FRONTOFHOUSE
WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE: TAMING THE STAGE
NOW HEAR THIS
“Everything was fine until the band showed
boom that is pointing to the sky and brand new
up!” Truth resides in jest so, while funny, this
Procell batteries that died after fifteen minutes
clear of over-used cliche’s for the most part,
statement is also true. Techs can lay out the
of use. It will be too late to remedy the problem,
stage, prep the runs, line-check the inputs and
but you can make a preplanned arm movement
still, something goes wrong when the musicians
or other cue to let them know to go directly to
begin to play. It may be a bad instrument cable,
the back-up mic.
continued from page 31
and the musicianship and production is
solid and clean. I also appreciated the split
between male and female worship leaders,
which kept things interesting and fresh. I
know of at least three songs that my church
a flaky phantom power supply or the bassist’s
will be doing from this album. Check it out!
nine-volt battery going down, but it seems
Mind the small things. Gaff tape is wonderful for
something always happens. Unfortunately, this
keeping a stage clean, safe and organized. But,
scenario is constant and universal. To tame the
it should be laid down with a pull-off tab made
stage beast, then, here are some things you
by folding under a half-inch of tape at one end.
can do to make the lion sleep tonight.
This prevents the tape sticking to itself and
Over the past few years,
becoming a mess later. Ear set mics should be
Planetshakers,
Never have a single point of failure. If the
placed on the user’s head with enough cable
hail
lead vocal is on a wireless mic, even a $4000
slack flipped under for easy side-to-side head
Australia,
wireless mic, at some point it will fail. This is
movement. The cable should be attached to
quite a following among
why there should always be a wired SM-58
clothing with clear body tape, again with a
young millennial Christians from around the
on a stand nearby ready to go. Note: no one
tab for simple removal after service. Batteries
world with their energetic and emotionally
ever got fired for using a wired SM-58. Also,
should be used once in a primary service and
charged style of worship. Their latest
a powered speaker stashed just off-stage and
then relegated to use in rehearsal or in non-
album, Overflow, was recorded at their
accompanied by an attached AC extension
critical environments.
2016
PLANETSHAKERS
Overflow
conference
from
in
who
Melbourne,
have
Melbourne
found
and
captures the worship experience of the over
cable and a 50’ XLR cable can be a lifesaver.
Have a procedure. Write down how things
15,000 people who were in attendance.
Assume everything is broken all the time. “It
are to be done, “decently and in order.” Make
worked last night” is not an acceptable answer
the set-up a matter of muscle memory so the
Featuring 15 new songs of worship produced
when something goes wrong. Whether the
same operations are done in the same way
by worship leader Joth Hunt, the theme
gear sits in a climate controlled auditorium or
every time.
of the project is rooted in Ephesians 3:20
and for the most part, this album is much
bounces around in a trailer between events, it
must be checked each time. Our assumption
Recognize all you can do is all you can do. At
like previous Planetshaker releases, chock
of “today it will die” makes the act of the line
the end of the day, when we have done all we
full of enthusiastic, engaging, and youthful
check much more important. For those lonely
can, it is in God’s hands. Our job is to prevent
worship whose musical foundations tend
late night adventures, the Whirlwind Q-Box
and then handle as many technical obstacles
to rest in the electronic pop/dance genre.
is perfect for single crew stage work, since it
as humanly possible. After that, it is a spiritual
functions as both a mic source as well as a
matter that God deals with, as He deems best.
Some of the better high energy tracks include
local speaker output, making it easy for one
the opener, “Come Right Now”, which boasts
person to test all the lines on the platform.
a funky bass line over lyrics calling for the
Holy Spirit to come and change our hearts,
Realize it all works until you need it to work.
as well as “I’m Free”, and the infectious
Naturally, re-testing of inputs should be done
toe tapping title track, “Overflow”, which
after rehearsal and before the service begins.
declares the power of Christ in our lives.
This action gives enough time to remedy any
last minute issues. But, in addition, use the
headphones to cue the WL and pastor mic just
before they walk on stage. This way you will
know if anything has faltered in the last moment.
Typical problems here include a bodypack
KENT MORRIS
35 year veteran of the
worship technology arena
with a passion for excellence
balanced by the knowledge
digital is a temporary state.
The one thing that sets this set of songs apart
is how truly different the mid to slow tempo
worship offerings are from their counterparts.
Not just musically, but also in their content
and theology. I truly loved most of the “other”
transmitter the pastor turned off, an ear set mic
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34
Nov Dec 2016
WorshipMusician.com