Looking out over the Mandalay Bay Arena in Las Vegas where INXS would be performing that night, Delicate Productions' Smoother Smyth recalled how he started working with the band when they were first starting their career in the States: "I was in my office, and the receptionist called and said there was a band there to see me. I asked her to repeat that, because sound companies rarely deal directly with bands, but she repeated that there was a band there and they wanted to speak to me. 'What's their name?' I asked. And she said, "I don't know. It's INCS or something like that. "I asked where they were from, and she answered, 'Australia.' So I said, 'Right. Go up the road to the liquor store and get a case of Fosters and bring it back here.'" That case of Aussie beer was apparently a good investment as Delicate handled INXS' U.S. production for a number of years until management decided that things had gotten so big that they needed an international vendor who could handle the band worldwide.
Smyth spoke with a certain pride about a company that he helped start 26 years ago, how his company has survived the tumultuous business cycles of the past two decades and where he sees the company moving in the next years.
FOH: Does Delicate have a specialty?
Smoother Smyth: Well, we are not really a lighting company. We are not really a video company. When it comes to the audio, I don't see us there. We are a production company, and we go where we are wanted. Some of our clients will come knocking on the door for one of those three services. We have to be very careful that we don't step on toes. If we are out on a tour with, say, Gwen Stefani, and we're doing video only, we are happy not to be involved with lighting and audio. We have to be everyone's friend out there. Our work is maybe 50-50 concert touring and corporate productions. We constantly have large projects out on the road that are sound, lights and video and we are under the radar, nobody even knows we are out there because it didn't go to bid. That's our bread and butter, that's what fuels us.
How did this tour come about?
Paul Spriggs, production manager with INXS, asked me to put together a lighting package. I did that. He came back and said, 'You should probably give me a quote on some audio.' I did that. He told me he was adamant that he was going with a video wall and I said, 'Fine, come talk to us.' He came and talked to us and went away with a video projection system along with everything else. That's how it works.
You said a minute ago that some jobs don't go out to bid. Do you get those jobs because you have pre- existing relationships with those clients?
No, it's because we are a one-stop shop and there aren't many companies that can do that anyway. It's also a question of the client having a budget and trying to take the shortcut. If the numbers aren't working, I can rob Peter to pay Paul. It's surprising when you offer three services how much latitude you have to work within your numbers.
It's no secret that on the audio side of the business, there are a couple companies slugging it out over price, and production managers know that they can play that game to get cheaper prices.
That never lasts long. This incarnation of Delicate started in 1980, so I've seen 26 years of the market, and when we look at the audio marketplace, we've seen these situations. It's a company's prerogative to choose what strategy they care to take. For everybody, it's their business to stay in business and those circumstances morph your company on a regular basis. It ain't the same anymore. We all know that, and we only have to look at the record industry and how that whole thing has gone down the dumper. Now, there are larger conglomerates like PRG and that's also changed the way that we have to conduct business. The SFX/Clear Channel deal has now morphed into Live Nation, and where will that take us? So, we are all adapting and rolling with the current situation.
Do you find that being a one-stop shop is an advantage when it comes to working in the corporate world?
In corporate, absolutely. We don't push it hard in touring because we can't alienate companies. I need a good relationship with Showco. I need a good relationship with Clair. That's a fact. Now, I'm happy to have lights and video out on their concert tours. I think over the years, you respect others, and I think they respect you. I don't want another vendor going to a production manager and saying, "Stay the heck away from Smoother, he's a scumbag." I'm a happy guy. I respect the other people in the industry and I get on pretty much with everybody.
So, what is your background?
My background was audio. I stopped focusing on just audio over the years. It saddened me that audio might offer the worst return on our investment. That's sad because a lot of hard work and effort isn't really recognized. That's true of the crew rates, too. It's quite disgraceful what the going rate is for an audio engineer when you see that a lighting tech on the same tour might be making 25% more. And the video guy is at 40% more. So, it saddens me that audio is the low man on the totem pole.
Right, and audio equipment is so expensive these days.
Yeah. I've recently seen how rental houses that specialize in consoles, specifi- cally digital consoles, now are coming into play. I went online the other day looking for a couple of consoles for the Black Crowes who are doing some one-off dates, and sure enough, bang, found 'em in Nashville. A guy just rents digital consoles, so I told him what the need was, he had a price including freight and I turned him onto the act. They are off and running. What that is telling us is that there is a market there because audio companies are declining to buy everything out there. You just can't have everything in your inventory. There's a big outlay and you can't guarantee the return on your investment. Then again, on the audio side it's still fun. There is always somebody out there that's still raising the bar. Just when you think you have the set, you find out that you have the old shit now. It's not very forgiving, but at the same time, it's a lot of fun.
Where do you see Delicate heading?
First of all, we always have to do what we're doing a little bit better. We have to get a little bit better of a relationship with our clients and focus a little bit more on how things leave the shop. All is well there, but I want to focus on just being better. Our goal is to enhance what we are doing already, become our own billboard to the industry and hope that people will come to us based on what they've seen or heard.
The Audio Guys
James McCullagh was just off the Joss Stone tour where he manned the monitor rig and looking for his next gig when he got a call from production manager Paul Spriggs. After an audition in New York City, McCullagh picked up the FOH gig and has been behind a Yamaha PM5D since INXS has returned to the live arena along with Delicate Productions' system tech Alan Behr.
FOH: How do you like using the 5D?
James McCullagh: From my point of view, putting this desk out here was a reliability thing for both monitors and Front of House. Also, having listened to these pre-amps, I really think they are great. Typically, Yamaha pre-amps are very clean and they have no color. They sound really great. It's a very simple desk to use, and pretty much, it's all there. You have your two fader banks and you switch between the two.
If you are used to Midas, the Yamaha pre-amps are a bit different.
JM: Yeah, and that was one of my concerns because it is a rock show and you want a little bit of coloration on your sound, especially on the drums and guitars. I spoke to Smoother and Alan about various outboard gear and they were like, "You should hear the desk before you make a decision on what outboard gear you want." So, as it stands at the moment, we don't have a lot. I am keen to put some things in after hearing this. I think I'll add Distressors across the drums to punch them up and I'll probably do the same with the guitars. I'm also looking at various preamps for the lead vocals.
Alan Behr: It's good to go through a little analog chain before you hit the digital world.
JM: You definitely need that with the digital stuff, unless you are doing vocals to backing tracks kind of pop stuff, you want some grit, and that's why people always bring in all that preamp stuff if they're not using a Midas. Midas brings in all that coloration before hand so you don't need it–you just stick up a Midas and a standard dbx 160A and bam, you're there.
