On Stage at ICC Sydney

I thought the crowd was going to topple onto us!

If you’ve ever been to a show at ICC Sydney, you’ll know how steep the seating is. From the stage, it looks like an enormous wall of people towering over you. It’s such an amazing venue to play.

The day started early for me and the sound team. We were in at 6:30am to get everything ready for a 7:30am rehearsal.

One thing the crew will appreciate about ICC is the flat load in from the loading dock. Probably not something you think about when you’re watching a show, but when you’re pushing equipment cases early in the morning, it makes a big difference. Same goes for getting everything out at the end of the day!

Playing bass and keeping in touch

For these shows, I was playing the blue Fender Jazz Bass we bought in the UK last year. It still sounds amazing, and it was pretty special getting to play it in that room.

Alongside playing, I needed to stay in touch with Brae and Courtney, our sound engineers, and help with any monitor changes on stage. That’s adjusting what the performers hear so they can sing and play comfortably.

I had an iPad next to me for small changes between songs. Anthony and Lucia are nearby, so if they asked for something, I could make the adjustment from there.

Mid song is a bit trickier when both your hands are busy playing bass!

We set up a mic beside me with a foot pedal, connected to a speaker at Courtney’s monitors desk. If a request came through while I was playing, I could press the pedal, tell Courtney what was needed and get him to make the change. I also had in ear monitors in, so the team could talk straight back to me.

A simple setup, but really handy when you’re juggling a couple of jobs.

A voice in my ears

For anyone interested in the gear, I bought a pair of Shure SE535 in ear monitors for this setup.

They fit well, felt comfortable and stayed in place while I was playing. I didn’t have to keep fiddling with them or worry about them falling out, which is exactly what you want during a show.

Sound wise, I found them a little harsh around 2.5kHz in my mix. I got Courtney to pull some of that frequency out, which made them much more comfortable to listen to. A good reminder that getting your monitor mix right matters just as much as the earphones themselves.

The thing I hadn’t quite prepared for was everyone talking to me.

I’d be playing away, listening to the music, and suddenly Courtney, Kim or Brae would start speaking right in my ears. This voice of God just appearing in the middle of a song! It kept catching me by surprise, but I started getting used to it.

The shirts passed the test

We also got the coolest new cast and crew shirts. They’ve got the Wiggles V on the front and sparkles on the back.

Anthony said we’d know if the shirts were good if Simon wore one to rehearsal.

Sure enough, Simon walked on stage that morning wearing his. So I think that settles it.

An early start, some great shows and a very cool new shirt.

Overall, a pretty good day!

If there’s anything you’ve ever wondered about playing or working behind the scenes at a Wiggles show, leave me a question. It might give me something to write about next!

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