Legendary dance act UNKLE got extra special treatment when they asked MediaPros for help preparing for their European tour…not only did the company put together a Muse Research Receptor 2 system for the band, they even provided an expert to join the tour bus to make sure everything went smoothly while they were on the road.
MediaPros’ music technology product specialist, Martin Roberts, spent two weeks with UNKLE earlier this year as they performed in France, Switzerland and Russia, and was on hand to iron out any problems that could have scuppered the success of the tour.
The band had first contacted MediaPros to help prepare them for the tour, there had been a two-year gap since they were last on the road and needed to update their equipment.
MediaPros provided the Muse Research Receptor 2 Pro, which was used to run keyboard sounds from the original studio recordings live on stage, they also provided UNKLE with two Apple MacBook Pros with Solid State Drives to run their additional backing tracks, and four Akai MIDI Keyboards for various members of the band.
MediaPros has UK exclusivity to distribute the Receptor 2. The technology offers musicians huge processing power and pristine sound quality for virtual instruments in a tiny, lightweight box, so is perfect for touring bands, theatre shows, and for use in the studio. The only trouble was there was not enough time to train anyone to use it.
Martin said: "The Receptor offers a way to take sounds from studio and use them live without having to take a computer system which is likely to crash and give you problems.
“Computers aren’t made for being on stage where they will be exposed to heat and vibration. They would continually have to reboot, taking several minutes every time.
“The Receptor is built from the ground up by musicians, for musicians. As a solution it’s in a world of its own. It’s built to last, but UNKLE needed someone to support it on stage. Receptor 2 employs new technology – not a lot of people know it, especially with the time frame would have been a push to get anyone trained.”
Martin spent a week programming the band's sounds onto Receptor, taking original sounds from studio recordings and mapping them across the multiple keyboards. He then hopped on the tour bus to Lyon with UNKLE as they kicked off the tour by headlining a festival in front of 4,000 people.
Martin said: “I was literally starting in the deep end. The only problem was the MacBook Pros were still being built when we left for Lyon. So I had to use my 3-year-old laptop for the first gig, which crashed. Luckily UNKLE managed to get through the track and I could reload the next track ready for them, but it was a big relief when the MacBook Pros arrived.
“It was nice to have the peace of mind not laying awake worrying if it was going to crash, the one thing we could all rely on was the Receptor. It never went wrong during the whole tour. It is so versatile it is perfect for the job.”
UNKLE was founded in 1994 by James Lavelle and Tim Goldsworthy. Lavelle is now working with Pablo Clements and they have just released the band’s fourth studio album, Where Did the Night Fall.
The team had been so impressed by MediaPros service and Martin’s expertise that they requested he join them at gigs in Manchester, Birmingham and the Far East.
While MediaPros was getting used to life on the road, the team was relieved the one thing they could rely on is the technology. Martin added: “We were travelling from one gig to another sleeping while we were on the road or in the air. It got to the point where I didn’t know what day it was, what time it was or where I was.
"With so many other things going on that the team has to try to prepare for, it is great to know technology is one thing we can rely on.”
For further information please visit the UNKLE Official Website