Lessons learned from Mastodon/Opeth show last night

sage · 05-02-2012, 01:43 PM

Mastodon, man, they do what they do really well. And it's awesome. I totally enjoy their records. They played the Orpheum in Vancouver last night. The Orpheum is our symphony hall. The acoustics are phenomenal. It holds 1500ish people and a trained singer can be heard by all of them without a PA.

So Mastodon rolls out their 12 cab setup and it appears that they didn't alter their stage sound to meet the venue's characteristics at all. Holy Batman's fuzzy satchel, it was crazy loud. So loud that it was about 1/2 way through Crystal Skulls before I realized they were playing Crystal Skulls. I'm pretty sure they probably played 2 or 3 songs that I really like that were totally unintelligible and therefore unrecognizable.

Mastodon (and all the rest of you dudes that like your stage volume similar to a JPL solid fuel testing facility), turn the :golf: down.

Opeth rolled out their setup. One 4x12 per guitarist, one modest bass rig, and played at about 1/2 the volume of Mastodon and sounded pristine. Granted, they played what sounded like sleepy Deep Purple covers for 90% of the set before hitting us with 2 good old fashioned proggy death metal and then getting shooed off stage for nearly breaking venue curfew, but it sounded amazing.

Moral of the story: turn the :golf: down. And don't play Deep Purple covers at a death metal show.

(Above Deep Purple references are tongue in cheek. I am fully aware that the bulk of the music last night came from their Heritage album, which I like, but I do enjoy when a band spans their catalogue during a show rather than attempting to force feed its audience 1/2 an album that has largely alienated the band from their original fanbase.)

Windwaker · 05-04-2012, 05:20 PM

Doubtful that Mastodon actually USED the 12 cabs on stage. Most bands use dummy cabs to fill out a wall and then have one 4x12 miced facing away from the stage behind the wall for isolation. The front of house sound was probably just cranked up beyond intelligibility.

But noted, and this is a definite point for all metal bands to learn. If your audience's ears are bleeding, they prooobably aren't having a good time.

7Mic7 · 05-04-2012, 05:47 PM

Seriously musicians, Turn the sound down or else we all gonna be deaf at 30 !

TheKindred · 05-04-2012, 06:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Windwaker

Doubtful that Mastodon actually USED the 12 cabs on stage. Most bands use dummy cabs to fill out a wall and then have one 4x12 miced facing away from the stage behind the wall for isolation. The front of house sound was probably just cranked up beyond intelligibility.

They had definitely had 5 different cabs being miced up. 1 marshall on the left, one on the right, and 1 Orange miced left and 1 right, then a fender setup miced on the lead side.

I was front row center so I got a pretty good look at the gear and stage setup.

Windwaker · 05-04-2012, 06:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheKindred

They had definitely had 5 different cabs being miced up. 1 marshall on the left, one on the right, and 1 Orange miced left and 1 right, then a fender setup miced on the lead side.

I was front row center so I got a pretty good look at the gear and stage setup.

Then I apologize for your ears. :P

KingAenarion · 05-06-2012, 11:44 AM

Yea man...

Play it really ....in' loud isn't Metal... It's just dumb.

ara_ · 05-07-2012, 02:03 AM

That's probably why the Dream Theater show in Stuttgart this February sounded pretty muddy. Periphery were even worse, similar volume but they weren't mixed well. They played in a symphony hall as well... Oh well, it was awesome anyway. I even got to drunkenly talk to (and shoot awkward photos of) Spencer Sotelo and Mark Holcomb afterwards \o/

redskyharbor · 05-08-2012, 01:24 PM

FOH engineer clearly had his finger in his ass, also a decent set of earplugs can do a world of good at gigs where the band/engineers have no idea how to set volume levels.

Stealthdjentstic · 05-08-2012, 01:32 PM

When I saw Opeth in 08' the live sound was terrrible; same venue too!

VBCheeseGrater · 05-08-2012, 01:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KingAenarion

Yea man...

Play it really ....in' loud isn't Metal... It's just dumb.

Agree if it just stupid loud. There's a certain volume below which the music is not as powerful to me. I certainly don't wanna be deafened, and I wear ear plugs if a band is way too loud, but i don't like showing up to a metal show and being able to hear the guy behind me singing louder than the music.

.

