VAMPIRE WEEKEND

VAMPIRE WEEKEND

Decreed as the Ivy League of indie pop troupes, Vampire Weekend return to Europe after a six-year absence – debuting a new-look touring line-up and increased production values. TPi’s Jacob Waite reports…

The year is 2008. Spain have just won the UEFA European Football Championships; Barack Obama has been elected the 44th President of the United States; Spotify is launched in Sweden and a plucky Vampire Weekend burst onto the music scene – their eponymous debut album becoming a mainstay of the Noughties indie zeitgeist. Fast-forward more than a decade and two critically acclaimed albums later and, despite a six-year absence from European stages, the New York quartet turned Cali seven-piece hit the road with a production worthy of the band’s latest US number-one album, Father of the Bride.

MODERN VAMPIRES OF THE CITY

Injecting fresh perspective to the Vampire Weekend touring landscape was Mike Moll. Having cut his teeth as a technician for a whole raft of touring bands, the Production Manager now found himself at the helm of one of the most sought-after welcome-back tour tickets of the year. Aiding Moll on the road was Tour Manager, Michael Schoenbeck and Production Coordinator, Andrea Smith. The latter worked closely with Moll on LCD Soundsystem’s latest tour – a band that shares the same management as Vampire Weekend. While Smith handled the daily touring rigmarole – runners, drivers, crew and bussing – Moll was tasked with the “big-picture” jobs such as hiring vendors, crew and advancing the shows. His European vendors of choice comprised SSE Audio Group, Christie Lites, Universal Pixels, All Access Staging UK, Grosh Backdrops and Draperies, Fly By Nite and Landmark Creations. “I’m a budget-conscious person,” Moll admitted. “However, on this tour, we’ve had to be flexible because we change venue sizes drastically.” The tour saw the band play a variety of differently sized venues, ranging from the 1,000-capacity Les Docks in Switzerland, up to two nights at the 10,000-capacity Alexandra Palace. Here, the crew upped PA and delays at FOH, bringing in extra drapes to overcome acoustic challenges. Universal Pixels facilitated additional left and right IMAG projection, cameras and video crew. “The scale of production fluctuates on this tour,” Moll commented. “Our trucks vary from four, to two, and then back to four – so it’s important to be one step ahead of the game.” The touring crew comprised a mix of new and longstanding members. Moll outlined the key conventions of touring personnel as, first and foremost, their ability to do the job, and secondly, their personability on the road. “You can hire someone who is incredible and could make a guitar out of a shoe, but if they can’t get along with other people, they won’t cut it.”

