 |
AS a sweat-soaked Jon Bon Jovi brings down the curtain on a blistering, three-hour set, the show is far from over for the 190-strong crew.
The 75,000 fans streaming out of Munich's Olympic Stadium are oblivious to the hustle and bustle backstage.
Within minutes of the band finishing their set, the crew swing into action, taking down the huge stage, packing it into 1000 flight cases and loading it on to one of 18 waiting trucks.
It's a scene crew chief Mike Rew calls "organised chaos".
As the forklifts roll in, the designated lighting, video and sound teams get to work. For stage manager and veteran roadie Mike Devlin, this is the final part of a 21-hour working day, which started at 6am when the trucks were unloaded and the eight-hour process of building the stage began.
He said: "We unload the trucks in order of set-up. The lighting comes off first as that takes the most time to build, then the video and sound gear follow. It's a game of layers."
As the 18-month Circle World Tour enters its last six weeks in Europe - including a show at Edinburgh's Murrayfield Stadium on Wednesday - these unsung heroes work to make sure fans see a spectacular show, mind-blowing in its scale.
The Razz was invited along to see just what it takes to bring such a show to Scotland.
The band has four structural stages, each taking three days to build. It's these stages that the rest of the equipment is built on.
Among that equipment is 4.5 tonnes of video screens, with the world's largest complete screen - 115ft wide - behind the band.
The aim is to make sure that wherever you are in the stadium you will still get that all-important close-up of Jon. The sound system will generate 80,000 watts of sound via 9200 amplifiers consuming a total of 905 kilowatts of power and the crew will get through 500 cups of coffee a day.
By mid-afternoon, the band's equipment is set up on stage.
Tico Torres's custom-made drum kit and Richie Sambora's 24 guitars are put through their paces by the techs.
"It takes me about an hour to get the kit set up and ready to a point where Tico can just walk on stage and play without any problems" says his tech JD.
Being on the road for so long, the crew have got the construction process down to a fine art but they can still be victims of the unforeseen.
Video crew chief Mark "Marko" O'Herlihy said: "On this tour, Jon didn't want any camera guys walking around the stage blocking the fans' view, so we now have radio-controlled cameras. They move around the front of the stage on a track operated by four guys backstage. For the first few shows, we realised they were top heavy and as they moved they were shaking.
"We resolved the problem via a visit to a local sports shop and brought up a load of ankle and wrist training weights, which we then strapped to the top of the camera unit. Problem solved."
Other situations the crew have had to face include being escorted around some South American stadiums by security guards carrying shotguns.
In Australia, a trucker turned up at a show with an empty equipment lorry, after picking up the wrong trailer and driving several hundred miles.
But it's not only external forces that can cause problems, as sound engineer David Eisenhauer found out to his cost.
A guest spilled a drink over the mixing desk during a show.
Although it was quickly dealt with, the crew later presented Eisenhaur with a custom-made pink Disney cup, complete with mixing dials.
"Sometimes we have to remind ourselves the film Spinal Tap is a movie and not an instructional video," says David Byran's keyboard tech Bill St Amour.
Practical jokes aside, life on the road is tough - long working days, months away from family.
On this tour, there have been casualties. Some who started out in February 2010 have fallen by the wayside but for the rest, the strain is eased by the strong family bond they all have - something Jon is keen to instil.
"I spend more time with these guys than I do with my family.
"You work with them, you eat your meals with them. Sometimes you break away for a bit of quiet time but on the road they are family. It's what gets you through," says JD.
That sentiment is echoed by production coordinator Meg Macrae, who said: "I've done a lot of tours where people just haven't got on. On this one there is a strong family vibe."
But as O'Herlihy admits, the crew are well looked after by the band while on the road, adding "We do live in a rock 'n' roll bubble. You walk into catering and the choice of food is unbelievable.
"We get our laundry done, our beds are made. The only problem is when I get home. My wife hates me for the first few days as I struggle to get back to reality."
For others, travelling around globe with one of the biggest bands in the world allows them to re-visit countries and towns they have fond memories of.
For St Amour, it's Edinburgh: "I was there 20 years ago on another tour and I met this guy who told me there was a bar that would give you a tie if you drank seven pints of McEwans.
"Now, I didn't know what McEwans was but I thought, 'It can't be that hard'. I only managed to get through two pints. This time, if it's still there, I'm going back to get a tie."
Back at the stadium at 2.30am, the final truck leaves. Devlin and production manager Jesse Sandler head for one of the seven tour buses in a bid to get some sleep before it starts again.
As the Emerson, Lake and Palmer lyric says: "Welcome back my friends to the show that ever ends."
No comments:
Post a Comment