TOOL

Following one of alternative music’s most anticipated releases of the decade, cult icons Tool are very much back in action, with 2019 marking their most extensive touring schedule since the band’s 10,000 Days album cycle. TPi’s Stew Hume caught up with the crew at their Brooklyn show to uncover some of the mysteries behind this famously illusive four-piece.

For Tool fans across the globe, 2019 has certainly been an exciting year. Not only can all the jokes and memes about ‘waiting on the new record’ now be put to bed, but the LA four-piece are very much back as a certified touring act. Since the release of 10,000 Days back in 2006, the band have rarely toured save a few weeklong stints here and there each year.

Following the release of Fear Inoculum, band and crew have once again joined forces for one of Tool’s most ambitious touring productions to date. With many familiar faces, each department used the opportunity to flex their creative muscles – from an immersive audio rig, to dual video solutions of projection and LED, to extensive laser mapping. For any fan of the band, this was certainty not one to miss.

Jumping off a plane from the UK, TPi set its sights straight on the Barclays Center, Brooklyn – home of the Nets – to meet up with the crew that have worked tirelessly to create this latest production. Our first stop was with Production Manager, Matt Doherty.

The Aussie native has been with the band for the best part of a decade, having filled in for previous PM and friend Chris Roberts. “I stood in for him for an Australian and Japanese leg he couldn’t make,” reflected Doherty as we sat in catering with the distant sound of the band’s soundcheck audible in the background.

Following that run, and with the blessing of Roberts, Doherty took over as the band’s permanent PM. “Up until this year, we’d only ever done four weeks of touring a year,” explained the PM. “All the guys we have with us have a lot of experience on the road, but there was some nervousness of fatigue, as we had not toured this extensively in a long time. With only a few shows left this year, I’m glad to say it has gone very well.”

The PM went on to describe some of the processes that went into getting this show to the finishing line. Similar to the band’s writing process, the stages that went into creating the show were meticulous, with every element being considered carefully. “These guys have always been good about spending money in the right place,” he asserted. “They always think about how it will benefit the show and if it’s worth the investment. The immersive audio setup we have on this run is a good example, which was considered long and hard before investing. This attitude really makes the show better as a result.”

The PM chuckled that this attitude was not always the most conducive to meeting deadlines, but drew comparisons to the writing process for the new album. “If it’s not right then it doesn’t come out,” he stated matter-of-factly. As hands-on as the band were about the decisions made on the production, the PM explained that each department was given the creative freedom to put their own individual spin on the show.

“The band really understand that other people are expressing themselves in their respective mediums. It essentially all comes down to trust. The main thing is that you really have to fit into this family, and all work together.”

What was clear from meeting the various crew throughout the day was that once you join the Tool family, it’s hard to change, with many of the main personnel having at least 10 years’ worth of experience with the band. “Maynard [James Keenan, singer] told me a long time ago, ‘we don’t like change’. In past when we’ve brought in a new face, it’s a notable change and can be offputting. We prefer to develop and improve the show rather than making drastic changes in personnel.”

This mentality also rolled into Doherty’s long-serving suppliers for the production, which included: Eighth Day Sound, Delicate Productions, Show Distribution, Production Design International and Big Picture, with Upstaging handling trucking.

‘NOTHING IS SYNCED’

Although Tool are famed for their impressive visuals, one of the most notable production elements of this run was hidden from view, with an elaborate surround sound system created under the long-term partnership of FOH Engineer Alan ‘Nobby’ Hopkinson and System Designer Liam Halpin.

Meeting the duo at FOH, behind Nobby’s imposing Midas XL4, the two engineers spoke about how this creation came into being. “Tool by their very nature are a very trippy band, so when we were on the festival run earlier this year, we began discussing how we could push these themes on the audio front,” stated Halpin.

The result was a regular left and right d&b audiotechnik line array, but with several additional hangs that came out into the audience – which served the purpose of taking certain elements from the band’s mix and sending them across the room.

The left and right PA rig consisted of a main hang of 16 GSL8s over four GSL12s with a side hang of 16 KSL8s. The 240° hangs comprised 12 V8s with six flown SL-SUBS. On the floor were 18 B22s, which were distributed across the front of the stage. Finally came two V7Ps and one Y7P per side of near fills, with centre fills coming courtesy of two Y10Ps. “I started using d&b due to the B2-SUBs several years ago,” stated Nobby. “The sub was just so good.”

It’s an element the Engineer was keen to replicate, opting for the B22s – the modern iteration of the original sub that had piqued Nobby’s interest. “The term ‘immersive’ has become a bit of a buzzword,” continued Halpin, moving the conversation onto the speakers hung above our heads.