HARMONY HALL

A stalwart of the Vampire Weekend touring camp, having performed both FOH Engineer and PM duties on prior outings, was Neil Heal. The FOH Engineer has witnessed Vampire Weekend evolve from playing New York clubs to selling out Madison Square Garden during their first visit. He picked up the story: “When we first started, we only had 18 channels and didn’t carry any consoles,” Heal exclaimed: “Now, I’ve got almost 120 channels!” Since the departure of the band’s multi-instrumentalist Rostam Batmanglij, the remaining founding trio of Ezra Koenig, Chris Tomson and Chris Baio are now joined by touring musicians Greta Morgan, Brian Robert Jones, Garrett Ray and Will Canzoneri. “It’s a more fun show to mix now, hearing the songs played in different arrangements by very talented musicians,” Heal commented on the change of line-up. “Fundamentally, mixing this show is about embracing the weird, because there are a lot of strange sounds on the records.” Take, for example, Ezra’s 8-bit-sounding vocal on Step. After racking his brain trying to discover its source, Heal was informed that the noise had been created by a template on GarageBand. For control, a “trusty” DiGiCo SD5 was Heal’s desk of choice. “I’m a big fan of DiGiCo because of their desks’ ability to have anything where you want and lay it out where you want.” The engineer utilised snapshots for each song to control fader positions and effects. “The snapshots set the foundations for the beginning of each song and then I build from there,” he continued. “I also do things that aren’t on the album. For example, I boost the sound of a tom roll on one of the so ngs, which is very dramatic and silly – but the crowd love it.” When it came to PA, there was only choice. “I prefer L-Acoustics,” the FOH Engineer said. “The K2 is so flexible and steerable.” For the first portion of the tour, the team carried 10 L-Acoustics K2s per side, which was bolstered up to 14 per side for Alexandra Palace. Day to day, subwoofers came in the shape of eight flown KS28s, with a further four specified for Ally Pally – each spread in pairs evenly across the deck with the middle pairs boasting a delay of 0.2 seconds. The outside boxes featured increased delay to spread low-frequency coverage outwards and reduce the power relay from the mains, which went down to 35Hz. “The subs help fill out and filter the nulls of low frequency,” Systems Engineer, Ben Malone explained. Multitrack allowed Heal to perform virtual soundcheck. It was then up to Malone to aim the PA and reduce the level at which the subs were operating. In Europe, L-Acoustics prediction software was essential to Malone’s delivery: “Using Soundvision, I’m confident of being able to walk into a room in the morning, build it using a pre-existing model in the database and tailor it accordingly.” Having worked with SSE Audio Group since the White Stripes in 2002, both as end user and as a tech at the company, Heal had nothing but praise for the tour’s audio provider. Audio Technicians Conor Mullan and Justin Steipleman joined Heal, Malone and Monitor Engineer, Matthew Andrade in the audio crew. A re latively fresh face to the Vampire Weekend touring fold, Andrade took considerable steps to perfect his mix. “As a monitor engineer, you’re sometimes dubbed the enemy if something isn’t going right on stage,” he admitted. “You’re the first person a band will look to.” An drade oversaw almost 100 inputs, including talkbacks. An Avid S6L was his console of choice. “Avid desks afford you the ability to create, simplify and moderate each individual workflow, which is the most important thing for me.” Wh en Andrade acquired the desk, he explained that it wasn’t laid out the way he liked, but he was instantly able to personalise it. “On my layouts, I’ve got 16 inputs on the first two blocks of faders,” he said. “The mix for Ezra’s vocal is mainly through my VCAs, while the band sit on the auxiliary buss outs. A lot is taken care of in the snapshots because I’ve taken each song cue and turned it into snapshots.” Ov er time, Andrade polished the band’s mix. “I went through every song and added snapshots because they often perform covers, with 70 to 80 songs programmed,” he recalled. A convention of Vampire Weekend tours, Ezra and the band open a section of proceedings to audience requests – ranging from the band’s deep cuts to covers. “You never know what they’re going to request – for the most part they’ll play anything,” Andrade quipped. The Monitor Engineer employed virtual playback software, Avid Pro Tools, during the show to tweak and listen to the band, who kept him and the crew up to speed via call backs. It was here that Andrade’s admiration of the band shone through, as he referenced their ability to play each instrument of the complex stage setup. “They’re so dynamic and are constantly vibing on stage,” he noted, dubbing the musicianship and complexity of the songs as “next level”. An drade explained to TPi how fortunate he was to be privy to the writing and expansion process of Vampire Weekend’s live tracks, which are performed entirely in contrast to the record, for the appreciation of audiences. “One of my favourite parts of the job is being present when that creative process is happening.” To c apture the magic, a range of Sennheiser 945 vocal mics; AKG C414s; Shure Beta 57s, 91s, 914s and 614s, 98As and Shure KSM137s; Sennheiser e904s, e901s, e902s, e906s, e914s, along with a stereo pair of DPA 4099s, Neumann 104s, and Audio Technica bass mics made up the extensive mic package. While Radial Engineering performed DI duties. A further pair of stage side computers triggered MIDI effects on keys, comprised of internal run software. JH Audio Roxannes and JH16 v2 IEMs were transmitted by Shure PSM1000s. “It’s my first-time using SSE gear and I’ve found a sense of joy for this gig,” said Andrade. “Not many gigs are this enjoyable, so it’s a nice gift that the universe has bestowed on me.”

