Ryan Goldbacher on Touring with Tom Keifer, Mixing FOH (and Monitors), and AI

This week front-of-house engineer Ryan Goldbacher calls in from the road with Tom Keifer, and you’ll quickly learn that landing the next gig comes down to two things: competence, and not being miserable to be around. Word of mouth is the real currency of touring life, so Always Be Performing applies long after you step off stage: when the tour bus is smaller than your bedroom and there are twelve people on it, how you treat the room matters. You’ll pick up honest strategies for protecting your sanity on the road, from taking a walk to renting a car and disappearing into the mountains, plus why testing your limits only works if you actually know where they are. Then you and Ryan get deep into the craft. You’ll hear why the way FOH mixes your band one night can shape how it sounds for gigs to come, why you’ve got about thirty seconds to describe your band to a house engineer at load-in, and the EQ lessons Ryan learned the hard way dialing in loud rock guitars and high-passing the bass. Stop calling a kick a bass drum, leave some air in it, and don’t be afraid to turn the knobs until it sounds good. From the pressure-cooker of mixing monitors on Mr. Big’s final US tour to a frank take on AI mixing and building the next generation of engineers, this one’s loaded for anyone serious about live sound. 00:00:00 Gig Gab 541 – Monday, July 6th, 2026 July 6th: National Fried Chicken Day Guest co-hosts: Ryan Goldbacher 00:01:17 Ryan on tour with Tom Keifer 00:02:29 Word of mouth is the key Competence is key…that’s number one. Close number two: you’re not miserable to be around! 00:05:09 The tour bus is smaller than your bedroom, and there’s 12 people in it 00:07:19 Creating your own personal space Take a walk Rent a car and drive into the mountains 00:08:45 Week off between gigs Fly me to Spokane, then I’ll drive to Alaska Skagway, Alaska 00:11:11 FOH for Tom Keifer for Summer, 2026 You can’t spread yourself too thin If it won’t fit on your plate, get it off Having a dedicated monitor engineer makes a huge difference 00:13:50 Test your limits, but don’t be afraid to know where they are. 00:16:52 Always be communicating 00:18:46 This tour Ryan brings a FOH console House monitor engineer Band is all on wedges A&H Avantis Tom Keifer goes over the entire set with the house lighting designer 00:21:12 Tom Keifer helps Ryan with producing the show for the night The benefits of working with an artist who tells you how to make yourself more valuable to them 00:23:32 The FOH and Band relationship The way FOH mixes the band for one gig could affect the band for the future. Respect this! Communicate what your band sounds like to the engineer…early on as you’re loading in 00:29:42 Developing trust with your engineer first 00:31:03 Thirty seconds to describe your band 00:32:33 Making the next generation of engineers better 00:33:59 Engineers who are musicians / Musicians who are engineers ProTools…great software, dumb name! 00:38:18 Learning from mistakes 00:40:16 Stacking EQs on Rock Guitars by mistake…and then intentionally! Working with loud guitars on Stiff Little Fingers Steve Smith introduced Ryan to Stiff Little Fingers 00:41:21 SPONSOR: OneSkin. Born from over a decade of longevity research, OneSkin’s OS-01 Peptide is proven to target the visible signs of aging, helping you unlock your healthiest skin now and as you age. Get 15% off OneSkin with the code GigGab athttps://oneskin.co/GigGab  #oneskinpod #ad 00:43:30 Accidentally learning to drop guitar EQ between 2k-4k Adding a high-pass filter on the bass guitar in a rock band 00:48:21 Don’t call a kick drum a “bass” drum, otherwise you’ll mix it the wrong way. You want some air in that kick! 00:49:07 Don’t be afraid to turn the knobs until it sounds good 00:51:27 The pressure of mixing monitors makes you a great engineer Mixing monitors for Mr. Big’s final US tour 00:55:09 RTAs are great, but be able to do it by ear 00:58:29 Speaking of Toys…Let’s Talk AI Mixing Mentorship and apprentice programs 01:08:43 Show Logistics 01:10:03 Gig Gab 541 Outtro Follow Ryan Goldbacher @ryanthegoldbacher on IG Contact Gig Gab! @GigGabPodcast on Instagram [email protected] Sign Up for the Gig Gab Mailing List The post Ryan Goldbacher on Touring with Tom Keifer, Mixing FOH (and Monitors), and AI – Gig Gab 541 appeared first on Gig Gab.