, we must wear it during the show" has been amended to apply only to gift givers that are unaware of the rule. Fortunately though, the amendment was not RATified until after I received these attractive and comfy mixing shorts:

And hey look! It's the Red Hot Chili Peppers, I love that band and there they are again!

The lights look cool shining on the humans:

This is the very interesting back of my head during the show:

One down and 3 to go!

Dave Rat

**** Roadies on the Prowl ****

Roadies do not forage. They are by nature, fierce predators roaming the tundra and acutely aware of the slightest nuances drawing them to their prey. Today we hope to track a Roadie on its quest for food. In the following sequence I was very fortunate to stealthily track a roadie on its hunt for food. The primal skills that every roadie possesses allows them to pick up on even the most subtle of details leading them to the the feeding grounds. Undetected, I spot Roadie Chris splitting off from the herd, he is clearly stalking prey or possibly has to go #1 or #2.

Notice the focus and stride which this motivated roadie exhibits as he venture into the cave ahead:

Exactly how roadies are able to locate the unsuspecting meal, remains mysterious. What environmental clues could it be following? Does it posses the sense of smell of a hound dog? The hearing of a bat? Sonar? The eyesight of a mole?

Quick, its getting away:

Ascending these precarious cliffs, the mighty beast is relentless in its pursuit, easily circumventing the dangers evident:

I have been spotted! It takes all of my will power not to "run away," Fortunately I was able pass without being eaten:

Unable to keep up, I became lost in the maze of unforgiving terrain:

And without any indication of which way to go, I give up:

Suddenly, I come face to face with the fierce hunter roadies, I turn to run, to escape:

When I see the hunt was successful and roadies feeding on their prey:

With the danger of the day behind me, I reflect on the events of the day.

Dave Rat

ICNWTICMYTHGITWA!