Jubilations! The very first episode of What Goes On is here and amongst us, floating around in the digital ether. Through a series of interviews with some rather spectacular human beings, we want to provide you with an insight into what it means to live and work in the music industry. In today's episode, we sit down with Jay Schleusener, the bass tech for Kings of Leon. Apologies about the video stutter in places and the watermark at the top of the screen. Don't worry though, we've got these things fixed for future episodes. We understand that these videos are a little long, so we've outlined some of the best places to dip in and out:
Intro: 0:00
Who are you and from whence have you come?: 2:16
A brief tangent involving a man named Nacho and some leather inserts: 3:00
How did you get into playing music?: 5:00
How did you get into being a tech anyway?: 8:25
An answer to above question and a great story about a fringed leather jacket: 12:35
The importance of trust, making connections and building relationships: 14:40
As a tech, how much influence do you have over the gear that your musicians use?: 17:00
The kinds of problems that techs encounter on the road: 21:25
Nobody likes a wet rig!: 23:30
Some amusing stories about guitars getting broken: 28:35
The emotional and physical rollercoaster that is going on tour: 32:30
The difficulties of moving between home and the road: 35:43
Substance abuse on the road: 43:05
What are your coping mechanisms for coming back from tour?: 47:00
A rude interruption: 49:27
Looking beyond teching and the need for an exit strategy: 49:22
What would you say to your younger self (and what would he say to you)?: 53:15
Goodbye and Outro: 54:40
Hope you enjoy/enjoyed the podcast. Please feel free like and/or subscribe and, should you ever be in West London, we would delighted for you to drop in and say hi at either Monty's or Audio Kitchen (or both)!