Karrie’s blog deals with her work as long term monitor engineer for Pearl Jam, issues facing women in the industry, and balancing being a single mom with touring. She is a founder of Soundgirls.org.
Reverse Sexism, Positive Discrimination, Affirmative Action
One of the main arguments about feminism is that it promotes reverse sexism or that movement is “sexist towards men.” These arguments come from people who do not understand oppression and how it works. Reverse sexism does not and cannot exist. Systematic oppression is when a society has normalized over a long period of time unjust ...Times Up! Time to Move Forward
We are tired of having to KICK DOWN THE DOOR to just get our foot in. It’s 2018, and we need to stop talking about it and take concrete steps towards inclusion in our industry.SoundGirls.Org – NAMM – She Rocks Awards
The last week has been a whirlwind of activity for SoundGirls.Org. We welcomed several members from around the globe to Anaheim and NAMM last week. It was so fantastic to meet members in person and I know everyone had a great time meeting up and hanging out with each other.Paying it Forward
By: Karrie Keyes Berklee College of Music hosted a panel on Women in Audio, this past Sunday at The Village Studios in Los Angeles. Organized by Justine Taormino, from Berklee College of Music, the panel included April Tucker, Tina Morris, and myself. We had a mix of Berklee Students and Alumni and SoundGirls.Org members. It was ...How to Deal With Competitive People
By Karrie Keyes Or How to Encourage More Cooperation Most of us working in the music industry work with people we view as being overly competitive and are often viewed in a negative light. We all desire a workplace where everyone works as a team and gets along, where the environment is productive and enjoyable. Co-workers that ...Live Sound Camp for Girls
By: Karrie Keyes We did it! Last weeks Live Sound Camp was fantastic and all participants (Tiffany and I included) learned a lot! First and foremost there are a lot of people to thank. So I am going to that first. A huge thanks to SG Member Tiffany Hendren. Tiffany volunteered to assist with the camp, paying ...Summer Camp – On the Road
By Karrie Keyes One of my daughters has run away and joined the circus – The Warped Tour that is. Although, she is no stranger to the road, it is the first time she is out there on her own, getting paid, being part of a crew. As the date to leave approached, she asked if ...Identifying the Battles Worth Fighting
By: Karrie Keyes Please note – this blog is just my observations and thoughts. It is written to encourage debate, ideas, and reflection on sexism within our industry. It is important that we look at from different angles and perspectives. It is not written to suggest that we simply ignore it and move on – it ...The Who – Pete Townshend- Eddie Vedder- Joan Jett – Joe Walsh – Rick Nielsen
A few weeks ago I opened up my email to discover that I would be going to Chicago for “Celebrating The Who” Tribute Concert. I was told that we would be bringing E.V.’s wedges (usually we bring a pair in situations like this) and that I would be getting a set list in a few ...Unconscious Bias
My blog was originally going to be about competition. The positive and negative of competition in the workplace, how men and women may view competition differently, and how to deal with it. A few things happened last week that have caused me to do a lot reflecting on biases, mine, and how biases affect outcomes ...No Girls Allowed!
By: Karrie Keyes About a month ago, I was scrolling through my feed on Facebook and noticed a post from one of our members, apologizing to her co-workers that she had somehow offended the night before. What did she post that would offend so many of her co-workers? She had posted SoundGirls.Org and Women’s Audio Mission ...Challenging Internalized Sexism
Addressing sexism within our industry and throughout our lives is a complex one, but one we should explore and understand. It requires understanding how it affects our lives, and I think a good place to start is how we process it and deal with it. How much of it is ingrained into us, without ever ...Sexism – It's still an Issue in 2015
By: Karrie Keyes Happy New Year to everyone, I hope that 2015 is filled with work and new adventures and experiences. As for myself, 2015 will be a slower year, as the band is taking most of the year off, and we all get some much-needed downtime. I will be able to focus my energy on ...Surviving the Slow Season
Roadies are typically seasonal workers, our most active season for work is usually during the spring and summer, with the year winding down during the fall. As the holiday season approaches, our gigs for the year are close to wrapping up. It is an excellent time to return home for some downtime.Two Shows, Two Weekends, One Festival – Part Two
The week between ACL we traveled to Tulsa, OK, and Lincoln, NE. We had two days off in Tulsa, right in downtown – let’s say it leaves a bit to be desired and with temperatures hovering around 100 degrees walking around was out. I did make a trip to the Greenwood Historic District, which was ...Two Weekends, Two Shows, One Festival
Last night we successfully completed our first weekend at Austin City Limits Festival. If it was a competition it would be safe to say we won or at least made into the post season. (review of show) It was a great show, the weather was not brutally hot or cold and it did not turn ...Just Do It
By: Karrie Keyes Lately, this theme seems to keep popping up in my life. It has showed up in conversations I have had with friends about our kids, college, and following their passions. It is a constant theme in a long term project I am working on, that has me researching the early days of concert ...The Gigs I Will Never Forget
By: Karrie Keyes The gigs that you remember usually have had a great impact on you. They can inspire & empower or devastate & destroy you. They can humble you. They can make you laugh or make you cry. They can provide a sense of accomplishment. Sometimes you witnessed a performance that becomes legendary or ...The Women are Taking Over!
