…That’s what you hear as the 55th Annual GRAMMY Awards go live to air in the packed to capacity Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles. However, before all of the applause and packed seats of onlookers, the GRAMMYs go through a rigorous schedule of rehearsal and timed perfection. What you at home see on TV is the result of A LOT of hard work. The madness that is GRAMMY week is bigger than any single concert you’ve been to, and it is where we spent most of last week as things began to take shape for music’s biggest night.

Prior to entering the bowels of the Staples Center, Shure once again sponsored the Producers & Engineers Wing GRAMMY Week Celebration honoring Quincy Jones & Al Schmitt. Hang on… prior to that, we made a stop to In-N-Out Burger in honor of Mr. Mike Lohman, who could not be with us on this trip. It was worth the wait. It was delicious. Why don’t we have this in Chicago? Back to the GRAMMY stuff…

Making our temporary home in Studio B of The Village Recording Complex, Shure served up some fresh seafood and the latest in wired mics and headphones. It was amazing to hear so many stories about Shure mics being used on classic recordings from the engineers and producers in attendance. The Super 55 tree, as we have dubbed it, was a bit of a challenge to construct, but I’m happy to say that it made through the entire evening without incident! Aside from being in such esteemed company, the highlight of the night for me was watching a few very critical ears try on the Shure SRH940 and SRH1840 headphones and be completely blown away! That and the countless offers that were made to purchase the SM7B on site or the questions about it being included in some sort of raffle. Most visitors to Studio B had something positive to say about the sleeper hit that is the SM7B.

Okay, so breakfast at the hotel was not that good and VERY expensive, not doing that again. Never mind that, we were making our way to the tunnel into the madness I referenced (there it is on the left) to join in the fun of rehearsals, day one. By the way, the “we” in question is Ryan Smith, Artist Relations Nashville and Jenn Liang-Chaboud, Market Development Senior Specialist. There is so much that goes into this show and everything is in the same place every year… good thing, as I’m just starting to get this whole thing down. As we arrived to the backstage area, we were called into a meeting with production who were concerned about how much “fun” the band fun. was going to be having on GRAMMY night. The “fun” in question was the rain curtain you all undoubtedly witnessed, where the band, all of their instruments and microphones were all drenched in a rain storm. Of course there was concern that the mics may fail if exposed to that level of water, but we were never all that concerned… that’s how we test this stuff! Aware of production’s concern, we immediately put a few phone calls in to the home office in Chicago to have back up transmitters and capsules sent out the next day (thanks to all of the Shure people who came through in the clutch)! Needless to say, we never needed back ups. Those mics you saw on Sunday night were the same mics from rehearsal and dress rehearsal… that’s multiple rain storms!

Making our way around the arena, we found some familiar faces in Mike Parker and Tom Pisa working stage left and stage right respectively. We were also happy to see some familiar product in place as the exclusive in ear monitor system for all artists performing at the GRAMMYs. Twenty-four channels of Shure’s PSM 1000 was once again the preferred choice by production and most of the artists that performed this year. Rehearsals did not begin until about 1:30 pm on day one, so it gave us some time to catch up with everyone and provide them a little Shure swag in the meantime. It actually got cold there in California… nothing like what Chicago was going through, but even a hooded sweatshirt (this year’s swag item) struggled to keep me warm. I did refuse to opt for the winter coat stashed back at the hotel… I’m from the midwest and way too many people would be a little upset and quite possibly revoke my man card if I was discovered wearing a winter coat in California.

So anyway, as the rehearsals moved into full swing, lots of Shure mics were in some pretty important positions on stage. It was nice to see the KSM313 on the guitar amps of the Lumineers and Jack White, that’s quickly becoming everyone’s favorite mic for guitar amp… it looks pretty sweet, too! On vocals you saw Taylor Swift on an Axient Wireless System with a Beta 58, fun. on UHF-R Wireless with Beta 58s, Mumford & Sons on Beta 58As, Justin Timberlake & Jay-Z on UHF-R Wireless with SM58s… a last minute vocal mic change put Justin on a Shure mic for the evening and I thought he sounded pretty damn good on it too! Adam Levine from Maroon 5 was on a UHF-R with a Beta 58 when he joined Alicia Keys onstage, The Black Keys rocked on their SM58s. Kelly Clarkson brought the house down on an SM58! The Lumineers had everyone singing along on SM58s. Jack White tore up the stage while on an SM58. The Levon Helm tribute featured amongst others, Mavis Staples on a UHF-R SM58, Brittany Howard on a UHF-R SM58 and Mumford & Sons on UHF-R SM58s. Juanes sounded amazing on a UHF-R KSM9 and Frank Ocean debuted a new track on a UHF-R SM58. The night ended with two hip-hop icons blazing up the stage as LL Cool J and Chuck D performed on UHF-R SM58s.

All in all, a pretty good selection of Shure mics helped to provide the audio on music’s biggest night!  I would also like to mention the big win by Shure endorsers Mumford & Sons for Album of the Year, fun. for Best New Artist and Song of the Year, and The Black Keys for Best Rock Song, Best Rock Album and Best Rock Performance.

