Melbourne Synth-pop veterans Cut Copy have been relentlessly innovating for over a decade. With a solid fan base globally, the group has been releasing albums and performing to international crowds for quite some time. Their fame has been steadily on the incline, so much so that the band recently reported that they had rejected offers to play as a support act for the likes of Lady Gaga, Nine Inch Nails and Coldplay.
After having just finished their latest studio effort, they have been immersed in rehearsals for their next leg of touring. They will soon be one of the headline acts for the St Jerome Laneway festival before heading off to Europe for March, North America in April, and then returning home to Australia for standalone shows in May. Their rehearsals in hometown Melbourne were held in the Palace Theatre on Bourke Street.
Long time FOH Engineer John Hall was getting ready for the bands arrival on a DiGiCo SD9 provided by Monitor City. John has been a long time fan of DiGICo consoles, using them here in Melbourne and abroad – in live sound as well as recording – first with the D Series and now with the SD Series.
Above: John Hall at Front of House.
John has always been a fan of the DiGiCo EQ and effects, happy to use only the internal FX programs. He decided on the SD9 because of the power to size ratio. It can handle a full 40 stereo channels as well as 16 stereo auxiliaries even with its modest size. Since Cut Copy play large music festivals one week, then club shows the next, John has been looking to the SD9 to help him through the transitions. Unlike other smaller digital consoles that skimp on processing and therefore quality, the SD9 utilises the same processing found in the legendary SD7 used by acts such as U2, Madonna, Tool and Robbie Williams; to name a few. This provides John and Cut Copy a world class sound with a smaller footprint and budget.
One thing John is also looking forward to using on the next tour is DiGiCo’s implementation of Waves SoundGrid. This will allow him to use the same Waves Plug-ins that he uses in his recording studio in a live format. Using a Waves server, he’ll have on board patching, full control and automation of the plug-ins he knows and loves.
Above: An Arial View of the Palace Theatre.
