A solo concert at a public swimming pool put DPA’s d:facto Vocal Microphone to the test recently, when one was used by French singer/songwriter Jekyll Wood for a solo concert at near Orléans. Despite the acoustics of the Jargeau public swimming pool and the hot, steamy atmosphere, the microphone rose to the occasion and performed perfectly throughout.
‘The d:facto is really solid and I’ve never had any problems, indoors or outdoors,’ Jekyll Wood says. ‘I actually own two of them, but for this concert the stage was so small that I only needed one. I use d:facto on stage and for my live recording sessions because my voice is always so precise in my ear monitors. It has been my ‘must-have’ vocal mic for nearly four years now. Its brightness and its natural compression make it a great microphone in every circumstance, and on both acoustic and electric sets.’
The swimming pool gif attracted over 200 people, all wearing swimming costumes to attend: ‘I’ve never played beside an indoor swimming pool before and I was really curious about how it would sound,’ he explains. ‘Surprisingly, the sound was not at all bad and I had a great time. The audience was very relaxed and we had a lot of fun. Obviously, I felt the need to do some beatboxed aquagym and at the end of the gig I joined the audience in the water, although I was careful to leave my electronic equipment behind.’
With sound engineer Nicolas Miljeu (with whom he set up the Label Time Is Out label), Wood has spent the past five years performing and recording as a solo artist. He can best be described as a one-man orchestra who combines the energy of rock and roll with pop melodies, soul, flamenco and electro beats. To date, he has released two discs – an EP entitled Only Son and a live CD/DVD entitled Not That Only Son.
‘When I’m recording, I often use DPA d:dicate 4011 Cardioid and d:vote 4099 Instrument microphones, especially for guitars,’ Miljeu says. ‘All DPA microphones reproduce the sound really faithfully so that you keep the tone of the original source. That’s what I love about them – they are so versatile and the compression you get allows you to deal with so many different sound sources in the studio. My d:dicate 4011s and d:vote 4099s have great presence, warmth and brightness and they are perfect for everything, even beatboxing. However, I tend to keep them in the studio because they don’t really fit my live needs – I have my d:facto for that.’
Jekyll Wood is currently finishng a new album for release in 2017. He is also working on live covers for YouTube and a new live show where he plans to use a wireless adapter with his d:facto Vocal Microphone so that he can move freely around the stage.
More: www.dpamicrophones.com