So, things are kind of normal around here now, but I would be lying to you if I said I haven’t started thinking about next year!

Rock Out!
Cory

Walking into the Metro is always a nostalgic treat, so many great rock shows took place there and it is the epitomy of the term “rock club.” I made my way up the stairs and caught the band setting up and preparing for a sound check. Jeff Neuberger, the band’s monitor engineer greeted me and walked me around the stage, pointing out all of the Shure gear responsible for Cults’ sound. On vocals, KSM9 was the favorite. Guitar cabinets were captured with SM57s. The drum kit featured Beta 52A and Beta 91A on kick and SM57 and Beta 181/C on snare. A Beta 52A was also the complement to the bass cabinet. Finally, the band took a mix from Jeff in monitor world through the PSM 900 personal monitor systems.

As the band ran through a few tunes and the lighting tech set the mood, I ran down to the legendary green room to set up for my interview with the band. In about an hour or so, the venue went quiet, letting me know that it would soon be time to sit down with Brian and Madeline and learn a little more about Cults. Looking back on it now, it was a pretty good conversation. We’ll be posting this soon, so stay tuned.

Leaving the band to their own devices, I met up with legendary photographer Paul Natkin for some dinner at Uncommon Ground, one of the sites for our National Open Mic Night. This place is always packed, but Paul knows everyone, so the 10 -15 minute wait turned into, “Please follow this gentlemen to your table.” This is a great place if you ever make it to Chicago, very organic and green-minded. The acoustic music that takes place there is pretty incredible, too. I have to make a note to show up in mid-November for the Jeff Buckley Tribute Show. I’m a big fan, but never got around to going. After listening to Paul talk about it, I’m making my plans already.

After milking our dinner time for every minute we could, we made our way back to the venue… two hours to show time and nothing to do but check out the opener and people watch.

Finally, 11 PM rolled around and Cults took the stage to a screaming crowd. It’s always interesting to see how a band is going to pull off certain elements of songs from their album, and I have to say, they pulled it off effortlessly. The sound on stage was a little more aggressive than the album, making it a little more lively for an onlooking crowd. All in all, a great show and a great band. I can’t wait to see what comes next from Cults. This evening also ended with a stop at White Castle.

-Cory

So, naturally, we think open mic ROCKS.

Shure is sponsoring National Open Mic Night in cities around the U.S. April 22–28. Below are the participating venues, which will have Shure gear onhand for performers to use. If you’d like to perform, check in with your local venue about how to get on the set list. There’s no advance sign-up through Shure, but each venue may have its own way of doing things.

• Austin, TX: Monday, April 23, at B.D Riley’s Irish Pub
• Berkeley, CA: Tuesday, April 24, at The Starry Plough Pub
• Cambridge, MA: Monday, April 23, at Lizard Lounge
• Chapel Hill, NC: Wednesday, April 25, at Jack Sprat Café
• Chicago, IL: Monday, April 23 & Tuesday, April 24, at Uncommon Ground
• Durham, NC: Wednesday, April 25, at The Broad Street Café
• Jamaica Plain, MA: Wednesday, April 25, at The Midway Café
• Los Angeles, CA: Sunday, April 22, at Canter’s Kibitz Room
• Memphis, TN: Thursday, April 26, at Java Cabana
• New York, NY: Monday, April 23, at The Sidewalk Café, and Monday, April 23, at Nuyorican Poets Café
• Nashville, TN: Monday, April 23, at The Bluebird Café; Thursday, April 26, and Saturday, April 28, at Commodore Grille
• San Diego, CA: Tuesday, April 24, at Train of Thought
• San Francisco, CA: Monday, April 23, at Hotel Utah; Tuesday, April 24, at Ireland’s 32 Pub; and Wednesday, April 25, at 50 Mason Social House
• Santa Monica, CA: Wednesday, April 25–Friday, April 27, at Un-Urban Coffeehouse
• Seattle, WA: Monday, April 23, at Molly Maguire’s, and Wednesday, April 25, at Skylark Café
• Somerville, MA: Tuesday, April 24, at P.A.’s Lounge
• Tacoma, WA: Sunday, April 22, at Mandolin Café

Plus, check out the National Open Mic Night page on shure.com for information about our SE315 earphone giveaway and our Facebook Event page.

Now, get out there and rock the house.

Upon arriving to the Congress Theatre on a cold Saturday in late January for the Chicago Bluegrass & Blues Festival, I encountered the Drive-By Truckers and their faithful crew, all set-up and ready to try out a few “special” KSM9 microphones I brought specifically for their live stage. Once I opened the case of mics I brought along, it was like that scene in Pulp Fiction, when Vincent and Jules open Mr. Wallace’s briefcase and the characters are captivated by what’s inside and giving off a soft, angelic, golden glow. Soon Colin (monitor engineer) and Matt (front-of-house engineer), were asking what I had for guitar cabinets, pedal steel, cymbals, overheads… Shure mics were soon everywhere on stage and ready for critique by the band and the engineers. KSM9s were on the vocals, KSM313, KSM32, SM7B and SM57s were on guitar cabinets, Beta 181C on pedal steel, KSM141 on cymbals, Beta 98AMP/C on toms, and VP88 on overheads.

