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Big Changes In Harman Pro Senior Management

Yeah Yeah Yeahs Storm England

LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND–Cult New York rockers, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, recently played a whirlwind UK tour. The three back-to-back dates at the Glasgow Barrowlands then the Manchester and Birmingham Academies were reinforced with a Nexo Alpha system – seven M3 tops and four S2 subs a side, all powered by Camco amps, with equipment and personnel supplied by the Adlib Group.

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Fender and Furman Form Wholesale Division

PETALUMA, CA–Furman Sound announced a partnership with Fender Musical Instruments Corp, through which FMI will serve as a distributor of Furman Sound's AC power conditioning products. Formerly known as Fender Strings, Parts, and Accessories, the newly created FMI Wholesale Division has more than 10 years in sales and distribution of Fender-branded products to the music business.

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TrooTrace Bundles Up To DigiDesign

DALY CITY–Digidesign has announced that Troodon Technologies' TrooTrace plug-in for TDM will be included with all VENUE systems as part of the VENUEPack 2.0 promotional bundle. TrooTrace offers 10 audio analysis and system alignment tools that run directly on VENUE's DSP mix engine, eliminating the need for a dedicated computer and audio interface at the mix position.

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Paisley Picks Up Hardware

LAS VEGAS, NV–Brad Paisley, who walked into this year's Academy of Country Music Awards at the MGM Grand with nominations in six categories, went home the night's biggest winner with three wins: His latest album, Time Well Wasted was named Album of the Year, and "When I Get Where I'm Going", a track that pairs the country superstar with the legendary Dolly Parton, scored dual honors as Vocal Event of the Year and Video Event of the Year.

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Turn It Up! No, Down! No, Up! No. . .

A friend and I went to a concert recently to hear a very popular band. But it was so loud that it was impossible to make out individual voices or instruments. We put cotton in our ears, which seemed to help. On the break, we went to talk to the sound guys and discovered that they all had ear plugs in their ears!!! Hello? Get a clue! How can you get a good sense of the proper volume level for your audience with plugs in your ears? Was the problem that the sound system was bad or was it dufus/already deaf sound people?

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Ignore Text Wrap. . .

So there I was, sitting in the living room, laptop fired up, reading copy for the issue you hold now. It was about 9 p.m., and sadly, in an all-too-common situation, my wife and I were both working on magazine projects. Like I said, I was reading, and she was doing design and production on a freelance project that required her to operate in a program she was unfamiliar with.

It was hard to concentrate because it meant ignoring the screaming and swearing coming from the general direction of the area where my wife was sitting. Note that I did not say the screaming and swearing were coming from her, just that they were emanating from that general direction. (Hey, I've been married for 18 years; I have learned something along the way.)

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Jumping Off the Road

There are those magical moments in the recording studio when musicians give birth to a song, yet it is when those same musicians play that song in front of an audience that it comes to life. Live sound mixers are in a unique position to watch as audiences and musicians respond to each other. Likewise, these Front of House engineers have to respond almost instantly to problems that arise, which can run the gamut from faulty gear to failing instruments to singers who might need a bit of technical assistance to hit all the appropriate notes. For many active producers working these days, including Ryan Greene, Don Gehman, Ross Hogarth and Mark Howard, this was the perfect training ground for the stresses and joys of the studio environment.

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Voice of a New Generation

Back in my days as a long-haired metalhead, I played drums and sang backing vocals for a band called Dagger. Love us or hate us, we were competent musicians who took pride in our ability to play and sing. The most widespread comment I received after a show was, "Who's playing the background vocal samples?" Interestingly, there wasn't anyone with a sampler or a tape machine hiding behind the curtain: We were simply singing backup vocals. I vividly remember spending countless nights rehearsing nothing but harmonies until we'd get them right. We wanted to sound like our CD.

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Regional Slants: Getting Large Through Being Small

Being in this biz for only 10 years, I guess it's safe to say that I am a baby. All of the biggest houses in the biz have been around for an average of 30-plus years, and a recent FOH poll revealed that a very small percentage of sound hire companies' owners are under the age of 40. I just celebrated my 38th birthday.

Three times in the 10 years HAS Productions has been around, it's lack of longevity in this biz has been questioned by a visiting FOH guy, all really big shows. In this biz, stakes are high and there are no second chances, so as crushing to my ego as it is, I understand their perspectives. With it only coming up three times, I guess I should feel fortunate.

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