Halestorm Back from the Dead with Bandit
- Details
Years ago, when lighting designer Craig Richter first started touring with Halestorm, he found himself at a state fair armed with an array of lighting carts. Staring at a house system comprised of an out-of-date 180K PAR 64 system, Richter naturally wished for a rig full of movers that would better suit the overall look of the show. During the hours before the evening’s show, Richter took the opportunity to make some chases and “program” the par system into the programmed show.
“Once the sun went down and the band went on, I was blown away by the fact that the par can system looked awesome and played very well the vibe and style music of the band,” said Richter. “Ever since then, I have always wanted to do a modern take on the old school PAR system.”
Now in 2022, Richter’s vision became a reality with Bandit supplying modern LED PAR Fixtures in old school, PRT double hung lamp bar truss, while movers ride in old style tech truss that matches up with the PRT. Bandit provided Martin MAC Viper Profiles, Claypaky Sharpys, VL 3500 Washes, Elation Color Chorus 48, Chauvet ColorDASH Accent 3, Chauvet Nexus 4x4, Elation CuePix Blinder WW2, Elation CuePix Blinder WW4, Martin VDO Atomic Bold, Martin Atomic 3000 LED Strobe and two grand MA2 full consoles.
“With every album cycle, Halestorm wants to push things a little more on the production side of things,” explained Richter. “It allows me to start thinking on a grander scale rather than just keeping it to a simple floor package. This year, they took a big step and decided to carry full production, so that added a bit more thinking going into things: truck space, power, crew, budget, set, programming time; all of those things and more had to be accounted for in the design process to ensure everything went as smooth as it can to pull off a good showing for the band's first full production system.”
Richter was initially searching for an LED fixture that had the front lens size of a Par64, single sourced, and able to hold up in travel.
“There are a lot of static wash fixtures out on the market, but I also needed a fixture with a front lens that looked the part,” said Richter. “Jake Tickle and I looked around for just about every type of LED Par out there and nothing was really standing out. Then Martin put out the VDO Atomic Bold, and I got a couple demo units sent to Bandit. Once I saw them in person, I knew it was exactly what I was looking for.”
With an Aura back lit lens and the ability to be pixel mapped and run as a strobe, the VDO Atomic Bold’s versatility meant it could act as various fixtures.
Groups of six VDO Atomic Bolds are mounted on lamp bars in PRT Truss while Martin Viper Profiles act as the main hard-edge fixture.
“I am a big fan of the gobo package that the Vipers have, and it helps add the texture to the stage,” said Richter. “On top of that they have the speed that I need to be able to make the transition that are called for.”
I’ve been privileged to see the Halestorm production evolution, and this most recent iteration is an absolute home run,” said Bandit Lites vice president of business development, Brent Barrett. “Craig has managed to deliver a classic rock rig with today’s tools and the results are stunning. I always look forward to working with Michael Mahar, Chris Morrison and the entire Halestorm team; their dedication and hard work is evident in every detail.”