I proceeded to the front of the stage and listened as the band ran through a few tunes. I could tell the focus was very heavily focused on guitars and vocals as Matt and Colin made their adjustments. Once everything seemed finely blended and at an ample decibel level, I made my way back to the stage to get some initial feedback on the recent microphone placements. Colin was completely floored by the “special” KSM9s I brought along, pointing out the frequency response and rejection. Matt kept it simple and said, “I like it.” When asked which one, he replied, “All of it!” This could have gone a completely different way, it’s not often that a band will change that many mics in one soundcheck and use those same mics for a show later that evening. There was certainly an element of trust; in me and moreover in Shure’s product line.

Once the Truckers made their way back to tour bus world, Dawes showed up for load-in, traveling light as this was a fly date for the quartet from LA. Yours truly was on microphone duty for this visit as well, but Wes Delk (front of house engineer) and I sorted through the mics and where they would end up on stage weeks prior to this show. I handed out a few mics to Wes and soon enough the guys were ready for soundcheck as well. Watching the guys run through a few tunes, some gawkers on the side of the stage started to marvel a bit and made a note to check out the Dawes set later that evening.

So with everything in its right place, there wasn’t much left to do besides have dinner and maybe catch a few bands on the extensive bill. There was certainly a lot of down time and this is where life on the road gets a little mundane. Somehow, we found ways to make the time pass and soon enough Dawes was making their way to the stage.

This whole “festival” started at around 4 pm that day. There were bands in the lobby of the venue, in the balcony of the venue and bands sharing the main stage as well. At around 10 pm, Dawes launched into their first tune. Again, as I mentioned in my earlier post about Dawes, this is a band you have to check out and get to a live show the next time they’re in own. There’s something there that a lot of us feel will be there for quite some time.

With Dawes off the stage and their dressing room filling with fans new and old, the stage is readied for the Drive-By Truckers set. It was now about 11 pm and the Congress Theatre was still filled with eager fans. Patterson Hood, Mike Cooley and company proceeded to play for the next two and a half hours. They certainly have the musical catalog to support more than that, but a strict curfew made them complete their set by 1:30 am… making it officially Sunday morning. They sounded fantastic that night, maybe it was that microphone selection from earlier that day? Of course, Shure can’t take all the credit, the Truckers are a great live band; masters of life on the road.

As I packed up my last mic, letting Colin keep the vocal mics for their next gig (he wasn’t gonna let me leave with them anyway), I made my way back to the southside. Of course, no late night venture for a southsider is complete without a trip to White Castle, and at around 2:30 am, that’s where I officially ended my evening. Love this life.

 -Cory

On a rainy early evening at Metro Chicago, I caught the guys from Dawes during load-in and soundcheck. Needless to say, they were pretty happy with their new-found microphone situation on stage. Later on that evening, I would bear witness to the sound they are so grateful for night after night. I first ran into Taylor Goldsmith (lead vocals/guitar) who shared his love of the SM7B on his guitar amp. He also made mention that Dawes used the SM7B to record the vocals on their debut album North Hills. With Taylor back on stage, I was greeted by his brother Griffin Goldsmith (drums/backing vocals), in the middle of some much-needed drum head replacement. He walked me through the rest of the mics on stage and their respective applications, including the Beta 91A, the ONLY mic he uses on his open front kick drum. We were soon joined by Wylie Gelber (bass/gear geek of the band) who rounded out the conversation regarding the rest of gear situation on stage. Keyboard player and backing vocalist Tay Strathairn would later share his love for the Shure PSM 900 personal monitor system, stating that they made such a difference in his performance. Another life changed by the power of the PSM 900.

Of course traveling with a veteran front of house engineer like Wes Delk, formerly of Wide Spread Panic and Waylon Jennings, certainly contributes to how good those mics are going to sound on any stage every night Dawes plays. Wes is also the real deal, this guy knows his stuff and knows how and when to use it. Most importantly, he knows this band. He alluded to the fact that he kind of came out of retirement to work with these guys.

Apparently, Wes was asked to sit in for a friend one evening and serve as engineer at a local listening room in Athens, Georgia. Dawes hit the stage, and about three songs into their set, Wes Delk decided he really liked what he was hearing. The dynamics and space and harmonies were almost sweet nostalgia to his ears. At the end of the evening he went and met the guys at the merchandise table and jokingly offered to get on the bus with them one day and hit the road together. No less than a month later he got a call from Griffin Goldsmith, explaining that Dawes was to hit the road with Alison Krauss & Union Station and they needed to have their own engineer. Knowing he had an old-time friend in Alison Krauss & Union Station’s engineer, Cliff Miller, Wes jumped at the chance and took that seat he had joked about upon first meeting the band. Dawes is more than aware of what Wes Delk brings to their sound on stage every night.

Showtime had finally come. This was a late one for a school night, with the first band, The Belle Brigade from LA, hitting the stage at 9:00 pm. By the way, this brother and sister act definitely had everyone’s attention, check them out, next time you go downloading. Dawes finally took the stage at 9:45 pm and the place erupted. I’m certain that I was not alone while marveling at the dynamics Dawes had on stage. Some personal favorites from the evening’s set list were “If I Wanted Someone,” “When My Time Comes,” “Time Spent In Los Angeles,” and “A Little Bit Of Everything,” which, for a moment felt like a church hymn ringing through the rafters.

