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AWOLNATION chooses Robe

Thu, 29 Sep 2016 11:54

AWOLNATION. Photo: Station Six, LLC


Mitchell Schellenger from Station Six, LLC was delighted to get the call asking if he’d create a production design for U.S. based electronic rockers AWOLNATION on their recent tour … since it was one of the bands for which he’s always had a few ideas in his head!

The lighting scheme included four types of Robe fixtures - CycFX 4s, Pointes, MMX Spots and PATT 2013s – supplied by LMG Touring, a full-service provider of audio, video, lighting and LED.

Schellenger started the design process by establishing some budget figures with management and then chatted with lead singer Aaron Bruno who is integrally involved in the whole stage presentation. They talked about his inspirations for the music among other things and bounced a few ideas around which kept returning to a water theme.

They based their final ideas on a nautical theme, so the stage set up started with the riser layout and the drum riser in the centre at 45 degrees, resembling the bow of a ship. Schellenger then lined this with the CycFX 4s so he could create waves of light that could sweep across the set.

When Schellenger and Bruno were discussing ideas like porthole window effects, circles and colours, Schellenger immediately thought of the PATT 2013s. He knew they would bring a “perfect warmth” that would cut through the largely cold basic palette of the show.

When AWOLNATION first saw the set in production rehearsals – Schellenger always has a look on stage to show off the rig before he walks a band in to see their set for the first time – and the PATTs were then turned on to show them off properly, the band literally lit up with excitement!

The biggest challenge in creating the design as a whole was to ensure that it would work with the great variation in stage sizes and spaces on the itinerary! They played a combination of sheds, theatres, clubs and festivals, so a rig that would scale up and down and still give all the drama and impact needed was the goal.

Running AWOLNATION’s lighting on the road was lighting director Andy May who worked with LMG’s lighting technician Chris Hill. The production manager was Bob Strakele and the tour manager Dan McKay.

Jimmy Russo, LMG account executive commented, "When Mitchell and I got together to discuss this tour, it was very apparent that ease of set up, big punch in a small package and over all artistic look were all very important to him. This made it really easy to work with the Robe products. Using the PATT 2013s as the anchor of the design, the CycFXs lined the drums, while the MMX Washbeam provided a huge range of features. It looked really good yet took up such a small amount of truck space.”





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