By: Karrie Keyes The start of a new tour is always interesting, seeing friends you have not seen for awhile, being with your road family, and always meeting new characters. I try to figure out who is who and what is what pretty fast. So it is on the first day, after traveling twenty hours or ...Touring Life and Motherhood or How You Can’t Have it All
Give us a world where half our homes are run by men, and half our institutions are run by women. I’m pretty sure that would be a better world.”Touring Life and Being a Mother – Part Two
By: Karrie Keyes I was on tour with Neil Young and Pearl Jam when I discovered I was pregnant – at the time it seemed like a cruel joke. I was pretty happy with my career, spending 8 – 10 months a year on the road. I was working with artists that I enjoyed and respected, ...Touring Life and Being a Mother
By: Karrie Keyes I read a Tumblr post recently that was in response to the fabulous Pro Sound Interview with producer and recording engineer Trina Shoemaker. The author of the post wrote that after reading the article, she had resigned herself to the fact that to make it in the pro audio industry she would never ...Monitor Meltdown Lighting Bolt Fall Tour 2013
By: Karrie Keyes Production Day – What Production Day ✓ Two Crappy Sounding Arenas back to back ✓ Four days of Throw and Go ✓ Record Released ✓ Full Throttle into A+ Markets ✓ Flown Side Fills Not Loud Enough ✓ Flown Side Fills Killing Band ✓ Some Flown Side Fills Boxes Wired out of Polarity ✓ Nerves, Stress, and more ...Test Run
By: Karrie Keyes We will be doing pre-production in London, Ontario, not quite the ideal place to be if you forget something or get additional gear if you need it. So there are many weeks spent organizing, ordering, specing, and prepping all the additional gear and parts needed for the new monitor system. I also have ...The Work Begins
By: Karrie Keyes With the mandate of Turn It Up – Turn It Down, I headed to see Springsteen. Monty Carlo (Springsteen’s ME) was a perfect host, and we spent time discussing the politics of our bands, new gear, and the challenges of doing monitors. Springsteen has a unique set up that is designed and works ...Turn it Up – Turn it Down
By: Karrie Keyes UPDATE – I am currently on tour with Pearl Jam as they support their critically acclaimed 10th studio album Lighting Bolt. Just a few months after a successful launch of the redesigned monitor system, it has crashed and burned just a few shows into the tour. Needless to say, it has been an incredibly ...The Volume Battle
By: Karrie Keyes Over the course of twenty two years with Pearl Jam, the stage volume has always been an issue. Back in the day, stage volume measured around 120 to 122 db on any given day. Mind you, we were playing clubs and small theaters and often the stereo drum mix ( 2 Rat dual ...Analog vs Digital continues
By: Karrie Keyes Stupid Wonderful Digital. I have to second Michelle’s thoughts on digital consoles – “Oh digital console, how do I dislike you? Let me count the ways”. I could make a very long list and I have, every time I go to put a spec together. I prefer to use an analog console. I have ...Made in America
By: Karrie Keyes Originally this blog was going to detail the new Pearl Jam monitor system in reverse. When I sat down to write it – I realized that it was going to be difficult to document the stages and changes, and have them make sense. So I have decided to document it from beginning to ...Building the new Pearl Jam Monitor rig in reverse…
By: Karrie Keyes I will be blogging about the months of work redesigning the Pearl Jam monitor system and reducing the overall stage volume. This work culminated in An Evening with Pearl Jam at Wrigley Field. I will be blogging backwards from Wrigley Field to Made in America 2012. July 19 – 20, 2013 Wrigley Field It’s 4 AM ...