After witnessing Dawes, the live version, something tells me that we’ll be hearing more from this band in the years to come, one can only hope. Dawes is a much-needed breath of fresh air in the music industry.

Cory

On a rainy early evening at Metro Chicago, I caught the guys from Dawes during load-in and soundcheck. Needless to say, they were pretty happy with their new-found microphone situation on stage. Later on that evening, I would bear witness to the sound they are so grateful for night after night. I first ran into Taylor Goldsmith (lead vocals/guitar) who shared his love of the SM7B on his guitar amp. He also made mention that Dawes used the SM7B to record the vocals on their debut album North Hills. With Taylor back on stage, I was greeted by his brother Griffin Goldsmith (drums/backing vocals), in the middle of some much-needed drum head replacement. He walked me through the rest of the mics on stage and their respective applications, including the Beta 91A, the ONLY mic he uses on his open front kick drum. We were soon joined by Wylie Gelber (bass/gear geek of the band) who rounded out the conversation regarding the rest of gear situation on stage. Keyboard player and backing vocalist Tay Strathairn would later share his love for the Shure PSM 900 personal monitor system, stating that they made such a difference in his performance. Another life changed by the power of the PSM 900.

Of course traveling with a veteran front of house engineer like Wes Delk, formerly of Wide Spread Panic and Waylon Jennings, certainly contributes to how good those mics are going to sound on any stage every night Dawes plays. Wes is also the real deal, this guy knows his stuff and knows how and when to use it. Most importantly, he knows this band. He alluded to the fact that he kind of came out of retirement to work with these guys.

Apparently, Wes was asked to sit in for a friend one evening and serve as engineer at a local listening room in Athens, Georgia. Dawes hit the stage, and about three songs into their set, Wes Delk decided he really liked what he was hearing. The dynamics and space and harmonies were almost sweet nostalgia to his ears. At the end of the evening he went and met the guys at the merchandise table and jokingly offered to get on the bus with them one day and hit the road together. No less than a month later he got a call from Griffin Goldsmith, explaining that Dawes was to hit the road with Alison Krauss & Union Station and they needed to have their own engineer. Knowing he had an old-time friend in Alison Krauss & Union Station’s engineer, Cliff Miller, Wes jumped at the chance and took that seat he had joked about upon first meeting the band. Dawes is more than aware of what Wes Delk brings to their sound on stage every night.

Showtime had finally come. This was a late one for a school night, with the first band, The Belle Brigade from LA, hitting the stage at 9:00 pm. By the way, this brother and sister act definitely had everyone’s attention, check them out, next time you go downloading. Dawes finally took the stage at 9:45 pm and the place erupted. I’m certain that I was not alone while marveling at the dynamics Dawes had on stage. Some personal favorites from the evening’s set list were “If I Wanted Someone,” “When My Time Comes,” “Time Spent In Los Angeles,” and “A Little Bit Of Everything,” which, for a moment felt like a church hymn ringing through the rafters.

After witnessing Dawes, the live version, something tells me that we’ll be hearing more from this band in the years to come, one can only hope. Dawes is a much-needed breath of fresh air in the music industry.

Cory

Plenty of time to prepare! Not really, but we dove in like we always do and made our way down to meet Roger in the city. So, this guys is pretty famous and all, but honestly one of the nicest and most gracious rock stars on the planet. The Who have been Shure endorsers since 1968, and after all these years Roger is still just as appreciative for his SM58 from Shure. It really was a cool rock star moment, but you’ll have to stay tuned for the interview. We’ll keep you posted…

To get things back on track, I resumed plans for my original destination and made my way down to the Riviera Theatre in Chicago. It was about 3:30 PM and there was already a line beginning to form in front of the venue. Tonight’s show with Foster the People and Cults was sold out at the neighboring Vic Theatre, so the show was moved to a larger venue and ultimately sold out again. Making my way through the stage door, I caught Foster completing sound check and making some last minute tweaks. I met the guys once they were finished up and they were very grateful for the support Shure has given them since day one. Our meeting was brief, as the guys were called into a last minute conference regarding their upcoming performance on SNL… possibly to discuss where and when Kenny G would fit into the end of “Houdini” on the broadcast?

Cults was now beginning to set up and begin their sound check, and I had the chance to speak with their production manager and monitor engineer, Jeff Neuberger, who is a big fan of Shure. We spoke about a few options for lead singer Madeline and a few key mic choices for the guitar cabs on stage. The band is already using Shure on pretty much anything that produces a sound, but I’ve got a few things for Jeff and Cults to try that will ultimately make their lives and sound that much better.

As I mentioned before, this was a sold out show, and by the time the first band, Reptar (pretty solid by the way!) hit the stage, every square inch of the place had reached capacity. Cults came on, just as the news that Steve Jobs had passed came over our respective mobile devices. For a moment there, as I stared out onto the stage at the five MacBooks that are so vital to Foster the People’s set up, I thought about what an impact Mr. Jobs has made on this music industry we all love so dearly. Thanks Steve.

