Editor’s Note

Lots happening out there this month, but nothing that I am inspired enough about for a whole 700-word column. So, let's do a collection of short bits, shall we?

The Squeeze Is, Apparently, On

A few months back, we talked about the consolidation at the top end of the live event audio world and how it might result in a squeeze on mid-sized providers. It seems like that vise is beginning to tighten. In just the past couple of weeks, I have heard about some mid-sized companies that are struggling, and rumors of ballooning deficits are running rampant. At the same time, word on the street is that some of the big boys are tightening the screws. One regional provider looking to move up into the touring world said that he had been told that one national company "will not be under-bid. If I bid $100, they will come in at $50."

Sometimes I do very stupid things, even when I know in advance that they're stupid. Call it a thick head or a stubborn streak, but I just don't learn.

I am about to do one of those stupid things right now. I may live to regret it, but I need to say something about this business and the role of the trade press. It will upset some people, but I hope that–if you are not one of the offended–you at least find it somewhat entertaining, albeit in the same way we are drawn to look at a particularly bad car accident when we drive past.

Some years back, when I was the editor of a magazine for musicians, we got a press release for a new product that I thought was a brilliant idea. Someone had come up with a couple of adapters that plugged into both ends of a standard AC extension cord and turned it into a speaker cable terminating in 1/4-inch connectors. Being a musician that dabbled in sound (who is slowly growing up to be a sound guy who still plays a few gigs), I thought this was completely cool.

Geez, have I used that headline before? Maybe. With any luck, it was for another magazine or at least a long time ago. This is one of the pitfalls of doing this for as long as I have been in an editor's chair for some publication or another. Between these editor's notes, news stories, editorials, columns and reviews, I have shot my big mouth off in print hundreds of times, and not repeating yourself can become a challenge.

The following is true. Only the names have been changed to protect the semi-innocent.

Much as the conventional wisdom holds that being the middle child sucks, those in the middle of the live event audio world may be feeling that the world is lined up against them right about now.

A few months ago, we ran the news that San-Diego and Nashville-based Sound Image had aquired Chicago's db Sound, instantly rocketing them to at least the number two spot when it comes to pure size among national sound companies. At the same time, larger regionals are moving up to be considered by many as national companies. (Thunder Audio out of Detroit is a good example. Although they were nominated for a "Hometown Hero" award this year, with clients including Metallica and Garbage, many readers feel Thunder no longer qualifies as a regional company.)

On one hand, I (and the entire FOH/PLSN staff) finally get a chance to take a deep breath, but I have to admit it has been a pretty exhilarating time, and I may actually miss the challenge and the adrenaline rush. I am talking about the past 10 weeks, which saw us dealing with two major holidays, a total of six issues of the mags, the fifth edition of the EPD (our annual directory to all things production oriented) and the now completed Pro Production 2005.

Late in the afternoon, two days before Christmas, I got a voice mail on my cell phone from Howard Sherman, an NYC PR guy who does a lot of work in the pro audio market. "Bill," he said, "I know this is last-minute, but I have an opportunity to get someone in to cover the Kevin Spacey Beyond the Sea tour on its last stops in Vegas. The shows are the 26th and 27th. Can you do it?"

When I first heard about the shooting in an Ohio club that took the lives of four people, including the band's guitarist and two crew members, I was horrified–but I must admit I didn't know who DamagePlan was. I figured it was a local club deal where something got terribly out of hand. It's strange how when I found out the next morning that the guitarist was Dimebag Darrell from Pantera, it hit home. I was never a big metal guy or Pantera fan, but I know people who worked for them, and that made it much more personal.