Bandit lights the way for Winter Jam
- Details
“Each year I lean towards putting most of my budget into the flown rig,” said longtime production manager Jerry Holcomb. “The tour usually has artists that bring some sort of ground package, so I leave room for that. Additionally, I have to be conscience of truck space and set up time. Winter Jam doors are early compared to most tours considering we have up to 10 artists and speakers each night; so, a rig that is efficient enough to fit into a truck and a half yet still look big enough for an arena is my goal.”
Holcomb sought Bandit client rep Allen Deneau’s recommendation on fixtures to compete with the large LED surface that takes up the entirety of the upstage. His answer? HES SolaPix 37.
“I’ve been real happy with their output and performance so far,” said Holcomb. “They also suggested using the BMFL Wash Beam for its output.”
Winter Jam also required a large quantity of fixtures to line out the thrust and B Stage area. Bandit supplied Elation CuePix WW2 blinders, which connected the looks of the WW2s that are flown in each truss section.
In total, Bandit Lites provided 240ft of Tyler Truss and eight Ladder Towers as well as nearly 200 fixtures including Chauvet Color STRIKE M, Elation CuePix WW2, HES SolaPix and ROBE BMFL Wash Beams as well as a grandMA3 for control.
“Working with Jerry, and the entire WJ team, has been absolutely amazing,” said Allen Deneau. “Jerry knows what he needs and leaves room for discussion on what’s going to accomplish those tasks perfectly. The Solapix and their tremendous output paired with the BMFL WashBeams deliver a ton of firepower and a very robust feature set.”
Kurtis Wheat, Holcomb’s design partner of eight years and Winter Jam’s tour LD came off the road to pursue his woodworking company and Chris ‘Snooch’ Lighthall replaced him as tour LD. “He’s a great asset to the tour and I look forward to having him involved in future Winter Jam designs,” said Holcomb.
While Bandit may have been partnering with Holcomb on the lighting for Winter Jam for years, the team never rests on ensuring each that each system meets and exceeds expectations.
“We used a portion of the rig for a conference a week prior to the start of Winter Jam,” finished Holcomb. “The rig was well prepped and had no issues, but during the week it got re-prepped again, adding chain guides and other suggestions from the Bandit lead Cody Cheatham. His changes, along with (project manager) Matt Dean at Bandit really made the rig set up a lot more efficient.”