“I looked into all the options but none of them did quite what I was looking for. Most systems are perimeter based, so they can fire into the centre of a space but, in my opinion, there’s not a solution that would have worked in an arena and kept pace with our touring schedule.”

Halpin selected an OutBoard TiMax system for control. The System Designer first approached Dave Haydon from OutBoard in Autumn of 2019 with the idea of using the SoundHub spatial processing in a threedimensional manner for the elaborate stage set up. What emerged after the initial days of testing was that Halpin wanted to go beyond just ‘surround’ sound, to also employ overhead channels focussed vertically down, forward and back, alongside adding spatial elements to serve the side seats of the arenas.

The end result was multipoint spatial mapping that could be adapted for any arena that could accommodate the system, and spatial imaging incorporated all the separate channels so every seat could benefit from some degree from the 3D placement.

The room mapping was rendered by dropping the multichannel loudspeaker locations onto a TiMax PanSpace map. The TiMax system then calculated the relevant levels and delays to allow placement or panning of sound between the required locations.

During the show, spatial events were performed on PanSpace as cues or to be triggered manually via a TouchOSC on an iPad. “One thing I was keen to incorporate when we first came up with this idea was that the surround system would have the ability to be controlled manually,” explained Nobby. “The funny thing about this band is that there is absolutely no playback,” stated Halpin. “Nothing is synced as there is nothing to sync to. The closest things we have are some of Danny’s [Carey, drummer] MIDI pads, which he uses to trigger samples.”

While the idea of the immersive sound was discussed, it was some of these samples that Halpin and Nobby thought would work to split off and bring into the room. After spending a few weeks experimenting with a scaled-down system in his home with Pro Tools, Halpin created some potential elements. “There were certain songs that I had ideas about from the get-go. Vicarious, for example, starts with these chimes, which I thought would be great to bounce around the room. With Pro Tools, I started to see if it was possible.”

After coming up with some ideas, Halpin then took the Pro Tools files to Eighth Day’s UK base, where they created a miniature version of what the system would eventually end up being. The immersive audio rig was very much its own beast, comprising two sides of a centre reverse hang of six d&b audiotechnik V8/V12s, and a forward hang of seven V8/V12s with an eight V8 hang for surround, five Y12s for the side upper level and six Y12s for the rear upper level.

Both the main and surround system were ArrayProssessed and driven via Dante through redundant pairs of DS10s with signal matrixing on two Outline Newtons. Control and design were done through d&b ArrayCalc and R1 remote software, with additional monitoring from Wavetool.

Orchestrating the mix, Nobby relied on his tried-and-true Midas XL4. “We’ve tried a few other desks with this camp, but I’m a Midas guy,” stated Nobby. “For this run, the desk is completely full. We then send channels to another Midas PRO2C.”

The PRO2C was responsible for sending channels into the TiMax system and was overseen by Halpin throughout the show. Also essential to Nobby’s FOH set up was a selection of outboard gear, which the Engineer used throughout the set. “I have two TC Electronic 2290 Dynamic Digital Delays that are always on hand, with one dedicated for Maynard’s vocals and the other used for modulations,” he said. “I also get a lot of use out of the TC Helicon from some harmonising effects to replicate some specific moments from the album.”

Nobby also discussed some of the challenges of mixing drummer, Danny Carey. “He goes from incredibly gentle sections to points where he really goes for it. We’ve developed a vibe over the years, so I’ve locked into what he’s doing behind his massive kit.” Reclaiming his Monitor Engineer mantle was Beau Alexander. “Their on-stage sound has pretty much remained the same over the years, although we are in the process of getting more members on in-ears,” stated Alexander.

“Maynard has always been on ears and now Adam and Danny are wearing them as well.” Through this transition, the Engineer explained how they still kept a full wedge and side fill set up. For RF, the audio crew handled 10 channels of Shure PSM1000s for IEMs and two channels of ULXD for the megaphone that Maynard uses at the end of the set.

“I prefer using the DiGiCo platform for all my projects and am using the SD7 with Tool,” stated Alexander. “We have been using it for at least eight or so years with the layout of the surface being the main draw for me.” Capturing Maynard’s voice was a DPA D:Facto 2 linear microphone. “We love it,” stated Alexander. “It does a great job with rejection, which is crucial due to the volume of the stage. “This run has been great,” concluded Alexander. “It’s all down to an amazing crew, a great band and, of course, incredible music. It all goes together to forge the success we’ve had. I’m looking forward to continually helping the band bring this amazing show to more and more audiences.”

