The band universally relies upon Sennheiser in-ear monitor systems using JH Audio Roxanne earpieces.
The only real loudspeakers onstage are a drum sub and a pair of 10s behind the bassist that are little more than props given this player’s propensity for roaming the stage far and wide.
The guitar backline includes a Kemper profiling amplifier running direct out the back; a speaker on its upstage left is there for use only when feedback is desired.
No Hiding Place
Kyle Walsh serves as crew chief from Eighth Day Sound. Joining techs on the crew managing guitar, bass, and drums is keyboard tech Ozzie Henderson, a man tasked with keeping keyboardist Nick Rhodes’ world in top running form.
In a move designed to eliminate the need to travel with the various unreliable vintage keyboards needed to produce Duran Duran’s wide-ranging sound, Rhodes took a turn into the virtual world with an Ableton sampler serving as the single platform from which everything would emanate.
Rather than use emulations of the classic synths and keyboards he has used over the years, Rhodes decided that since he still owned his vast collection of Jupiter 8s and every other instrument he’d ever counted upon in the band, he would sample the real thing right from the actual original sources.
Henderson accepted the unenviable task of sampling every note on every instrument, and sometimes looping them to obtain a sustained sound. While requiring a tremendous amount of effort on his part, the results are nothing short of authentic.
“Details mean everything to Duran Duran fans,” Newton adds, giving clarity to his role and the work of his peers. “They come to these shows wanting to hear every note that every player onstage produces. If a gate doesn’t open on a floor tom, it will get noticed. There’s no hiding place out here, and there shouldn’t be.
“Along with every detail, every nuance, it’s my goal to bring excitement to the crowd with my mix. There is a certain amount of theatrics required. This is not a timid mix at all, at times it’s even overblown and needs to consume everyone in the room. I approach it all not with big fader moves, but a lot of important, small fader moves. That leaves me with the space to feature the passages everyone wants to hear.
“It may be my mix, but the music in its entirety belongs to the crowd.”
Gregory A. DeTogne is a writer and editor who has served the pro audio industry for the past 35 years.