The d&b 12-stack C4 rig, with four B2 subs, achieved great sonic results throughout the tour, in a wide variety of venues. Monitors were mixed by Vince Buller, who also production managed, and the system was crew chiefed by Entec's Tristan Johnson, joined by his team-mate Adam Draper (and Liam Halpin at Brixton). Because of the nature, message and meaning of Morrissey's often intense lyrics, it's always imperative that his voice is always high and clear above the mix.
The tour culminated at Brixton Academy, where they added more audio and flew the sound system as a centre cluster, with eight stacks, 4-wide of C4 covering the balcony. Downstairs, also flown, were 18 stacks of C4, 3-wide, left and right covering the main auditorium. They also utilized two stacks of C7 a side for infill, and used six B2s on the deck.
Griggs mixed using a Midas XL4. Morrissey's mic is a Shure SM58. His voice is powerful and "fantastic" to work with, says Griggs, which he does with minimal interference. He uses a BSS DPR 901 compressor for cutting the 2 - 3k frequencies when the singer gets loud, and then runs his vocal through a Summit TLA valve compressor to warm it up. Other than that, he uses a Lexicon 224, a couple of delays and then leaves Morrissey's enormous dynamic vocal range to do the rest.
The monitor system for Morrissey and his 4-piece band was a 10-way Entec APW wedge system, completed with C7 side fills and an additional C7 sub for the drummer. Monitor System amplification was Crest 7301 & d&b P1200A. Buller mixed using the industry's maverick monitor console - the Midas XL3 - utilising minimal gain with Drawmer gates and BSS compressor devices, plus two Yamaha SPX 900 reverbs. The stage sound was clean and clear, the majority of it being Morrissey's voice.
(Lee Baldock)