‘IT’S ALL ABOUT CONSISTENCY’

Tool have always been known for playing almost entirely in silhouette and accompanied by impressive video content. This current production was no different, although this time round, the video content also incorporated a projection curtain utilising both LED and projections solutions.

Video Director, Breckinridge ‘Breck’ Haggerty talked about juggling all the iconic visual elements – a role he has held since 2003. “We started making plans for this run at the end of the last tour,” began Breck. “This is always a great time as everyone is still around and you can share ideas off the back of the last set of shows. We are always improving this project.”

One of the key elements to Breck’s set up was flexibility. “There are some parts of the show – especially if it’s a song that has an official video – where we run the footage verbatim. Other times, we break the video content into chunks, so I can keep pace with the band. I have a timeline for each of the songs, which I’ve marked into sections. I set off each of these live, as we don’t use timecode.”

For the screens, Breck and the video team deployed a ROE Visual MC-12H for the rear wall alongside a total of eight Barco UDXs, with four set out at FOH and four hung in the flown rig. The Director utilised the FOH projectors to stream content onto the automated curtain, which hung upstage of the band, while the flown projectors produced images onto the surface of the stage.

“One of the biggest challenges I’ve had to contend with is balancing the brightness of the LED and the projectors,” stated Breck. “Right now, I have the LEDs at 14%, while the projectors are on full.”

For control, Breck manned all the cues from an MA Lighting grandMA2 which, along with the LED and projectors, were provided by Big Picture. “With Big Picture, it’s all about consistency,” commented PM Matt Doherty, jumping in to give his opinion on the video supplier. “There was a time after we had brought them on for an Australian run, where they flew the entire screen and crew over to the States. Joe Bonanno [CEO] from Big Picture always makes sure any act he works with is very well looked after.”

The final element of Breck’s control package was his media server set up – a creation of his own design. “It was one of the ways I secured the job,” reminisced the Director. “It was in 1999 when the technology at the time didn’t have the horsepower to create what we were trying to do. So I opted to build my own server with an embedded control. I’ve looked at other options over the years, but I find many of them are too timeline-centric, which doesn’t allow the freedom that you need during a Tool show.”

A MAINSTAY SINCE 1996

Lighting Designer, Mark ‘Junior’ Jacobson was once again on the roaster handling the visuals for the four-piece. A mainstay of the crew since 1996, he has been a key part in the band’s illusive live shows for more than two decades.

“I remember I took them out on one of their first arena runs and, at the time, they were all really against the idea of moving lights,” recalled the LD, as he discussed how the live aesthetic of Tool had changed over the years. “To be fair to them, around that time there were a lot of ‘flashy’ stage shows where LDs seemed to just be showing off what they could do with moving fixtures. I started to bring them around to the idea of movement and it was Adam [Jones, guitarist] who began to start suggesting ideas of how to incorporate tasteful movement.

“There are some design ideas on this run that date back four years or so while we were still waiting for the guys to release the latest album,” stated the LD, while sitting behind his MA Lighting grandMA3 and the largest lighting set up that had ever been rolled out for the band.

“My main workhorse fixtures that are producing all the back key lights are the Ayrton Khamsins, with all the front keys being the Martin by Harman MAC Auras,” stated the LD. Junior also pointed out the High End Systems Turbo Rays, which served as an “art fixture” on the rig, with 24 spaced out across the set up. Another notable element of the lighting rig was automation, with 16 moveable pods allowing Junior to create a number of interchangeable looks throughout the show.

Also on the automation set up was the giant custom star structure, which acted as a centrepiece for the show. Operating all the movements was Frederic Jacques alongside Automation Rigger, Jerome Labonte, with all equipment provided by Montreal-based Show Distribution – all controlled by The Raynok Motion Control System.

“Both the lighting pod and the star could move as quick as 1.7ft a second,” enthused Jacques, discussing the ability to change the look of the rig. Junior added: “Frederic sits next to me thought the show. Before this tour got started, I created a selection of looks within MA Lighting MA 3D software to give him some ideas of movements that would be needed for the show. He then fleshed everything out on his side. Throughout this run, he has been adding bits here and there as well.”

During the conversation about automation, Junior turned his attention to the star structure and explained how he illuminated it. “I was after a fixture that was small enough to be fitted to the structure but was bright enough and could turn 360°,” he recalled.

In the end, the LD opted for the Aytron MagicDot-Rs. “They are a simple solution, but they work really well with the structure. On top of the looks produced with the Dots, we have our laser team mapping onto the star.”

