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"€69 for listening to Muse on tape" - Technician talking about the Werchter gig


WeirdF

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Some random Belgian newspaper with some story about pre-recorded tapes. The Google translate isn't very useful. I dunno if it's about Isolated System and they're being idiots, or if it's not and they're still being idiots.

 

"On that tape were not only extra sound effects, but also drum and guitar parts during previous concerts were canned." - I'm not really sure how that was supposed to be translated :LOL:

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Some random Belgian newspaper with some story about pre-recorded tapes. The Google translate isn't very useful. I dunno if it's about Isolated System and they're being idiots, or if it's not and they're still being idiots.

 

"On that tape were not only extra sound effects, but also drum and guitar parts during previous concerts were canned." - I'm not really sure how that was supposed to be translated :LOL:

 

 

The article basically says that they playback and that they aren't playing live at all. that everything is on a tape.

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Some random Belgian newspaper with some story about pre-recorded tapes. The Google translate isn't very useful. I dunno if it's about Isolated System and they're being idiots, or if it's not and they're still being idiots.

 

"On that tape were not only extra sound effects, but also drum and guitar parts during previous concerts were canned." - I'm not really sure how that was supposed to be translated :LOL:

 

They write that the guy who checks the sound levels (some external person making sure they don't produce too many dBs) says that they used a lot of recordings from previous shows in the background to guarantee that the sound quality is good.

 

edit: which is not exactly the same as playback, but still cheating

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I stumbled across an article where a technician claimed that many parts of the show at Rock Werchter were pre-recorded on tape, more than with others bands. He's not referring to Morgan, just to tapes. Now there's a lot of whining about that on the Facebook pages of the newspapers. Sounds like the technician really didn't like their music at all. He really says they are playbacking (guitars, drums, ...). Was he even at the gig? He sounds frustrated.

 

Here's the link to the article: http://www.nieuwsblad.be/article/detail.aspx?articleid=DMF20130619_00629290 (I'll translate it later, Google Translate should do the trick for now).

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Yea, I've been reading about this too. It makes me feel sick. The worst part is that he mentioned the word 'playback', and people actually believe this. People who don't know much about music just assume Muse actually 'playbacked' a big part of the show, which is a very offensive thought imo.

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I can't believe how many people really believe this... Just because one person says it's all fake. And why would he say things like this to the press? I mean, it's his job to do the sound things. Not to tell everyone it's fake. I just don't see why he would contact a journalist to say "Hey you know what, I'm a technician at Werchter and Muse had almost everything on tape." I read that the technician said similar things about other bands in Belgium. There should've been something about Daft Punk in the past too. What a weird figure. If you love music and your job, why would you make people believe that the bands you're working for are faking their act?

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Ah right. So in other words: complete bollocks.

 

How can you know it's complete bollocks?

 

They write that the guy who checks the sound levels (some external person making sure they don't produce too many dBs) says that they used a lot of recordings from previous shows in the background to guarantee that the sound quality is good.

 

edit: which is not exactly the same as playback, but still cheating

 

Weird though.

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i dont imagine the whole sets are performed with backing tracks, but i have read recently that dom h uses recorded drum tracks which are played in tandem with dom hitting the drums at the same time. this produces a fatter meatier sound.

 

I dont know how much truth there is in the guitar backing tracks though. we all know how anti-miming the band are.

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i dont imagine the whole sets are performed with backing tracks, but i have read recently that dom h uses recorded drum tracks which are played in tandem with dom hitting the drums at the same time. this produces a fatter meatier sound.

 

i dont mind it in those situations when you want to create a better sound but then again people should know about it as well.

 

on this whole thing.... eh, i have to read the whole interview first. i don't see why a sound tech would go around saying they're miming if he didn't have a good reason. he might have been paid, but this is not hollywood so... who knows.

 

If you love music and your job, why would you make people believe that the bands you're working for are faking their act?

 

because (if we take that he is telling the truth, which we don't know yet) he wants to let people know that many big acts out there who have reputations of being great live and all that are actually faking a big part of it.

Edited by eyduh
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This guy is so sad. He claims Muse used a tape but he wasn't even the sound technician during the concert. He just wants attention and I guess he never even noticed there was a fourth member on stage. I studied journalism and it makes me so angry that journalists just write down what some guy says without any proof. If he would know one thing about Muse it's that they hate miming. And ofcourse they have the orchestra on tape, taking them on tour is kind of crazy, no?

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i dont imagine the whole sets are performed with backing tracks, but i have read recently that dom h uses recorded drum tracks which are played in tandem with dom hitting the drums at the same time. this produces a fatter meatier sound.

 

I believe the drum tracks are trigged by Dom hitting the drums

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This guy is so sad. He claims Muse used a tape but he wasn't even the sound technician during the concert. He just wants attention and I guess he never even noticed there was a fourth member on stage. I studied journalism and it makes me so angry that journalists just write down what some guy says without any proof. If he would know one thing about Muse it's that they hate miming. And ofcourse they have the orchestra on tape, taking them on tour is kind of crazy, no?

 

lol someone really needs to translate this interview. if he wasn't working the gig, he probably doesn't know shit.