Cults (Brian Oblivion and Madeline Follin), along with their touring band of three additional members, delivered all of the choice cuts from their self-titled debut, and honestly, they’re all pretty choice cuts. The first two bands definitely got things warmed up, but the crowd was at a fever pitch in the moments right before Foster the People took the stage.

Just like that, Mark Pontius, Cubbie Fink and the other two members of their touring band hit the stage and ripped into “Houdini” with its Billy Squier-esque drum beat… the place erupted. I think the roof blew off the place when Mark Foster hit the stage and delivered the driving piano melody and first lyrics of the song. Aside from drummer Pontius, the band used up every bit of the stage to wander from station to station adding key elements of sound to every song from their smash hit Torches. By the fourth song, I was tired for them, these guys definitely gave it everything they had and somehow kept going. Their rapid pace and fierce delivery accompanied by one of the most dizzying light shows I’ve ever seen, made for one hell of a Wednesday evening at the Riviera.

For an encore, Mark Foster performed a song entitled “Ruby” as a piano solo, but was ultimately joined by the rest of the band to finish up the track and deliver their closer for the evening, their infectious hit, “Pumped Up Kicks.” As the song neared completion, Foster was joined by opening band Reptar, armed with cow bells and shakers to turn the song into an extended remix reminiscent of a warehouse rave.

To my friends that couldn’t make it, but wanted the highlights… it was hard to tell them about this show without having a big smile on my face. Maybe next time…

Cory

Walking into the bar/dining room of the building, the music of Pains was pouring through the music hall’s closed doors while the band worked through hits like “Heart In Your Heartbreak” and “The Body,” while front of house engineer Al Harle got the mix just right.

After everything was in its right place, I got a chance to meet the New York based quintet, talk microphones and ear monitors, and have legendary photographer Paul Natkin take some magazine cover worthy shots. 

The Pains took the stage later that night for their second sold out performance at Lincoln Hall, and the masses packed it in. Kip and Peggy from the band capture vocals using Shure’s Beta 87A and PSM 200 in ear personal monitors to hear it all back.

Be sure to catch Pains the next time they’re in your town. I know they’re playing Lollapalooza in Chicago this year, but hopefully I won’t have to wait that long to see them again!

To continue my journey, Paul and I headed over to the Vic Theatre to meet up with Christina Perri who was in town to open up for James Blunt. Driving past the venue in search of a parking spot, the masses were already lined up to get in and jockey for position. The closest spot available put us a few blocks away, right outside of the Groovin’ High record store (that’s a place that sells vinyl discs that have music on them, they have CDs too), a rare gem as record stores go. Paul knew the place and the owner and told me to take  a look at the sign in the window…

The place was closed, it was 5:50pm on a Thursday in a bustling north-side Chicago neighborhood. An old man behind me had mentioned that he has been coming by the store several times that week to make a purchase and the place was locked up. I guess the whenever I feel like it hours were in effect this week.

Anyway, we made our way to the Vic and down below the stage area to the dressing rooms where we were greeted by Christina’s tour manager who mentioned that once the line went down, she would escort Ms. Perri off of the bus and into the building.

About fifteen minutes later, Christina Perri was introduced to us and she thanked us for coming to see her and check out the show. She seemed really excited to be playing Chicago (it was her first time), in support of her debut album Lovestrong which releases May 10th here in the states. She was cool, calm and confident as she spoke to us about her upbringing in Philly and her new life in LA, upcoming tour, and being on the road so far with James Blunt. After politely posing for a few shots with Paul, we left her to do her vocal warm-ups in her dressing room. Once the door was closed, you could hear varying frequencies of bleeps and blurps and vocal climbs as Christina Perri readied herself for the crowd waiting upstairs.

Shortly after our backstage visit, Christina took the stage and immediately engaged the crowd as she ran through the songs from Lovestrong, including the hit “Jar of Hearts,” which most of the crowd connected with at the first note. The girl has got some pipes on her, nothing that her SM58 can’t handle, but man she can sing! Oh yeah, she plays guitar and piano, too. The show sounded amazing, thanks to the FOH skills of Adam Jackson (Owl City), and Christina’s band kept things in the pocket while she put her talent on display. Christina will be back in Chicago this summer, so go check her out and be sure to pick up the new album next week!

Talk to all very soon, it’s a busy month for the Chicago music scene. I will lots more to share in the weeks to come. Stay tuned…

ROCK OUT!

-Cory

Walking into the bar/dining room of the building, the music of Pains was pouring through the music hall’s closed doors while the band worked through hits like “Heart In Your Heartbreak” and “The Body,” while front of house engineer Al Harle got the mix just right.

After everything was in its right place, I got a chance to meet the New York based quintet, talk microphones and ear monitors, and have legendary photographer Paul Natkin take some magazine cover worthy shots.

The Pains took the stage later that night for their second sold out performance at Lincoln Hall, and the masses packed it in. Kip and Peggy from the band capture vocals using Shure’s Beta 87A and PSM 200 in ear personal monitors to hear it all back.

