Rheostatics Tickets

I’ve seen the Rheos countless times (50 plus shows), and it was great to see the band having fun onstage and playing thru a diverse set list of tunes. Unfortunately the sound mix was very tame, with hardly any dynamics between loud and quiet, and virtually no low end bass guitar, kick drum or electric guitar crunch in the mix. The higher frequency vocals, acoustic guitars, violin and drum cymbals sounded great, but that didn’t matter when there was no power to the music. The result was a subdued audience with much less head nodding and engagement. I also noticed both Tim and Dave looking around on stage asking for more bass guitar in their monitors, so it wasn’t just my opinion. It was like watching them “mime” their instruments. Dave’s black Gibson might as well not have been plugged in! This wasn’t a function of the venue, because the bass was rich and powerful for the opening band Deep Dark Woods, who sounded much more forceful than the Rheos, despite playing relatively mellow music. We moved around the general admission floor looking for a better spot, but it didn’t help. The sound mixer was a distinguished looking fellow who I’m sure has a storied career. But at Tim his show he sucked the life out of the Rheostatics. I feel like I should just stick to their bar shows at the Horseshoe Tavern.

It was like no one did a sound check for this concern. Have seen this band at least a dozen times in my life and not ever experienced sound issues ever before. Opening act was unlistenable and Rheostatics played many songs that had no sound quality as bass from drums and guitar were an overwhelming vibrating noise that drown out the rest of the music. Incredibly disappointed. Won't be back to the Danforth Music hall because of it.

The Rheostatics were fantastic. 15 years since their last album, but the boys can still play a tremendous live show. Go see them when they come near.