 

and Muse don't hate miming. They have mimed on tv shows before, and no I'm not mentioning the few incidents when they turned it into a joke

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Translation:

 

"Muse is famous for their live performances, but the rock trio regularly used pre-recorded tapes during Werchter Boutique. "Topbands don't have a choice. Fans are pampered and they want perfection," says Patrick Demoustier, who's responisble for the sound at Rock Werchter (-the festival by the same organisation as Werchter Boutique, same venue etc-).

 

"The most impressive liveband of the moment", that's how they call Muse in the international media. Matthew Bellamy and his band were defending this title last Tuesday at Werchter Boutique. And successfully. The reactions to their crushing "wall of sound", the trademark of the band, were all laudatory.

 

But: it's not all gold that glitters. A tape with pre-recorded music could be heard during the gig on a regular basis, especially fragments recorded during previous concerts were used. And we're not only talking about extra sound effects, but also drum and guitar parts, said the sound engineers. The tape was used to support the band and to thicken the sound. In other words: playback.

 

"Not one band loves to admit it, but Muse used the tape a lot", says Patrick Demoustier from PRG Productions. "They overused it. But I know that it's tempting to use tapes for many bands." PRG Productions is responsible for the sound of all big productions by LiveNation, the organisation behind events including Rock Werchter. But they weren't responsible for the sound during Werchter Boutique, the crew of the band was at the controls here.

 

Demoustier is talking about a trend. More and more big artists switch between live music and pre-recorded parts, something that's already usual for R&B and other similar genres. "They don't have a choice. The fans of these bands are spoiled nowadays. They expect perfection, perfection that's impossible to achieve. They're disappointed when the music doesn't sound full, tight and recognizable. And the customer is king, " he says.

 

The show needs to get bigger. So much that a band, famous for their impeccable live reputation, has to bend. "Muse wants an artistic show with many effects. Just try to play your instrument well as a musician while you're in the middle of explosions and fireworks. In the meantime you have to run from the left to the right on your huge stage, that's completely impossible.", says Demoustier. "And Muse only consists of three musicians. It's not an easy task to impress a sold-out stadium or a festival field with a bombastic sound when you're just a trio.

 

Do fans have to expect that all the performances of their heroes are on a tape? "The only event that I cooperate where no tape is playing, is the Night of the Proms (- an event with more classic music and where "pop" acts are supported by an orchestra -)".

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Translation:

 

"Muse is famous for their live performances, but the rock trio regularly used pre-recorded tapes during Werchter Boutique. "Topbands don't have a choice. Fans are pampered and they want perfection," says Patrick Demoustier, who's responisble for the sound at Rock Werchter (-the festival by the same organisation as Werchter Boutique, same venue etc-).

 

"The most impressive liveband of the moment", that's how they call Muse in the international media. Matthew Bellamy and his band were defending this title last Tuesday at Werchter Boutique. And successfully. The reactions to their crushing "wall of sound", the trademark of the band, were all laudatory.

 

But: it's not all gold that glitters. A tape with pre-recorded music could be heard during the gig on a regular basis, especially fragments recorded during previous concerts were used. And we're not only talking about extra sound effects, but also drum and guitar parts, said the sound engineers. The tape was used to support the band and to thicken the sound. In other words: playback.

 

"Not one band loves to admit it, but Muse used the tape a lot", says Patrick Demoustier from PRG Productions. "They overused it. But I know that it's tempting to use tapes for many bands." PRG Productions is responsible for the sound of all big productions by LiveNation, the organisation behind events including Rock Werchter. But they weren't responsible for the sound during Werchter Boutique, the crew of the band was at the controls here.

 

Demoustier is talking about a trend. More and more big artists switch between live music and pre-recorded parts, something that's already usual for R&B and other similar genres. "They don't have a choice. The fans of these bands are spoiled nowadays. They expect perfection, perfection that's impossible to achieve. They're disappointed when the music doesn't sound full, tight and recognizable. And the customer is king, " he says.

 

The show needs to get bigger. So much that a band, famous for their impeccable live reputation, has to bend. "Muse wants an artistic show with many effects. Just try to play your instrument well as a musician while you're in the middle of explosions and fireworks. In the meantime you have to run from the left to the right on your huge stage, that's completely impossible.", says Demoustier. "And Muse only consists of three musicians. It's not an easy task to impress a sold-out stadium or a festival field with a bombastic sound when you're just a trio.

 

Do fans have to expect that all the performances of their heroes are on a tape? "The only event that I cooperate where no tape is playing, is the Night of the Proms (- an event with more classic music and where "pop" acts are supported by an orchestra -)".

 

It's normal, every big act goes thorugh this phase at some point, the phase where their accused of playback.

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It is frustrating to see all the negative comments on that website/ facebook. Luckily some people with knowledge of the band and their history are also responding to the masses who happily are accepting the negativity from that sensation driven newssite.

 

I tried to reply but I couldn't fit my frustration in the limited space provided to react to the article :LOL: Oh well.

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How can you know it's complete bollocks?
That was to the first guy who said the article was saying "that they aren't playing live at all".

 

If it's using previous recordings of the song to give it a fuller sound... I dunno. Sound quality is great, but it seems a strange thing to do if it's true. I don't really think it's necessary.

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That was to the first guy who said the article was saying "that they aren't playing live at all".

 

If it's using previous recordings of the song to give it a fuller sound... I dunno. Sound quality is great, but it seems a strange thing to do if it's true. I don't really think it's necessary.

 

Oh okay.

 

Maybe you don't think it's necessary because you've heard them playing with the backing tracks :p

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