Sound Company
Sound Image/Clair Global
Venue
Various (Tour)
Crew
- FOH Engineer: Gary Hartung
- Monitor Engineer: John McCourt
- Tour Manager: Terry Finley
- Production Manager: Marc Engel
- Techs: Tyler Sweet (guitar), Juan Sanson (bass), Seth Couey (drums)
Gear
FOH
- Console: Yamaha QL-5
- In-Console Effects/Plugins: Portico 5043, MyLake8 slot card
- Outboard Rack Effects/Plugins: Bricasti M7
- Speaker Systems: House PA systems used on this tour but Hartung prefers when renting- JBL VTX25, JBL S28 for 12-16 Main Hangs per side, 8-12 Side Hangs, Ground Subs and 4 Front Filll Loaded Enclosures, no single line array boxes.
MON
- Console: Yamaha QL-5
- In-Console Effects/Plugins: Portico 5043
- Outboard Rack Effects/Plugins: Shure’s Wireless Workbench
- Mics: Vocal Mics: Shure SM58; Guitar Mics: Shure SM7, Audix SCX25; Drum Mics: Shure SM91, Audix D6 (kick), Audix D2, beyerdynamic M 201 (snare), Audix SCX1 (hi-hat, ride), Shure KSM137 (cymbals), Audix D4 (floor); Bass Cab Mic: beyerdynamic M88
- IEMs/Transmitters: JH Audio JH13V2, Shure PSM 1000
Tour Details
The Stray Cats, with Brian Setzer on vocals and guitar, Lee Rocker on bass and Slim Jim Phantom on drums, performed their hits and fan favorites for a rockabilly good time when we caught the summer tour and briefly spoke to FOH Engineer Gary Hartung and Monitor Engineer John McCourt.
On the previous Brian Setzer Rockabilly Riot Tour earlier this year, Gary Hartung was the sole engineer, acting as both FOH [and monitor engineer of sorts]. For the Stray Cats tour a monitor engineer [John McCourt] was brought on. “Having a monitor engineer helps tremendously, notes Hartung. It allowed me to concentrate on the FOH mix and not feel like I’m on an island. Especially if something goes wrong on stage. Brian, Slim Jim and Lee are total pros, so I didn’t have to worry much, they’ve all been doing it a long time. This was their first time on IEMs though and they’ve adjusted well. They are all very dynamic players and excellent singers so that makes it fun to mix. The guys all had a blast playing together.”
Hartung likes to keep things simple and says he really appreciates other engineers that feel the same way. “Proper mic choices and placement is important. A great sounding console and PA of course. Good gain structure and away ya go… just mix and have fun. Also, I still get a bit nervous before every show and I think that’s normal. The day any of us think this is routine, then it’s probably time to hang it up. Of course, it’s also good to be fully confident that you’re going to have a good show. At the end of the day, it should be fun. That’s why we do this, so we don’t have to have a real job. Or a boring one!”
This is the first tour the band as a whole are wearing in-ear monitors notes Monitor Engineer John McCourt. “They have all worn them in their individual projects current and in the past, but never as the Stray Cats complete. They really enjoy the stage volumes and clarity that the in-ears can bring. They all say it makes them play better. The main piece of outboard gear that I use with the Stray Cats is Shure’s Wireless Workbench. This has allowed me to find clean frequencies at the different venues we are performing in.”