7 Strings of Hate · 05-08-2012, 01:39 PM

I run into this often. The other night i saw Origin, Cattle Decapitation, Aborted, and Decrepit Birth. All I heard was screaming and drum kit. Couldnt make out anything(with or without ear plugs). Its made me decide that i'm not going to go to venues unless they have a decent front of house guy/system.

TheKindred · 05-08-2012, 03:17 PM

I used earplugs during Mastadon, but they were not required for Ghost or Opeth.

Side note: I went to Behemoth a week ago and for such a heavy show, the sound was very clear and articulated (although the guitars could have been up in the mix, imo)

Vynce_Usurper · 05-11-2012, 10:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Windwaker

Doubtful that Mastodon actually USED the 12 cabs on stage. Most bands use dummy cabs to fill out a wall and then have one 4x12 miced facing away from the stage behind the wall for isolation. The front of house sound was probably just cranked up beyond intelligibility.

But noted, and this is a definite point for all metal bands to learn. If your audience's ears are bleeding, they prooobably aren't having a good time.

3ok8u0.jpg

jordanky · 05-15-2012, 11:39 PM

I just saw the same tour a few weeks ago in Pittsburgh and the sound was all pretty much consistent. Ghost and Opeth were a hair quieter, though.

drmosh · 05-16-2012, 02:16 AM

Does sound more like a FoH issue.
I saw mastodon a few weeks ago and they sounded incredible, really clear.
But the same issue you mentioned occurred when I saw Periphery a while back. The support bands sounded great and I know the club they played has a good sound system, but the foh for periphery decided to crank it and it sounded like shit as a result.

AxeHappy · 05-16-2012, 08:28 PM

Really common problem at metal shows. Especially of local/opener bands. Don't know if FoH guys are told to .... their sound over or what, but it's really common.

hairychris · 05-17-2012, 09:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 7Mic7

Seriously musicians, Turn the sound down or else we all gonna be deaf at 30 !

Quoted for truth, by someone's who's hearing was shot before they hit that age.

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05-02-2012, 01:43 PM	#1
sage Banned Join Date: May 2011 Location: Vancouver, BC Posts: 1,313 Thanked: 16 Feedback Score: 5 reviews	Lessons learned from Mastodon/Opeth show last night Mastodon, man, they do what they do really well. And it's awesome. I totally enjoy their records. They played the Orpheum in Vancouver last night. The Orpheum is our symphony hall. The acoustics are phenomenal. It holds 1500ish people and a trained singer can be heard by all of them without a PA. So Mastodon rolls out their 12 cab setup and it appears that they didn't alter their stage sound to meet the venue's characteristics at all. Holy Batman's fuzzy satchel, it was crazy loud. So loud that it was about 1/2 way through Crystal Skulls before I realized they were playing Crystal Skulls. I'm pretty sure they probably played 2 or 3 songs that I really like that were totally unintelligible and therefore unrecognizable. Mastodon (and all the rest of you dudes that like your stage volume similar to a JPL solid fuel testing facility), turn the :golf: down. Opeth rolled out their setup. One 4x12 per guitarist, one modest bass rig, and played at about 1/2 the volume of Mastodon and sounded pristine. Granted, they played what sounded like sleepy Deep Purple covers for 90% of the set before hitting us with 2 good old fashioned proggy death metal and then getting shooed off stage for nearly breaking venue curfew, but it sounded amazing. Moral of the story: turn the :golf: down. And don't play Deep Purple covers at a death metal show. (Above Deep Purple references are tongue in cheek. I am fully aware that the bulk of the music last night came from their Heritage album, which I like, but I do enjoy when a band spans their catalogue during a show rather than attempting to force feed its audience 1/2 an album that has largely alienated the band from their original fanbase.) petereanima, Wookieslayer, AxeHappy and 4 others like this.

05-04-2012, 05:20 PM	#2
Windwaker ss.org Regular Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Boston, MA Posts: 25 Thanked: 0 Feedback Score: 0 reviews	Doubtful that Mastodon actually USED the 12 cabs on stage. Most bands use dummy cabs to fill out a wall and then have one 4x12 miced facing away from the stage behind the wall for isolation. The front of house sound was probably just cranked up beyond intelligibility. But noted, and this is a definite point for all metal bands to learn. If your audience's ears are bleeding, they prooobably aren't having a good time. AxeHappy and WarOfAttrition like this. Enjoy Avant/Progressive Metal? Check out my band, http://www.facebook.com/autocatalytica.

