Simian have produced a second album (‘We are your friends’), which was released on 22 October. Coinciding with this release, the band is heading off on their first European tour as support artists to Supergrass.
The band members take their music very seriously, and turned to beyerdynamic when looking for a good live sound. Sound engineer Jon Underhay specified a combination of microphones - the Opus 39, and the M88 for lead vocals plus the Opus 87 clip microphones for the drum kit and the classic revolving-horn Leslie cabinets. The Opus 39 is a dynamic microphone boasting a stylish, yet rugged design which, coupled with its excellent super-cardioid polar response, makes it ideal for live performance. The Opus 87s proved not only to be extremely robust, very reliable and easy to use and really accentuated the unique Doppler effect created by the Leslie keyboard cabinets.
Lead singer Simon Lord explained: "The quality of the beyer’ mics has really helped us take our live sound to the next level. The M88 is really true and the Opus 39 not only keeps the onset of any acoustic feedback to a minimum but also sounds good even before any EQ. Also vital to the overall effect was the in-ear monitoring from dB Technologies. Offering a clear and well-defined sound, the system contributed to our success on stage particularly when performing harmony vocals live."
dB Technologies’ IEM 2200, also specified by Jon Underhay, is a fully-featured in-ear monitor system. Selectable between 16 UHF frequencies, its earphone outputs can be configured for stereo, dual-mono and mono modes, which provides the user with a selection of different monitoring modes.
(Lee Baldock)
