(Audience FLAC)
The Police
Adelaide Entertainment Centre
Mon, Jan 28, 2008
101'35
8000 in attendance (full venue)
Taper stood in Section A, Row G (front / centre section, 'Sting' Side)
Lineage:
Church Audio STC-11 cardoid mics into Church Audio STC-9100 pre-amp > Sony MD Recorder > HiMD Discs (PCM Audio) > conversion to .wav via PC > conversion to AIFF via Mac (ProTools / MBox 2) > FLAC (Level 8. verify and SBE Fix).
Recorded and archived by tj7 in February, 2008.
Thanks to Mr. X for loaning me the recording equipment!
01. Message in a Bottle
02. Synchronicity II
03. Walking On The Moon
04. Voices Inside My Head/When The World Is Running Down
05. Don't Stand So Close To Me (with Fergie)
06. Driven To Tears
07. Hole In My Life
08. Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic
09. Wrapped Around Your Finger
10. De Do Do Do De Da Da Da
11. Invisible Sun
12. Walking In Your Footsteps
13. Can't Stand Losing You
14. Roxanne
15. Encore Call
16. King Of Pain
17. So Lonely
18. Every Breath You Take
19. Next To You
Notes by tj7
Most of my Police audio recordings are the product of that rare breed of person known as THE TAPER. Over the last few years I have come to really appreciate the worth of a good, solid ÔaudienceÕ recording, not only because of the effort required to make the recording itself, but because they often sound just as good as or better than FM / SBD recordings. A good quality AUD recording captures the ambience of the space in which the band performed, and can reflect more accurately how the band sounded on the night than the standard desk recordings Ð they also donÕt suffer the compression which FM recordings are known for.
I had just one shot at producing my own recording of my favourite band, and the fact that the performance was to be in the smallest venue of the tour only made the opportunity more significant. The space would sound different than the usual arenas / stadiums. I also wanted to finally give a recording of my own* to the community which has given so much to me.
It is with great disappointment that I discovered that in my determination to not be caught out by security, and through my lack of experience, I did not realise that just because the pre-amp clip light was not blinking did not mean that the MD input level could be presumed to be ÔsafeÕ. The outcome was a recording replete with low-end distortion which at best sounds listenable (even insignificant in one or two songs) and at worst sounds like a Òdogs breakfastÓ. Any time that Sting used his foot pedals, itÕs all over Ð utter bass blow-out. I was devastated to have screwed up my only opportunity, and I am wholly positive that I was the only taper in Adelaide.
However Ð on the positive side, I can at least present the only audio document of the Police in Adelaide (ever), at the smallest venue of the reunion tour (seating only 8000 people). The sound is not all terrible, as the samples will demonstrate. ItÕs marred with crunches but I believe there is still enough evidence here of a more intimate show / sound for this recording to be worth listening to even for ÒmoderateÓ Police fans. This concert also marked the first (and hopefully last) time that the abominable ÒFergieÓ joined the band for ÒDonÕt Stand So Close to MeÓ. Her vocals were not in the mix until the final chorus Ð but you can clearly hear a very disturbed man (he looked very frightening) Ð just behind me Ð screaming expletives during the song. The band had trouble with this number Ð it almost fell apart several times. Again, serious problems with ÒKing of PainÓ: Sting accidentally skipped the first verse, and the error was obvious when Copeland had to hastily abandon his introductory percussion passage for the kit.
I have included a couple of photographs to show you all the unique stage set-up this concert featured. I believe this was the smallest stage of the tour, hence the single screen. It looked very cool, as it was like a cinema screen and was very cleverly used for montage work by the film crew.
Despite the fact that the band were quite loose at times, it was an electrifying concert for me because I was merely 10 metres from the stage (centre) and in a small venue, so it felt very intimate and less ÒrehearsedÓ than the usual ÒArena SpectacularsÓ of the tour.
The Recording Process
IÕve never done this before, and I was terrified of being caught. I will not go into details as to how I managed to sneak in a digital (still) camera, minidisks, HiMD unit, pre-amp, two cardoid microphones and a ball of leads, as this will only serve to inform the various security personnel and anti-taping-types about how to detect tapers and equipment. IÕll only report that the damnable hassle that the process represents has instilled in me a great respect for those of you who do it regularly. I finally have some insight into the process, and I am even more thankful to the tapers who have shared so many great recordings.
Thanks must go to ÒMr. XÓ for loaning me his expensive equipment and for not kicking my arse for screwing up what could have been a great recording.
* In 2007 I successfully lobbied for a rebroadcast of the Police on Australian radio, and shared a recording of the transmission Ð but this does not compare with making a recording from inside the venue!
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