TOTO BLESS THE DRUMS IN JAPAN

TOTO’s massive 35th Anniversary Tour kicked off last year in Japan, with arena performances around Asia, before spending the rest of the year touring Northern America. In addition to the tour, the band also spent time in the studio recording a (yet to be released) new album, and 2014 also saw the DVD/CD release of Toto: Live in Poland DVD/CD.

During the tour, the band used a number of Earthworks mics on drums and lead vocals. FOH engineer, Ken Freeman shared his thoughts on the microphone’s performance on the arena stage.

“I was first turned on to their drum condenser mics during a tracking session. I had the chance to try a pair Earthworks omnis as drum overheads. Afterward, I tried them in live performances, as overheads, I love the presence and articulation on the cymbals,” Freeman explained. “I used them live, with the band Fourplay, and the reproduced sound was natural and lacked the brittleness on many less expensive condensers.”

While working on the Japanese leg of Toto’s tour, Freeman got the chance to try the band’s newest member, drummer Keith Carlock’s (Steely Dan, Sting, James Taylor, John Mayer), pair of Earthworks DP30/C tom mics.

Describing his experience with the mics, Freeman said: “[They] worked beautifully. Sonically, I like the sound of condensers on toms and [these are] very pristine sounding condensers. I [also] used Earthworks SR30 on hi-hat and SR25s as overheads. The various drum mics complement each other well. “

Later adding, “A common challenge with clip-on drum mics is keeping them in place and [these] did an amazing job with the gooseneck and rim mounting clips. The gooseneck is very strong, so when you position the mic capsule it stays there.”

Freeman also fitted Toto lead singer Joe Williams with the same brand’s SR40V vocal microphone and was equally as enthusiastic.

 “This was a perfect fit for Joe,” he said. “Joe sings high and has a voice very rich in harmonics. He has amazing control, but when he nails notes in his upper register, many microphones can’t handle the sound pressure, which can result in a harsh distorted high end.”

“Joe’s very active on stage and occasionally goes out in front of the main house speakers, which causes problems from drum and monitor bleed,” Freeman added. “As soon as I put the SR40V on Joe, the difference was night and day. [It] was much smoother and the whole mic just felt much more under control, with no edgy peaks [or] feedback. It was a love fest with that mic. It was stellar.”

Toto are currently performing the UK and European leg of the band’s Anniversary Tour, with 60 dates booked in the first half of the year alone. Before the end of July, the band will have played in the UK,  Scotland, Ireland, France, Netherlands, Sweden, Austria, Luxembourg, Germany,  Italy, Switzerland, Denmark, Norway, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Bulgaria and Hungary.

For more info, check: www.earthworksaudio.com

Australian Distribution: Audio Chocolate, Ph: (03) 9813 5877, Email: [email protected], Web: www.audiochocolate.com.au