Photo by Natalie Parham on Unsplash
With all of the gear and equipment that we use each week for service execution, do you ever wonder what things you should keep handy at FOH? We did too. So we asked around on social media and then added in some of our thoughts to create a list of 10 things (or types of things) to keep handy at FOH. Here it is:
- Hand sanitizer, water, mints, medication - Let's start this off with a nod to protecting our health and that of those around us. We tend to get caught up in what we are doing and spend long days "at the office." Working through set up, rehearsal, services, and tear down leads to two things: fellowship and the occasional headache. Make sure you keep water and some over-the-counter pain relief to stay hydrated and deal with the occasional aches and pains. It will make you a more enjoyable person to work with. Speaking of which, if you shake enough hands during the day you stand a good chance of picking up a few bugs. Hand sanitizer can help you in the battle against the crud. And while we are on the topic, mints or chewing gum help with making sure people are happy they interacted with you.
It’s always better to spend a few minutes pulling tape up rather than hours at the ER wishing you had put it down....
- Tape: gaffers tape and console tape - Tape keeps the world going around, or so it would seem. Keep a roll of gaff tape handy to help with cable management and to make sure that the stage and surrounding areas are free from tripping hazards. It’s always better to spend a few minutes pulling tape up rather than hours at the ER wishing you had put it down after tripping, or worse, someone else tripping. Also, pay attention to how you tape your cables. Perpendicular to the cable run helps to make sure that the tape doesn't get stuck to the cables forever. Also keep a roll of narrow white board tape around. While many audio consoles are digital these days being able to label the desk (or mics) the good old-fashioned way can come in very handy.
- Writing tools and highlighters - Pens and highlighters are helpful for writing notes and cues on your service order and lead sheets. You are doing that, aren't you?
Batteries are so ingrained into our lives that we don’t spend much time thinking about them. Until they are dead.
- Batteries - Batteries are so ingrained into our lives that we don’t spend much time thinking about them. Until they are dead. Which happens right after the pastor starts speaking. Despite having just changed them that morning. Everyone has spare batteries but not everyone keeps them handy. Keep spare batteries around at the FOH. In your pocket is even better. The faster that you can move out in the off case that you are bitten by a dead battery, the better your chances are of minimizing the disruption. Fumbling around for a battery in the moment is a very uncomfortable feeling.
- Extra mic - If you have the option, keep an extra mic or two with you at FOH. Something general purpose works best, such as an SM57/SM58 or some such so that way you can throw and go without too much concern for the application. If you use lots of wireless, it can be great to have one on hand to hand out to someone in a pinch or during an unplanned moment. A spare wireless mic can also be great for dealing with the dead batteries mentioned above. Simply swap it out with the dead mic and go. If you have a digital desk you can even do a quick re-patch to keep using the same channel strip.
- Sanitizing wipes - For the mics ... many singers are also spitters. ‘Nuff said.
- IEM's - If your venue makes use of in-ear monitoring, it can be really helpful to get into the habit of keeping a pair of ears with you at FOH. Whether you are responsible for the ear mix or the artists are, the ability to easily plug into someone's feed (or pack) and take a listen can help to understand what they are describing or struggling with. Even if you have a dedicated monitor engineer it's sometimes possible for the FOH guy to help with translation between the artist and the monitor engineer, though remember to always be respectful of roles and responsibilities.
It’s a good habit to have a source of music cued up and ready to go to help deal with unexpected or awkward silences.
- Cued music - It’s a good habit to have a source of music cued up and ready to go to help deal with unexpected or awkward silences. Congregations tend to get antsy sitting together in a room when it's quiet without purpose, especially if you are off of the service plan for some reason. Having a music source ready to go at a moment's notice can come in handy when you least expect it.
- Charged cell phone - Charged cell phones are great because they generally provide two different ways of communicating; voice and text. One great thing about being in the back of the room is that it can be easier for us to make an emergency phone call or contact someone discretely. Texting, on the other hand, can be a great way of communicating with someone on stage if you don’t otherwise have a way to talk. Just about anyone can do it, even if they don’t have a smartphone. This method just recently helped me to debug a noisy guitar during a worship night where the artist was able to communicate with me to resolve the issue without requiring any arm flapping or dance moves.
- SPL meter - The first order of business for all decisions and conversations related to volume is to know what the volume is. Keeping an SPL meter front and center keeps us cognizant of the levels in the room. Even better is if you have a spectrum analyzer running along with the SPL meter to monitor frequency content.
How does this list compare to yours? Would you add something? Let us know in the comments section below.
