Skan supports Muse Will Of The People tour
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The band have entrusted their nuanced repertoire to FOH Engineer Marc Carolan since 2001. “I’ve only missed one show since,” confirms Carolan. “It’s been incredibly satisfying working with them, and to hear their evolution; nothing has ever stagnated, and they consistently perform at the highest level.
“As musicians, they are very good at expressing specifics, so working out the audio brief for the tour is always an efficient process.”
Carolan, who is supported by FOH Tech Eddie O’Brien, has used Skan PA Hire for global touring duties since 2003. He continues: “Skan has been integral, both to my development and the development of Muse’s sound. They share my passion for not settling into ‘the norm’ and are always up for pushing new ways of doing things.
“Muse have produced a viscerally exciting show, very much a ‘rock’ show this time around, and having finished the US arena leg with sold out shows and excellent reviews, this journey feels as exciting as it ever has.”
Carolan mixes on an Avid S6L, using an analogue outboard and select pieces that have worked in his favour over the last 20 years. “Usually, it’s things for which there is no comparable digital equivalent,” he explains. “For instance, the Neve 5059 summing amp, and plug-ins wise, the McDSP and the new Soothe Live. I have also added a Live Professor platform, which gives me access to things like Softube and FabFilter.”
Carolan’s work is heard through main hangs of d&b audiotechnik GSL. “It’s a very musical system, which really works for the level of dynamics I use in my mix” he continues. “It’s also incredibly clean onstage, and performs excellently in stadium shows where off-site noise can be an issue.”
Systems engineer, Matt Besford-Foster (MBF), describes cutting his teeth in large format arena touring thanks to Muse’s 2015 Drones tour. “I finished that tour as a completely different engineer to how I started. It’s been great to work my way through the ranks, essentially with the same bunch of people.
“Skan’s Matt Vickers is the architect behind the system design, and his pre-production makes the day-to-day work much easier for us. He’s very good at thinking about things in a resource-based mindset and in understanding the desired creative output.”
The full system comprises GSL mains, GSL sides, with KSL 180˚s, SL subs on the ground and Y10Ps for front-fill. It’s deployed in a LR-LR-LR configuration, maintained within the front-fills.
“We run the fills in the opposite way you might expect, utilising the narrow dispersion in the horizontal plane, as this enables a great stereo image across the barrier line,” continues MBF.
The system is driven by Lake LM44s. “Though Lake is mainly used as a matrix for the various system inputs, we output them into the four elements - L/R, sub and fill - and convert to Dante to run to the amplifiers.
Muse’s new monitor engineer, Matt Napier notes: “Skan’s crew are really passionate about audio, and I’m lucky that I have Skan’s Liam Tucker working with me on stage. He's one of the best in the business and makes my life easier by allowing me to truly focus on the band.
“As a band, they communicated early on how they wanted their individual mixes to sound. Monitors are all about consistency, so it allows the musicians to enjoy their gig and not worry about what they’re hearing. Luckily, Muse has a great backline team and everyone is really focused on making sure everything is perfect for the band when they take to the stage” he adds.
For IEMs, the band uses generic Westone’s UM Pro 30s. “The only speakers are a couple of subs located by the drum riser to add a bit of weight to the stage. Compared to some previous tours I’ve done, it's relatively straightforward; for just four musicians on stage, it's impressive how big a sound they create!” says Napier.
Operating from a Quantum 7, he describes DiGiCo as “still the best out there, particularly when it comes to monitors.”