BACKLINE BELIEVERS

The Contra cycle marked Marty Cornish Jr’s first foray into live touring as one of two techs, dedicated for drums, keyboards and guitars. Much like the rest of the crew, Cornish worked with LCD Soundsystem and a raft of other bands before circling back to Vampire Weekend. Following the band’s expansion, instead of tech’ing, drums, keyboard and guitars, Cornish took care of lead guitarist, Brian as well as Will on keys. “There’s a fuller sound to the band now,” he began. “Adding a second percussionist and drummer has made a huge difference – as well as bringing on board a designated keys and lead guitar player – everything sounds a lot bigger and better.” Ron Baldwin and Josh Goldsmith joined Cornish in the backline roster. Cornish described the seven-piece as “fantastic musicians”. He commented: “A lot of the songs from the previous three records have been improved or expanded on. Although the records sound great, it’s a different experience when you see them live.” He recounted the “underwhelming” nature of working with a band that sounds identical to their records. “Tracks like Big Blue or Sunflower are much shorter on the record, but live, they are six minutes long,” he enthused. “The band also transition from one song to another, including brief covers of other songs in the middle. It’s a pleasure to work with them.”

WHITE SKY

Brought in by management at the start of the Contra tour in 2010, lighting and production designer, Rob Sinclair has pushed the boundaries of Vampire Weekend’s live shows for over a decade. Speaking as one half of design collective, Sinclair / Wilkinson, he told TPi: “I had dinner with Ezra at the start of 2018 to discuss his vision for the latest version of the band.” Inspired by the band’s Father of the Bride artwork, a giant inflatable globe was the focal point of the stage setup. Having developed the idea from a 2D format to the 3D inflatable, a circle ‘belt’ truss spanned the circumference of the globe, made up of 24 Martin by Harman MAC Auras. “The artwork has a very clean aesthetic, so we married that with elements of jam band shows,” Sinclair explained. “I’m so happy with how it looks.” Set up to play a wide variety of venues across the globe – pun intended – flexibility was an imposing factor of Sinclair’s show design. “We devised two globes, small and large, to tour a wide variety of creative spaces.” Lighting Programmer, Brian Spett has been Sinclair’s long-time right-hand man, both with Vampire Weekend and “lots of other sticky situations”, Sinclair noted. As a new father, Spett wanted to take some time away from the road. Step forward, Lighting Director, Ben Marx. “He understood our sense of humour immediately,” Sinclair stated. “He has great taste and is doing a wonderful job with no click track or ti mecode.” Marx’s first encounter with Vampire Weekend was during a headline slot at Lollapalooza Chicago in 2018, which was, by and large, already programmed. “By the time we began show rehearsals and setup, we had a big leg up following Brian and Rob’s work,” he retraced. “There were some sleepless nights, but we were in a better place compared to other tours I’ve stepped into.” The LD referred to the programming as simple and intelligent. “It takes a minimalist approach to lighting, which is refreshing. It’s a classy, considered and deliberate lighting design. The colours are composed very carefully, and the looks are not abrasive.” A pair of MA Lighting grandMA2 full sizes sat at FOH, with an additional as back up. “The grandMA2 has become a very intuitive console, which allows me to do the things I want,” he admitted. “There’s always a new thing to learn – it’s a constant feedback machine, which keeps revealing new tricks for me to learn.” Marx relished the “human element” of being hands-on with the MA Lighting grandMA2. “It creates challenges, but it’s also why we’re here, without the spontaneity of the setlist – it takes away all of the soul.” Increasing the spontaneity, Marx told TPi: “Vampire Weekend are very organic, and songs can stretch out for long periods of time, depending on how they feel,” he revealed. “There is a structure and an arc – every song has its queuing, but it’s laid out in a way that allows for creative freedom.” A to tal of 26 Martin by Harman MAC Auras were situated on an upstage truss with another 15 GLP impression X4 Bars which, for the smaller dates, were cut down and housed on a stick of truss on either side, spanning the width of the stage. Additional torms either side housed Martin by Harman MAC Vipers on the stage edge, while the upstage truss comprised a row of MAC Vipers and GLP JDC1s. Marx said: “For the smaller venues, some of the floor package is cut off each side, to allow the band to get on and off stage.” Meanwhile, Sinclair dubbed the lighting fixtures of choice as “not too expensive” but able to “perform a nice array of colours”. Marx praised the GLP fixtures. “They’ve become incredibly useful instruments; the colouring is great and they’re very bright – creating beautiful lines. The overall aesthetic of them all is really nice.” Cr ew Chief, Jim Fredrickson joined Technicians, James Such and Thomas Hill in the lighting team. Marx remarked: “Christie Lites have taken care of us. They provided our European festival package a few months ago and have been exceptional ever since.” Marx’s primary role was to ensure programming clarity. In Manchester’s O2 Victoria Warehouse, the inflatable globe and circle lighting truss was cut due to space. “The globe is an element of the show and without that there is a big void in some of the queuing, so I had to go through and ensure those potholes were filled.” Asked about Sinclair’s impressive lighting design, Marx outlined White Sky as his personal favourite, equating the lighting design to “a painting with beautiful composition”. During the show’s popular request section, in Edinburgh, one fan created a bootleg band shirt, with Vampire Weekend typography stylised to fit a Scottish flag. “It’s one of those human elements of the band that I really enjoy,” said Marx. “This gig keeps me on my toes, I have to be ready for anything because the audience throw out some serious deep cuts.” By contrast, the band also seem to understand the simple joy of inflatables; a giant luminous frog dubbed Mr Crockerman by Vampire Weekend faithful welcomed fans to each venue. As well as the giant inflatable Earth on stage, sister Earth-shaped beach balls were fired into crowds of adorning fans during two hours of era-defining hits.