Be sure to catch Pains the next time they’re in your town. I know they’re playing Lollapalooza in Chicago this year, but hopefully I won’t have to wait that long to see them again!

To continue my journey, Paul and I headed over to the Vic Theatre to meet up with Christina Perri who was in town to open up for James Blunt. Driving past the venue in search of a parking spot, the masses were already lined up to get in and jockey for position. The closest spot available put us a few blocks away, right outside of the Groovin’ High record store (that’s a place that sells vinyl discs that have music on them, they have CDs too), a rare gem as record stores go. Paul knew the place and the owner and told me to take  a look at the sign in the window…

The place was closed, it was 5:50pm on a Thursday in a bustling north-side Chicago neighborhood. An old man behind me had mentioned that he has been coming by the store several times that week to make a purchase and the place was locked up. I guess the whenever I feel like it hours were in effect this week.

Anyway, we made our way to the Vic and down below the stage area to the dressing rooms where we were greeted by Christina’s tour manager who mentioned that once the line went down, she would escort Ms. Perri off of the bus and into the building.

About fifteen minutes later, Christina Perri was introduced to us and she thanked us for coming to see her and check out the show. She seemed really excited to be playing Chicago (it was her first time), in support of her debut album Lovestrong which releases May 10th here in the states. She was cool, calm and confident as she spoke to us about her upbringing in Philly and her new life in LA, upcoming tour, and being on the road so far with James Blunt. After politely posing for a few shots with Paul, we left her to do her vocal warm-ups in her dressing room. Once the door was closed, you could hear varying frequencies of bleeps and blurps and vocal climbs as Christina Perri readied herself for the crowd waiting upstairs.

Shortly after our backstage visit, Christina took the stage and immediately engaged the crowd as she ran through the songs from Lovestrong, including the hit “Jar of Hearts,” which most of the crowd connected with at the first note. The girl has got some pipes on her, nothing that her SM58 can’t handle, but man she can sing! Oh yeah, she plays guitar and piano, too. The show sounded amazing, thanks to the FOH skills of Adam Jackson (Owl City), and Christina’s band kept things in the pocket while she put her talent on display. Christina will be back in Chicago this summer, so go check her out and be sure to pick up the new album next week!

Talk to all very soon, it’s a busy month for the Chicago music scene. I will lots more to share in the weeks to come. Stay tuned…

ROCK OUT!

-Cory

Matt & Kim were coming to Chicago again, and this time I had no prior plans or obligations to stand in the way of finally meeting the dynamic duo from Brooklyn and partaking in the madness that is their live show. When I arrived to the Metro via the Shure mobile (of course), the line had already begun to take shape… it was an hour before the doors would even open.

With the help of my trusty communication module, I made contact with Will People, front-of-house engineer, who came out to the front of the venue to escort me to the stage area where we could further discuss sound guy things like microphones and monitors and… you know just kind of geek it out a bit. Cool. I was able to get a real up close look at the Matt & Kim set-up: a few keyboards and a drum kit, seemingly on top of one another while sharing a single drum riser. The Shure mics filled in the spaces in between: a couple of Beta 58As on vocals, a Beta 52A on kick, some Beta 98s on toms, and a handful of SM57s on amps and snare drum. That’s pretty much it, nothing too complicated; your basic rock set-up.

Matt & Kim are also recent adapters of the PSM 900 in-ear personal monitor system, and that’s also become a staple of their live show. Hearing them for the first time, they both wondered how they ever got through without them, especially playing so loudly and so close together. I think its safe to say they truly appreciate the ability to actually hear themselves at a comfortable volume and save their ears a little bit.

At around 6pm, the doors to the club opened up and the masses waiting outside were allowed to come in and jockey for position at the foot of the stage. It was at about this time when legendary photographer Paul Natkin and myself were escorted to the band’s tour bus to conduct an interview with Matt & Kim before their sold-out show. After almost a year of talking on the phone, via twitter and e-mail, Matt and Kim and I finally got to meet. With a new album due out in about a month and a tour that seems to sell out by the time the band makes it to the venue that day, Matt & Kim are undoubtedly conducting a lot of interviews. Ours was pretty cool, too… besides, I don’t think too many interviewers ask the band about microphones and in-ear personal monitors. That being said, our interview is a WORLD EXCLUSIVE! We’ll let you know when it goes live on our MySpace page, stay tuned.

Alright, so show time was fast approaching and Paul made his way into the photo pit to capture the moment , and I headed upstairs to a balcony table and chairs provided by the Metro’s Joe Shanahan (thanks Joe!). Looking around the venue, this was a clear sell out from top to bottom; there were people covering every square inch of the place! The emotion at the Metro reached a fever pitch and you could almost feel that the show was about to begin… and then it did.

Matt & Kim rushed the stage like they were 5-year-old kids at recess, jumping up and down and high-five-ing anyone within hand slapping distance while “Where Brooklyn At?” by Notorious BIG was booming through the house PA; the crowd went banana sandwich! Taking their rightful places behind their instruments, M&K got things going with “I Wanna” from their album Grand.

