I nterviews - T he Interview

What is your role with Powderfinger?

I am Powderfingers live sound engineer, I am responsible for sound >system design and operation when the band are touring.

How did you become involved in the sound engineering scene? Did you participate in any courses?

During high school I took theatre as a subject and became interested in the production side of things. I found audio the most interesting and learned what I could from the technical staff at my local theatre. As I was already a drummer playing in bands as well, it was natural for me to move away from theatre and concentrate on contemporary music. I have never done any formal training in audio engineering.

How and when did you become involved with Powderfinger and what made you choose to be their sound engineer over any other bands?

I was playing in bands in Brisbane in the late 80's around the time the fingers were getting started and as the Brisbane scene was not that big most bands knew each other or had met at some point. I actually started with them in 1995 (i think it was) :) for the "Truckstop" tour with Fur and Sidewinder, they had just started writing the songs for Double Allergic. It was the days of the dreaded econovan!! Strangely enough I was never a fan of the band when Parables came out, but could always see the potential of the band, especially Berns voice. 

What were your first impressions of the band and did you believe back then that they had what it took to make it as big as they are now?

As I said in the last question, I was not a fan, it was all too blues rock for me. But there was something about them that said they were special and only needed to develop as song writers to achieve success. 

How far do you think they have developed since the early days, musically and otherwise?

Massively, as writers, players and as people. They have developed a keen sense of style and an acute understanding of how the industry works and how to make it work for them without having to sell their collective souls. 

Do you offer much of a say in Powderfinger's music?

The boys don't need my humble opinion to make great music.

Do you believe Powderfinger have acquired the certain sound they have hoped for or are they still trying to refine it? 

Powderfinger are a band that will always be evolving, they do have a distinct sound at their core, but they would never settle into a formulaic approach to music, so they will always be redefining their own boundaries. 

Are there many pressures with being a sound engineer?

The greatest pressure of my job is consistency, every performance should sound great, and its a difficult thing to achieve, as there are so many variables involved, i.e. venue design, crowd sizes, the bands actual performance on the night, noise restrictions, equipment failures, the list goes on.

Hardest part of your job?

Drinking the rider :) Once again I think being consistent is technically the hardest part. Long tours can be hard from a psychological point of view.

What do you enjoy most about your job?

I love the electricity of a perfect performance, music lights sound, an excited crowd, all working together to create that charged atmosphere, that makes you realise that your involved in something really special.

What advice would you offer to those who are hoping to get involved in sound engineering?

Be prepared to be poor for a long long time, but don't give up. The best engineers have spent years doing small jobs for little or no money and learning in difficult circumstances. But ultimately you will realise that the hardest jobs with the crappiest equipment and the worst rooms and young bands with no experience, are the best hands on learning opportunities you will ever get.

Are there many problems or hassles with getting the equipment set up from venue to venue?

At Powderfingers level of touring it is logistically complex, but every crew members job becomes a lot more specialised. For example I don't actually setup the equipment as I did years ago, I have an assistant who's job it is to place speaker systems as advised by me, and in turn he has a crew of "roadies" who do all the really heavy lifting for him. So all of the Powderfinger permanent touring crew have people who do most of the manual labour. This creates quite a large number of people who have to be co-ordinated from venue to venue.

Do you prefer Powderfinger's own concerts or big festivals like BDO? Why?

I prefer The Fingers own tours, as I have a greater degree of control over my surroundings. But festivals present a great challenge, that is quite stressful, but very rewarding when it comes together. The negative side of festivals is the boring routine of waiting at a hot, sweaty, noisy gig listening to bands you don't like, and the odd one you do, until the boys get on stage for their 55mins of rock.

Is there anything you can do personally if the band is a bit off? Any tricks with the equipment to hide the fact or don't they have off days? 

Hey I'm not giving away trade secrets!! ;) There is equipment around these days that can correct a dodgy vocal on the fly, but I find the concept of doing that repulsive and totally dishonest. There is no such thing as 100% perfect performances and that is part of what makes seeing your favorite band so great. Each time it is a little different, imagine if everytime you saw Powderfinger it was exactly the same!! boooorring!! That is why so called acts like Bardot, Backstreet Boys, Spice Girls are crap, they cheat, they use backing tapes and vocal pitch correction equipment, and their performances are sterile. But thats just my oppinion >:)

Have you worked with other bands as a sound engineer or any well-known productions? 

My career grew alongside Powderfinger, before I worked for them I was just an unknown engineer in little old Brisbane. I have been fortunate in that I have recorded some of Powderfingers work, such as "These Days" the original version, not the re-recorded version for the album, "Lemon Sunrise" off Internationalist, and a few B-sides off the 3 last albums. I have recorded many unsigned bands from Brisbane, life isn't all touring and fun you know, a guy has got to earn a living :)

How was the recent US tour with Coldplay?

Fantastic, Coldplay and their crew are a lovely bunch of fellows.

What is happening with Powderfinger at the moment?

Well I can't really say anymore than what you can already find out from the website, but as you know we are currently overseas, the band are performing on the David Letterman show, and then we start the U.K. European tour. But suffice to say everyone is excited at the prospect of the band becoming successful in the U.S. 

Do you feel partly responsible for Powderfinger's success of late? 

No, the only people responsible for Powderfinger's success are Powderfinger. 

Where do you think the band will go from here? Do you believe they can break the overseas markets?

Yes I think with the strenght of Odyssey #5 the band can go all the way to the top. 

Any news on a possible Powderfinger tour of Australia soon? Or a new single? 

No news as yet, all of the touring for the rest of the world needs to be formulated before an Australian tour can be scheduled. There will be a though, the fingers will always remember where they come from :) 

Do you believe Powderfinger to be one of the most popular Australian bands ever? 

Definitely, right up there with INXS, Crowded House and Midnight Oil.

What is it like travelling around with the 5 boys so extensively?  Any funny incidents?

It can be fun, it can be boring, it can be depressing, it can be tense, but mostly it is fun. We have all known each other for such a long time now that we are all good friends and if there is a disagreement everyone has their say and the next day it is all forgotten, there are no grudges. I guess after being together as a band for such a long time you learn how your band mates think and how to give each other space. As for funny incidents well that would take a whole book, basically everyone knows that PF are a bunch of smartarses so imagine something really stupidly funny and think of it happening everyday and there you have it, thats why its fun.

How did Drag come about with Dz?

Darren is quite a prolific songwriter but not all of what comes out of his tiny brain is Powderfinger specific :). He likes to keep busy with music and he knew I played drums so we started working on these other bits and pieces of songs and turned them into Drag songs, we grabbed Matt Murphy (who tours as keyboard player for the fingers) and a Bass player (Sean Hartman from Hudson Lowboy) and started rehearsing and we have done a few gigs including Livid 99. But as PF get busier we have less time to work on Drag unfortunately.

Did you always have the ambition to become apart of a successful band such as Powderfinger in the sound side of production or did you hope to have your own musical success in a band?

Originally I wanted to be in a great band as a drummer, and after pursuing that dream for years and having only mild success with Fear of Falling in 1989 - 92 I decided to ease off and keep playing but also to hedge my bets between playing and being a sound engineer.

How have you accepted your celebrity status you have acquired since being a on the Powderfinger discussion board? 

mmmwwwaahahahaha....I'm no celebrity, I wanted to see how the minds of Powderfinger fans worked, and bring truth justice and the sweet baby jeeebuzzz into your giant pink banana shaped aura's

THE END