Performance starts 1:03:36
Message In A Bottle kicked off our set with a great start. Normally this is one of our weaker songs as it is usually where we are feeling most nervous. Unfortunately we were experiencing quite a lot of feedback during this song, which was rather distracting. Also due to me not setting up the microphone correctly, for this song my backing vocals were difficult to hear whenever I put my head down to look at what I was playing on the keyboard. However my clarity in the outro was much better and I would say that this was the best run through of the song we have ever done.
Then we went into Bohemian Like You but the start was slightly delayed because of struggles trying to find the right guitar tones. I then missed my cue for the first riff because we played an extra bar. Part way through, James and Michael began to laugh and talk because the distortion on the guitar sounded absolutely dreadful. This looked very unprofessional. In regards to my microphone positioning, it was better this time as I looked down less. This meant I was able to project my voice better. During the second verse there is a dynamic change but it was not executed well and you can hardly tell the difference. However, we did all finish this song at the right time and in the right key.
Following this, Kabeer quickly rushed through saying which song we were playing next. It was almost inaudible and it could have been a perfect moment to address the crowd and yet this opportunity was not taken. If it had been, we could have had a chance to try and fix the problems with the guitar tones and change the voice on the keyboard from organ back to piano. He then proceeded to start the song very quietly like in the original version but it was difficult to hear him over the other instruments and because this is an extremely repetitive song, it can be difficult to know which part of the song you are at if you cannot hear which lyrics are being sung. Further on into the song, Michael asks for his monitor to be turned up. This problem could have possibly have been solved during sound check but communication at any point with the sound engineer is very important so at least he picked a good time where he was only playing the kick drum to ask for this adaptation. All in all I think this song was technically successful because of the sheer amount of repetition, which makes it difficult to go wrong.
The next song requires a changeover. This meant that once I had arrived at my new microphone, I began to introduce the song. However this was made very difficult when James kept talking over me, resulting in me telling him to “shut up” and then forgetting what song was next in the set. During the choruses, it is almost impossible to hear James’ harmonies and the guitar tones still did not sound good at all. This time I did not look as awkward or out of place as I have done previously when performing this song, as whilst the outro was being played I moved around a bit to make it seem more like I was enjoying myself. We had almost regained our professionalism but then James began to play wonder wall on his guitar. This gave off the false impression that we would play this song, which in front of a live audience might be disappointing for some when we don’t deliver.
Finally we played one of our best songs: Burnin’ Up. It went well until I missed the high note at the end of the second verse again. I have been practicing it but whenever we perform it live the change from chest voice to head voice makes it difficult to get the right note and volume at once so it just sounds off. We made use of the spare microphones during the “red dress” call and response. This added to the song and made this part much more effective. Our clapping to get the audience involved with the set was pretty successful but I feel as though Kabeer could have clapped for a bit longer. Aside from that, we ended very well.
In terms of performance as a whole, I have learnt how to communicate better with an audience and how to present myself on stage. This however could be improved with more practice and planing to reduce nervousness.
For the live sound element of this project, I learnt a lot of things. First of all, I now know how to confidently use a mixing desk and set up a PA system. I could improve on this by being certain about what I am doing because I often doubt myself out of fear of breaking something even though I am doing everything correctly and am in a safe environment.
I think that I have come a long way in terms of working as a group. In the past 6 weeks We have become very close as a band and are always talking to each other about both the set and other things. I feel as though we are becoming the best of friends as well as a very closely knit band. This has really improved communication between each other and helps us to enjoy rehearsing much more. We could improve our communication with the sound engineers to improve our sound quality when performing with the sound system. Such as making sure the monitors are giving us the sound we want or checking the guitar tones sound okay.
My Live Sound Assessment (starts 50:55 – 58:10)
I was discussing the lack of volume in the 2nd monitor and then adjusted it during Blue Ivy’s sound check. We quickly realised that the problem had been caused because the monitor had not been set in the previous sound check, which meant nothing could be heard out of it. I then unmuted the main speakers and adjusted the faders with the advice of Lewis and added reverb onto Alfie’s vocals. I think that it went well but I could improve by listening out for changes more for myself and relying less on Lewis for instruction.