Lighting designer Stevie Marr has worked with the band for two years, and uses Adlib as his lighting supplier because, he says: "The service is excellent, they have the right attitude and the crew are always great - it's crew that really make a tour at the end of the day!"
For this stretch of the tour, he wanted all lighting sources to be at a low level, to give an edgy look that reflected the band's increasingly raw and harsh style of playing and their relentless energy. He also wanted them to be seen at all times, and so opted for an 'almost-floor' based rig, with a front truss used solely to provide key lighting positions.
The visually dominant element of the stage lighting was 18 vertical A-type truss sections, each with four VersaTube LED fixtures clipped onto the two onstage cords of the truss. The band played in the central area front of this line of columns. The VersaTubes and the Catalyst media server driving them were supplied by XL Video.
Adlib supplied the truss sections complete with special floor bases designed to make the task of evenly spacing them out effortless and accurate, plus 12 Studio Beams and six Studio Spot 250s all perched on top of the towers. There were also five ARRI Redheads on stands onstage in close proximity to the band - which had constituted the "specials" throughout their summer festival tours. Twelve 4-lite Moles, one set of six in open white and the other set gelled red - were wedged in-between the towers at the back. A set of six Atomic strobes and two Studio Spot 250s were on the floor. The front truss comprised six Studio Beams, completing the lighting fixture count.
One of the beneficial side effects of having a largely floor-based system was the great flexibility it afforded when reducing to fit into smaller venues. This meant that the design concept looked good however large or small the stage space, and it also proved extremely quick to rig and de-rig each day.
Adlib supplied a Hog iPC and a wing for control, which Marr was running in Hog 3 mode, and two crew - Andy Rowe and Ian Tomlinson.
Adlib Lighting's Pete Abraham says: "It's great working with an LD like Stevie - his ideas are always unconventional and different and it's been interesting to see the overall Maximo Park lighting design evolve throughout the year."
(Chris Henry)
