The itinerary has often included visiting two or three different countries in a weekend, so all the equipment for the lighting design was specified by Abbiss and sourced locally at each venue, including an Avolites Tiger Touch lighting console.
Abbiss also carried his own Tiger Touch console to some of the shows to guarantee getting his control desk of choice. Weighing only 27Kgs tucked neatly into a Peli case, it is a small and light enough option for baggage on any tour with this set up.
At the Heineken Open Air Festival in Poland, he ran all 12 data control lines via Ethernet out of the desk, whilst using the touch screen to make a basic schematic of their standard rig and patch in the fixtures from the event rig to match, so it worked with their drawing.
"The touch screen manipulation is absolutely brilliant," he states. Other features he likes include the ability to change sequence speeds and parameters very quickly 'on-the-fly'. The Instant Colour Mix on the touch screen is another time saving facility. It offers a full colour map at the press of a button, from which any colour can be swiftly selected and added into presets.
Fatboy's standard rig spec featured 30 Martin Professional Atomic strobes, 34 1200 series Spot and 44 1200 series wash moving lights, five large flower effects, two Lightening Strikes strobes and 44 LED battens (PixelLine style), 34 4-cell moles, four Studio Due CityColor wash fixtures or an equivalent source for powerful backlighting from the floor.
The design was flexible and dynamic, in keeping with Fatboy's energy-pumping set and very own distinctive mixology; an eclectic mix of baseline classics and contemporary dance vibes.
(Jim Evans)
