Invest in a good quality multi-meter, if you don’t have one already, and take it everywhere.
It’s good practice to meter the power before plugging in wherever you are, but it can quite literally be life or death in less-developed countries.
I’ve come across readings that could have killed someone had I blithely carried on without noticing.
Local gear will often already be rigged and powered up – find an outlet and meter it anyway. If it’s not what it should be, don’t go any further until you get it sorted.
Make friends with the interpreter!
If you’re very lucky you might have a member of audio crew who speaks good English, or a technical translator, but the likelihood is you’ll have a dedicated interpreter who doesn’t have any technical knowledge.
Nonetheless, they’re going to be a big help, so learn their name and keep technical questions that need translating as simple as possible.
Have a stash of wipes and a paintbrush for cleaning your gear and the desk.
In a lot of places you’ll be faced with gear that hasn’t been well-maintained and sometimes is downright filthy – and there are few things grosser than a stinky vocal mic!
The food in some countries is fantastic, but that doesn’t mean all crew catering will be great.
Some days it will rock your world, others it really won’t. Having a supply of nuts or granola bars is a good idea for those days.
Likewise, it’s smart to carry a kit of basic medicines for common ailments, something I’ve done ever since trying to explain a UTI via sign language to a pharmacist in Russia!
Be sensitive to where you are.
In very poor countries, the local crew might not be earning 1/100th of what you are each day – I’m not kidding.
Understand that they don’t have the same experience or opportunities as you; be kind and patient, and if they seem interested in what you’re doing, take the opportunity to share some of what you know. There are often keen members of the local audio company who are eager to learn from you, and if you can teach them something that helps them, however simple, they’ll never forget you.
There aren’t many women doing what we do in a lot of the world, and staring is not considered rude in many cultures.
This adds up to the fact that if you’re a lady roadie, people may be more curious about you. You’re going to get looked at, but 99 percent of the time it’s completely innocent and they’ve just never seen a woman do what you’re doing, so try to ignore it. (It goes without saying that if it gets creepy, don’t stand for it – trust your instincts.)
There’s also less concept of personal space in some countries; for example, having people close behind me when I’m trying to mix a show is a personal pet hate. I deal with it by either creating a physical barrier, such as a cable trunk behind me, or if that doesn’t get the message through, I smile and say, “I’m sorry, could you give me some more space please?”
Again, the culprits are usually just trying to learn what you’re doing – I’ve seen people take photos of channel EQs!
Pack your sense of humor.
On one memorable stadium show, the stage was deemed unsafe by our production manager and we all had to walk away while it was put right.
An hour later we returned to find a large dead chicken, several garlands of flowers, and a lot of incense at center stage – and for once the incense wasn’t mine. When we asked the locals what was going on, they cheerfully explained that they had made an offering to the gods responsible, and the stage would now be fine.
Needless to say, we went back to the dressing rooms for a little while longer!
Touring further afield is exciting, daunting, and a wonderful experience. It’s a privilege that most people can only dream of – to travel the world with a bunch of buddies and get paid for it. Some days amazing things will happen, some days things will go horribly wrong. But you’ll truly live life to the full – and if you ask me, that’s what this whole rock ‘n’ roll business is all about!
Becky Pell is a monitor engineer with more than 20 years of experience in live sound. She toured as a monitor and RF tech with Black Crowes, Travis and Kylie Minogue before moving behind the desk to mix monitors for artists such as Aha, Muse, Westlife, Anastacia and Take That. She also runs monitors annually on the main stage at the world’s largest greenfield festival, Glastonbury. Read more from Becky at SoundGirls.org.