05-04-2012, 05:47 PM	#3
7Mic7 SS.org Regular Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Montreal,Qc Posts: 221 Thanked: 2 Feedback Score: 0 reviews	Seriously musicians, Turn the sound down or else we all gonna be deaf at 30 ! http://soundcloud.com/michaelrohrer

05-06-2012, 11:44 AM	#6
KingAenarion Resident Studio Nerd Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Sydney Australia Posts: 2,798 Thanked: 16 Feedback Score: 0 reviews	Yea man... Play it really ....in' loud isn't Metal... It's just dumb. Velixo likes this. My band - Ex Curia - Prog metal in an Opeth meets Machine Head kind of way Difference Engine Productions - My recording and mixing business. Difference Engine Productions

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05-07-2012, 02:03 AM	#7
ara_ SS.org Regular Join Date: Mar 2012 Location: Stuttgart, Germany Posts: 117 Thanked: 4 Feedback Score: 0 reviews	That's probably why the Dream Theater show in Stuttgart this February sounded pretty muddy. Periphery were even worse, similar volume but they weren't mixed well. They played in a symphony hall as well... Oh well, it was awesome anyway. I even got to drunkenly talk to (and shoot awkward photos of) Spencer Sotelo and Mark Holcomb afterwards \o/

05-08-2012, 01:24 PM	#8
redskyharbor Despises crabcore. Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Cumbria, UK Posts: 279 Thanked: 16 Feedback Score: 0 reviews	FOH engineer clearly had his finger in his ass, also a decent set of earplugs can do a world of good at gigs where the band/engineers have no idea how to set volume levels. AxeHappy and WarOfAttrition like this. http://soundcloud.com/jordanmcloughlin Daddy would you like some sausages?

05-08-2012, 01:32 PM	#9
Stealthdjentstic Banned Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Vancouver, BC, Canadia Posts: 19,978 Thanked: 338 Feedback Score: 10 reviews	When I saw Opeth in 08' the live sound was terrrible; same venue too!

05-08-2012, 01:39 PM	#11
7 Strings of Hate Banned Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: St.Louis USA Posts: 6,768 Thanked: 90 Feedback Score: 23 reviews	I run into this often. The other night i saw Origin, Cattle Decapitation, Aborted, and Decrepit Birth. All I heard was screaming and drum kit. Couldnt make out anything(with or without ear plugs). Its made me decide that i'm not going to go to venues unless they have a decent front of house guy/system. AxeHappy and Blake1970 like this.

05-08-2012, 03:17 PM	#12
TheKindred ๏̯͡๏﴿ _██_ (ಠ_ృ) Join Date: May 2011 Location: Vancouver, BC Posts: 375 Thanked: 2 / 1 Feedback Score: 3 reviews	I used earplugs during Mastadon, but they were not required for Ghost or Opeth. Side note: I went to Behemoth a week ago and for such a heavy show, the sound was very clear and articulated (although the guitars could have been up in the mix, imo)

05-16-2012, 02:16 AM	#15
drmosh Sir Paul of the Mosh Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Manchester, UK Posts: 4,689 Thanked: 29 $drmosh is rather kvlt and tr00. \m/$ $drmosh is rather kvlt and tr00. \m/$ $drmosh is rather kvlt and tr00. \m/$ $drmosh is rather kvlt and tr00. \m/$ $drmosh is rather kvlt and tr00. \m/$ $drmosh is rather kvlt and tr00. \m/$ $drmosh is rather kvlt and tr00. \m/$ Feedback Score: 9 reviews	Does sound more like a FoH issue. I saw mastodon a few weeks ago and they sounded incredible, really clear. But the same issue you mentioned occurred when I saw Periphery a while back. The support bands sounded great and I know the club they played has a good sound system, but the foh for periphery decided to crank it and it sounded like shit as a result.

05-16-2012, 08:28 PM	#16
AxeHappy SS.org Regular Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: London, Ontario Posts: 1,825 Thanked: 6 Feedback Score: 2 reviews	Really common problem at metal shows. Especially of local/opener bands. Don't know if FoH guys are told to .... their sound over or what, but it's really common. myampslouder likes this.

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