Also flown on the rig, lining the track used for the video curtain were a selection of Robe Pointes, which Junior used a number of times to create some “Pink-Floydian” looks with the beams. The rig also had GLP JDC1s for strobes with GLP impression X4 Bar 20s laid out on the downstage edge.

Alongside some of the modern fixtures, Junior also opted for some more vintage products such as the Ayrton MagicRing-R9s. “They are hard to find these days, but you’re able to create some great looks with the R9s,” commented the LD.

Finally, also making an appearance from the Ayton back catalogue were WildSun K25-TCs. Moving the conversation away from the rig, the LD discussed his transition to the MA Lighting grandMA3. “I started using it in August while we were in pre-production,” he began. “Obviously, I’m still running it with MA2 software, but as I knew this campaign is likely to go on for some time, I thought it would be good to get used to the hardware and then when the software is released, slowly convert the show over to the new version.”

Supplying the rig for Junior was Delicate Productions from Camarillo, California. In anticipation of the tour, Delicate made a significant investment in Ayrton fixtures to supplement Junior’s request. “The Khamsins are our first Ayrton fixtures,” said Joe DiCarlo, Director of Operations at Delicate Productions. “Junior is a long-time client of ours for concert tours and was looking for an LED source profile fixture for the anticipated Tool tour. That started us on the path of exploring these types of fixtures. Multiple manufacturers sent us demo units – Brad Nelms at ACT Lighting supplied the Khamsin fixtures and we staged a shootout.”

Angelo Viacava, Lighting Operations at Delicate Productions, added: “Khamsin had the most lumens on paper and didn’t disappoint, as it was the brightest of all of the fixtures we had for the shootout. It was able to cut through the brightness of a video wall with ease. A Tool show is normally very video heavy, and the Khamsins’ output was sure to rival the video wall’s intensity.”

A final addition that was different from previous runs for Junior was the addition of full-time FOH Lighting Assistant, Graham ‘DB’ Jelly. “We’ve had him as a Crew Chief in Australia for a number of years, so we were already familiar with him – he was the ideal choice,” stated Junior. “It’s been great bringing him on full time. He’s got a really good eye for detail. More importantly, he knows when things are not going right rather than me having to tell him. He picks up on elements like needing more haze on stage, which leaves me to concentrate on the show.”

HIGH-SPEED SCANNER LOOKS

The final visual element of the band’s latest run came courtesy of Scott Wilson from Production Design International (PDI), who provided lasers for the show. Having worked with the band since 2007, Wilson had very much ingratiated himself with the design duo of Breck and Junior.

“A lot of the preproduction stage of this tour – like each campaign – included a lot of interface with Breck and Junior,” stated the Laser Operator and Programmer. “They both bring the concepts and look for each track, then I try to slot the lasers into certain looks. Over the years, we have found some really nice moments that lend themselves well to lasers, all of which lend to the overall cohesion of the show.” In total, Wilson operated 12 laser fixtures via Pangolin Beyond software.

“In total, I have four at stage level with another four on some of the moving lighting pods,” stated Wilson. “The automated pods are fantastic as it means they’re dynamic and you’re not creating the same looks each time you use them.” Wilson also had four fixtures at FOH for the “high-speed scanner looks”, which involved mapping both the star set-pieces as well as the left and right PA hangs. “It’s really making use of some unused space,” stated Wilson, while talking about mapping graphics onto the d&b black boxes. “It makes the show much wider and almost functions as another video screen surface.”

At FOH were Kvant Lasers ClubMax 6000 6W fixtures with the Saturn scanner system. “This meant they could scan faster than a traditional fixture, meaning we could draw more images without the end result flickering,” stated Wilson. Meanwhile on stage, the Kvant Lasers products in question were a combination of four 30W and four 20W fixtures.

BOREDOM’S NOT A BURDEN, ANYONE SHOULD BEAR

With Killing Joke having fully prepped the audience for the evening’s main event, over the PA system, an announcement blared out explaining that the use of recording devices was strictly forbidden at tonight’s performance. The result: the Barclays Center was plunged into true darkness bar the stunning visual performance.

For over two hours, the LA four-piece transported their loyal fans into their world with the aid of trippy visuals and audio that appeared to fly around the room. With more dates already confirmed for early 2020, it’s clear that this mysterious band is back in action and ready to push the boundaries of the audio-visual experience.

TPi

Photos: TPi

www.toolband.com

www.8thdaysound.com

www.delicate.com

www.showdistribution.com

www.pdifx.com

www.bigpicture.com

www.upstaging.com