Watching from the balcony above, it was non-stop jumping and crowd surfing below… I think I even saw someone dressed as Spider Man floating above the crowd, being tossed from one end of the room to the other. Matt & Kim did not let the intensity go for one second, even in between song banter was full of energy. When the moment seemed right, and the crowd vibe felt good, a cover song or three were thrown in for added pleasure. Most notably, the band pulled off “Better Off Alone” by Alice Deejay quite nicely, and the crowd had fun singing along to “Just A Friend” by The Diabolical Biz Markie. All in all, this was a concert that was well worth the price of admission kids.

As they blazed through the highlights from both of their albums, they were just about out of songs, when the beginning riff to “Daylight” was slowly being played by Matt. The crowd seemingly waited with bated breath and then Matt & Kim ripped into their most famous song to date, leaving the place in utter chaos.

Honestly, it was the most fun I had at a concert in a long time, but man did it make me tired watching it! The kids from Brooklyn give it everything they have when they hit that stage, giving everyone just what they came for. As they thanked the crowd for coming out, “Empire State Of Mind” by Jay-Z began to play through the house PA and Matt & Kim hit the crowd with hugs and high-fives all over again. Gratitude is awesome. Thanks Matt & Kim!

-Cory

Matt & Kim were coming to Chicago again, and this time I had no prior plans or obligations to stand in the way of finally meeting the dynamic duo from Brooklyn and partaking in the madness that is their live show. When I arrived to the Metro via the Shure mobile (of course), the line had already begun to take shape… it was an hour before the doors would even open.

With the help of my trusty communication module, I made contact with Will People, front-of-house engineer, who came out to the front of the venue to escort me to the stage area where we could further discuss sound guy things like microphones and monitors and… you know just kind of geek it out a bit. Cool. I was able to get a real up close look at the Matt & Kim set-up: a few keyboards and a drum kit, seemingly on top of one another while sharing a single drum riser. The Shure mics filled in the spaces in between: a couple of Beta 58As on vocals, a Beta 52A on kick, some Beta 98s on toms, and a handful of SM57s on amps and snare drum. That’s pretty much it, nothing too complicated; your basic rock set-up.

Matt & Kim are also recent adapters of the PSM 900 in-ear personal monitor system, and that’s also become a staple of their live show. Hearing them for the first time, they both wondered how they ever got through without them, especially playing so loudly and so close together. I think its safe to say they truly appreciate the ability to actually hear themselves at a comfortable volume and save their ears a little bit.

At around 6pm, the doors to the club opened up and the masses waiting outside were allowed to come in and jockey for position at the foot of the stage. It was at about this time when legendary photographer Paul Natkin and myself were escorted to the band’s tour bus to conduct an interview with Matt & Kim before their sold-out show. After almost a year of talking on the phone, via twitter and e-mail, Matt and Kim and I finally got to meet. With a new album due out in about a month and a tour that seems to sell out by the time the band makes it to the venue that day, Matt & Kim are undoubtedly conducting a lot of interviews. Ours was pretty cool, too… besides, I don’t think too many interviewers ask the band about microphones and in-ear personal monitors. That being said, our interview is a WORLD EXCLUSIVE! We’ll let you know when it goes live on our MySpace page, stay tuned.

Alright, so show time was fast approaching and Paul made his way into the photo pit to capture the moment , and I headed upstairs to a balcony table and chairs provided by the Metro’s Joe Shanahan (thanks Joe!). Looking around the venue, this was a clear sell out from top to bottom; there were people covering every square inch of the place! The emotion at the Metro reached a fever pitch and you could almost feel that the show was about to begin… and then it did.

Matt & Kim rushed the stage like they were 5-year-old kids at recess, jumping up and down and high-five-ing anyone within hand slapping distance while “Where Brooklyn At?” by Notorious BIG was booming through the house PA; the crowd went banana sandwich! Taking their rightful places behind their instruments, M&K got things going with “I Wanna” from their album Grand.

Watching from the balcony above, it was non-stop jumping and crowd surfing below… I think I even saw someone dressed as Spider Man floating above the crowd, being tossed from one end of the room to the other. Matt & Kim did not let the intensity go for one second, even in between song banter was full of energy. When the moment seemed right, and the crowd vibe felt good, a cover song or three were thrown in for added pleasure. Most notably, the band pulled off “Better Off Alone” by Alice Deejay quite nicely, and the crowd had fun singing along to “Just A Friend” by The Diabolical Biz Markie. All in all, this was a concert that was well worth the price of admission kids.

As they blazed through the highlights from both of their albums, they were just about out of songs, when the beginning riff to “Daylight” was slowly being played by Matt. The crowd seemingly waited with bated breath and then Matt & Kim ripped into their most famous song to date, leaving the place in utter chaos.

Honestly, it was the most fun I had at a concert in a long time, but man did it make me tired watching it! The kids from Brooklyn give it everything they have when they hit that stage, giving everyone just what they came for. As they thanked the crowd for coming out, “Empire State Of Mind” by Jay-Z began to play through the house PA and Matt & Kim hit the crowd with hugs and high-fives all over again. Gratitude is awesome. Thanks Matt & Kim!

