Q. How did you get started in the business?
John Kerns: I played in bands when I was young. We owned our own small PA and then I moved to California and started doing studio stuff for a little while. I just sort of lucked into the live thing.
Q. How long have you worked on A-level tours like No Doubt, doing big stadium shows?
JK: Since 1986 or 87 for arena/shed type tours. This is my fourth tour with No Doubt, and I’ve also worked with Sum 41, Avril Lavigne, Rogue Traders, Bruce Springsteen, Shania Twain, and Stevie Nicks, among others.
What have been the biggest advantages of moving from analog to digital (consoles)?
Obviously, the ability to recall everything is the first and foremost advantage, especially with all the traveling and waiting around we do.
Though it actually wasn’t until three or four years ago that I ran into digital desks that I really liked. That’s what facilitated the actual jump over to digital.
How do you approach mixing from a creative standpoint?
I really just try to reproduce the band, but in a live setting. Obviously, there are certain bands that have [elements] on songs or records that I try to make come across live.
But all of the bands are so different. Mixing No Doubt versus Sum 41 vs. an Australian band I work with –they are all different acts, so I approach them all differently.
Yet, I still want everyone out there in the crowd to say, ‘Wow, you know that band was great. They played great. They sounded good.’ They don’t have to say that the band sounded exactly like the record.
I don’t think people really come to just hear the CD played really loud. They want a unique sound that you can only get by physically being there.
How does the ability to recall a whole show on the fly affect the way you mix?
It really hasn’t affected the way I mix at all. It certainly has affected all the traveling and all the one-offs. For Sum 41, we did shows all over the world, and it was usually on budget.
So being able to take just three rack spaces and a USB key is a lot easier than flying a bunch of hardware over there. It’s a lot easier than it ever used to be.
You are using a (Digidesign) VENUE system now on your shows. Do you recall what the learning curve was on the first show you mixed on it?
It was easy. It’s the easiest of all the digital consoles I’ve used. It’s laid out just like an analog console, except you are working on one channel at a time instead of a bunch.
I didn’t delve into plug-ins too much to start. Everything on the console surface itself is totally usable and allows me to work the way I have always worked.
How’s the reliability of the VENUE?
It’s been great. In my entire experience, I’ve had one minor hiccup, and I’m not even sure it was related to the VENUE. I believe it was due to some conflicting authorizations.