My wife and I had to leave Ivan Nevilles's funk band because it hurt our ears. I noticed dozens of others streaming out also. The next day I watched them botch the job on two bands. One had to start ten minutes late because of technical problems, and Anastacia's set was riddled with feedback. I talked with several musician friends who all seemed to have a horror story of bad stage monitors and poor sound quality.
In fact, one prominent local band refuses to play with them and plans on bringing their own sound system to a festival later this summer. I know that times are hard and budgets are low, but when you hire the low bidder you get what you pay for. The secondhand equipment these guys use is older than some of the sound techs! Please hire a more professional outfit next year so that we can enjoy an otherwise great festival.
Going deaf in Bend,
- Tom Freedman
