I was really excited when I was offered this show. Carlos (the booker and bartender at The Cannon) has been a stalwart supporter of music in New Haven for a long time, even going so far as to open a really great venue called The State House (which is now closed, sadly). This show was a virtual home run for me… hometown show, free admission, early in the evening, not a lot of pressure.
I was also stoked to find out that I'd be sharing the night with my friend, songwriter, and one-time Seth Adam Podcast guest, Sarah Dunn. I knew I was in good company.
When booking the show, I asked about the PA situation. ‘Los told me there was "a speaker." Fair enough. I am very wary about PA systems I don’t know about, so unless I know it's good, I bring my own system. When I arrived, Carlos asked me just to use the one speaker that was already set up. There was no monitor, no soundboard, no EQ, just a speaker. I was bummed, but I wanted to respect his concern about volume, if I had set my system up, so I begrudgingly did my best to make it work.
While setting up, placing the speaker in a way that I could hear it (as a monitor) and so the patrons could also hear it, Carlos informed me that a big FIFA World Cup game was going to be on that evening. I really didn't think anything of it, especially since he reassured me he'd have the game playing on the TVs, but the volume off.
When Sarah arrived, I helped her get sound checked. The now infamous speaker had two inputs and two gain knobs, and one master volume knob. I tried to get it as loud as I could without feeding back, but when Sarah started the night and the patrons were in (it was packed), it was obvious the speaker wasn't really cutting it.
Then, in the middle of Sarah's set, a huge burst of feedback from the microphone channel let out like a bomb going off. I quickly rushed over to correct it, only to discover that the input jack on the speaker was wobbly and not making a full connection with the cable. I tried a different cable, but the problem persisted. While Sarah finished out her set, I stayed close by to make sure it didn't happen again. And while the battle with feedback was quite interrupting, it was pale in comparison to the loud “OHs,” “AHs,” and “YAYs” from the soccer loving crowd that made their presence known a few times throughout Sarah's set.
I gotta admit, I was getting bummed about it all.
But, I am a professional. Plus, there were people there that came out to see me. So, when my set came up, I quickly broke down the bad speaker, set up a really quick version of my PA (I brought it inside - I didn't wan to leave it out in the van), and got to work. I didn't set up a monitor, even though I had one, because time was getting crunchy.
I played the best I could, given the circumstances. I wasn't truly “feeling it” throughout the performance, which bummed me out, because this was a bit of a “hometown show,” and I really wanted to come across strong. Instead, I was fighting the “bummy” feelings in my head, trying not to worry while worrying about how it all sounded. I played through my set to some pleasant applause and a few outbursts of loud cheers from the FIFA World Cup game.
When I finished, Bill (a New Haven celebrity) had some kind words for me about my guitar playing, which made me feel better.
In the end, I realized some things:
- Insist on the importance of good sound. Take time to make sure it's right, not just “it works.”
- Even in not-so-ideal conditions, one must do the best job they can and push forward.
- FIFA World Cup Soccer was the bane of my performing existence this summer, with this being the first of a few interruptions this year.
Big thanks to Carlos for having me. I am grateful.
Pictured above: Sarah Dunn