Ross Learmonth goes wild with Astera
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When all the planning for the tour started to fall into place, Ross knew he would be playing a mix of own headliner shows and festival slots, so he wanted a specials package that could be used for both scenarios that would make his set unique and stand out.
The conversation started with his producer, Denholm Harding, referencing the new songs and how to communicate these to the world, creating a show to match the feeling of the music and lyrics and how to find an aesthetic that was crafted especially for this project. In these discussions, Ross reveals they “literally described” having a set of tube-shaped lights on stands.
“I needed something light, portable and different for this new endeavour,” he explained. “I wanted to create a distinctive mood and atmosphere in the room as people would be hearing this music for the first time.”
He considered a few options, and one of the people he consulted in this quest was Duncan Riley of DWR Distribution which is also Astera’s South African distributor.
Duncan suggested Titans. Their wireless capability was exactly what Ross needed - quick and simple to rig and de-rig, etc., and he invited Ross to a demo at DWR’s showroom in Johannesburg. “It was exactly what I was looking for,” declared Ross, who immediately purchased a set of Titan Tubes to take on the tour.
For most of the shows, Ross would have six Titan Tubes on stands placed around the stage at the back, plus two fixtures for up lighting himself and drummer Denholm Harding with whom he played as a duo. Some shows also featured special guest musicians who could also be easily and effectively lit by moving a Titan Tube from the main rig!
As each fixture can be controlled individually - in this case by guitar tech Scott Coetzer using the AsteraApp on his smartphone - allowing warm lighting on the band and a neon hue surrounding the stage and other cool combinations that added depth, dimension, and a sense of drama to the stage.
Ross was very happy with the results. Having the Asteras on the road with them made “a huge difference,” he stated, including transforming some potentially drab looking stages into bright, positive spaces, adding greatly to the style and emotive feelings of the performance, “helping take an audience on a journey and connect more with the songs.” The Titan Tubes are currently on tour with Ross in Europe.
