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Get up front, people!
It’s a Philly thing, I think. I don’t know for sure, because about 90 percent of the rock shows I’ve seen have been in Philly, and at almost all those shows, everyone stands in the back. We — as the audience — don’t have to be in the back. And yet we almost always are. It’s a Philly thing. But there is one person at the show who is always stuck in the back: The sound engineer.
Paul Cobb, longtime sound engineer — and I’m going to be using the term “sound engineer” instead of “soundman,” just cause, y’know, there are some awesome sound ladies out there—at Johnny Brenda’s makes the point that when he’s working a show, he has to be in the back. But when he goes to a show, he makes an effort to get up front.
It makes sense to want to be part of the audience, because as a sound engineer, you don’t get that experience at work. Sound engineers have to empathize with the band and understand what they’re going for. They have to work with the band rather than make the band work with them. While there’s always going to be a measure of “set it and forget it” when you’re running sound in a room, the first focus always has to be making sure the best sound possible gets relayed to the audience.
It’s a coveted position, but one that has as many drawbacks as there are perks. You get to see great bands for free, and you get to work with those bands. But you have to see lots of lousy bands, as well. Oftentimes, there are many other responsibilities heaped onto the sound engineer, like doorman and bouncer. A lot of times, they are the ones doling out the money at the end of the night—when the club owner is long gone, not wanting to be stuck explaining to a band from halfway across the country why they are only being paid $60.
Like so many other sound engineers, Cobb got his start almost accidentally. Back in 1999-2000, the booking agent at Khyber Pass Pub (56 S. Second St.) mentioned he liked his band’s record and asked who recorded it. When Paul answered that he did, he was enlisted to do sound at the club, and has been working behind the board on and off ever since. “Touring bands are usually pretty excited to be playing in Philadelphia; they think it’s cool,” he said. “Johnny Brenda’s and Fishtown give them a really good impression of the city.”
What can I say? Philly is cool now. It’s a happening town with great clubs and a really vibrant night life. Fishtown is often spoken in the same sentence with locales like Brooklyn or Williamsburg. So if Philly is going to become a world-class city with world-class entertainment, then it’s time we concertgoers start acting like world-class concertgoers. Get up front, people, and enjoy the show! No one is forcing you to work in the back with the poor soundman. The happening sounds are up near th stage!
