Barn on The Farm is forging a serious reputation as a UK festival event for showcasing new and emerging talent and the brightest 'ones-to-watch' after show-stopping performances by artists like Ed Sheeran, Ben Howard, Bastille, Hozier and others all headlining past Barn on the Farm's just ahead of major career leaps.
Organisers Josh Sanger and Matt Keene have kept it intimate with 2,000 tickets and three stages; cutting edge with the lively and energised band line ups; and friendly, encapsulating the true spirit of a festival community - with the bonus of there being plenty of space to move.
MIRRAD became involved for the first time last year via Bryan Leitch, explained Jamie Thompson. They supplied lighting design services crew and asked Colour Sound to come on-board as the rental partner.
Colour Sound's Haydn Cruickshank (H) comments, "We are always happy to collaborate with MIRRAD as their work is so varied and interesting. This event in particular is really special and we can all relate to its core values".
The seventh Barn on the Farm was headlined by Oh Wonder and Jack Garrett and this year the Main Stage was ensconced in a new cattle shelter for the first time. This was built on the land in the intervening 12 months, providing a semi-permanent structure that can be utilized for the event with the bonus of proper weather protection.
The moving lights were 28 x ProLights Diamond 7 LED washes dotted around trussing at the back and sides and on floor stands onstage, together with 8 x Robe MMX Spots providing the hard edge fixtures.
Eight Robe CycFX 8s were positioned upstage at the back, skimming up some wooden slatting which formed a backdrop and took lighting extremely well, bringing a hint of 3D to the stage area.
Ten active Sunstrips were attached to the back truss pieces plus 2-lites, and a single truss section rigged to a structural pole at the front facilitated positions for the ETC Source Four key lights.
An Avolites Sapphire from MIRRAD ran the main stage lighting which was overseen by Jamie. He and the team also accommodated a couple of headliner guest LDs and their specials packages.
"Colour Sound helped enormously in providing a generous amount of kit for the available budget," commented Jamie. "The event is gaining profile and as well as putting a lot of vision and thought into the artist booking, Josh and Matt are really keen to ensure their audiences and performers can benefit from the best production experiences."
