Nov 1, 2003 12:00 PM

For more than a decade, Reverend Horton Heat (aka Jim Heath), the high priest of psychobilly drama and musical excess, has ripped up the nation's highways, bringing his music to the faithful with the help of bass-slapping “Jimbo” Wallace and drummer Scott Churilla. Speaking to Mix from the Pearl Street Ballroom (Northhampton, Mass.), FOH engineer/tour manager Dave Allen explains how he tries to keep things under some semblance of control.

What is the essence of a Reverend show?
Basically, it's pure balls-to-the-walls music, but not your standard three-chord power trio either. On any given night, one song might be a Latin ballad-flavored thing, the next an in-your-face punk tune and then a Johnny Cash cover. They just never let up.

How do you hang on?
I do everything I can in advance to make sure nothing's going to get out of control. We have an upright bass with a pickup and it's a monster when it comes to low-end punch. I have to be on top of that; otherwise, it will come back and bite me in the ass.

What's your choice for vocal mics?
Since coolness counts in this application as much as performance, standard issue for vocals is a classic Shure 55SH Series II mic with an SM58 capsule. My all-time favorite vocal mic is the SM58. You can't beat it. The SM57 is my favorite all-purpose mic; you can use it for just about anything, and it works.

When you're not with the Rev, where are you?
Outdoors! I love hiking, water-skiing, snowboarding — all sorts of general play outside. On my time off, I'm the last guy you'll see in any smoke-filled venue. I like nice, clean, fresh air.

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