THIS LIFE

As Vampire Weekend shows have grown, so too has the band’s requirement for video. For this latest run, multi-award-winning Video Director, Mark Haney was drafted in to add his visual flare. Haney joined Upstage Video in 2017, and while the company looks after Vampire Weekend in the States, th e industry veteran teams up with Universal Pixels in Europe. “When I take a show to Europe as a director, one of my first calls is to Phil Mercer and his team at Universal Pixels,” revealed Haney. “The UP team is always across it when it comes to tour prep, equipment needs, crew needs and, most importantly, support.” For these shows, Universal Pixels supplied an IMAG package consisting of Kula 2M/E PPU, four Hitachi 3G Camera Channels, three Agile Robos, an UP 3G Block Camera and three Marshall Lipstick Cameras, together with four Epson 20k Projectors, two 6.43m by 3.78m side-screens and four crew. “A good deal of my work – for the past decade at least – has been in progressive video formats,” commented Haney. “I like to apply common sense to each individual circumstance. On these dates, I knew I could have a 25p frame rate look that serves the band, our vendor, production, a n d our creative, lead Rob Sinclair. I was very happy with the results.” Haney was quick to pay homage to the strength of the video crew. “A sum is only as good as its parts, and the crew that I had on this most re cent set of shows at Ally Pally – led by Robin Toy, with Engineer, Harry Watkinson, Camera Ops, Chris Woods and Freddie Hamlin, as well as the support from Phil Mercer, Roly Oliver and Mark Strange at Universal Pixels – was key to having the great shows we had.”

FATHER OF THE BRIDE

Notwithstanding the “typical” problems of budget, manpower and time, Sinclair summed up his experience with the newly extended seven-piece: “It’s always a really pleasant and fun experience to work with a band who are incredibly talented,” he concluded. “Mike Moll has put a great crew together, who are doing such an amazing job. It has been an absolute joy to be a part of this team.”

TPi

Photos: Graham Brown, Sinclair / Wilkinson & TPi

www.vampireweekend.com

www.sinclairwilkinson.com

www.christielites.com

www.unipix.tv

www.allaccessuk.com

www.grosh.com

www.flybynite.co.uk

www.landmarkcreations.com