-Cory

So, I’m going to come clean and state for the record that I was vaguely familiar with the rock band Pavement when I received a care package from the band’s manager, Peter Arsenault last winter asking if Shure might be interested in supporting a reunion tour slated for 2010. Of course I’d heard the name and I’m certain a song or two had been played in my presence, but I felt like a stranger in a strange land when I tried to familiarize myself with their history and musical catalogue.

As it turns out, this was shaping up to be a pretty big deal in the music industry, as the band abruptly ceased to exist in 1999 after ten years of playing together. The fans had spoken and the band finally obliged, embarking on a world-wide tour which will continue through the fall of 2010. I learned pretty quickly how influential Pavement had been during their ten-year stint of playing music together, and I couldn’t resist the history behind this reunion. Moreover, the band’s engineers seemed to be pretty big fans of Shure, especially the KSM9 for Stephen Malkmus’ vocals.

I spoke with the Peter about the plans for the tour and was immediately connected with monitor engineer Jeremy Lemos who ran me through the input list for the stage… everything was a Shure mic, and Jeremy was adamant about using the KSM9 for vocals on stage; it was his one requirement prior to taking on the gig with Pavement.

The band had played Coachella earlier in the year and then ended up in Chicago for this year’s Pitchfork. I missed both shows, but had heard very positive feedback regarding the performances and the sound. Even to the most critical ear, the band never sounded better and was the tightest version of Pavement anyone had ever seen. Jeremy had mentioned that the band would be back in Chicago in September. I still had one last chance to experience the reunion myself.

On Monday, September 13th, 2010, I made my way to Chicago’s Millennium Park which is where the Jay Pritzker Pavilion is, the site for the last Pavement show in Chicago. Again, this was a whole new experience for me. I had lived in Chicago or the surrounding suburbs my whole life and had never been inside of Millennium Park. Sure, I’ve passed by on my way to some other destination, but never got close enough to get the full experience. I felt like a real tourist in my own town, checking the map to see where I was going, lugging along my baggage after I foolishly parked further away than I had anticipated. I finally made my way to the Pavilion and managed to get a hold of Jeremy who waved from the stage when he saw me. I marveled at the site of the pavilion as I walked down to meet him… the architecture is amazing and you couldn’t ask for a better backdrop for a concert. I mean there you are right in the middle of downtown Chicago, enjoying an evening of music surrounded by some of the most famous buildings in the world. Cool.

Jeremy helped me with my baggage and we headed onto to the stage, making our way towards one of the dressing rooms. On our way, we ran into Spiral Stairs (Scott Kannberg), one of the founding members of the band who thanked me for the great mics and all of the support during the tour. Jeremy led me to a small dressing room where Stephen Malkmus, Bob Nastanovich and Mark Ibold had been talking and casually keeping themselves entertained via their respective laptops. The guys made me feel welcome and moved their focus away from their electronics to engage in some casual conversation. Jeremy had left me alone with the band, obviously feeling the comfortable vibe in the room.

After a few minutes of talking about the venue, the city, family and music, it was decided that we should probably start getting some of this on tape. For the official interview, Malkmus and Nastanovich remained in the room, ready for my questions. I did my homework and researched the band then and now, but I still really wanted to hear their take on the situation. I mean, here’s a band that reunited after ten years, is not touring to support a new release, has no plans to record a new record, and had made it clear that this tour will end with the band going their separate ways with their separate projects. It’s a unique situation. One doesn’t want to dwell too much on the past or pry into the future, so we just stayed focused on the moment and the moment offered a lot to talk about. The video portion of this interview will appear on our MySpace and YouTube pages soon, stay tuned…

Once we finished up the interview with Nastanovich and Malkmus, it was time to get a little more technical and invite monitor engineer Jeremy Lemos and front of house engineer Remko Schouten to sit down in front of the camera. These guys are such fans of Shure, the thing came out looking like a commercial… I swear we did not script any of it. We’ll let you be the judge, their moment on camera will be coming soon as well.

As the opening band began to play through their opening slot, the venue began to fill with a mixed bag of Pavement fans, both young and old. Standing near monitor world as the band casually made their way from dressing room to stage, the crowd began to reach a fever pitch as Stephen Malkmus was now visible and seemingly inviting the other original members of Pavement to join him on stage.

The band began ripping through a list of fan favorites, and it seemed to just come so easy, almost effortless. They practiced for this. Nastanovich said Pavement never used to practice when they were a band ten years ago. The preparation showed and the Pavement faithful approved with the start and end of every song played.

The sound, as promised, was amazing and the band was very tight as was previously stated. The Jay Pritzker Pavilion is an amazing place to see a show, especially at night with all of the city lights surrounding you. As the band neared the end of the set, Stephen Malkmus dedicated a song to Michael Dahlquist, a former employee of Shure who lost his life in a tragic car accident years ago. Not many people in the crowd caught that, but it was something that made the night complete for me.

The band went on to do two encores that night and before leaving the stage for the final time, Stephen Malkmus and Spiral Stairs thanked Chicago, stating that we had always been good to them and that maybe we’d see them again in ten years. Maybe we will, but I’m glad I got to see things this time around.

-Cory