Meeting The Stranglers

 by Howard W

During the Easter break I was lucky enough to attend The Stranglers concert at the Guildhall Portsmouth.  I was invited to attend the backstage soundcheck prior to the big show.  This gave me the opportunity to come to the venue before doors open to the public, to watch the band members, playing that night, soundcheck and then ask some questions with them along with some of the crew and venue team. 

There were 6 people at soundcheck including my Dad and I. A sound check is the preparation that takes place before a concert to adjust the sound on the venue's sound reinforcement system.   The first part involved the people whose jobs were controlling all the lights and surrounding environment.  The second part involved the band so the sound check then was about preparing, rehearsing and making sure everything worked.

The most exciting part was when I went on stage and got to play the four keyboards with Toby Hounsham, who is the TheStranglers keyboard player.  Later on I met the rest of the band including JJ Burnel and Baz Warne.