"When I was a kid, for a little while I lived in India, where my dad is from. We had access to a few American albums, and from a very young age I was intrigued by music," begins FOH engineer Jai Vatuk, on his introduction to music.
"When I went to see Led Zeppelin play, it cemented the fact that I wanted to be in the industry - I was fascinated by the scale of their whole production. I remember distinctly saying to my best friend 'that's what I want to do'. I was pointing at Jimmy Page playing the guitar, and the very next week I picked one up and became a musician. I toured in bands, but I was still fascinated by the production side of things..."
As a long-time client of Sound Image, Jai's story in an interesting one; he traded being on stage with his six-string, to mixing bands in the studio and juggling diverse tour production roles, honing his musician's ear into a world class sound engineer's ear.
"As my band started doing larger shows, learning about sound was born out of necessity because we couldn't afford to hire anyone. Getting monitor mixes together to eventually hiring FOH engineers to mix the band then led to me learning how to record in a studio, and that's when I really started to dig into engineering."
Enter two Daves that would leave a lasting impact on Jai's life. "A musician by the name of (the late) David Lindley, who was best known for his work alongside [rock singer] Jackson Brown hired me to produce some records for him and to go on the road as his FOH engineer and tour manager. And prior to that, I met Dave Shadoan when he was still the CEO of Sound Image. He was mixing monitors for the band I was in when we were opening for [blues guitarist] Robert Cray.
"The two Dave's were highly influential on me getting into this side of the business, and until I met Shadoan, I really didn't know about other careers in sound. We did an amphitheater tour together and I was so struck at how good his monitor mix was, and by how good one could be at mixing live sound. I asked him tons of questions along the way.
"So, when David Lindley asked me to go on the road with him, I was suddenly forced to deliver a live mix. I would think back to things producers and studio engineers had told me and tried to apply that to a live setting... only to discover that it was a completely different animal!
"I started seeking advice and paying attention to what other engineers were doing… Engineer Robert Scovill sat me down at front of house while he mixed Jackson Browne and then Tom Petty on the same night. It's funny how some nights really change your life."
During his transition from musician to FOH engineer, Sound Image has been a constant presence in Jai's career. "Sound Image has been a big part of my journey and in the 20 years I've spent on this side of the stage I've been a tour manager and a production manager more than a front of house engineer, so when I was doing my first tours in those roles, I called Dave Shadoan for help. Every client I've had - there's a long list - I would bring to Sound Image because they know great live sound."
Another part of Jai's journey, and on a more personal note, is his sobriety. "Eleven years ago, I made the decision to go sober," he explains. "And it felt like my career started again as a result. I had come to the realization that I needed a drastic change to continue. If I hadn't gotten sober, I would have just given up on the business altogether, so I owe a lot to the people that helped me along the way. Being sober enables you to move on and persevere despite failures or successes, it gives you the ability to manage emotions and to build resilience."
Today, Jai is in his seventh year of touring with Tyler Childers, in a dual role as a production manager for the first five years, and now solely concentrating on tour sound.
"It was such a nice situation to be in, to call Kim Sawaya [Sound Image Account Executive for Tyler Childers] and say, 'I have a tour that's going to be worth your while,' because Sound Image has been helping me out for decades, and all the while treating me like I'm one of their bigger clients.
"It's only in being with Tyler that I have realized how beneficial it is to have the global reach of Clair. It's a tremendous advantage to have that access to equipment, skills, people - I couldn't do what I do without my Systems Engineer, Jarrod Geruntino either - so from a customer service standpoint, since the acquisition, we haven't skipped a beat."
Jai says it's a 'luxury' to be able to mix one of his favorite artists, and his collaboration with country star Tyler is right where he wants to be. "When I think about all the different jobs that I have done - stagehand, monitor tech, playback tech, backline tech, production manager, tour manager, FOH engineer - I'd recommend to anyone wanting to tour that paying attention to things outside of your immediate sphere and department, and exploring other roles, will be of huge advantage to you.
"I was living in LA, but secretly, I wanted to get into mixing country music, and when I heard Tyler and discovered country picker guitar, I thought he was one of the best songwriters I've ever met - and I've met a lot. I stand behind his songs any day of the week.”
The Mule Pull Tour sold-out dates across North America, including two shows at Madison Square Garden, and this winter, Childers' Kentucky drawl will fill London's O2 Arena, transcending his small-town origins to resonate with audiences an ocean away. Helping to convey this emotion is Jai’s dream gig: “I take it as my mission every night to make sure the delivery of Tyler’s songs connects with people. It's a powerhouse of sound with his voice coming through the middle, hitting you right where it counts."
