Everyone on stage but Williams’ drummer uses Sennheiser ew 300 IEM G2 wireless personal monitors. “The Sennheiser G2, and now G3, systems are the only thing anyone’s really using these days,” said Kendall.
“It’s the only thing that really works. And after a performer has been on stage with a tiny Sennheiser belt-pack receiver, it’s hard to ask them to strap on what feels like a brick in comparison. The Sennheisers are frequency-agile, robust, and sonically transparent.
“The wide stereo image allows me to place instruments distinctly from left to right so that the performers can mentally isolate their instruments while still maintaining a synthesis of everything that’s going on.”
At FOH, mix engineer Kevin Maddigan is just as pleased with the sound of the Neumann KMS 105. Its bright, open high end gives a depth of detail to Williams’ voice that’s much closer to her studio recordings than to previous live performances. Sometimes her voice appears to crack, and sometimes she takes a ragged breath between lines.
Those nuances underscore the emotion in her songs and in her voice.
The tour recently finished a three-month run, kicking off in Anaheim, California, before heading to Europe for a series of dates.
After a short late-August break, the tour heads across the U.S. to celebrate 30 years of Lucinda Williams’ music, with extended dates in select cities that will feature performances from her back catalog.
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