The Kinesys system on Muse - currently touring the US - was specified by the band's stage and visual designer Oli Metcalfe and automation guru Gareth Williams - who has been an advocate of Kinesys innovations for many years. Williams is operating the K2 on the tour.
They needed the K2 control package due to the complexity and accuracy of the automation cues, and also because these had to be linked to the Catalyst media server feeding video content to the moving LED screens. This allows the video images to be mapped and sized / re-sized in real time as the video surfaces are moving.
A major part of Metcalfe's visual concept for the tour are five concentric square video screens, all made up from Pixled Linx12 product each being 1.2 metres in depth. These are attached to square trusses incrementing in size and all fit inside one another forming a pyramid shape that can also be inverted.
The two larger video squares are flown from four 1 tonne Liftket electric chain hoists and the three smaller ones each from four half tonne Liftkets. All 20 motors are fitted with Kinesys Elevation 1+ vari-speed controllers and driven by one of the new standalone K2 control consoles.
Close to the K2 control position is a rack-mounted computer also running K2 in full tracking backup mode.
The screens receive playback video content and IMAG footage, with both sources output to screen via the Catalyst, triggered from Metcalfe's Hog 4 lighting console.
Each of the 20 video screen points is fitted with a Kinesys LibraCELL load monitoring shackle, so Williams can easily and clearly monitor the dynamic loading of all the points onscreen as they change positions.
The five new Neg Earth DigiHoist controllers are being used to control motors for all the lighting points - 16 of them on the main grid and 15 on the sub-hung lighting trusses.
Another 12 Kinesys LibraCELLs are utilised to monitor the 2 tonne Lodestars used to lift the grid trussing.
Kinesys' MD Dave Weatherhead comments, "Neg Earth has always been a great customer and a keen early-adopter of automation technology, in turn offering their clients an exciting, new potential creative dimension for their work."
(Jim Evans)
