John Mayer wsg Michael Franti & Spearhead
Van Andel Arena, Grand Rapids
Feb. 28
The name Bill Chrysler doesn't automatically elicit visions of flash pots, million dollar light rigs, loud guitars and large arenas full of screaming fans, but for 30 years it has been his job to be involved with exactly those things, helping to translate the performances of multi-million selling artists to large sold-out venues.
From the early days with art rockers Roxy Music, to household names like Paul McCartney and Madonna, West Michigan resident Chrysler has been mix engineer and "artists' best friend" to a myriad of premier acts, recently including Christina Aguilera, and Chryslers' current gig, working with John Mayer.
Mayer's tour - which will show up at the Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids on Febr. 28 directly after a two night stint and New York's Madison Square Garden - is apparently going to be more than just Mayer standing around with his guitar in front of his incredible band.
"I've been doing this for 30 years and I've never seen a lighting rig like this. It's just different - it does stuff I've never seen happen before," said Chrysler. "It's a great show. I think what we're incorporating with the light is new for John because it's always been about the music. He's building on his show - now it will be a little more of an event."
This is not by any means Chrysler's biggest show, but it will be a decent sized affair in its own right.
"Load-in is about six hours," said Chrysler. "We're settling down to 10 [semi-trailer trucks]. I don't like going too much bigger. My last Christina [Aguilera] tour was 17 semis, and that was just too much time."
Running sound and lights for such large shows isn't an easy task, and it takes a certain amount of personnel and expertise to do it.
"I mix the monitors for John. Then there's the Front of House engineer. We work for John, and then the [gear rental] company sends out four other guys," said Chrysler.
Despite all the help, Chrysler likes to be directly involved in plugging everything in to make sure that he knows exactly what's going on. In addition to his hands-on approach to the setup, he also has chosen to make good use of to technology make the entire process easier, such as the Venue, a large format mixing console by digital audio giant Digidesign.
"When I did the John Mayer Trio in 2006, I used an analog board which was much smaller, but there were only three guys [on stage]. Digital has a long way to go as far as audio quality - there isn't a digital board out there that sounds as good as an analog board. The tradeoff is that your footprint is smaller - the amount of gear is a lot less. There's a lot more truck space. I do go digital with all these, but it's been rough finding a console that sounds really good."
Working with the stars has been exciting for Chrysler, but after so long working for months away from home, he wants to spend some time back home in Michigan.
"I'm looking to get off the road," said Chrysler. "I've been doing this for 30 years. I'm trying to find a way to use my expertise and investment in this audio industry to where I can go to work and then come home at night. I'm completely ready."
Buy tickets to see Bill Chrysler (and John Mayer too!) for Feb. 28 at the Van Andel, and listen for his studio work on the latest release from west michigan's own Four Finger Five at myspace.com/fourfingerfive.
