PHOTO : MELVIN GODFREY
DVSN ’ S BAND
• D10 - Keys
• Ricky Tillo - Guitar
• Adrian Bent - Drums
• Kim Davis - Backup vocalist
• Camille Harrison - Backup vocalist
• Shantel May - Guest vocalist
aforementioned Primary Source Enhancer and an UAD Apollo 8p Thunderbolt interface to process the vocals . I did , however , end up putting a Distressor on the snare top and second snare , since I had them available and it ’ s fun to twist real knobs . Realistically , it could have all been done on the desk . Everyone on stage was on Shure PSM 1000 in-ears , plus eight d & b M4 wedges downstage , and a pair of d & b M4 wedges on top of two d & b B6 subwoofers for a little side fill vibe .
One thing to keep in mind when you are doing five outdoor shows in a row is the weather . It can affect the whole show , including the sound . It was very different every night . One day it would be calm and clear , the next day the band would be getting swarmed with locusts ( I actually have no idea what kind of bug it was ). I could barely hold it together watching their reactions , it was quite comical , but they somehow managed to keep it all together . One night we had to delay the show by at least an hour because of a lightning risk . We all had to leave the stage until we were in the clear . As it turns out this was a perfect opportunity for a racoon to claim the monitor console ( which was tarped ) as its own . It was shocking … everyone got a little adrenaline rush as we peeled the tarp back just minutes before starting the show . I was on my toes the rest of that night convinced it was still lurking around next to me . By the time we did the encore shows in October , the temperatures had dropped significantly . Staying warm was now a priority .
At the end of the day , these shows were kind of similar to playing a stage at a big outdoor festival . The major difference being that it is in fact a drive-in and you need a car to attend . On top of that we are in the midst of a global pandemic . I hope that more of these shows happen while we all wait for public gatherings to return to normal . I ’ m looking forward to seeing all of my friends and colleagues back at it again and doing what they do best .
I do have to say that on this gig my job was made so much easier by having such incredible talent on and off the stage . Daniel Daley ’ s vocals are unbelievably consistent in a live scenario and his timbre is one of a kind . He shows up for sound check and starts climbing octaves like it ’ s no big deal . The glue on stage is the band and the backup singers who , in my opinion , are some of the best in the world . Not to mention the music is produced and put together so well to begin with by Nineteen85 . It was an absolute pleasure working with them all .
Melvin Godfrey is a Toronto-based sound engineer who mixes FOH , monitors , and studio recordings . He is also a tour manager and production manager . Melvin has worked with artists such as dvsn , bülow , The Tenors , Marianas Trench , Zedd , Grey , Ariana Grande , and more .
ORDERING UP AUDIO FOR DVSN AT THE DRIVE-IN
All production was supplied by Apex Sound & Light , a full-service production and rental company based out of Pickering , ON . The events were put on by Ink Entertainment .
• Main L / R PA hangs : 24 x d & b audiotechnik V-Series boxes ( 12 per side )
• Sub array : 8 x d & b audiotechnik B22 + 4 x d & b audiotechnik B2 subwoofers
• Monitor system : 10 x d & b audiotechnik M4 wedges + 2 x d & b audiotechnik B6 subwoofers
• IEM systems : Shure PSM 1000
• Wireless mic systems : Sennheiser 5000 Series & Shure ULX-D
• FOH & monitor consoles : 2x Avid S6L 24c consoles , both with E6L 192 engines , sharing a single Stage 64 rack on a fibre network ; 2 x Pro Tools computers ( one at each mix position ) for multitrack recording
• Servers : 2 x Waves SoundGrid Extreme Servers ( one at each mix position ) to support the use of Waves v11 plug-ins .
PROFESSIONAL SOUND 29